Alas, our second child, Deacon, has taught us many lessons \u2014 perhaps the most valuable being we are not God\u2019s gift to parenting. The second most important lesson is that no two children are exactly alike. In fact, Deacon is as opposite from Quinn as they come.<\/p>\n
Take our restaurant experiences. Quinn used to sit in the high chair, charming all who gazed upon her. \u201cAwww, she\u2019s so cute,\u201d they\u2019d say, smiling at her.<\/p>\n
Deacon, on the other hand, is completely uninterested in impressing anyone except himself. He sits at the head of the table, waiting for his meal like a feudal lord. If our server has the misfortune of being an attractive young woman, she will likely have to bear with him pawing at her side.<\/p>\n \u201cAwww, he\u2019s\u2026no!…so\u2026no!…cute,\u201d they say, clenching their teeth in a semblance of a grin.<\/p>\n And this is him behaving himself. Other times he likes to throw his head back and release a loud shriek, for no other reason than to alert others to his presence.<\/p>\n My poor husband spends much of his restaurant time outside, holding or walking Deacon, so we don\u2019t interfere with fellow customers\u2019 dining pleasure.<\/p>\n Deacon also isn\u2019t so much of a cuddler as he is a hitter. One of his favorite things is to wait for his sister to lie down on the couch, walk up to her and look her straight in the eye before smacking her in the face.<\/p>\n He\u2019s lucky Quinn is still that sweet kid I described. Although she understands he\u2019s only 18 months old, we\u2019ve given her permission to stand up for herself against our brazen toddler.<\/p>\n We don\u2019t want him to assert dominance and believe he can bully her for the rest of their lives. (I can\u2019t believe I just wrote that last line. It sounds like something out of the \u201cThe Dog Whisperer;\u201d kids really aren\u2019t too different \u2014 I may very well wind up with one of those clickers touted by Cesar Millan.)<\/p>\n Finally, Deacon is shockingly disgusting. We\u2019ve caught him spitting on the floor for fun, just to trace the spit around the wood, and licking our blinds with abandon.<\/p>\n The good news is, despite the hitting, spitting and shrieking, Deacon has claimed his place in our family. He adores his big sister and is clearly confident we love him. (Seriously, if he were even a little insecure about that I\u2019m sure he wouldn\u2019t keep cleaning our blinds with his tongue.)<\/p>\n Funny enough, I can\u2019t imagine sitting on the couch without fending off my tiny warrior as he emits a battle cry before launching himself at me.<\/p>\n After all, blessings come in all shapes and sizes, even blessings that smack, spit and scream. While I may not have been familiar with parenting a child like Deacon, I wouldn\u2019t want anyone but Deacon to complete our family of four.<\/p>\n![\"Second](\"https:\/\/lamesacourier.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/web-_MG_5048.jpeg\")
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