An Ode To Shayne And Jayson~

Tomorrow is the one year anniversary of my blog. (!!!)

(***See 'Footnote' at the end of this post***)

I thought I would take a look back.

Way back to the days that would end up shaping me into a mother of three little boys.

The days before I even gave a thought to one day being someone's mom~let alone the mother of three boys.

Today~

I like sparkly things~diamonds, cz's, crystals. On my clothes, purses, on my fingers or hanging from my ears...on anything.

I love designer handbags, and name brand clothes that work on hiding the extra pounds three births have added to my hips.

I like order and organization~towels folded perfectly, beds made daily, and my dishes lined up in the dishwasher just so. I love the lines left by the vacuum. A great day is when my car is vacumed and cleaned inside and out~and the boys haven't left all the toys out in the yard...

But I wasn't always this way...Long before I met my husband, and before I became the "girly girl" that I am today, I grew up on five acres in the country.

My parents still live there today.

My room was always messy~

My feet were always filthy~

My nails were jagged~

My clothes were whatever I could find on the floor~

And a good day was spending it outside all day long...

A better day was spending it with my beloved cousins-Shayne and Jayson.
So you see~Growing up, I had more than just my sister as my accomplice in 'crime'.

I had my cousins. Shayne and Jayson.

I am not sure how my mom and her sister planned it-but we were like stair-steps in our ages. The four of us~Almost exactly a year apart.

(Today: Shayne-38, Me-37, Jayson-36, and my sister-35)

Our cousins lived four hours away, but growing up, we spent weeks in the summers together,

Thanksgivings~

and a few Christmases.

Even though today I am much more "girly"-

These two are pretty directly responsible for the type of mom I am to my three boys.

Remember when we...

...caught millions of crayfish in your creek?

...hid all my mom's wooden spoons to avoid a spanking?

...ran from your goat who tried to eat the clothes right off our backs?

...jumped in the rain until even our vision was blurred by the pounding drops and we were soaked to the very bone?

...played hide and go seek in my parent's cornstalks? ...and got spanked for it?

...put lipstick on the baby sitter's jeans? ..and got another spanking?

...swung on grapevines into the river by your house?

...shot your dad's rifle at tin cans? (...and how it knocked me flat on my back?)

...jumped and did multiple flips on your neighbor's trampoline without breaking a single bone?

...ate your dad's chewing tobacco and threw it up?

...started the bonfire... with gasoline? ...and the explosion??!!

...climbed the fence to the State Park by our house and explored the woods all day?

...drove your Jeep Scout, and squirted water (from your malfunctioning windshield wipers) at people passing by?

...played football every Thanksgiving? Tackle, not touch-

...caught lightening bugs and kept them all night in a jar?

...drove your friend Brad's corvette over 100 MPH just to see if it was possible?

...listened to Jayson sing old Billy Joel songs as we fell asleep at night and believed him when he said he wrote and preformed them?

...raced to see which two kids would get to sit in the very back of the station wagon as we drove with your mom?

...drove to nowhere as we talked, joked, and shared dreams as we approached the end of high school?

Remember When?

For the most part~I am trying to keep my boys on the straight and narrow. But the other day, as they were trying to make those armpit noises that boys do-

I looked over at them and said,

"Actually, if you want to make it good, you need to do it like this: " and then I proceeded to show them the right way of making those armpit noises.

And how you can do it using the back of your knee.

They both looked at me with huge, saucer eyes glazed over with amazement-

"How in the world did I know that?!", they asked.

I had my cousins who taught me all about the fun of being a boy...So, Thank you to Shayne and Jayson.

Through the many years of growing up together, you both taught me so much about being a boy.

And~Who knew all that would come in handy one day?

(Yes, they even taught me how to fake burp and make it sound realistic...but I try not to do that these days...unless my boys need some pointers~)

Footnote: The One Year Blogiversary Giveaway winners will be announced September 12th. Go HERE to enter one last time by MIDNIGHT TONIGHT (EST).