Memories of Raising Boys

Raising 5 sons has been a wild ride, and one of the greatest blessings of my life. All different personalities from goofy to serious to inquisitive. Athletic and Artistic. Academic and Outdoorsy. Sometimes silly/sneaky (can you tell which one in the photo I am referring to?) Sometimes more direct than I’d choose. Thankful for the worlds they’ve opened up to me, and the way that their gusto and excitement for life has helped me to appreciate little things.

When I think of the visuals of the years of raising boys, these are the words and phrases that come to mind. Rubber boots. Big smiles. Fish. Worms. Guts. Toads. Frogs. Trees to Climb. Bike ramps to make. Loud voices. Trucks to push. Dirt to dig. Bugs to find.Messes. Lots of Messes! Lots of laundry. Hugs. Wrestling Matches. Mud-caked cleats. Baseball Cards. Fishing Rods. Footballs, baseballs, bats everywhere. Trails. Spider man Pajamas. Oversized cowboy hats and boots. Campfires and s’mores with sticky marshmallows everywhere. Bikes and balls all over the yard and shoes and socks inside the house. Determination to ride the bike the fastest, swing the highest, and climb the tree to the top. Bruises, scrapes, and cuts that came with playing hard. Butterfly bandages. Water gun fights. Water balloon fights that made their way inside. Matchbox cars in a row. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Happy Meals. Feeding ducks and being chased by angry geese. Brothers leading brothers. Teaching each other the tricks of the trade to conquer their worlds in their own way. Eyes wide open when listening to a story, and gently closed when the story went on too long. Sleep that is sweet and deep after a full day of work and play.

Makes me smile now, but it was exhausting at times being in the middle of the whirlwind that so much activity can create. I just want to say, moms of boys take heart. Before you know it, these little freckle-faced, helmet clad little guys will be becoming men. You’ll want them to go at life with “gusto” and enthusiasm and a passion to conquer their worlds in a whole new way. It’s a tough world out there, and men need to have the strength and tenacity and ability to ‘go all out’ in order to find their way as leaders both in the workplace, and at home. So bring on the determination to get messy and play hard. Bring on the fast bikes and skateboards, and know that these are helping to grow your little guy up into the man he is to become. In my mind, I can go back in time in a heartbeat to those days when my boys were young. Now, I’m looking up to all of them, in more ways than one. I’m so thankful for the memories of the sweet chaos and precious moments that were shared.

(Note: Pictured above are two of our sons: Austin with the sneaky smile, and Josh with the baseball hat which he always wore and the proud smile after catching a catfish. Brayden, on rollerblades was just like a brother, and a a nextdoor neighbor.)