Dylan, Alivia and Isaac
I know a lot of my focus has been on Abrielle lately. I eat, sleep and breath her right now... and rightly so, she needs me in every way.
These three were once my sweet little baby angels too and I doted on them just as much as I do Abrielle. I look at these pictures and marvel how time has flown by. I marvel at how handsome and beautiful my children are to me. I marvel that Heavenly Father let me be their parent. I marvel that each of them has a quality, gift or talent that our family needs, that even in our roughest rockiest days we really do need each other.
Dylan
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We lovingly tease Dylan that he is the genetic anomaly of our family.
His dark skin and Ethiopian build are not the Giovannoni/Ward norm.
He is 100 percent me on the inside though. He's the blessing/curse every mother wishes upon her child when she says "some day you'll have a child just like you and then you'll understand".
I know what he is thinking, I know how he'll internalize things, I know his heart is tender and fragile, but he's the first to put it on the line. I know I wont be alone when I'm crying to the end of a sad or happy movie. I know that when I have those moments when he's got himself into a pickle (which is just about all the time) and I feel like he's never going to slow down and think things through, that I have to remember that finally after years of driving my parents nuts, I got it together and some day my dearest Dylan will finally get it too!
Dylan is imaginative.
He's so smart.
He is awesome at entertaining himself, whether it's reading books, building Lego's , drawing Pokemon, playing video games, or chasing bugs, It nice to have a child who doesn't have to be entertained by me 24-7.
He loves deeply.
He's a people pleaser.
He dreams big.
He's forgiving.
Alivia
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We lovingly tease Alivia that there was a mix up in heaven and she should have been our first born.
She has all the qualities and traits of a first born child.
She's responsible.
She works hard and likes to do things right the first time.
She's very motherly and she loves to be the boss.
She's smart.
She's beautiful.
She is fiercely determined.
She was born a feisty little thing and she'll die a feisty thing.
She has a flare for the dramatic.
She's analytical far more than she is emotional.
She loves to be girly. Heels, make-up, jewelry, and nail polish totally delight her.
Isaac
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What don't we tease this kid about?
He is our tank.
He is the comic relief our family so desperately needs.
He's all personality.
He is a whirl wind of energy that has a knack for destruction.
He's all boy.
I have many moments where I don't know whether to squeeze him or paddle his hind end. Even when he's destroying things he does it with a twinkle in his eye and a goofy irresistible grin, that makes being angry difficult.
He likes food. Love might be a better word actually.
He is his daddy's best friend.
He's as happy as a lark as long as there are siblings to tease and the food cupboard, fridge and freezer are well stoked with cereal, bologna, cheese and ice cream.
Then there is me.
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I cannot remember the last time I looked in the mirror and liked what I saw.
I consider myself lucky (and extra motivated) these days if I even get a shower.
But putting my vanity and lack of pride aside, Here is one lucky women!
I struggle so much with being a good mother to my children, so I pray every night that God and my children can be forgiving of all my short comings, because I know my children are the greatest gifts I'll ever be given.
I know they are his children, and I know they have infinite worth. I know He gave me each one of them with their strenghths and weaknesses, because I needed them (and I hope they needed me).
Dylan, Alivia, Isaac and Abrielle I love you!
