Andrew, Andrew, Andrew

I'm not really one to get into those cheesy little sayings like "the most important things in life aren't things" and such, but one keeps crossing my mind today. "Life is not measured in minutes, but memories." Cheesy, but actually, it's true!

My second child got baptized, and well, it really is times that this that make life meaningful. He is an angel. I learned a few years ago watching him in swimming lessons that he is afraid to go under water. He HATES to get his face wet. Back before he started showering on his own, he HATED the part of his bath when I washed the shampoo away because if ANY water got 1/4 inch down his forehead he would scream and need a towel.

That's why I completely understood when he bore his innocent testimony to the congregation at Church that he was nervous to get baptized. I think he really was! But he explained that he wanted to follow Jesus' example and have his sins washed away, and when he went under the water, felt a warm feeling.

I love this kid. So, I think it's time to do a little spotlight on him as well. Andrew is a smartie. When he learned that letters make sounds individually, it took him all of a week to start blending sounds and to read! In pre-school, he was reading ANY scripture we handed him in family study. His kindergarten teacher recognized his early reading skills, and started sending him into the first-grade class for reading. By February, she wondered if his math skills were equally sharp. She asked the first-grade teacher for a current math skills paper and put Andrew to the test. They were just learning to carry numbers from the ones place to the tens place, and with one brief explanation from the teacher, he was doing it like a pro. Needless to say, she started sending him to first grade for the morning, and back to her kindergarten class for afternoon. By the end of the year, he was solely going to First-grade. When fall came, the school (kindergarten teachers, first, and second-grade teachers) told me they thought it a mistake to keep him in first grade. He needed to skip it and go into second. This was not an easy decision for me. I have NEVER wanted to send a child through school "young", but after much deliberating with John and the Lord, we sent him ahead. It seems to be working well so far!

Andrew is a sports nut. We attribute this to Uncle Marshall. For years we watched Andrew pick grass on the soccer field, hug cousin Aaron on the basketball court as the other players whipped around him, and try to coerce cousins into games of chess while they were out throwing baseballs. We had a classic "nerd" on our hands! He had NO interest in physical stuff. Then John and I went on a two-week vacation, and Andrew spent time with Uncle Marshall that dedicated his time with his nephew to turning him into a "Utah man" through XBox football. Oops! It backfired with FURY! We came home to one MASSIVE BYU Cougar fan with a passion for football and the players. He's also become a great sportsman himself. He started playing football and on one game returned a kickoff for a touchdown. He scored 6 points in his basketball game yesterday...

He started decorating his room with magazing pictures of the players, and articles about their program. He started BY HIMSELF turning on old video tapes of past BYU football games. He started crying when he thought they were going to lose. So, it came as no surprise to me when he woke up on his 8th birthday, and responded to my "what do you want for your birthday" question that he wanted "Harvey Unga's signature." Of course. Well, a few phone calls and a miracle BYU football team meeting later, I walked off the BYU campus with a signed mini football helmet with autographs from about 15 players. What a birthday!

Andrew is a loving big brother. When he's playing with Timothy or Matthew, he slips into this cute and higher-pitched voice...it's so adorable. He CONSTANTLY comes up to me and gives me kisses and hugs. I wish everyone could have seen him open his birthday presents...he was so grateful and adorable. He just kept saying WOW...a snickers bar....WOW, a DOLLAR! He was genuinely so happy! He couldn't BELIEVE he got his own rubber bands and army guys! He's just easy to please!

Andrew is persistent. When he's working on something he likes, it's impossible to pull him away. We got a Playstation for Christmas, and our rule is you have to do homework, laundry, piano, and bedroom before you can play. This kid is done so quickly it shocks me! So, I added one more....shower all by yourself every day. If you don't shower, you don't play. He (who HATES water) showers all by himself every single day...and loves when his hair smells like coconut! He once saw John putting on cologne, and started coming down to breakfast smelling like "Cool Water" and "Polo Black." We had to teach him the "less is more" concept for those intimate reading circles at school!

Andrew, bless his heart, has TERRIBLE handwriting. His kindergarten teacher explained it away with something like "his brain is moving so quickly, that writing is tedium. He just wants to get through it so he won't do it carefully." Funny. But his 3rd grade teacher knew he was talented, and started over-complimenting him whenever he had something legible. That has bloomed into very beautiful and neat handwriting. It used to be that even HE couldn't read his own writing...and now, the school HEADMASTER sent a note home complimenting him on his work. I'm so proud of him. Of course, I tried forever to get him to write neatly, but I think he had to do it on his own, and now he understands the joy of taking pride in your work.

Andrew is a leader...he makes board games and takes them to school to teach the other kids. He likes to draw WWII pictures, and knows just about every airplane every to grace the skies. He reads when prompted by his mother (all ability, no big desire) and can whip through books once he starts. He has a great sense of humor and is always making up jokes. (Sometimes, they're even funny to us!) When he was in kindergarten, his teachers were tickled that his newest joke was..."What did Andrew do? He drew and drew and drew and drew....." get it? Pretty good for a 5-year-old!

And so, I'm a lucky mom once again. When John confirmed Andrew, he told him that when the doctor announced that he was a boy, he didn't cry, he just laughed, because HE had never had a younger brother, and Andrew was going to be his best friend and playmate...and he is. He fills a perfect place in our family. I LOVE YOU, ANDREW!