Day 7: Still Surprising Me

My oldest, John, still surprises me 18 years later.

9 months old: John takes his first steps. On Halloween, he is walking the entire time Trick-or-Treating. No stroller. No crying to be carried.

13 months old: John finally gets his first tooth (usually the first teeth come out around 6 months old).

2 years old: John becomes a biter. He stalks his prey and attacks when they let their guard down. He waits until his cousin Georgie is playing with her dolls to walk up to her and bite her in the back.

4 years old: John is jumping around on the couch. He jumps off the couch and onto his brother’s back, mouth first. He loses one of his front teeth that we waited so long to see. A month later he is jumping in an inflatable jumpy at his cousin’s birthday party. He runs in the house holding his mouth. My nephew is asking questions, “What’s wrong? Did you spill Kool-Aid on yourself? Are you bleeding?” We look and notice the other front tooth is gone. He explains that he doesn’t know what happened, but asked if he can go back in the jumpy. My cousin walks in the house with John’s front tooth. He found it tangled into the jumpy’s netting. I look at John and respond, “Sure. Just jump with your mouth closed.” Not one tear the entire time.

8 years old: After a tough day, I tell my boys, “You better be good kids at school. Your teacher doesn’t want to have to ask you to do something twice. You better appreciate your teachers. John looks at me and says, “Don’t worry mommy. I don’t bother my teacher. And everyday before I leave I say, ‘Thank you for teaching me today, Mrs. Katzen.'”

14 years old: John goes to Greece with my mom, my dad, and my niece a week earlier than the rest of us as an 8th grade graduation gift from my parents. Once I get there my dad says, “I didn’t realize John was such an instigator. Poor Georgie is just minding her own business and John will scare her.

https://www.facebook.com/1096441185/videos/10209409198162348/ (not sure if this video will show, but it’s an example of how he bothers Georgie.

15 years old: John acts so silly that my niece says, “Honestly, I didn’t know John was smart. Like until Drookie told me he is taking honors and AP classes I thought he wasn’t a good student. I love him even more now because he can be so funny AND smart.” Yes, George, I’m surprised he is so smart too!

18 years old: We are playing the world version of Wordle called Worldle or Globle. He starts listing off names of African countries to locate the correct answer. When I throw out a country he says, “No, that’s further east.”

“Um, John, how do you know all these African countries and their locations?”

“Because I know things. How do you not know geography?”

“Wow! I didn’t know you were so smart!”

He keeps surprising me!