Five Things About Loumy

Jami tagged me on this, so I will proceed to share five things about Loumy:

1. He is very athletic. He loves to do anything sporty. He loves soccer, basketball, football, baseball, skateboarding, and, most recently swimming. His teacher calls him her "little fish". It has really come naturally to him. Perhaps its because he's from the Caribbean. The only problem he has is that he can't float on his back very well. His teacher said he is just too lean and heavy. He weighs the same as Deedle does, even though she's nearly a head taller than him. He has no chub, just lean. In this video you will see that he is a fearless little man and that he learns very quickly (especially when it comes to something physical to master).

2. He loves GIRLS. He has been a flirt since...forever. When he was only 10 months old I took him with me to Macy's. All of the make-up counter girls were "ooh-ing and aah-ing over him." He would just smile in my arms, then, he looked at them and blew a kiss. I had just barely taught him to do that when I was leaving to go someplace, but he instinctively knew that it would be appropriate to do to girls that are swooning. Two days ago he told me that he has a girlfriend. I didn't even think he knew what it meant to have a "girlfriend". So, I asked him who it was. He raised his eyebrows and slyly said, "Alyssa," as if he knew EXACTLY what it means to have a girlfriend! I asked him why and he replied because, "she is nice and she is cute." She is in his preschool class and, according to her mother, she has had a crush on him all year long and talks about him constantly. They are really good little buddies and get along really well. They sit by each other at school and play well together. Usually he goes for brunettes (ie. his Aunt Zhateal), but Alyssa is strawberry blonde. He is going to miss her (we won't be going to the same preschool next year). Today while driving in the car, I heard Deedle and String Cheese starting to argue about something. I quickly intervened, "We do NOT ever tell our sisters that they are fat. That is not nice." Loumy softly says, "Alyssa is not fat."
I do like Alyssa but I already had another girl in mind for him. Luckily after our girlfriend conversation, he suddenly smiled very broadly. I asked him why he was smiling and he said that he remembered, "I have TWO girlfriends! Alyssa and Marley!" Yeah. And don't you forget it! Here are a few photos of Alyssa and Loumy today at pre-school graduation (yet, how is it graduation if he has to do it two more times before he even gets to kindergarten?) as well as a photo of Loumy and Marley at a soccer game.3. He likes to dress himself. Because I was tired of picking up the 14 outfits each day that he would change into, we made a rule that he could only change if he asked permission first. Now, the first thing I hear when he wakes me at 7am is, "Mom, can I get dressed in my clothes now?"

4. He has an obsession with big brothers. Every day he asks about 20 times if he can be my big brother. I always say yes. But recently he talks about things that his "big brother" does. His big brother is named Isaiah and its a little creepy because he actually has a big brother, Isaiah, who died before we were able to bring him home from Haiti. I have no doubt that Loumy sees angels and I believe with total certainty that angels administered to him for the first nine months of his life while he lived in an orphanage in pretty appalling circumstances. But I'm not sure about this big brother business. Today when I came in to put him down for a nap I said, "Loumy?! How did this room get so messy? I just cleaned it last night and now there are toys and clothes everywhere!" Without missing a beat he said, "My big brother Isaiah did it."

5. He has a very tender heart. When I hear him crying, 9 times out of 10, its because somebody "hoit (hurt) my feelings". And that is not to say he doesn't get hurt physically with all of his crazy boy stunts (I saw him teetering on his skateboard at the top of the slide the other day, about ready to give it a try before I stopped him). He loves to give hugs and kisses and when I give him a kiss out-of-the-blue he always smiles and says, "thank you." If one of his sisters does a little dance or sings a song, he always compliments them. He is just very sensitive and sweet.

I like this little "tag" thing because it gave me a chance to focus on the positives. I have such fantastic kids and a wonderful husband. But if I don't watch out, it is easy to focus on behaviors that need changing. And then I always have to remind myself that what you are looking for is usually what you will find. So, when I try to think about all the great things about my family, I remember how blessed I am to have such incredible people in my life.

I will now tag a kid that I don't know very well and would like to read more about: Grayson!