3 Phantoms and an Angel

My husband was given 4 free tickets to an Adirondack vs. Rochester hockey game tonight. Since I am not a fan of hockey, I was fine with not being able to go. O-Man and I had a nice, quiet, fun night together here at home. The other 3 boys went with their daddy to the game.

After they left, I sat O-Man down to eat his supper, and he started to pray:

"Dear Jesus, the brothers went to a game, thank you for the food, I love Mommy, Jesus' name, Amen."

No, I did not add that in there. He prayed that all by himself. Sweet little boy. I think I said an audible "Awwwe!"

Then dessert: Girl Scout thin mint cookies, Samoas (which he calls "donuts") and "doreos" (his word for Oreos). Why do I have so many cookies in my house at the same time? No, I don't usually feed him more than one cookie for dessert, but did you read what he prayed?

Ok, then he told me that his cookie loves mommy. Wow, how did I get so lucky to get all the love?

Our special mommy and son night was off to a good start! After we did a load of laundry (Owen loves our new front loaders with the electronic control panel and insists he be the one to push the buttons.) We cuddled in the recliner and read books like Good Night Gorilla, The Monster at the End of this Book, This is the Way We Go to School and Corduroy. He picked out an interesting variety of subjet matter. Then "we" put together a Thomas the Tank Engine puzzle. I say we in parentheses, because he decided he'd rather just watch me do it, and then he insisted in putting in the last piece, so he could "do" the puzzle. And then he made me do it all over again.

We spent some time cuddling and chatting.

As I sat there enjoying him and feeling strange in such a quiet house and with only one child, it took me back to the days when Evan was our only child.....the quietness of our house then compared to now with 4 active boys....the "easiness" of having just 1 toddler. Seeing how angelic and quiet and well behaved Owen was tonight, reminded me of my little Evan. And I thought that each of our boys need more of this, time alone without their brothers occasionally. Owen was soaking it up. I really enjoyed the peace and quiet and the time alone with my baby. But, at the same time, the house was too quiet. I missed my other little men, their laughter, their ability to fill a home with constant activity and make sure that no moment is ever boring.

And then before we knew it, there was a knock at the door. And there they were....

the 3 little Phantoms.

They love their new hockey jerseys that they got free at the game. I thought they were just too cute, and they can probably wear them for years to come! Evan asked me if he can wear it every day...he was serious. Daddy warmed them up with some promised hot cocoa, and then changed into their pjs, they were marching around the living room chanting, "Let's go Phantoms!" So, I guess the game was a hit, although their father said they didn't spend that much time watching. But, at their age their attention span is kind of limited. I asked Ben if he's going back next Friday, and he didn't hesitate when he said, "No." Apparently, it was enough adventure for a little while. But, I give him a lot of credit for doing it, for braving the crowds with 3 little kids, and attempting to sit through a game with them. He gets the SuperDad award! They had fun on their game night with Daddy. But next time, "maybe just one boy" he said. :-)