Letters to Rex

Rex Allen,

My baby boy.  I just love you so much!  You have grown so much it seems like since you started Kindergarten.  I wasn't really prepared for it.  You tried to sit on my lap yesterday. I was looking at your back and shoulders and realizing you weren't a baby anymore.  You are a little man now.  You barely fit on my lap.  And you rarely want to sit there anymore.

You are the sweetest boy I know.  Last week I was in bed with a migraine for a couple days.  On the second day you came in my room and told me "Mommy I really don't want you to go to bed early tomorrow." You love doing things for me when I'm sick.  You love taking care of me.

When I was pregnant with you, I didn't know how much I needed you.  But you filled my heart completely the day you joined us.  And now I can't imagine my life without you in it.

You are such a big boy in a little body.  You have such big feelings and emotions.  You love your friends like something I've never seen.  Your best friend Matthew was recently sick with the flu and strep and you were so sad about it.  He had just spent the night at our house.  You cried when we dropped him off at home the next day.  You just didn't want your sleepover to end.

Every time you see a sloth, you have to buy it for me.  Even if it means spending your money on something for me.  2 times Daddy has taken you to the book store to buy a book and you spent your money on a sloth book because you knew I would like it.  But it's not just me.  Anytime you see something green you tell me we need to buy it for Granny.  Anytime you see something crafty you say Nanny could make that.  You have the biggest heart.

Sometimes your emotions are too big for your little body.  We're still working on it.  You're doing so much better about vocalizing how you feel instead of lashing out immediately.

Right now you love your ipad, the computer, and playing the nintendo switch.  You're in the top 10 on laps run at school.  And you didn't want me to make a big deal about it.  It was just part of your day, no big deal.  But to me, you are a big deal baby boy!  Everything you do is special to me!

I love you so much and I hope you never forget it!

Letters to Rex: September 2018

Rex Allen,

I hope you are able to read this some day.  I hope this blog stays out there long enough for me to be able to share it with you.

I can't believe you just turned 6!  My baby!  I'm sorry honey, but you will always be my baby. 

You started Kindergarten! And of course on your first day you couldn't have cared less when it was time for me to walk out the door.  It was harder on me than you.  I mean, it's not like I wanted you to cry.  I'm glad you're happy and comfortable there.  But part of me still needs you to need me. 

Yes that's right.  I need you to need me.  You're my last baby.  My last baby....ever.  My last baby I will ever send to Kindergarten.  There was a time when I provided everything you needed.  A time that seems like yesterday to me.  A time when your daddy went back to work and it was just me, you, and sissy hanging out at home all day.  And even more recent, a time when only I could understand you.  Now your sissy has mainly taken over that roll.  I still understand you more than daddy.  But sissy understands you even more than me.  I don't understand it, but I've heard stories that your daddy and your Uncle James were the same way. 

You're about to start your second year of speech therapy.  But you've already lost some of the words and phrases and mispronunciations that you used to have.  Things that I didn't know I would miss. 
"Big Boop Belly" will always be my favorite.  I was reminded of the "Wahlburgers goo goo goo" video today.  It almost made me cry.  I know that very soon you won't say "Keacher" instead of teacher.  You won't say "Dissy" isntead of Sissy.  And unfortunately you probably won't call me Mommy for much longer.  I know that big boys say "Mom."  But I'm not ready.  I'm not ready for you to not be my baby boy. 

I love you so much it hurts sometimes. 

My baby boy.  You are growing up so fast.  Please slow down.  Because I still need you.

Letters to Rex: 12/28/16

Rex Allen,

You are the most amazing little boy I have ever met.  You say or do something every day that just amazes me.  Your attitude is fierce, but your love is even more fierce. You know exactly when to lay the sweetness on me...usually when you know you've done something wrong and you're about to be in trouble.  I keep telling you that your little smile will not get you out of trouble forever.

You are so smart, but you just don't want anyone to know it.  When you're counting or singing ABCs you don't want anyone to be listening to you. I'm constantly trying to catch you on video. Last week daddy was spelling your name because he didn't want you to know that we were talking about you.  As soon as he spelled your name you said, "that's Rex."  We were so shocked that you knew how to spell your name!  You did let me take a short video of you saying it.  You also read "Taxi" on the back of a car on tv.  Who knew you could do that?!

You love your sister so much.  You want to do everything she does, and you want to be a part of anything she's doing.  Even when she doesn't want you to.

Your best friend at daycare is Matthew.  Everyday when I ask you who you played with, you say "Maffoo."  I love the way you say it, and I wish you would say it like that forever.

You did get in trouble for saying "what the hell?!"  I couldn't even believe you said it.  But then you said "what the heck hell?!" so now I say that all the time.  Everyone at work asks me everyday what you said the night before.  They have never met you, but they think you are so funny.

You love spending time with your family.  You and Mattie are so close and I just love it.  But you have also become really close with Blake.  I can see the 3 of you getting in lots of trouble as you grow up.

I hope you continue to be an amazing little man.  Don't grow up to quickly, and always want to sit on my lap.  I love you so much, my baby.

Love,

Mommy

Letters to Rex 4/8/15

Rex Allen,  My not so little baby boy.  When I ask you if you're a baby now, you always tell me no.  Makes me sad.  I want you to stay my little baby!  Your personality is a force to be reckoned with.  You can go from sweet to fit throwin' in 3 seconds flat.  And each side is on opposite ends of the spectrum.  When you're sweet, you're the sweetest boy I've ever met.  Grabbing my cheeks so you can give me a big kiss.  But, when you're mad....boy you are mad.  I'm gonna go ahead and take credit for that specific personality trait, as your mama does have a bad temper. :)

You spent a few months going to school with Miss Kelly and Mattie Marie.  I think you really enjoyed your time there.  Once you figured out that Miss Kelly was going to call your bluff and make your little butt sit in time out.  But you're best friends now.  Your language exploded once you went back to school.  You talk so much now, and it seems like you are saying new words every day.  You are throwing less fit....I think because you can finally tell us what it is that you want. 

You are all boy though!  A little dirt or mud or anything gross never seems to bother you.  One surprising thing is that most of the grandkids are scared of Pa at some point.  Not you.  You call his bluff every single time.  And I think you have successfully broken down that old cowboy.  He talks about you to everyone he sees.  He plays and tickles and wrestles with you.  He talks about how he can't wait to get you in the work truck with him and Poppy Rex.  What a fun time that will be! 

You still love your Granny!  You are a Granny's boy!  I think I could drop you off at Granny's for a week and you would never ask when I was coming back. 

I love it when you wake up in the morning and start singing.  Your version of abc's or wheels on the bus, or twinkle twinkle.  I love to hear your little voice.  You love to throw balls...so in a couple more years we will see if you will be ready for TBall.  I'm sure your Uncle Tanner would really like that a lot. 

You're back to staying home with me, at least for this week.  At first I was nervous how you would react to another schedule change.  But you have surprised me.  You really just go with the flow.  Play a while, ask to sit on my lap for a while, and then back down.  You still love to take Sissy to school and pick her up so you can see the school buses.  You are all into cars, trains, big trucks, school buses, anything a little boy would like!

You are growing so much every day, son.  Please slow down!  I want you to still walk up to me and say "Up Now" for a while longer.

I love you more than you could ever imagine.
Forever and ever,

Mommy

Letters to Rex - 2 years old

Rex Allen,

I can't believe you are 2 years old today!!
You are such an amazing little boy.  You pretty much do what you want, when you want.  If our schedule doesn't match yours, you are gonna let us know all about it.

Your vocabulary is getting better every day.  You are using 3-5 word sentences all the time. 

Boy do you have your mama's temper.  I was hoping that since Lexi has my temper, you would have your dad's... but I don't think that's the case. 

The funniest thing you do lately is in the mornings, if I don't give you what you want, and you get fed up with me, you beg to go night-night.  It cracks me up!!  You are a great sleeper.  You go to bed at 6:30 and get up at 7 the next morning.  You have been waking up a couple times a night because your cup is empty... looks like we have created another monster like your sister.

I have no intentions of moving you out of your crib any time soon.  You haven't made any attempt to climb out... and I don't want you getting out of a toddler bed and roaming around the house.

You LOVE Mickey Mouse.  You will sit and watch him so intently.
You love dogs and have no fear.

Shoes are your nemesis.  We leave your shoes in the car, because if we put them on in the house, we won't make it out the door before you have kicked them off.  You want to be barefoot!!

You love taking sissy to school and picking her up.  You can barely contain your excitement when you see the school buses. 

When you wake up you are such a cuddle bug.  I can barely put you down in the morning to make my coffee.  You just want to sit and snuggle for a while.  And I love it!!

Your best friend is your cousin Mattie.  You get so excited when we see her.  You love to play with her, and we all love to watch you interact.

I love you so much Bubba Man!! 

Love,

Mommy

Letters to Rex

Rex Allen,

What an amazing little boy you are!  It seems like you learn something new every day.  I can't believe you are 18 months old now!  You are so different from your sister when she was a baby.  Lexi just sat in one spot and played.  Not you!  You are going and going from the time you wake up in the morning, until the time you go to bed at night. I think I've said "NO" more times in the last 2 months, than I have said it in my whole life.  As they say..you are ALL boy!

One of your most favorite things to do is wrestle with your sissy.  I have to watch you though, because you can really tackle her. 

Today we learned that you like grapes.  Yum! 

This week you learned how to say "Bethy". - Bethany
You can say please and thank you, but try to get away with not saying it, and just giving me your cute little grin.  That grin is going to get you in trouble boy! 

You love looking out the windows.  You wave to all the cars that drive by.  I don't know if anyone ever notices you... but you are darn cute!

Last weekend you got to see your "Papa.". I was so surprised when you started calling Poppy Red that.  Generally we call him Poppy, and then call Papa James, Papa.  But I guess you are going to be different.  I'm sure he doesn't care what you call him, as long as you love him. 

I love you with my whole heart!!

Mommy

Letters to Rex - January 2014

Rex Allen,

Where do I even begin? You are so different from your sister. You are constantly on the move. Climbing and destroying everything in your path. I remember when we couldn't wait for you to walk... now I just want you to slow down!

Your tube surgery helped you so much. Within a few days you were taking steps and saying more words.

Right now you can say: mama, dada, banana, cracker, thank you, I love you. We are working on Sissy and Lexi. She will be so excited when you can finally say her name.

You go to daycare at the school. You love your teachers so much... and I think they like you a little too. 😉

You eat from the time you get up in the morning until the time you go to bed at night. You will eat pretty much anything I give you. But some of your favorites are: bananas, pop tarts, cereal bars, chips, cookies, crackers, craisins, and dry cereal.

The funniest thing you are doing lately is blowing your nose. You can really do it! But you scrunch that little face up and blow... it's just so cute.

You sleep through the night for the most part.

You don't have near as many teeth as what your sister had by this time. You won't let me feel around in there for very long, but I think you have 12 teeth total right now. You sure are drooling a ton... and BITING your friends. So I'm hoping this is just a teething thing and it will go away soon!

Son, I love you so much! I was worried about what it would be like having a boy, after getting used to all the girly things. But it is truly amazing. Your smile lights up my darkest days. You will always be my baby boy!

Love,

Mommy

Letters to Rex 5/28/13

Rex Allen,

You are no longer my tiny baby.  You are a big handsome boy now!  Next week you will be 9 months old.  This first year is flying by! 

You can sit up now, but only if we sit you up.  You haven't figured out how to go from laying to sitting yet.  But you can go from sitting to laying without just tipping over.  :)  You are still army crawling, and it's the funniest thing I have ever seen.  You mainly use one arm and one leg....it surprises everyone that you don't just crawl in circles!  But when you are determined to get somewhere you can get along pretty quick.  You also have learned how to pull up from sitting to standing.  I haven't seen you do it yet.  But Granny saw you do it.  You eat your babyfood pretty good, when you feel like it.  You want to eat food off of my plate, but you haven't really figured out how to do it yet.  You sit up in the shopping cart and the highchair at restaraunts, and you think it's the coolest thing. 

You love to play with your cousin Mattie.  You want to touch her face all the time though, and she really doesn't like that.

Right now you have pneumonia. :(  You had a snotty nose and a little cough for a while, but Sunday when you woke up I knew you were super sick.  So we took you to urgent care.  They gave you a breathing treatment while you were there.  Of course we took pictures and posted them to facebook.  You did it just like a big boy.  You don't need the mask.  Mommy just holds the machine close to your face and you just breathe in the steam.  Sunday was so sad though.  You barely smiled all day.

You have that same sunshine smile that Lexi had when she was a baby.  And you are always smiling!  Everyone always comments on how happy you are. 

You haven't mastered sleeping through the night yet.  Some nights you do, but some nights you wake up to eat.  Mommy isn't worried about it yet.  Once you turn one then we will start sleep training you. 

I love you more than life my little man!

Love,

Mommy

Letters to Rex 3/11/13

Rex Allen,

You turned 6 months old last week.  Where has the time gone?  Didn't I just bring you home from the hospital?!

Granny took you to get your shots.  You did great when you went back to school, but that evening and most of the next day you were fussy with a fever.  Your Sissy saw your bandaids and felt so sorry for you.  She kissed and loved on you telling you she was sorry you had to get shots.  She loves you so much!

Let's see...you could sit up on your own if you wanted to.  But you don't really want to, lol!  Every time we try to sit you up, you just bend over to chew on your toes.  Man do you love those toes.

You must be having a growth spurt because you have been waking up in the early morning the past few days, to eat.  You go back to sleep afterwards, so that's good. 

You can definitely roll from front to back and back to front.  You don't spend a lot of time on the floor because Mommy loves to cuddle you!  But I know you and your friend Jack play at school. 

My favorite times with you is at night when we are doing our bedtime routine.  You are so sweet and cuddly.  After you drink your bottle I turn you over to pat you.  You always grab ahold of my shirt, and either just hold it there, or chew on it, as you're falling asleep. 

You love bath time.  You especially love it, if you are taking a bath with Lexi.  You are getting too big for your baby bathtub, but we have a dilema since you don't want to sit up yet.  You love to kick your leg and splash me.  And even when you're in the bath, you're still trying to eat your toes.  Silly boy.

I love to peek in your door at night and listen to you snoring.  Boy can you snore!  You have the sweetest smile, and you are always sharing it with people.  No matter where we go, everyone comments on how great of a smile you have.  I hope you always share your smile with people. 

I love you bunches and bunches!

Love,

Mommy

Letters To Rex - 5 months

Rex Allen,

Oh my sweet snuggly little man.  I can't believe you are already 5 months old.  That picture up there is from when we just brought you home.  It seems like yesterday and so long ago all at the same time.

You have turned into the sweetest little boy.  You no longer scream 24/7 which is a welcome change.  You still prefer to be held, rather than play on the floor. But that's ok.  I know there will come a day when you won't want to sit in my lap anymore.

You are sleeping through the night for the most part.  Some nights you may wake up once and want to eat.  I can handle getting up 1 time per night!  You sleep on your belly.  The experts say you're not supposed to, but that's how you like to sleep, so I let you sleep that way.  We can hear you snoring through the monitor!

That picture is from this morning.  When you wake up in the morning you get to come to bed with mommy.  We hang out, eat, and watch the news.  You especially like the weather portion.  You always strain to see what's going on when you hear Alan Crone talking.  

You smile a TON!  You truly are a happy little boy.  

You are wearing mostly 6 month clothes, which is a change because your big sister was always a size behind in clothes.  But you are a big man!

You can lock your legs and stand up while we're holding you now.  You love to sit in the bumbo seat, and I hear you really love the jumper at school.  We're going to have to get you something like that!

You still hate tummy time, but hopefully that will change once you realize you can start rolling and moving!

You have had a few bites of baby food.  You aren't really sure what to do with it once it gets in your mouth, so a lot of it just comes back out.  But I just made the first batch of homemade sweet potatoes.  I gave you a taste and I swear your eyes lit up.  

We need to work on sitting up unassisted.  I'm sure you could do it if you wanted to.  But you're too busy leaning forwards trying to eat your toes.  That's your new favorite thing.  As soon as you lay down on your back you grab those feet and pull them to your mouth.

Everything we give you goes directly into your mouth.  We have had to have talks with sissy about not giving you anything small because you might choke on it.  She got so upset thinking that she might hurt you.  She loves you so very much!  And I can tell you love her too.  Your eyes light up when she talks to you.  You can hear her across the room and you start looking for her.

You have a best friend at school.  His name is Hank.  You look like twins.  Both bald little chubby babies.  They say you all talk and scream at each other all day.  I wish someone would record it so I could see it!

Baby boy, I love you so much!!

Love you bunches and bunches,

Mommy