I miss (and don't miss some of) the small things

There are some things that I miss from when Booger was younger, as many parents do. I always thought my parents were full of it when they said me and my brother were growing up to quick, but now that I am a mom I completely understand where my parents were coming from. In just 47 short days (yes I said short because it will go so fast) Booger will be 9 years old. NINE!! Omg! He will be 9! He will be in 4th grade in August, he is 6 years away from being old enough to get his learner permit. I am not ready for this!
So here is a list of things I miss from him being a witty bitty baby and a few things I dont!

1. When Booger was an itty bitty widdle baby my favorite thing was to have him in bed with me when I took a nap. There were times when he was so tired he couldn't sleep and we made a game. Well, it was a game for him (at three months old) and just adorable for me! I noticed that every time I would blink Booger would blink. He would watch my face so intently and copy everything I was doing. So I would blink, he would blink, then as it went on I would keep my eyes closed a bit longer each time I blinked. After about 3 minutes Booger would be out like a light. It relaxed him so much that by the time he would hold his eyes closed for a couple seconds he would just fall asleep. I really miss being able to do that with him!
2. First time he crawled.. for reals.. When he started crawling he was around 4 months old, he started early. But it was more of a bunny hop than an actual crawl. He would get on his hands and knees then maneuver his hands as far in from of him as her could then rock back and forth. After a few seconds of rocking back and forth he would get this look of determination on his face then shoot his knees forward as fast as he could. He would get this little grin on his face, try one more time, then poop out. This only lasted for about 3 weeks then he figured out how to crawl crawl and that was all it took. He was ALL OVER the house! Then he proved that he is as impatient as me because within another few weeks he was lifting himself up and trying to walk hanging onto things.
3. His first steps. Like crawling he started a bit early. He was walking on his own around 7 1/2 or 8 months. He started at 5 1/2 months with holding onto furniture and making it two to four steps then falling on his butt. Instead of crying when he fell on his butt he would give the biggest belly laugh, look at you like "that was not cool," then get back up and try again. He upgraded from that to pushing his walker through the house and walking behind it, then walking next to it while holding on with one hand, to taking 6 steps without holding onto anything. He refused to give up and within a week and a half he was trying to run. Once Booger could walk at a brisk, chubby legged, stomping, pigeon toed, pace he was all over the house and always trying to get outside to run in the grass.
4. Thankfully my brother didn't get his way with Boogers first word! From the time that Booger went from incoherent babbling to trying to make words my brother spent a lot of time trying to get 'boobies' to be Boogers first word. Every time he walked past Booger my brother would go-- "Say 'boobies'! You know you want to say 'boobies'! 'boooobbiiieeessss' 'boobies'! That never caught on, thank God! I would love to say that his first word was "Mommy" or even "Daddy" for that matter, even though his dad wouldn't have deserved it at that point. Sadly, though, Booger's first word was "no" and let me tell you.. he said it A LOT! No matter what you asked him, 'no.' No matter what you said to him, 'no.' You want to play outside-no. You want chocolate until you can't see straight-no. Do you love mommy-no. Are you funny-no. Why does your butt smell so bad when I just changed your diaper-no. Sumbitch! I just stubbed my toe on your swing-no. I heard no from him so much I was dreaming about the word 'no' dancing around my head.
5. Potty training was not much of a struggle, but Booger had no interest in it at all! He hated the fold-able seat I had for when we were out, he hated the plush seat to go over the big seat, he hated the little potties you set on the floor. However, even though he hated them he would sit on them. He had no interest in pushing his pee-pee down and would pee on the front of the seat. He got better at it and would tell us when he had to go, he would sit and make sure his pee went IN the potty and not ON it. He was able to wear big boy pants during the day, but needed a pull-up at night because he slept so deeply he wouldn't wake up when he needed to go. I remember when he was around 3 1/2 his dads, best friends, son's mother (try saying that 5 times fast) was watching Booger, since we lived across the street from her she was our babysitter for a little bit, and on day he was just over there playing with her 5 year old son. As I am sitting outside I see him come walking across he street (very little traffic, maybe 5 cars in 30 minutes, and me or the other mom was always outside watching when he crossed) and he comes right up to me, looks me dead in the eyes, and says "I pee like big boy now! I not sit no more!" That was all it took, he peed standing up and never wet the bed at night again after that.
6. I remember his first day of Pre-K like it was yesterday. He got to ride what he called "big boy bus" to Head Start. He was only gone for 4 hours, but it felt like forever when he was only 3 and 4. He would get on a bus, I would help strap him into the belts, give him a kiss, and watch the bus pull away with my baby praying he would come home safe. Booger LOVED it! He thought he was so big and grown up because he was on a bus. His last year of Pre-K he asked the driver to teach him how to put the belts on so he could do it himself. He told her "only babies need help wiff deez (that is how he said it)! He has always loved school and I think the positive start with Pre-K is the reason for that. Whenever he had problems with another kid his teacher was always there to help him. Booger would actually get mad on the weekends because he wouldn't have school. Any day he didn't have school he was a big grump. He still likes school but not like he did back then.

Then there are a few of the things I do NOT miss from when he was little!

1. Over night feedings! Who actually enjoys going to bed around 9 then waking up at 12am, 2am, 4am, 6am, then 8am?  I loved holding him while he ate, and rocking him back to sleep, but I am not the easiest to wake up, by far! I got lucky, if you want to see it that way, with the fact that I was only 19 when I got pregnant with him and living at home. My dad worked the late shift and would be home from work by 4am and up till 6am on his off days. So on the nights where I was having a hard time functioning he would feed Booger and get him back to sleep for me. 
2. Screaming for no reason at all. Nothing is more pleasant to hear than a young child screaming bloody murder while their face turns red just because they are bored or not getting what they want. Happy he grew out of that one quick!
3. Exorcist poop! Yeah I said it! There was one day where I had him in his crib, I put the side all the way down to change his diaper, and the SECOND I took his diaper off a stream of poo came out with such force it hit the wall on the other side of the room 10' away! Not only that, I had a nice trail going straight down my leg! I screamed, to keep from puking, and when my dad came in I just yelled "He pooped on me!" and my dad burst out laughing, to the point where I thought he was going to fall on the floor. Booger never peed on me, but he pooped on me quite a bit!
4. A child getting shots is never an easy thing, unless you are lucky and have an easy going child. I am was not, and still am not, that lucky. For as long as I can remember Booger would freak out the second the nurse walked in with needles for his shots. When he was younger it was easy, I put him on my lap and held his arm/leg still while he got his shot. But the child felt the need to keep getting bigger which made it harder. At almost 9 years old he still freaks and I have to take my dad or his dad with me on shot day. It takes either dad or papaw, depending on who is with us, holding his legs down, me holding his arms down while trying to get him to focus on me, one nurse holding the arm that is getting the shot down along with me for reinforcement, and the nurse giving the shot trying to give him his shot as quick as possible without hurting him. Shots have never bothered me, I am not afraid of needles, and I will watch when I get a shot/tattoo/IV and used to give myself my allergy shots. It breaks my heart when its time for Booger to get a shot because I just know that he thinks I am the most horrible person in the world for letting people scare/hurt him like that!

I know as he gets older there will be more things that I miss and don't miss as well as more things that I can't wait to experience. I just wish he could slow it down a little bit! I am not even 30 yet and feel like I am raising a pre-teen already!