At barely 3 years old, Nathaniel is the most charismatic person I have ever known.  He wills that others love him and that they allow him to love them back, and people respond to him.  We all comply with his demands because they sound so tyrannically reasonable, don’t they?  Is there anyone who doesn’t want to love and be loved?  Never mind that being loved includes tackles from the Bully of Luuuuhhhve; once his sweet arms are around you, you forget the tackle and revel in the amazing snuggles.  Nathaniel has not yet found a person or animal who can withstand his sweet charms.  I can think of only two who have firmly held their ground against his advances, although it is hard to count older siblings as legitimate opposition.  Zach and Rissa have the unique ability to view him as a frustrating little brother, but even they come around.  After dismissing him, they eventually cave and call him back into their good graces because he is lovable and even they can’t stay away for long.  Also, I suspect that once they aren’t so much larger than him, Zach and Rissa will be just as powerless against Nathaniel’s love tackles as the rest of us.

We work incessantly on “use your gentle hands/be careful, she’s a baby!/THAT’S a good way to be kind, Buddy” guidance in order to shape our little luuuhhve bully and guide his powers toward good.  There is so much to enjoy about someone who is openly loving with everyone around him and who spews smiles, hilarity, snuggles, and “you’re so special to me!” messages like an active volcano.  In fact, I think that word picture is the perfect descriptor for our Nathaniel.  Our tiny volcano who melts the world around him on a regular basis.

As the woman blessed enough to be that volcano’s mommy, I get to concoct ways to use his caring tendencies for his own good.  Perhaps Nathaniel does not want to take his nap?  “No pobwem!” as he would say.  I just pick up Arf-arf and say, “Oh, Arf-arf, I know you are so tired, but don’t fall asleep yet!  You have to wait for Nathaniel so that he can snuggle you to sleep… let’s go upstairs, Arf-Arf.”  Without fail, Nathaniel will snatch Arf-arf out of my arms, hold him close like a baby,  smile and say, “Oh, Arf-arf!  I hep you go nigh-night!  We bring Bantie wif us to hep you!”  Then he’ll snuggle Arf-arf all the way upstairs while I carry Bantie (blankie) and Arf-arf will say in Nathaniel’s high-pitched impersonating voice, “Ohtay, I wait for you, Sanyiel!”  I tuck them both in, give them kisses, and whisper, “Thank you so much for helping Arf-arf, Thanny-man.  He loves to do his nigh-nights with you because you do such a good job taking care of him.  Make sure he stays in your bed and doesn’t get up, okay?  Nigh-night, boys, I love you!”  I smile as two versions of “I wuv you!” echo out of the firetruck’s bottom bunk and close the door.  Another job well done by a persuasive mommy and a caring little man who is already a wonderful daddy to his babies.

Speaking of babies, Nathaniel adores them!  He hears them crying in the grocery store and guesses at what might “hep dem.”  (Given his older brother’s proclivity for poopy jokes, it is no surprise that Nathaniel most commonly suggests changing the baby’s “poopy diapie” as the first thing to do).   He sees babies crawling and toddling around and dashes over to get down at their level and say, “Hi, Baby!  You wike dat pacie? Dat’s a vewwy nice pacie!  Here, you dwop your toy!  I div it to you!”  He has never said so with words, but he longs to be a big brother.  He wants a baby of his very own to help and to love and to pounce with snuggles.  He seeks babies out and always has happy smiles and a kind word for them.  We make a point to give him baby time whenever possible to satisfy that longing in his heart to care for someone smaller than himself.  There is a little boy in his Kindermusik class who brings his baby brother along each week.  Nathaniel oftens asks me to “hold da baby!” and he checks on little Leo often throughout the class.  (This is a vast improvement from only 6 months ago when he would angrily announce to tiny Leo, “No, Baby!  Dis MY mommy!  You no hold her!”  Back then, babies were for him to love, but I was to reserve myself for Nathaniel only!  He shares me much more openly now.)

As we shape this little man into the big man God made him to become, we pray for God’s wisdom to find ways to always encourage and enable his love.  If only the world had more Nathaniels – little beacons of love that explode all over the place leaving everyone more cared for and everything else a bit more messy.  No one minds the extra mess with all of that love to go around!  And we pray for God’s strong protection around him, guarding his heart from anyone who might crush his kindness and exuberance or try to break him.  Our Bub is a gift to be shared, and if he has his way, you’ll be forced to take your share and you’ll WIKE it!