My Oldest

I have been so proud of Dalton this past year. Of all the changes that has taken place this past year, Dalton has had to deal with the most as he is the oldest. He understands more of what takes place and he has more emotional attachments to places and people. Even though he was my first nephew and as an aunt I thought I would never love another niece/nephew as much, my relationship with him as "mom" has at times been difficult. It is not his fault...he has been through a lot emotionally and has dealt with so much at an early age that the word "confused" probably does not even begin to expain how he has felt at times.

Dalton is definitely our "sensitive" child. He is small for his age but has a huge heart. He can perceive my mood and always comes up behind me and gives me a neck massage when I am stressed or tells me he loves me when I need it most. He takes what people say to heart and he tries so hard to fit in with others. He loves to hang out and play video games with Dustin and where he used to always want to go with me shopping, etc now he prefers to stay with Dustin. Dalton does not handle criticism well and can be just as stubborn as me! He is a worrier and I can tell that he really thinks about things. His teachers all say he is a sweetheart. The way he plays with his sisters and takes care of Samara melts my heart. He is a very good big brother and his sisters are so blessed to have him on their side!

As he is the oldest, we have to face new hurdles and challenges with Dalton first. I'm finding that this can be a trial and error process and honestly sometimes I'm not sure what to do. Take for example the other day when I was getting on to him for something at a church function and in front of everyone he yelled at me, "You are not my mom!" I knew these words would come from him and Lyric one day but I was sooo not ready. And even though I knew they were said out of frustration they stung none the less. Thankfully I kept my mouth shut and let the moment pass. Note....I am not always this calm and understanding I have done my fair share of reacting without thinking it through. In a world that has been nothing but turbulent, I realize more and more that my reactions to his behaviour can either add fuel to the fury or can provide peace and comfort. It's not easy and I definitely have to ask for patience and help from God on a daily basis but the neat thing is I see great changes taking place in Dalton's life. He is growing up, he's thinking about his decisions, and he knows who to go to when he is in need. As I put Dalton to bed a couple of nights ago, he had a fever and was not feeling well at all. He turned to me and even though we pray every night he said, "Mom, could you please pray that Jesus will help me feel better?"

My friends that took Dalton to the Bronx Zoo with their two boys e-mailed me some pics. Here are the 3 boys being goofy!

Too cute!

Explorers on the look out!

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It's a bear!

And another!

















Dalton had a great day with his friends!