It’s not that Parker likes Michael Jackson…it’s that, he really, really, really likes Michel Jackson.  It started innocently enough.  A classmate had been singing “Thriller” at school, and pbo was intrigued.  We do a lot of YouTube-ing around here, so I happily pulled up a few MJ videos for us to watch.  And then we watched them again.  And again.  And again.  I could almost feel the fascination radiate through his little man body.  Eyes were huge.  Fingers were twitching.  Toes were tapping.

He literally can’t get enough of all things Michael.  We’ve Googled, YouTubed, and Netflixed ourselves silly.  I’ve squirmed my way through answering hard-hitting questions about dangling babies, mysteriously changing skin color, Jesus Juice, the appropriateness (or not) of crotch-grabbing, and the effects of puberty on the male voice.  As far as Parker is concerned, there is no such thing as too much information.

I thought I remembered seeing a Michael Jackson dance game for the Wii, so a couple of weeks ago, we rounded up some gift cards, dipped into the piggy bank, and hit up our local Game Stop.  Parker’s after school activity hasn’t been the same since.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I often use Parker’s Wii-time as a bit of, ahem, Mii-time.  I hear the songs play over and over in the next room, but I haven’t really sat down to watch the action much myself.  So imagine my surprise when I asked Parker if he could do a little dance for me to record and he busted out with the following:

Folks, we’re talking complete memorization of full-fledged choreography.  And I only “let” him show me two songs worth!  The glitter-gloved bug has bitten my awesome kid, and I am ever-so-delighted to watch him scratch the resulting itch.

>,

Nothing delights me more than my singing kiddos.  Bailey is quite the performer, but only on her own time (so you’d better have that camera ready!).  And Parker really and truly loves to sing.  He is a little more hesitant about public performances, however, so as a doting mom, I just do what I gotta do to capture the show.  And really, shower acoustics can’t be beat..am I right?
Sing on, sweet P and B.  Your days will be so much more full when you give them their own score.

You magical little human, you!  I am thrilled by the place that you are carving out for yourself in this world. I can’t imagine a more well-rounded kid. You are as passionate about your new baseball glove as you are about your skinny jeans and flat-brimmed NY Mets hat. You read chapter books with ease, but you can’t tie your shoes. You know as much about baseball statistics as you do about the moons of Pluto as you do about Justin Bieber’s latest fashion choices. You can throw a baseball from deep centerfield directly to home plate, but you can’t ride a bike. You are just as excited for Thurday night Project Runway as you are for Sunday Texans games. You spit out Nicki Minaj lyrics one minute, and then angelically squeak your way through “Pie Jesu” the next. You agonize over the decision to take hip hop dance classes or play basketball at the Y. You can chatter ENDLESSLY about an unbelievable variety of subjects, and you do so in your painfully precious stuttering speech. (Your brain just zooms along so much faster than your sweet mouth – it will catch up soon…please don’t let it discourage you.)

I want to hold your hand forever, perfect boy. I find myself squeezing it tighter and tighter these days…and yet I am acutely aware of you slowly and lovingly untangling your fingers from mine. My heart breaks as you discover your independence, yet it explodes with pride over your obvious capability.

I love you, pbo. Please continue to laugh in the face of stereotypes and embrace the things that make you happy.That’s what I do, and it’s exactly why Im holding on to you so tightly…’cause you make me the happiest. ♥

Big kid space room!

And yet, here we are, getting the school party started all over again.

Parker.  He’s in first grade…and he’s fabulous.

These are the faces that are stamped on my insides forever and ever.

Dear Parker and Bailey…don’t lose this.  EVER.

Come on.  You’d want to kiss this goodbye, too.

I have to admit something.  The start of school doesn’t get me all weepy-eyed and nostalgic.  I think the mom rule book says that it is supposed to, but I just can’t get past the EXCITEMENT.  As I watch that boy bound up the school bus steps in the morning, I am overwhelmed by a feeling of pride.  I joked that Parker’s Meet the Teacher Day is more like Meet the Parker Day for his teacher…but it’s true!  I am delighted to send him off into the world, bit by bit, so that others can know and love him.  He has incredible enthusiasm for learning and I know that each day in the classroom for him is like a feeding frenzy.   Over the summer, we exhausted the library’s section about outer space  and have recently moved on to books about the periodic table of elements.  I learned more about the noble gases last night than I did my entire junior year in Chemistry.  (missing xenon problem, anyone?)  Parker is a factoid phenomenon…and I won’t even get started about his affinity for baseball trivia.

But you know what’s even better?  This little nerdy nugget of mine loves people.  As we walked back inside from the bus stop on Monday afternoon, he jabbered on and on about his day and gave me all sorts of fun first grade tidbits.  When he stopped to take a breath, he got quiet for a moment and seemed to collect his thoughts before saying, “Mom, you know what the best thing was today?  The best thing was that I got to wave at my friends all day.  I saw some in my class and I saw some at lunch and in music and on the bus and all over the school!  I was so happy to see my friends, Mom.  And they were happy to see me!”

That’s my pbo.  My favorite boy in all of creation is growing up with blazing speed, and now I get to share him with the world.

Hey, world, you’re welcome.

]]> http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/first-grade/feed/ 4 http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/these-stars-are-super/ http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/these-stars-are-super/#comments Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:24:34 +0000 jbo http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/?p=4552 (In case you miss these videos the first time, you can catch them again on Parker and Bailey’s respective wedding days.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMa1ImzUx_U&sns=em

On the field, he’s all business.

Look, I don’t do teeth.  I have nightmares about teeth.  Loose teeth make me uncomfortable and ridiculously loose teeth make me downright nauseous.  However, I knew that this was one of those inevitable parenting milestones that I was just going to have to power through.

And, you know, I’ve gotta say, after nearly two months of wiggling it, talking about it, checking on it, and those last few sickening days of having to hear Parker click it around with his tongue as it clung to his mouth by a single, stubborn root,  I was OVER the loose tooth. Squeamishness be dammed…let’s just get that sucker OUT.

After a dramatic night of failed attempts, I could tell that the whole situation was making him increasingly nervous, so I decided to just let it go and crossed all fingers and toes in hopes that it would come out while he was at school the next day.  No such luck.  But I continued to play it cool and ignore the pathetically awkward way that Parker was holding his mouth and the excessively spitty lisp that accompanied his speech. My patience paid off when, at Chick-Fil-A last night, Parker liberated that dang tooth in a bite of delicious chicken sandwich.  We carefully extracted it from the slightly masticated spicy goodness, wrapped it gently in a napkin, and transported it safely home to the anxiously waiting Tooth Fairy pillow.

The irresponsible Tooth Fairy did not have change smaller than a $5, so Parker really scored.  I made it a point to explain to him that first teeth were really worth significantly more and that it was only downhill for subsequent teeth, monetarily speaking.

Hope he got that.

19 more times…really??

]]> http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/one-down/feed/ 0 http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/the-soloist-and-the-theif/ http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/the-soloist-and-the-theif/#comments Mon, 20 Dec 2010 22:40:43 +0000 jbo http://janicabolesphotography.com/blog/?p=4211

For the first time, Parker and Bailey participated in our church’s annual Children’s Christmas Program.  Parker has been rehearsing with the children’s choir for a few months now and has LOVED being a part of the group.  The day that he found out that he’d be singing a little solo, he simply beamed with pride.  The performance couldn’t come fast enough!

Bailey, on the other hand, wasn’t so enthusiastic about the whole thing.  When I first approached her with the idea of being a part of the show as lamb, she looked me straight in the eye and told me, “No.  I will not be a lamb.  I will just be a butterfly”.  Now, I know that there are many biblical references to the droves of nativity butterflies, but for whatever reason, a lamb was our only option.  I tried not to push the issue, though, and just hoped that she might come around.  Sure enough, as dress rehearsal day arrived, and she caught sight of a few of her little buddies prancing around in white long underwear, she couldn’t shimmy out of her dress fast enough.  ”I’m a lamb, Mommy!  A lamb!”  As she crawled up on that stage for the first time, I couldn’t help but notice the slightly crazed look in her eyes. Something told me that we were going to be in for quite the performance.

My sweet children did not disappoint.  Parker threw himself into the music with vigor and concentration, and Bailey the lamb…well, she darn near stole the show.

My boy Parker is feeling it.

Yes, at first glance all the lambs look the same, but you’ll soon know exactly which one is mine.

Best buddy, Kemper.

And so, we investigate.