Messy Matix

Matix is magnificent and i can't believe i have been so lousy at recording the wonderfully things he says and does because truly, they bring me so much happiness! I'm just sick about the moments I've lost to my bad memory and I hope I can record them as they come back to me but for now I'll record what I can never forget.

Matix is the messiest. People constantly give me a hard time, saying, "Wow, do you ever wash his face?" or my personal favorite, "I don't think I have ever seen Matixs face clean". I'd be hurt by this but its pretty possible. I've never met a child more curious about the texture, taste and fashion possibilities of such mundane products such a vasoline, toothpaste, and spraypaint.
 I'll explain.
Matix could be left alone for as little as 2 minutes and create irreparable damage. He has rubbed an entire container of Vaseline into the carpet in his room using his hands, head and a toy train.
He also rubbed a 1/2 tube of toothpaste into his hair while i was in the same bathroom doing his brothers hair. He sat directly behind me and silently massaged it into his scalp until i turned around and stopped him too late. We spent the next 10 minutes scrubbing the toothpaste our of his scalp and he smelt of peppermint for 3 days. Not his worst mistake. But the carpet next to the bathroom where he squeezed the other 1/2 of the tube didn't clean as easily. 
 About 5 minutes before we were due to be in the car and on our way to church, I found the backdoor open which always makes my heart sink. It means a mess of some sort, whether it be dirt on our Sunday clothes, grass stains or something worse. This time it was worse. A can of black spray paint had be left on top of our grill from a DIY project the day before and Matix climbed up on the grill, somehow opened the can of spray paint and pointed it directly at his face. We were late to church that day and i scrubbed Matixs face til it was red from the rough rag and speckled black from the paint i couldn't get off with soap and water.

 He's not all mischief, he is very apologetic and self-reflective. He remembers his mistakes and talks about his lessons learned in a humorously mature way, it makes it difficult to stay mad about them. He's quick to apologize sincerely and will cuddle you til everything is right in the world again. Thats not to say he can't hold a grudge, he has no problem telling you when "he mad at you". But tickles usually work as a perfect exchange for an apology. He loves being tickled and we have yet to wear him out through laughter, he can just keep going and going.

Potty training has been a doozy, as I predicted it would be, but for reasons i could not have foreseen. He's frequently peeing and even going #2 outside whenever he can get out of my eye range. It is nerve wrecking and I cant trust him anywhere. Such a joy.

Here are a few more moments only made possible by Matix

-Matix often gets frustrated, he's very emotionally driven (cant imagine where he gets it from) but when he's riding his bike, he'll ride in the gutter groove and the way his training wheels set, his back wheel wont touch the ground so he'll pedal as hard and fast as he can and stay in place...just yelling from frustration and pedaling out of anger...and i'll stand a few feet back, laughing and recording it all.
-Matix went to the bathroom at church and i had I'm practice locking the door behind him. unfortunately, he couldn't remember how to unlock it so he decided to stay a while. And I guess he got bored in there because he took off the porcelain lid of the toilet and threw it on the ground, it shattered and girls in all the stalls yelled and lifted their feet because it shattered ALL over the bathroom.
-I have to check Matixs pockets for bugs, lizards and rocks daily. If he likes something, he picks it up and puts it in his pocket, living or non-living. He often asks to bring bugs to bed for nap time.
-Matix calls hand sanitizer, handzitizer...it's my favorite.

- When he inevitably has a sad consequence for an action he pleads and begs "NO, mama, i pinky promise" ...we never pink promise anything so I'm not sure where he thinks that notion will take him but most of the time it is straight to his room.
-We all love that when Matix is wrestling he bites his tongue and uses his head as his primary weapon.

- He is the first person dressed every morning. I LOVE his desire to get ready because no one else in our house has one of those. He walks out of his room around 6:30, bed made (kind of ), prayers said and clothes on (even his jacket and shoes most days (note: its almost never necessary to wear a jacket but he wont stop.)

- He always has a goose egg somewhere on his head. he hits his head every week at least and I'm mildly concerned about its lasting effects.
-His dimples are so deep and dreamy i feel like they reach all the way to the pit of his heart and when his smiles that bright sincere smile I can see just how pure a innocent he is.

Matix wants to be friends and have friends, he is always walking up to strangers saying " My name is Matix and my letters are M - A- T- I- X. So, how's it going?" Most people don't know how to respond so he gets a little frustrated but he has some wonderful friends and teachers who love him just right and I am SO grateful for them! Chad and I often nudge each other when Matix is just being himself so we can watch and enjoy his quirks. We love this little man and all his messes.