Mark

Mark is my second boy. 

He is the one that has been the healthiest. The first time he was sick, he was 3. It was so funny, yet I felt so bad for him. Since he didn't know what was going on, he was so confused. He just had a little bug, so it wasn't too bad, but poor little guy...lol. He laid on the couch with a little fever, with a washcloth on his head, looked up at me and said "What's wrong with me, Mommy?"  He's only had to go to the doc once for a sickness.

The other times of being to the doctor is for his ADHD. I struggled with having him put on medicine because I thought it was my parenting since I already had one child on medicine. So I fought it for a long time. I finally had a person tell me "If your child was sick, you'd want them to get well. This is the same thing." That's the thing that finally got me. So we got him diagnosed and on medicine. It hasn't been an easy road. He has such a FAST metabolism that medicine blows thru his body. 

However, when we have his medicine correct, he can focus so wonderfully in school, this boy is a whiz. He loves to learn, so that's not a  problem. It's making sure he can focus. He's an A/B student and can stay there as long as his medicine is helping. When his medicine isn't working correctly, he slips into the C/D range. As I tell him, if that was the best he could do....I'd have no problem with that.....but I know he can do better. We have proof from his report cards :)

He is the messiest kid. His room can't stay clean for even a day...lol. We have tried so many tricks, that we have ran out....lol. I have just tried to pick my battles. During the school year: would I rather have his schoolwork done or his room clean? Would I rather have him pout about having to do his room and take forever on his schoolwork and do it incorrectly or just have him work on his homework and figure out the room later? So it's just a battle with him and with myself with what should be done. The odd thing? He'll help me around the house...just not his room...lol. So....I just have to deal sometimes. I'll go in sometimes and work with him to clean it, but even that is a struggle, too.

He LOVES to read. Let me say that again.....LOVES to read. We can't go anywhere without a book or magazine with him. We live about 5 minutes from the grocery store and the pharmacy. Even to take a ride there.....yep....along goes a  book or magazine. He is kinda picky about what he likes, but once he gets into a book, he's absorbed. He likes to read about Ben Franklin. I know this because we have one book about him that he has read eight times (that I know of....lol) He likes to read about NASCAR. We have some books on the history of NASCAR and their drivers and some NASCAR magazines and he reads them.

He loves games. Be them board, card, or electronic ones. He loves Uno, Monopoly, and almost ANY electronic game...lol. He will play any game with you. It may take him a little bit to learn it, but he will play it. Skip-Bo he likes....it just takes him a little bit to remember it every time he starts it again. You need a partner for a card game? Call Mark :) (just no gambling with my kid...lol)

Although, honestly, he's not good at sports.....he tries soooooo hard at them. We work with him, we encourage him, we get him to try and try again....but he's just not going to be a sport kid. 

Now drawing.....that kid can draw!!!! It has amazed me what he can draw. I love to put his drawings on the fridge. I have had a couple of times when my fridge has been overrun with his drawings...lol. He's done drawings of a dragon, a bear, an Indian,  Scooby Doo, and many others. I'm planning an area of our wall where I'm going to put clipboards where we can put their art on the wall and switch them around as we want. The boys can do it as they want to, too.

He's my shy, yet competitive boy. He's my messy,  cleaning helper. He's my aspiring artist. He's my aspiring chef. He's my "can't put a book down" boy. He's my teacher boy...always wanting to teach the younger boys things he has learned. He's my protective boy....always making sure everyone is ok. 

This is my Markers.