The Graduate and Mother's Day

So like I wrote before, my little brother graduated from basic training the other day. I wasn't able to go, but I managed to swipe some pictures from my stepsisters.

(he's the one 2nd to the right)

(him and dad)

I finally got to see him on Mother's Day. He's so skinny and looks amazing... and somehow taller? And while I will always love my brother and am very proud of him for accomplishing something this huge... he's still the same guy. Except now, he's a tad bit on the cocky side. I'm hoping he's just impressed with himself, and that this will eventually fade. My brother has a lot of issues. He's such a sweetie deep down. He has a big heart, and he's very sensitive. Unfortunately, he's been the target of bullying, name calling, and teasing. He has a learning disability to where he's not able to process things well. He also has a hard time totally understanding normal social cues. The toughest part is that he seems like a regular kid/guy. He's healthy, talkative, and friendly; so people can't pick up any of his issues. Thus, he becomes an easy target.

He's a rescuer. He wants to help buddies or anyone that needs it. The problem is that he doesn't understand when people are taking advantage of him.

When he was in elementary school, he would get beat up by these girls. They were so mean. He obviously couldn't do anything back, because "they were girls". They would call him racial slurs (they were Hispanic). He now has a hard time liking anyone Hispanic. When he tried to go to a teacher about it, they didn't do anything about it. It made me furious. My mom finally had to step in, and eventually the girls were expelled (but for different reasons). I'm not saying he didn't ever do anything to deserve a good kick in the pants (btw, that's how they beat him... and other boys... up), but still. Not cool. The kids in his class called him fat. This is a picture of him as a little kid:

Yeah, he's a chunker, alright. And the ones calling him fat were twice his size. When he was 14, he went through a stage where he stopped eating, because he still thought he was fat. My cousin who was two years older than him had six-pack abs, and he wanted them too.

People also teased him and called him stupid. He's always talked a lot, and as a kid, it was the cutest thing. He was adorable and smiley and silly. He got on people's nerves sometimes, because it was hard to get him to be quiet for long. But still. He was cute. Fast forward to the age of 19. He still talks a lot. He also says dumb things. And by "dumb", I mean totally inappropriate things. He spouts out information that's usually incorrect or bias. He makes comments just to get a reaction. This leads to lots of "you don't know what you're talking about" remarks from friends and family. The poor kid wanted to be accepted so bad. He wanted to be taken seriously. At boot camp, he earned the nickname Gomer Pyle.

Anyways, now that he completed something this amazing, he feels like he's on top of the world... and has a big head to show for it. At lunch, he tried to make sure everyone who ever teased him felt like they were the stupid ones. I know that they have no idea that's why he's acting like a know-it-all jerk. He wants them to know he's important now. He wants to feel superior for once.

He has a spoiled streak in him too. Remember how he was supposed to go to church with my mom? Yeah, he stood her up. Broke my heart for her. The reason? He had went out with a bunch of friends the night before and stayed out too late.

Please pray for this kid. I think he's going to need it.

Anyways...

onto something a little more cheerful...

MY FIRST MOTHER'S DAY!!

I had the best day. Brad, as you know, has been working an insane amount of hours lately. He made a point that no matter what, he was not going to miss my first mother's day. He's such an incredible guy. I love him so much. He got home in time for us to hop in the car and head to my grandparents'. Oh, Noah and I ended up skipping church. He fell asleep right before we had to leave, so I just let him sleep. No reason to make the  morning stressful for us.

We had a good time with everyone. Noah (and the puppies) got me the sweetest card and one of those digital picture frames. I love it!

I also got the sweetest Mother's Day messages from my inlaws and a card too. Thank you so much yall! You definitely made me feel special!

Noah had a good time with the family. My grandmother got him a sheet out to play on. He seemed to have fun with it.

He started out like this...

...and ended up like this...

Silly boy.

My family loves him, if you couldn't tell. :)

And my dad was sweet enough to hold him while I joined everyone else in a quick wiffleball game! I wasn't able to play last year (obviously), so I was really looking forward to getting back in the game! :)

Hope everyone had a great weekend!!