This weekend was Cole's birthday party. For 5 years in a row we got away with just family get togethers or a getaway that served as our celebration. But this year, Cole wanted a REAL party, like with kids and stuff :) So we debated over the when and the where and finally decided that we would have his party at the Flying Frog (its kind of like a Chuck E Cheese, but instead of a creepy singing bear, its a rainforest theme). Set the time, set the date, reserved the space, paid the deposit. And insert issue #1. Cole is fiercely loyal. It makes me and Jake laugh because he refers to the kids in his Kindergarten class as his "classmates" not his "friends". At least once a month I'll get an email from a mother of a child in Cole's class and the email will say something like, "my child literally ADORES Cole and would love for him to come to their party". Most of the time, these are kids that I have never even heard of. But then there are the ones that he has grown up with. We've been blessed with an amazing daycare facility (fittingly named Amazing Creations) and Cole started there at 16 months old. There is a core group of kids that have been there with him for last 4 years. Making all the same changes together. SO we asked him who he wanted to invite. Of course, his cousins (The Gogol crew), and his friends Myles and Charlie and then the only two other kids he wanted to invite were his friends Will and Lawson. I knew the cousins would be there. They are always down for whatever and I love that about their entire family. Myles and Charlie couldn't make it because "the funk" and a nasty reaction to the antibiotics were wreaking havoc on their household, Lawsons parents never RSVP'd (punks), and Will, also referred to as BFF, well Will would be there. And that's all Cole needed. He was good with his cousins and BFF. We picked Will up before the party on Saturday because his Mom and Dad were both working. He was really upset and crying when we got there because he said he missed his dad. The sitter said he had just woken up and I kind of figured that he was just still tired. I knew something wasn't right when he got in the car and he asked Cole to please be quiet so he could sleep. This was not the child I was used to seeing. We made it to the Flying Frog, about a 30 minute drive, got the kids out of the car, got ALMOST into the establishment, and vomit. Poor, precious Will threw up. And then he had an accident in his pants. When we started walking in, something told me to hold his hand, that he needed to feel comfortable. I'm so glad I did. I yelled to Jake and told him we were going back to the car, take the kids inside and get them playing and happy. But especially, make sure Cole is okay. Will obviously wouldn't be staying for the party :( His dad got there as fast as any dad can without the advantage of rocket boosters, no red lights and not a single person on the road other than him. I was pretty impressed. Luckily, it wasn't the funk, but instead a very bad migraine. Poor little guy. But life goes on and Cole and Will, well they're still BFF's and the party ended up being great. Cole had a great time and most importantly he felt special. This morning, he woke me up to show me that he had gotten up early and colored a picture to take to Will tomorrow to make him feel better. I love this childs heart. And I can't help but think about the first time my heart melted in his presence.
Jake laughed this morning in reminding me that 6 years ago today we were at a Super Bowl party with all of his Marine buddies. This one guy in particular was totally fascinated with my completely ready to pop belly and on his trips back and forth from the beer cooler he would stop and very creepily say, while reaching forward, "can I touch it?" Lucky for him I was having contractions and couldn't have cared less about his Miller Light breath making my hair stink. Good times good times.
We met Cole Harrison on a Tuesday. It had become a habit of Jake's to ask me every single morning before I left for work "any signs of Cole Harrison coming today?" He asked me this day and though I replied "no" I also knew that I didn't quite feel right. I had already been to labor and delivery the week before and the old crotchety nurse that clearly hated her job sent me home. So on this morning I went to work, and started contracting on my way there. BUT, I had some things to do first. I dropped my car off to get detailed because we were selling it, Mom picked me up and we headed to the office. I spent my day counting....pacing the office floor, walking on the treadmill, counting. I will never forget this.....I emailed my doctor and told him I think this is it. I told him I thought I was leaking amnio fluid. His email back was an instruction to sniff the fluid. WHAT?!!!! I deleted the email and decided that if Cole was coming, he was coming. There wasn't a chance I was sniffing anything. About 4pm rolled around and Mom and I decided it was time. I still hadn't told Jake yet. No reason to get everyone all worked up right? Could be another false alarm. I went and picked my car up and the ladies at the detailing shop were literally yelling at me to hurry to the hospital. Its hilarious now in retrospect. So I drove the 40 minute drive from work to the hospital. I arrived just at 5pm. By this time, Jake knew. He showed up within about 5 mins of me checking in to get examined. The nurse came in, same old crotchety one that had sent me home, she checked me, checked the babys heartbeat and said "sorry" and started my discharge paperwork. As she walked out of the room, my water broke. I will NEVER EVER forget the look of sheer panic and disgust on Jake's face as he lifted the sheet and yelled for the nurse "something's happening in here!" My water broke at 6 pm. At 12:49 am, on Feb. 8th 2006, Cole Harrison made his entrance. 6 lbs. 15 oz. 19.5 inches of pure infant perfection. And then he cried. He cried for at least an hour straight. Jake looked at me and said "what did we do?" And that was the first time, but not the last time, God busted my heart wide open.
Cole challenges me every single day. He has difficult days, like any child. He has days where he will walk up to me and whisper in my ear "I love you mama" and the tears well up in my eyes with joy. We have days where we butt heads. I usually end up apologizing first. I never dreamed that Jake and I could create a child so much EXACTLY like Jake. It's kind of scary. Not kind of. It IS scary. Cole is witty. He's sarcastic. He's hilarious. He's vibrant. He's loud. He's enthusiastic. He's smart. He's fully aware of the impact of his baby blue eyes. He loves deeper than deep. He laughs and the whole room erupts with laughter. He never meets a stranger. He can turn a room upside down in 5 minutes flat. He has a thirst for knowledge, both useful and completely useless. He LOVES good food. And he loves his little sister. I will always remember the first time we said it. The first time we explained how we love...."as deep as the ocean". He'll say to me every now and again, "hey mom, as high as the mountains?" and I will reply "as big as the sky".
I'm blown away that my first born will be 6 on Wednesday. It feels like yesterday. I want it to be yesterday. It's happening too fast. I told our friend Carl one time that I finally figured out that from the second they are born, we start letting them go. And it's true. Every time they reach a milestone, it's one step closer to letting go, and letting God. So much easier to type than it is to do. So I'll keep on praying for him. Praying that he stays in Gods will for his life and that at just 6 years old he would begin to shine his light, not just understand that light that shines in him. I am so proud of him. He WILL change the world one day!
Happy early Birthday to my first born, my Cole Harrison.
