I have been scanning old pictures to reduce my paper load.  Right now there are boxes and albums all over the office floor.  (why, yes, Robbie is an only child).

Some things I have noticed;

I did have the most gorgeous baby in the world, thank you very much.  At times he was the Child from Hell, but gosh, he was pretty.  People used to ask me, "What is her name?", and I would reply "Roberta".  Probably explains a lot.

I made a lot of costumes.  I wanted a girl so I could sew the kind of fluffy, pink, girly things that I do not wear.  Instead I made Star Trek uniforms, Ren Faire garb, and Dune Fremen costumes.  If Robbie had an oral report to do, he had a costume for it.  And weapons to match.

Robbie had some rather unfortunate haircuts.  He just informed me that I used to cut his hair (which I did), but I retaliated that I never gave him that mullet.

Wherever we went, I tried to give him experiences.  We had memberships to every museum within 50 miles.  We spent so much time at the Phoenix Zoo, that the shuttle drivers knew him and would give him free rides.

We spent a lot of time in the Grand Canyon.  I remember Robbie complaining: "We're going to Phantom Ranch for Christmas AGAIN?"  The Christmas tradition started when Robbie was five, and I figured if he hiked out of the Canyon on Christmas Eve, he would go to sleep that night.

Now that he's in New York, I have lost my costume buddy.  Brad won't go to anything that he has to dress up as a Terran Empire officer, or a Renaissance noble.  I gave up on the nobility bit, though.  They wore too many clothes.  Now I am a merchant's wife.

Just before Robbie and Renata took off, we intimidated Renata into wearing Garb for the Ren Faire.  She hated it, but I told her if WE were dressed up and SHE wasn't, SHE would be even more embarrassed that she usually is when she is out with us.

For a long time, Robbie would only wear 100% cotton, and NO zippers.  So I sewed his clothes, and I did come up with some fairly strange outfits.  One day he was dressed in yellow and orange (with a propeller beanie) and was attacked by a baboon at the zoo.  Fortunately, he was behind glass (the baboon, not Robbie).

 

Whenever I was trying to convince Robbie not to get a tatto, I could point to his past passions.  What if he had gotten a Blue Power Ranger tatto?  Or a Pokeman Charizard?  Wouldn't he feel kind of dumb about it now?  

Also, this kid is seriously weird.  Probably gets that from me.  However, if he goes gaga and starts stalking people with a Zelda Sword, or hacks into the Pentagon  it is not my fault.  It will be proof that he is inherently evil.

 I have pictures of us at the Boston Light, the Freedom Trail, Boston Museum of Science (EVERY weekend), lots of dangerous cliffs, wading at the Boat Beach in December.  I remember he lost his shoe in the mud, and when he told me, my answer was, "And?".  I did a lot for that kid, but I refuse to swim in the 40-degree mud in the end of December looking for a shoe.  He did find the shoe.