Project 19 to 19: Day #2

Virtual Campus

School is a hot topic these days. You cannot turn on the TV or the radio or browse your favorite social media without hearing/seeing SOMETHING about school or teachers or school kids or ... well ... we'll get back to that.

All of that talk brought back the memory of Wonder Boy's earliest school days - and in this case, or course, I mean his start to preschool/day care.

The first full year, maybe even year and a half, Wonder Boy was not a huge fan of "school" and he would fuss all the way there and then do his best to convince us that we should not leave him there to fend for himself. It was hard on all of us. I want to point out that, as soon as we would leave, he would be fine and would be happy and content when we came to pick him up. We often would stay long enough to watch through the blinds to see how quickly he would settle down and sometimes we would show up unannounced to make sure all was well and every single time, he was good to go.


I am happy to say that the separation anxiety of his early years faded fast and school became a comfortable arena for him.

This summer, the Boy graduated from high schol (with honors!) and took his first college course, earning his first college "A" and coming into his first full semester this fall with a 4.0 GPA!

We had hoped beyond hope that he would be moving into the Engineering Honors dorm at TAMU this fall, but the pandemic had other plans, so instead we worked to transform his video game playing area upstairs into a workable virtual classroom.


I am oh so proud to report that the Boy is handling the string of disappointments surrounding his launch into independent living better than anyone in the family. True to his analytical nature, he has taken each situation in stride until a work-around is figured out and then he doesn't look back. He doesn't spend his time worrying about what could have been.

He has spent years learning the things he wanted to learn on-line and through books, so the transition to the kind of independent learning that is needed for distance education has not phased him too much to this point. I hope and pray that these skills will serve him well this fall and beyond!

Project 18 to 18: Day 2

The More Things Change ...

The more they stay the same!

This old adage is certainly true of our dear Wonder Boy! From DAY ONE he has NOT been a fan of mornings (regardless of the day of the week)!

In our look back to 2002, we see our little man crashed out while I was attempting to get ready for work and pack his bag for day care. There were many mornings when I wanted to just let him sleep it out since he so rarely slept in the first place, but one can only ignore work for so long.


These days, we have a pretty good routine worked out. You might think that since he is the farthest thing in the world from a so-called "Morning Person" that we might have to physically drag him out of bed, but that has thankfully never been the case. He sets the alarm on his watch, pulls himself out of bed and stumbles into the living room to snooze until time for breakfast. We have an unspoken agreement that conversation before calories will be kept to a bare minimum. Now, that is not to say that we have to be quiet and tip toe around the house. No, it just means that quite frankly, he may not remember anything discussed before he's had a bit to eat. After breakfast though, things kick into high gear while he gets dressed and ready for school. There's always a flurry of school supplies, lunch bags, a reminder of after school commitments, and a pat-down of all pockets to make sure he has his wallet, keys, school ID, and garage door clicker. Then he packs it all in his car and heads out to start another action-packed day at school!

I have gotten accustomed to the little bit of quiet time after he leaves the house to take care of a few around-the-house tasks before I have to face the fact that, just like when he was small, I can only ignore work for so long and must pack up myself and kick-start my day.

Project 17 to 17: Day 2

As much as I enjoy showing off the current day version of our dear Wonder Boy, another aspect of this project that I truly enjoy is digging back through old photos and finding those I had forgotten about. Today I got a full dose of both of these!


I almost didn't share this particular photo of Wonder Boy today. Technically speaking, it's not a stellar photo. But the more I looked at it, the more I felt moved to run with it. This is the Boy with HIS boy, Mr. Mutt himself! Watching these two together cannot fail to bring a smile to my face. They play, they cuddle, some times they even fuss at one another, or at least, Wonder Boy will fuss at the Mutt. But regardless of the attitude, the love cannot be contained. And THAT is what I see here. Wonder Boy is Mr. Mutt's absolute favorite in the whole wide world. He pines for him when the Boy is away from home. He cannot hide his glee when the Boy comes in each afternoon. And there is no one with which Mr. Mutt is more contented and relaxed. A boy and his dog. There is a reason that you hear that phrase - there is nothing more natural than a boy and his dog, imho. That certainly is true with these two!

For our look back to 2002, we see the sweet baby version of Wonder Boy. And there that little cherub sits, surrounded by toys of all shapes and colors and WHAT is garnering all of his attention? The big plastic spoon that came with our rice cooker! Now, you might argue that it is obvious the little man is teething and thus objects that help to sooth the gums will always win out over something soft and squishy. BUT .... number one ... if you look close, you will see all manner of teething toys at his feet ... AND .... this spoon continued to be a favorite play thing long after those teeth burst forth! We dubbed this utensil "Spoony" so that it would sound more like a toy. And it always made us giggle just a little that he preferred it to the many diversions we tried to use to catch his attention. He carried dear old Spoony around for several years! It made a great drum stick. Sometimes he would wave it around like a baton of some sort. But mostly, he just carted it around with him. I guess he never knew exactly what need would arise that old Spoony could fill, but he kept it close .. just in case. Today poor old Spoony is back to its original function, dishing rice out of the steamer, but at least it is still part of the family. All of those other toys have long since found another home.

Project 16 to 16: Day 2

For those that know him well (or those who have heard my lament when trying to find pants that fit this kid), you won't be surprised when I mention that Wonder Boy is a .... let's call it "selective" eater and always has been.

He has ridden the same 25th percentile for weight since the day he drew his first breath (his height is another story though). And finding nutritious foods that he enjoys eating has always been a challenge.


I am pleased to say his menu is considerably more diverse than it was in his younger years, but compared to the vacuum cleaners that characterize so many teenage guys, Wonder Boy is still rather choosy when snacking.

In the top photo, you see the Boy's favorite food of all time - carnitas! He could (and sometimes DOES) eat carnitas at every meal. It's the one food that I know he will never turn down (and if he ever does, I'm taking him straight to the doctor). As a matter of fact, he had a couple of carnitas tacos for dinner last night and then again for breakfast this morning. And as we were leaving for school, I caught him checking to make sure there would be more for dinner tonight (there are!).

When he was small, he preferred chicken, especially chicken strips. He still enjoys those, but he's become a bit of an aficionado and only likes certain chicken strips. His favorite come from Cane's. He also really liked the chicken and waffles sliders from a local joint called Micky's Sliders, but they closed down just this week (so I guess we'll have to come up with someplace new for his birthday dinner).

In our look back, we see the Boy just before his first birthday at what was probably the time in his life in which he was most adventurous when trying new foods. Back when he first started enjoying solid foods, we could get him to at least TRY pretty much anything we were also eating. We can thank pasta and veggies for this fun little snap.

Wonder Boy has been learning to make all of his most favorite foods, including the carnitas pictured above. We all want to make sure he'll be able to fend for himself when he goes off to college!

Project 15 to 15: Day 2

It's day 2 of my favorite project and today we look at another aspect of the Boy's personality that I truly admire - his creative side:


He gets on these creative kicks from time to time and I always try to soak it up when he does. He has some talent. Currently, he is enjoying sketching "impossible shapes" (think M. C. Escher) and some of his favorite fictional characters (like Deadpool and Bart Simpson). I love how he dives into his interests. He will watch tutorials on youtube, spend hours with his sketch book or wacom tablet on the computer, and some days (like today) he jumps out of bed having dreamed of something else he wants to try.

In looking back to 2002, we see Wonder Boy and his dad just a few weeks after his first birthday:

Even today, the first hour after Dad gets home from work is just about the best time of the day for our little family. Back in the day, the boys would hang out in the family room reading, wrestling, and doing all things boy before we had to jump into the routine of dinner, bath, and bedtime. These days it's more about going over whatever the Boy did at school or camp or whatever during the day and planning out our evening activities. It's still a great time though and I look forward to it just as much today as I did back in '02.

Project 14 to 14: Day 2

On day #2 of this project, I want to look at Wonder Boy and Wonder Mutt. I really love seeing these two together! The Boy loves his mutt and the Mutt adores him in return. They play and rough house together. The cuddle on the couch. Wonder Boy plays an active role in feeding and caring for his special Mutt. And the Mutt looks after the Boy, even sleeping in his room to guard against ferocious storms, savage dust bunnies, and any other perceived threat to the well being of his favorite teenager.


This particular scene ALWAYS makes me chuckle just a bit. The Mutt actually willingly submits to this - he lets the Boy grab him and cart him off to whatever couch is close by so that they can sneak in a few extra snuggles before school in the morning.

Mind you, if I were to try and lift the Mutt like this, he would wiggle and squirm and do his level best to get all 4 feet back on the floor. But when the Boy scoops him up, the most the Mutt will do is try to lick him all over - he just can't get enough!

For our look back today, we see our Boy on his first birthday. He had SO much fun that day as all manner of friends and family came to celebrate with him. There was cake (his first taste), games both inside and out, and, of course, a stack of presents higher than the Boy could reach.


I know Wonder Boy doesn't have any real memory of this day, but I sure do. It was just one of those great days that I hold onto deep in my heart. The kind I pull back out when I need to focus on something good and pure. And that, for me, is the greatest gift of all.

Project 13 to 13: Day 1

In 13 short days, our dear Wonder Boy will turn 13, will be come a teenager... a TEENAGER, folks!

When I too was on the cusp of that milestone (back in the days of the dinosaurs, I know), it felt as if I would never get there. It just took SO LONG to grow up! As HE stands on the doorstep to his teen years, I wonder how he got here so very quickly.

So for each of the next 13 days, I intend to reflect not just on the boy and baby that he once was, but on the incredible young man he has become in only 13 short years.

First, let's look at my guy today:

This is a typical after school scene: a pile of homework and a tasty snack for added "focus." We often sit side-by-side, knocking out our work while we watch the door for signs of Wonder Dad. I enjoy this little ritual (even if the ice cream sandwich is not for me) and hope it is one we can continue for years to come.

But I also want to take a look back ... to this same day in September 2002 when Wonder Boy was approaching his first birthday.

Back then, there were no piles of homework and probably not any ice cream sandwiches (he preferred salty treats). But we still had a great spot to sit and wait for Dad to come home. And when he made it home, playing on the floor was high priority for the whole family.

Forgive me, Wonder Boy, for this sappy mommy moment (and the next 12 sappy days to follow). There is such a big part of me that wants to hold onto you so tight that you'll never age another day. But there is a MUCH BIGGER part of me that is thrilled and excited to see how independent you have become and at all the adventures that await you.