He's gonna be the death of me!

This kiddo...

...is gonna be the death of me.

Since he was teeny-tiny, I knew he was trouble.  He's never had fear.  In his mind, the phrase, "you're too little" just doesn't apply to him.  Perseverance and an "I think I can" attitude are the hallmark of his little personality.  And keeping up with the big brothers, well that is a challenge he believes he is up for.  

Yesterday, Abel, Eli, and I were getting ready to head upstairs for naptime.  Holding Abel, I opened the gate at the bottom of the stairs only to realize that Abel's beloved "bunny bear" was still sitting in the middle of the living room floor.  Eli headed on up the stairs.  I put Abel down and trotted over to grab "bunny bear."  As I turned around, I realized Abel was no longer standing at the base of the stairs and felt that panic.  Mamas, you know what I mean.  I realized he followed Eli up the stairs.  Then, I saw it--a flash of orange tumbling down the stairs.  Oh, no!  Oh, my gracious!  I saw my baby log rolling down the last four stairs.   Now, I only stepped into the living room, so I cognitively knew that he couldn't have fallen from very far up the stairs, but my mama's heart was so shaken.  The "what ifs" started flying through my head.  I was planning the quickest route to the ER.  I was kicking myself for leaving him unattended.  I swept my crying baby up and held him close.  I quickly checked him over. He was fine--a little red mark on his nose, but he was fine!  Thank you, God, my baby was fine!  His mama, however, needed a little more time to be fine!  :)

Of course, being the little Abel that he is, he cried only briefly before trying to get down from my arms to climb the stairs once again!  I guess you can't keep a good toddler down!