The last 2 months have been an emotional roller coaster for my entire family. Prior to being put on bed rest, we had a Siamese cat named Percy. Well..."Prince Perseus Dastan *Our Long Last Name*" was his official title. (Give me a break, I have a 4 and 5 year old.) This cat was the sweetest, prettiest, most patient cat I have ever known. He was almost like a dog in some ways. He LOVED to play, would wait by the door for me to come home from work, and he was the best snuggle buddy to everyone. The poor thing never scratched or hissed at the kids, which, IMO, earned him automatic Saint-hood in Feline Heaven. He had his tail pulled, was thrown into a full bathtub, and was oh, so loved by my children. He was the perfect cat...EXCEPT for the fact that he started spraying around the house. We tried everything we could to get him to stop (vets, changing his diet, blocking off his favorite areas, and he was already neutered when we got him, so...) and Dan and I were starting to get sick of cleaning up after the darn thing. Jayden overheard us talking about possibly needing to get rid of the cat if he didn't stop. He started taking care of Percy without being asked. (Feeding, watering, cleaning out the litter box...) He didn't want to lose him. To tell you the truth, Dan and I didn't want to lose him, either. EVERYONE LOVED that darn cat. Well, long story short, when I spent almost a week in the hospital we decided that we couldn't have Percy messing all over the house if we were going to be bringing a pre-mature baby into this world. We had to focus on what was best for me and the rest of the family. We couldn't keep dragging the carpet cleaner out 4 or 5 times a day anymore. It was a very emotional time for all of us. Jayden, Karah, Dan, and I all shed tears as we said our good-byes to Percy, and poor Dan (who won't admit it, but that cat was HIS cat) had to make the drive to the animal shelter. He and Jayden took it the hardest, and Jay has really missed being responsible for something. He kept asking us for another cat "that won't pee all over the place" for his birthday, and we couldn't make that kind of guarantee. Finally Dan told him that until our family is in a better situation, the only pet we could possibly have would be a fish. So, his birthday list changed from a cat to a fish.
Jayden's birthday was on Sunday. I know. I get the "Worst Mother of the Year Award" for blogging my little pity party instead of the reflecting on the 6th anniversary of the day I became a mother for the first time. I will now play my "Hormonally-Unstable-Crazy-Pregnant-Woman" card. I am blogging about it now that I have had a chance to recuperate. He got a pretty sweet haul for his birthday. He got his very own Karate sparring equipment and 2 Star Wars action figures from Dan and I, a super-cool Texas Longhorns (HOOK 'EM!!) gym bag and 10 $1 bills hidden throughout it from my parents (which, BTW, he LOVED that treasure hunt. He kept pointing out to Dan and I that he was now richer than us with every dollar that he found...), an awesome dinosaur Hot-Wheels set up from my sister and her family, and *drum-roll* "Fishie-Gold Qui-Gon Gin *Our Long Last Name* the Warrior Fighting Fish" and all the special things needed to take care of him from my grandparents. Try saying that poor fish's name 3 times fast, I dare you. Shoot, try it once without messing it up. For blog-space purposes, I am simply going to refer to him as "The Fish". He is a beautiful blue Beta (Where "Fishie-Gold" came from, I know not...) and fairly active for one, too. He is also PERFECT for Jay. I know he can't snuggle or play with The Fish like he could with Percy, but he is so excited to have something to take care of again. The Fish is very low maintenance (Hallelujah) and Jay has had so much fun getting his tank ready, feeding him, and just watching as he swims around. We couldn't have asked for a better birthday for him!
I am constantly amazed by my son. He is only 6 years old, but he acts so much older. I don't know of many kids his age that prefer to watch the Animal Planet or History Channel over Batman and Transformers. Or, will choose helping his little sister clean her room over playing video games. He LOVES to learn and will drop whatever he's doing if Dan or I say "Hey, Jayden, want to see something cool I learned today?" When Dan was in school, one of Jay's favorite things to do was "study" with him. He would look over Dan's Anatomy and Physiology books with him and he STILL spouts off random facts about the human body 2 years later. He would get mad when his teacher wouldn't send home any homework. (?!?!?) He actually asked her to give him homework on "No Homework" days!! She will now put one or two practice sheets in his folder for him on those days. She is constantly telling me how he amazes her with the way he thinks. All I can say to that is, "Me too!" I LOVE my little boy, and I am so glad that God blessed me with such a sweet, amazing, and gifted child. He is so responsible for a child his age, and I am so proud to be the one he calls "Mommy"!
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