He had six friends over for a sleepover on Saturday night. Then we had our birthday dinner and birthday party as a family on Sunday. BOOM. Done.
There are other ways it was different though. None of them as easy as scheduling.
He's getting so old. It's become instant teenager around here, just add water. He's cross and scowling most of the time at home. You can see him with his friends and he's laughing and having a blast, but then he gets in the car and it's like a blast of cold air comes in with him. He argues, he sulks, he's sarcastic (yes I KNOW - that's my fault) and he spends a lot of time in his room (not his choice most of the time - I just banish him there). But it's more than just the attitude.
He would rather be almost anywhere than with us. He goes out to play with his friends and is just GONE for hours at a time. Up in the foothills, down at he creek, at his friends houses, anywhere but home. It used to be for his friend birthday party, even as recently as last year, we scheduled events and games and movies. This year we didn't do a thing. They just came over and went upstairs. The few times we went to look in on them we got an embarrassed stare, an eye roll and quiet derision until we closed the door and came back downstairs.
There are glimpses that our real boy is still in there however. He has always been friends with a boy with Downs Syndrome at school. Really since right after we moved here. Anthony may have been one of his first friends in the neighborhood. Jake invited Anthony to his party this year, which thrilled Anthony and his parents. He couldn't stay for the sleepover part, but he had a good time at the party and left at 7:00 or so. Jake was so great with him (and always is) that you can't help but be proud of him. He instinctively knows how to interact with Anthony, doesn't talk down to him, makes sure he's doing okay and having a good time, and keeps him in check behavior wise. It really is amazing to watch and gives me hope that he'll come out of this phase and go back to the wonderful boy he was just yesterday it seems like.
His world also has become very weirdly social, like teenage girl social. He gets in spats with his friends, they clique up on each other. He totally avoids someone for weeks at a time, then spends hours and days with that same person, them against the world, friends forever. He had a friend he was on the out's with until the day before the sleep over, then all of the sudden they were best buddies again and the party couldn't happen without Charley. So Marisa had to get involved and go through the mom to get things smoothed out and the last minute invite delivered.
It really has become quite surreal almost overnight, and the party was the perfect example. They came through the door, went upstairs, came down when we gave them food, went back upstairs and totally avoided us until it was time to leave.
I guess it's just life and I was a teenager myself once upon a time. I DO remember it not happening until high school though. NOT AT 10 years old!
Happy birthday Jake. Act your damn age!
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