My baby boy is 4, and he's always been special. He recognized his letters and said them, both upper and lowercase at 18 months, but never spoke words until he was 3. He could buckle and unbuckle things at 1, and therefore his favorite toy was his sisters highschool musical helmet.

Then he graduated to cars. His matchbox cars had to be a certain style, and they always had to line up just so, and no one was allowed to touch them. He loved anything to do with video games...he would be 2 and mastering Curious George games on the computer that were meant for 5 year olds.

Yet at 3 he didn't tell us when he went outside, and we'd realize he was missing, only to find him up the street staring at the street drain...so I had a security system installed. Not because I felt our neighborhood was unsafe, but because the doors would chime to tell me when they opened and which door he left from.

We could leave him for the evening with a person he barely knew, and as long as they met his needs and his routine was not disrupted, he wouldn't even notice we were gone. He can master an ipad/iPod/iPhone and even watch/read instructions in Chinese. He masters Xbox lego games that are meant for 8+ year olds, and then will refuse to play it anymore lol. And yet he's my first to clear his plate, and throw away his trash, and put his clothes in the laundry. He likes things "just so" and despises having people invade his space.

One time me, my sister and my mom went to the beach and all the other kids would sit by us and if they walked away would make sure they knew where we were. Not Cai. He'd just walk away to explore...and he did. All 3 of us screamed at once, "where's Cai?" my heart stopped, I thought for sure id lost him in the sea of people, strangers he had no fear of...it took 10 minutes of looking between umbrellas and sandy bodies, and we found him staring at the playground 500 yards away from where our blanket was...See? He's special.

But tonight I felt I was special. He was upstairs playing his toy story game and I had to rock Zion to sleep. All the other kids were outside playing basketball. He realized he was alone, and started calling my name. When I didn't answer, he got louder. I finally got Zion to sleep and when I came out he was staring at the door crying. I picked him up (not an easy task, he's 4 and the size of a 6 year old!) and he put both hands on my face and said "you not answer, I could not find you" my heart rejoiced, not at his sadness of course, but that he was finally aware that I was "here". I, his mama, am his safety security.

I always wondered what would happen if he got lost at a store or a fair. Would he even notice? But now I know. Yes he would, and I am so glad. Yeah he is special, but I love him more than words can express. And someday, he'll either be a softhearted running back, or a programer for Apple. Either way he has a bright future and we celebrate him :)