We're all sick. This is the first time we've all come down with a cold at the same time. Sort of the first time Sam has had a cold, so I guess I shouldn't complain. He's had a 24 hour stomach flu (that was awful) and then I think he had a cold a while ago, but it was very mild and short-lived. So this is the first time where we're stuck inside for days, all coughing, sneezing, and stuffy nosed. All of us. Uck. But I think Sam and I are on the mend. Aaron isn't sure he is yet. I hope we're all feeling better real soon because Christmas is right around the corner and we have oodles of visitors a-comin'.
Sick or not, I'm leaving the house tomorrow to get a haircut, if nothing else. It's been many months. I have bad highlights growing out that I can't do anything about really since I'm pregnant, but at least getting rid of the fuzzy ends will hopefully make things feel better! And I better decide on something to make for Christmas dinner and hit the grocery store as well.
Sam is so funny. He's been such a charmer lately. The other night he was drawing with his dad beside the Christmas tree, listening to an old Christmas record and he just told us "me happy, me happy". We said, "you're happy??" and he said "'kay." (he says okay for any positive yes word). Then he asked his dad if he was happy, then he asked me if I was happy. Then he looked at me around the chair and said "kiss!" and asked me to come over and give him a kiss. What a sweetheart.
And tonight while prolonging actually going to bed, he wanted to sing me a song. He stood in front of me with his hands clasped behind his back and smiled coyly, then covered his face and giggled. I suggested the Lollipop Guild song from Wizard of Oz. I asked if he wanted me to sing it with him and he said "No!" So then he built up the courage to perform, singing "Lollipop Guild! Lollipop Guild!" over and over, starting off shy and soon dancing all through the house.
Also tonight he did a lot of singing "Barbara Ann" with his dad; Aaron used his plastic microphone while Sam played his guitar with a makeshift guitar strap he put together. He was really hamming it up. Got into Huey Lewis' "Power of Love" too.
Oh! And also prolonging bedtime tonight: He wanted to drink some water and surely spilled a little on his pants. I said, "Don't worry, it will dry." He fussed about getting some dry pants. I gave in with a huffy "Fine." (because I'm so grown up and mature) and gave him a dirty look. As I left the room to get the dry pants he said "Love you too, Mom."
And another cute moment... Aaron was coughing in the other room and Sam said "D sick?" (Dad is always D). I said "yes." Sam said "me sick too." and then "mom." (because mom is sick too). Then he asked "Baby?" haha. I said "No Sam, I think the baby is ok." He'll give me bites of food for the baby too.
And speaking of baby. We have such the wiggle worm here! He's always rolling and tumbling around. I think I can kind of feel him from the outside now too. We have made little progress on names (please, feel free to share suggestions). I also have realized that I'm kind of sad that I won't be having a daughter. I'm not sad that our new guy is a boy, but since we're not (at this point in our lives) planning to have more than two children, this is it. I will be a mom of two sons. I guess I just always imagined I'd have a daughter. I feel really silly or guilty to say it, but it's true. I want excuses to buy stupidly cute little girl things and all of that. But announcing this loud and publicly seems to help me get over it. I love my little boy now, and I'm sure it will be love at first sight with my second little guy too. And how nice that they are brothers and will have each other. Still, those of you with baby girls watch out. I may just have to shower you with girl stuff.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
It's a...
BOY!
But you all know that already anyway, thanks to Facebook and email.
I realize now that I really thought it was going to be a girl. I'm not SURPRISED that it's a boy, I just thought it would be a girl and most of my day dreaming was of girl stuff and girl names and what not. I'm glad we decided to find out the gender because now we can actually start thinking about who our little guy is and Sam can prepare for his little brother. Little brother!! So fun.
This little guy already seems to have his own personality (which, you know, is obvious, but still...). He wiggles and moves ALL the time. He wouldn't stay still during the ultrasound either. I wonder what that will mean :-/ Of course you feel the movements a lot more second time around, and this time we have a posterior placenta and the first time we had anterior placenta so that has a big impact on how you feel it all.
Anyway, we are all just so excited to have had a chance to see him move and have all his parts and all of that. He's really there! He's with us already! It's pretty amazing.
In other news, work has slowed down, we're prepping for the holidays. Mike & Sarah will visit, as will my dad, and then Aaron's parents will even be able to stop by for a couple of nights. It will be nice to have time with family.
Here are some Christmas Sam pics:
But you all know that already anyway, thanks to Facebook and email.
I realize now that I really thought it was going to be a girl. I'm not SURPRISED that it's a boy, I just thought it would be a girl and most of my day dreaming was of girl stuff and girl names and what not. I'm glad we decided to find out the gender because now we can actually start thinking about who our little guy is and Sam can prepare for his little brother. Little brother!! So fun.
This little guy already seems to have his own personality (which, you know, is obvious, but still...). He wiggles and moves ALL the time. He wouldn't stay still during the ultrasound either. I wonder what that will mean :-/ Of course you feel the movements a lot more second time around, and this time we have a posterior placenta and the first time we had anterior placenta so that has a big impact on how you feel it all.
Anyway, we are all just so excited to have had a chance to see him move and have all his parts and all of that. He's really there! He's with us already! It's pretty amazing.
In other news, work has slowed down, we're prepping for the holidays. Mike & Sarah will visit, as will my dad, and then Aaron's parents will even be able to stop by for a couple of nights. It will be nice to have time with family.
Here are some Christmas Sam pics:
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Winter Updates
It's cold. It has been cold. There is snow. There is ice. It's too cold. But I definitely prefer cold with snow to cold without. At least it's pretty and feels like Christmas.
We have a Christmas tree! I think our first in five years. We just picked it up at the grocery store. I hope it lasts until Christmas! It is full of weird and charming (to us, anyway) ornaments, primarily made by friends and family. I am sitting writing this post by the glow of the lights. We've been watching Christmas movies and listening to the Erlewine Christmas Tape (now as mp3s, of course). I have to say that one awesome thing about kids is holidays. They become really fun again. Sam is starting to understand all of these things, and it is so fun to share traditions and excitement with him. I'm having a hard time deciding what gift to get him though. I've purchased a lot of small odds and ends and want to have some presents under the tree before Christmas, but then some for the magic of Christmas morning too. But I also don't want to go overboard. It's too much money, too much commercialism, too much consumerism, and my two year old would be happy with so many simple things. Plus, I know his extended family will also shower him with goodies. It is interesting to figure out how we are going to "do Christmas," mixing different family traditions -- trying to relive those of our own past, yet forge our own new ones. Do we tell him all about Santa? Do we really try to make him believe all the stories? I guess we'll see.
In other news, the semester is winding to a close. I don't have a real break like those academic appointments do, but still, half time work, flexible hours, and decrease in faculty/activity around campus will feel like a break. And I could use one. I never thought about my job as being particularly physical, but in the last month or so it has become increasingly apparent that there are aspects of my job that I cannot (or SHOULD not, which may be more accurate) perform. It is not uncommon for me to haul stuff around, do lifting, climb ladders, paint walls, and all sorts of not-recommended-for-pregnant-ladies activities. It has been really hard to not be "able" to do them, particularly when I feel like I am perfectly able. Quite frankly, this may be the aspect of pregnancy I like the least. Feeling incapable, or like that fragile little lady in "delicate condition". The human body is strong; the female body is designed to protect this womb in amazing ways. Pregnant women are now encouraged to exercise and do all sorts of things. At the same time, I guess ladders and heavy lifting are still no-nos. Sigh. Anyway, next semester should be ok though. I've managed to get myself a grad assistant for the term. It won't be renewable (because of funding) but at least I'll have someone to help me with all that stuff, as well as the tasks I never seem to be able to do in just 20 hrs/week. Also, if baby comes early (or even on time), there will be someone there to oversee things while I'm off.
In Sam development news, all is going great. He's a kid now. He's talking more and more every week. He still can be a bit hard to decipher. Sentences are still primarily 2-4 words long, but he may have done 5 or more words now. He is getting really into singing. Often gets the words at the end of a phrase and speak-sings more than sings. Some of his favorites are "Charlie Brown" and "Barbara Ann," "Happy Birthday,"... He likes "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" and "Frosty the Snowman" too. He is a really funny kid and most of all really nice and sweet. I'm so proud of him and who he is. I am always unsure as to what impact a parent really has on who their child is. I think we really just lucked out with this guy, but if I can take credit for it, I will. He's just a really neat kid. Today we had a nice day that again started with too much TV (he's into the cartoon Josie & the Pussycats -- "pussycat! pussycat! watch that!") but then we had a playdate, went to Walmart (complete with toddler meltdown -- I felt right at home in the socially questionable Walmart), lunch, nap. After nap Sam made lasagna with me, he did a huge poop in his pants (he is struggling with doing #2 on the potty), had dinner, took a bath, then had hot cocoa and watched some of a movie with me. Good day.
I have some work to do but don't feel like it. But I should probably get to it since it's 11 pm. Tomorrow is our office holiday party. Hope that's ok and not too awkward. I have to set up and clean up because there are only four of us in the office right now, including the head of the school, so...
Some snow pics of Sam:
Thursday, December 2, 2010
New Post
Today started off very nice. Sam and I have had too much TV time (cold out, and I'm always tired). BUT we did make salt dough Christmas ornaments and that was a lot of fun. Then this afternoon I had to go to work and it was work. Sigh. There are days when I love my job and days when I want to run away. Do you suppose there are any jobs out there that don't include the wanting to run away feeling?? I guess I don't think there are. There are always colleagues that are awkward to deal with. Always tasks that you'd rather not do. Or reasons to cause second guessing and self doubt. I'm trying to get over that, or just accept it and not let it get me down. I need tricks on how to do this though.
Sam and ornament making:
Sam and ornament making:
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
phew
Man, another 11-hour work day! Gotta stop these! To top it off today was installing the faculty show. Doesn't everyone love working with faculty? Actually it was pretty good. I got to work with my former committee chair who I like and respect and we didn't have too many challenges come our way. That said, my partner in crime on this project was far more thorough and meticulous than I was, so it was a good learning experience for me but I felt like a slacker. But he's got 14 years professional experience on me, so maybe I'd be more of a pro by then too. Plus he's more invested in the show too. Anyway it was fine and the show is up and looks pretty good despite the lack of involvement from a lot of the faculty.
In other news...hmm... is there other news?
The weather is turning. It's cold now. Well we had some crazy unseasonable warmth for a while so the cold hit a little harder. Still, we have some warmish sunny afternoons so that's nice. Though I don't suppose anyone reads this for weather updates...
In Sam land, things are going very well. I'm going to have to start setting up play dates to keep him occupied with kids and activities now that we can't rely on going to the park due to weather stuff. But it's so hard. We have these two big crazy dogs so it's hard to invite people, let alone toddlers, over to play.
SLEEP UPDATES
Sam sleeps well now. He still goes to bed late, doesn't get as much nighttime sleep as some kids, but takes a big afternoon nap.
DIAPERS (or lack thereof)
Sam pees in the potty without fail now. But he doesn't want to poop on the potty. At first he did pretty well with it. Then he changed his mind. I think I'm going to just go with using diapers for poop and potty for pee. Our insistence on sticking with the undies just lead to tons of dirty undies, and he has no interest in going back to diapers or not peeing in the potty. So, when it seems he's ready to go poop, we'll just get him in a diaper and let him go standing up. Maybe they make standing up potties, hahaha. I dunno, he potty trained in like 3 days and then just changed his mind about going poo, so I think he's just not ready. I don't want to force it and make it harder or make him uncomfortable ('cause he just holds it in since he doesn't want to go in his undies and doesn't want to use the potty) so we'll do diapers for a while and wait for the time he's ready to use the potty full time.
TALKING
Sam has more words than I can practically count and speaks in 2-4 word sentences. From talking with other kids his age, I think he is still a little delayed. That said, he is continually progressing in vocab and verbal communication, I'm not worried. But he goes to this playgroup at the community center that is run by the university's speech and language program and Sam was (ironically?) there as a "typical peer", not one of the kids receiving therapy. It was clear Sam was talking MORE than the other kids, but not A LOT more. Anyway the semester is ending so the playgroup is ending and I contacted them to see if we can continue on next semester. They also have a preschool that is very inexpensive, three days a week, and seems pretty fun. So I asked about that too, while also expressing my concern that Sam doesn't meet the criteria for "typical peer". The folks in charge had some minor concerns too but think he'll probably be alright. It would be sad if he fell into some in-between area (not needing therapy/not being "typical"), but Aaron and I think Sam is beyond classification too... Anyway, I used to think preschool was kind of weird for such little kids but it becomes clear to me that I am often too tired or lacking the necessary knowledge to lead useful activities for Sam during my full days with him. The socialization and structured activities seem to be good for him. So I hope it works out. It would be for next fall when he's 3 years old.
BABY
The baby is doing fine! My belly gets bigger and bigger. I am now to the point where people feel comfortable asking me if I'm pregnant, so I guess that's good that I no longer look just chubbier. Last appointment with the midwife was good. Rather uneventful. Things seem good and there's still something beating away in there and I'm gonna go ahead and believe it's my baby's heart. The ultrasound will be next month, so we'll know a lot more then!
PREGNANCY
I do, however, already have tailbone pain. I was paranoid and thought it was related to the sciatic nerve (I have known multiple people to get bad sciatica so that freaked me out). But after reading more it seems to be ligament pain. So the awesomely named hormone relaxin is relaxin' my ligaments. This has caused my pelvic bones to shift and cause me pain. It's not bad, more of a nuisance so far, but last pregnancy I didn't have this until near the end of it and it seems so early to be experiencing it already. So I went to see a physical therapist, but when I showed up for my 7 am (!) appointment I found out that the physical therapist who works with pregnant ladies was out due to a death in the family. The other therapist talked with me about what was going on but we decided we better just wait for the lady to get back. So I'll try again next week. I do know that the pain occurs more when I am fully extended, so standing on my feet all day, extra lifting, etc. can aggravate it. Oh, pregnancy.
So that is all. I'm gonna go crash. Oh wait, I do have one little thing to do for work first. Oh, work.
In other news...hmm... is there other news?
The weather is turning. It's cold now. Well we had some crazy unseasonable warmth for a while so the cold hit a little harder. Still, we have some warmish sunny afternoons so that's nice. Though I don't suppose anyone reads this for weather updates...
In Sam land, things are going very well. I'm going to have to start setting up play dates to keep him occupied with kids and activities now that we can't rely on going to the park due to weather stuff. But it's so hard. We have these two big crazy dogs so it's hard to invite people, let alone toddlers, over to play.
SLEEP UPDATES
Sam sleeps well now. He still goes to bed late, doesn't get as much nighttime sleep as some kids, but takes a big afternoon nap.
DIAPERS (or lack thereof)
Sam pees in the potty without fail now. But he doesn't want to poop on the potty. At first he did pretty well with it. Then he changed his mind. I think I'm going to just go with using diapers for poop and potty for pee. Our insistence on sticking with the undies just lead to tons of dirty undies, and he has no interest in going back to diapers or not peeing in the potty. So, when it seems he's ready to go poop, we'll just get him in a diaper and let him go standing up. Maybe they make standing up potties, hahaha. I dunno, he potty trained in like 3 days and then just changed his mind about going poo, so I think he's just not ready. I don't want to force it and make it harder or make him uncomfortable ('cause he just holds it in since he doesn't want to go in his undies and doesn't want to use the potty) so we'll do diapers for a while and wait for the time he's ready to use the potty full time.
TALKING
Sam has more words than I can practically count and speaks in 2-4 word sentences. From talking with other kids his age, I think he is still a little delayed. That said, he is continually progressing in vocab and verbal communication, I'm not worried. But he goes to this playgroup at the community center that is run by the university's speech and language program and Sam was (ironically?) there as a "typical peer", not one of the kids receiving therapy. It was clear Sam was talking MORE than the other kids, but not A LOT more. Anyway the semester is ending so the playgroup is ending and I contacted them to see if we can continue on next semester. They also have a preschool that is very inexpensive, three days a week, and seems pretty fun. So I asked about that too, while also expressing my concern that Sam doesn't meet the criteria for "typical peer". The folks in charge had some minor concerns too but think he'll probably be alright. It would be sad if he fell into some in-between area (not needing therapy/not being "typical"), but Aaron and I think Sam is beyond classification too... Anyway, I used to think preschool was kind of weird for such little kids but it becomes clear to me that I am often too tired or lacking the necessary knowledge to lead useful activities for Sam during my full days with him. The socialization and structured activities seem to be good for him. So I hope it works out. It would be for next fall when he's 3 years old.
BABY
The baby is doing fine! My belly gets bigger and bigger. I am now to the point where people feel comfortable asking me if I'm pregnant, so I guess that's good that I no longer look just chubbier. Last appointment with the midwife was good. Rather uneventful. Things seem good and there's still something beating away in there and I'm gonna go ahead and believe it's my baby's heart. The ultrasound will be next month, so we'll know a lot more then!
PREGNANCY
I do, however, already have tailbone pain. I was paranoid and thought it was related to the sciatic nerve (I have known multiple people to get bad sciatica so that freaked me out). But after reading more it seems to be ligament pain. So the awesomely named hormone relaxin is relaxin' my ligaments. This has caused my pelvic bones to shift and cause me pain. It's not bad, more of a nuisance so far, but last pregnancy I didn't have this until near the end of it and it seems so early to be experiencing it already. So I went to see a physical therapist, but when I showed up for my 7 am (!) appointment I found out that the physical therapist who works with pregnant ladies was out due to a death in the family. The other therapist talked with me about what was going on but we decided we better just wait for the lady to get back. So I'll try again next week. I do know that the pain occurs more when I am fully extended, so standing on my feet all day, extra lifting, etc. can aggravate it. Oh, pregnancy.
So that is all. I'm gonna go crash. Oh wait, I do have one little thing to do for work first. Oh, work.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Bad Day
What makes a bad day, you ask?
How about an 11-hour work day. When you have to be on your feet for most of it. And you're pregnant. And a broken piece of student artwork. And technological problems that can't be fixed by IT nor Electricians. And a broken serving platter. And no dinner. And they didn't put very many veggies on my veggie sub. And tailbone pain at only 15 weeks pregnant. And the fact that I can't take tomorrow off because I have another big event to take care of.
I came home after dark and Sam rushed over with some drawings for me that he and his dad made. He gave me a hug. I held him and told him I missed him and he said he missed me too and rubbed my back. He sat in my lap and leaned on my chest while I told him how mommy had a bad day. Later, after we were eating his second dinner and my first (at 8 o'clock), he talked about Mom having a bad day and he said "Tari Mom" (sorry mom). He rubbed my arm.
These are precious moments that make bad days a little easier to take.
How about an 11-hour work day. When you have to be on your feet for most of it. And you're pregnant. And a broken piece of student artwork. And technological problems that can't be fixed by IT nor Electricians. And a broken serving platter. And no dinner. And they didn't put very many veggies on my veggie sub. And tailbone pain at only 15 weeks pregnant. And the fact that I can't take tomorrow off because I have another big event to take care of.
I came home after dark and Sam rushed over with some drawings for me that he and his dad made. He gave me a hug. I held him and told him I missed him and he said he missed me too and rubbed my back. He sat in my lap and leaned on my chest while I told him how mommy had a bad day. Later, after we were eating his second dinner and my first (at 8 o'clock), he talked about Mom having a bad day and he said "Tari Mom" (sorry mom). He rubbed my arm.
These are precious moments that make bad days a little easier to take.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Unorganized
Today is an officially completely scatterbrained, all-over-the-place, unorganized day. I completely forgot about Sam's playgroup this morning until it was nearly over. I feel like such a bad mom. I didn't really even tell him. Not sure he'd really fully understand but it could only lead to an upset kiddo. Sam loves his Friday playgroup.
And I completely missed this meeting I was supposed to go to this afternoon (in about an hour). I neglected to add it to my calendar when I got the initial notice, so I really didn't know about it until reading a reminder that I JUST got. Sam is down to sleep, Aaron is out of town, I really don't see how I'm gonna make it for the meeting. I don't think there's anyone I could call to drop in last minute like this. I just feel like a mess. And I feel really bad for missing the meeting because I had to miss the last one because of my doctor's appointment. To be fair, the meetings for this committee drive me a bit batty so I won't entirely miss it, but I certainly would have tried to go if I'd been a bit more prepared. And also, it seems worth acknowledging that Fridays I don't go into the office anyway, and I'm the only part time employee on the committee. Everyone else is well-payed people of power and significance. So that means I should get some slack, right? But maybe it also means it's worth it to look more involved. Oh well.
My life these days is so focused on myself and my home that I feel a little out of touch with work. I'm not behind, really, but I am sort of just doing the minimum of what I need to do to get the job done. Maybe that's not entirely true, but it feels a bit that way. I guess even if I am being that way I guess it's not all that bad. Sometimes I think the notion that you should always go above and beyond for your work just results in a lot of wasted energy and stress.
So, I'm home, I guess, and that's that.
And I've been a single mom since Wednesday night, so that adds to my flusteredness (what do you mean that's not a word??). Aaron is off to Boston for an art thing. It's a short trip. A lot of parents do way more single parenting than this. But I rely on Aaron SOOO much for every little thing that pretty much once I reached 24 hours of solo parenting, I sorta hit the wall. Meg and our friend Stephanie helped out though so pretty much I'm just a wimp. Aaron gets home late tonight so that's good. Then I will be installing a show all weekend so I guess it will be his turn at solo parenting for a couple of days. Things just have felt too busy I guess. Though I think after this weekend they'll start to slow down. I hope.
I should go do dishes or laundry or both. But maybe I'll lie down and wallow in my inability to get anything done. I'm in the second trimester, I should have energy now, right?
And I completely missed this meeting I was supposed to go to this afternoon (in about an hour). I neglected to add it to my calendar when I got the initial notice, so I really didn't know about it until reading a reminder that I JUST got. Sam is down to sleep, Aaron is out of town, I really don't see how I'm gonna make it for the meeting. I don't think there's anyone I could call to drop in last minute like this. I just feel like a mess. And I feel really bad for missing the meeting because I had to miss the last one because of my doctor's appointment. To be fair, the meetings for this committee drive me a bit batty so I won't entirely miss it, but I certainly would have tried to go if I'd been a bit more prepared. And also, it seems worth acknowledging that Fridays I don't go into the office anyway, and I'm the only part time employee on the committee. Everyone else is well-payed people of power and significance. So that means I should get some slack, right? But maybe it also means it's worth it to look more involved. Oh well.
My life these days is so focused on myself and my home that I feel a little out of touch with work. I'm not behind, really, but I am sort of just doing the minimum of what I need to do to get the job done. Maybe that's not entirely true, but it feels a bit that way. I guess even if I am being that way I guess it's not all that bad. Sometimes I think the notion that you should always go above and beyond for your work just results in a lot of wasted energy and stress.
So, I'm home, I guess, and that's that.
And I've been a single mom since Wednesday night, so that adds to my flusteredness (what do you mean that's not a word??). Aaron is off to Boston for an art thing. It's a short trip. A lot of parents do way more single parenting than this. But I rely on Aaron SOOO much for every little thing that pretty much once I reached 24 hours of solo parenting, I sorta hit the wall. Meg and our friend Stephanie helped out though so pretty much I'm just a wimp. Aaron gets home late tonight so that's good. Then I will be installing a show all weekend so I guess it will be his turn at solo parenting for a couple of days. Things just have felt too busy I guess. Though I think after this weekend they'll start to slow down. I hope.
I should go do dishes or laundry or both. But maybe I'll lie down and wallow in my inability to get anything done. I'm in the second trimester, I should have energy now, right?
Monday, November 1, 2010
Happy... Happy Halloween, D!
Halloween was fun. Really fun. Sam had a blast.
THE COSTUME
I screwed up with his costume. I had made a pretty alright wolf costume then covered him in this orange and brown striped sweatshirt (which to me I thought "Halloween" but when on him with a furry head totally screams "tiger"). Then Sam also got super into the idea of face paint and through various trials discovered that he would no longer be content with just a little painted nose so he had confusing face paint. Anyway, Sam chose to be the Big Bad Wolf but ended up as some sort of generic fluffy animal that was identified as either a lion, tiger, or bear (oh, my!). I felt a bit like a failure but then I realized that this happens with LOTS of costumes and is also actually part of the fun of homemade costumes. See, every year I have wanted to make Sam some amazing costume and never really find or take the time. Or maybe it's just that I feel like I SHOULD be able to make this amazing costume and then get performance anxiety and am scared of failure. Anyway, that coupled with my exhaustion and nausea from the first trimester of pregnancy, I just didn't have it in me to make much of anything. I decided I could probably pull off a "werewolf" with a hood and some mittens and a tail, so I tried to get Sam into the idea. Well, he took right to "wolf" and then told me he wanted to be the "big bad" wolf. Ok, not quite a werewolf but close enough!! I tried making a hood with little success and decided to take Sam out to shop for costumes. We lucked out at Goodwill and found a puppy costume. I did a little alteration and voila, we had something more wolfy than puppy but I guess really just fuzzy. Then we went to Target for face paint and a sweatshirt. We picked out the orange striped sweatshirt, and from that point on Sam labeled it the "Halloween" sweatshirt and would not wear it because it wasn't Halloween. So, of course we had to use it on Halloween! I also got him a flashing pumpkin reflector necklace for safety. I had forgotten about it and found it in a bag a couple of days before Halloween. Sam LOVED it. Didn't need it for trick or treating, but flashing pumpkin necklace is just cool anyway, I guess. All in all though he looked adorable, has been wanting to dress up as the wolf all the time, so he loved his costume, so I guess it was a success.
TRICK-OR-TREAT! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
We also practiced "trick or treat!". Sam got quite good at it, though the phrase (coming from Sam) sounds just like "choo choo train!", or pretty close anyway. So we practiced knocking on doors, saying "trick or treat", "thank you", and then Aaron taught him "Happy Halloween". He got SO good at saying "Happy Halloween" and said Happy Halloween to everybody and everything. Very cute.
HALLOWEEN NIGHT
Tom and Jeanette came to visit for Halloween. It had been about 10 months since Sam last saw them but he warmed up to them in no time, perhaps thanks to some video chatting. Their plane arrived during nap time so Sam pretty much completely skipped nap the first day of their visit and was super cranky all day. I was afraid they wouldn't get to see Sam as we know him. But on Sunday, despite a slightly rocky start, we maintained a good food/sleep schedule and he was our normal happy funny kid. We got him all dressed up and the plan was to meet with some neighborhood kids for trick or treating. Before we made it out the door, the twins from up the street (about four months younger than Sam) came to trick or treat at our house. So we all walked to the meetup at another friends' house. All together we had a group of seven kids, age 1-3, ready for trick or treat! We hit the neighborhood in furry toddler style and made everyone's night. Sam collected a lot of candy, said lots of "trick or treat" "thank you" and "happy Halloween"s to all the candy givers. He was usually one of the last of the pack to the door. At one prize moment, a house had a bowl of candy with a few packages of Ding Dongs in there. None of the other kids reached for the Ding Dongs and the adults were laughing at how no one reached for the "big" treat. Sure enough, as soon as Sam got up there, he grabbed the Ding Dongs. My man!! We didn't finish trick or treating with all the kids. Before the last cul de sac we planned to hit (a posh little pocket of $400,000 homes -- good candy MUST be there, right??), Sam told us he was ready to go home. So we did. (I guess the highlight of that part was a house handing out String Cheese! All the toddlers were very excited!)
The rest of the night was fun. Sam had a little bit of candy, played heartily with Uncle "Pom" and "Nette" and Aunt "Meh", including a dance party. Other zany moments included running away into the kitchen, waiting a few moments, then running out to our uproarious applause. This followed some game where he fell down and actually played dead, lying all limp and everything. He was hilarious. He went to bed late, but he went right to sleep. And didn't wake up until 9:30 this morning!
So it was a very nice visit. Sam loved Halloween. He keeps asking for "more again". I think the concept of waiting a whole year will be hard one to grasp. We're trying to get him excited for Thanksgiving.
THE COSTUME
I screwed up with his costume. I had made a pretty alright wolf costume then covered him in this orange and brown striped sweatshirt (which to me I thought "Halloween" but when on him with a furry head totally screams "tiger"). Then Sam also got super into the idea of face paint and through various trials discovered that he would no longer be content with just a little painted nose so he had confusing face paint. Anyway, Sam chose to be the Big Bad Wolf but ended up as some sort of generic fluffy animal that was identified as either a lion, tiger, or bear (oh, my!). I felt a bit like a failure but then I realized that this happens with LOTS of costumes and is also actually part of the fun of homemade costumes. See, every year I have wanted to make Sam some amazing costume and never really find or take the time. Or maybe it's just that I feel like I SHOULD be able to make this amazing costume and then get performance anxiety and am scared of failure. Anyway, that coupled with my exhaustion and nausea from the first trimester of pregnancy, I just didn't have it in me to make much of anything. I decided I could probably pull off a "werewolf" with a hood and some mittens and a tail, so I tried to get Sam into the idea. Well, he took right to "wolf" and then told me he wanted to be the "big bad" wolf. Ok, not quite a werewolf but close enough!! I tried making a hood with little success and decided to take Sam out to shop for costumes. We lucked out at Goodwill and found a puppy costume. I did a little alteration and voila, we had something more wolfy than puppy but I guess really just fuzzy. Then we went to Target for face paint and a sweatshirt. We picked out the orange striped sweatshirt, and from that point on Sam labeled it the "Halloween" sweatshirt and would not wear it because it wasn't Halloween. So, of course we had to use it on Halloween! I also got him a flashing pumpkin reflector necklace for safety. I had forgotten about it and found it in a bag a couple of days before Halloween. Sam LOVED it. Didn't need it for trick or treating, but flashing pumpkin necklace is just cool anyway, I guess. All in all though he looked adorable, has been wanting to dress up as the wolf all the time, so he loved his costume, so I guess it was a success.
TRICK-OR-TREAT! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
We also practiced "trick or treat!". Sam got quite good at it, though the phrase (coming from Sam) sounds just like "choo choo train!", or pretty close anyway. So we practiced knocking on doors, saying "trick or treat", "thank you", and then Aaron taught him "Happy Halloween". He got SO good at saying "Happy Halloween" and said Happy Halloween to everybody and everything. Very cute.
HALLOWEEN NIGHT
Tom and Jeanette came to visit for Halloween. It had been about 10 months since Sam last saw them but he warmed up to them in no time, perhaps thanks to some video chatting. Their plane arrived during nap time so Sam pretty much completely skipped nap the first day of their visit and was super cranky all day. I was afraid they wouldn't get to see Sam as we know him. But on Sunday, despite a slightly rocky start, we maintained a good food/sleep schedule and he was our normal happy funny kid. We got him all dressed up and the plan was to meet with some neighborhood kids for trick or treating. Before we made it out the door, the twins from up the street (about four months younger than Sam) came to trick or treat at our house. So we all walked to the meetup at another friends' house. All together we had a group of seven kids, age 1-3, ready for trick or treat! We hit the neighborhood in furry toddler style and made everyone's night. Sam collected a lot of candy, said lots of "trick or treat" "thank you" and "happy Halloween"s to all the candy givers. He was usually one of the last of the pack to the door. At one prize moment, a house had a bowl of candy with a few packages of Ding Dongs in there. None of the other kids reached for the Ding Dongs and the adults were laughing at how no one reached for the "big" treat. Sure enough, as soon as Sam got up there, he grabbed the Ding Dongs. My man!! We didn't finish trick or treating with all the kids. Before the last cul de sac we planned to hit (a posh little pocket of $400,000 homes -- good candy MUST be there, right??), Sam told us he was ready to go home. So we did. (I guess the highlight of that part was a house handing out String Cheese! All the toddlers were very excited!)
The rest of the night was fun. Sam had a little bit of candy, played heartily with Uncle "Pom" and "Nette" and Aunt "Meh", including a dance party. Other zany moments included running away into the kitchen, waiting a few moments, then running out to our uproarious applause. This followed some game where he fell down and actually played dead, lying all limp and everything. He was hilarious. He went to bed late, but he went right to sleep. And didn't wake up until 9:30 this morning!
So it was a very nice visit. Sam loved Halloween. He keeps asking for "more again". I think the concept of waiting a whole year will be hard one to grasp. We're trying to get him excited for Thanksgiving.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Home Day
Sam has "Mom Days" and "Dad Days", or "Mom Day" and "D Day" as he says it. But I've thrown things off 'cause I'm home on a D Day. Feels good though. I was coming down with a cold and yesterday ended up working for three hours on work stuff anyway so I decided to take the morning off. Then went ahead and pushed on for the full day. I dunno, I just need a recovery or maybe it is all preventative. Anyway, I'm home and lazy and it feels good. Sam has settled into a nap, I have a Harry Potter movie on (prepping for the new movie out next month -- woohoo!) and fully intend to doze off on the couch. Pile of dishes be damned!
Things are good here. I think I am now officially 13 weeks pregnant so I can begin comfortably telling the world. Though I have been telling people when I see them since my belly is pretty much doing that anyway. So, hello world, I am pregnant! I am feeling much better. Nausea is rare, but not completely gone. I'm tired, but not so exhausted. I think I will feel more of a shift as I move into the second trimester then I did with my first pregnancy. I am still very eager for an ultrasound. Here they only do the one 20 week ultrasound unless medically necessary to do more. Oi. But I guess the weeks are flying by so 20 weeks will be here in no time. And at that point I'm half way through anyway. Boy oh boy!
So Sam went through a potty strike. Caused some strife but it only lasted a few days I guess. I guess once the novelty of using the potty wears off they just don't want to have to stop, pull down pants, and sit and go in the potty. But he's been a good sport of it the past day or two so I guess we're still there. He doesn't like to poop in the potty, but he makes such an obvious poop face and stance that we usually catch him in time for the big poops, though we have had plenty of accidents to clean up. You so look forward to the days of being free of diapers, but cleaning potties, dirty undies -- hard to say it's much better! But we do have a lot less waste and we are certainly moving in the right direction. And I only had one HUGE accident where I got soaked with urine, so that's a plus.
The whole family has been fighting off a little cold. Sam has a runny/crusty nose. Aaron had a bug for a few days but seems better. I'll probably be better tomorrow. This was our first time of all getting a little sick, lucky it was a super little cold and hardly anything to bring us down too much.
Let's see, what other random thoughts/updates... Well we'll have company for four weekends straight! Though two of the guests stayed with Meg and the other two with us so that breaks things up a bit. So nice to see everyone. Up next is a visit from Tom & Jeanette. We only see them about once a year so we're looking forward to that quite a bit. I think we'll be taking a road trip down to Texas in March though to see him and the Texas Nemecs. Should be nice.
I guess that's all I have to say right now. And if I don't get down too it I will miss my chance for nap.
Things are good here. I think I am now officially 13 weeks pregnant so I can begin comfortably telling the world. Though I have been telling people when I see them since my belly is pretty much doing that anyway. So, hello world, I am pregnant! I am feeling much better. Nausea is rare, but not completely gone. I'm tired, but not so exhausted. I think I will feel more of a shift as I move into the second trimester then I did with my first pregnancy. I am still very eager for an ultrasound. Here they only do the one 20 week ultrasound unless medically necessary to do more. Oi. But I guess the weeks are flying by so 20 weeks will be here in no time. And at that point I'm half way through anyway. Boy oh boy!
So Sam went through a potty strike. Caused some strife but it only lasted a few days I guess. I guess once the novelty of using the potty wears off they just don't want to have to stop, pull down pants, and sit and go in the potty. But he's been a good sport of it the past day or two so I guess we're still there. He doesn't like to poop in the potty, but he makes such an obvious poop face and stance that we usually catch him in time for the big poops, though we have had plenty of accidents to clean up. You so look forward to the days of being free of diapers, but cleaning potties, dirty undies -- hard to say it's much better! But we do have a lot less waste and we are certainly moving in the right direction. And I only had one HUGE accident where I got soaked with urine, so that's a plus.
The whole family has been fighting off a little cold. Sam has a runny/crusty nose. Aaron had a bug for a few days but seems better. I'll probably be better tomorrow. This was our first time of all getting a little sick, lucky it was a super little cold and hardly anything to bring us down too much.
Let's see, what other random thoughts/updates... Well we'll have company for four weekends straight! Though two of the guests stayed with Meg and the other two with us so that breaks things up a bit. So nice to see everyone. Up next is a visit from Tom & Jeanette. We only see them about once a year so we're looking forward to that quite a bit. I think we'll be taking a road trip down to Texas in March though to see him and the Texas Nemecs. Should be nice.
I guess that's all I have to say right now. And if I don't get down too it I will miss my chance for nap.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Meanwhile, back at the ranch...
I'm exhausted. I've been gone all day. Working all day and then this mom's night out thing with the neighborhood moms. Then I came home and Aaron had to rush off to work. So I got the kiddo to bed and I thought, gee, I want to write a blog.
But I left my blog in such shambles. All ugly and green with a header that didn't fit. Every time I went back to it I just didn't want to work on it. So, I decided to revamp the look. But I don't have the pics on this computer so I had to go to the other one. And the new design template stuff is a little confusing to me. And I couldn't find out where I had my header image and what size it was supposed to be and how to replace it. And photoshop was being super slow and I couldn't quickly zip through and resize what I wanted. And the time kept ticking on and I still have a visual mess of a blog. But whatever. What I felt like doing was writing so that's what I'll do.
Sorry it has been so long. I guess I'm not completely done with the blog after all. I thought maybe I was. I guess the big change is that...
dun dun dun
I'm pregnant!
So I want to go through it all again. Because. Well, maybe pregnancy makes me crazy. It makes me all reflective and introspective and curious and pretty much self-obsessed. So obsessed with how things are changing -- inside, outside. How things will continue to change inside and outside. I feel excited and scared and all of that stuff.
Today, mostly I feel worried.
So, I went to this girl's night out with the local moms. The new neighborhood has been really good. There area bunch of toddler's and Sam sort of has neighborhood friends. Very fun. Since I'm really not good at organizing activities for the little one, the impromptu playgroups at the park really are great. We can do them at our convenience and we see many of the same faces over and over. Which is good for a shy guy like Sam; he takes a while to warm up to new people. So the neighborhood mom's needed a night out a few months ago and organized a get together. They had another last month that I had to miss, and now tonight was the third gathering. I was sort of dreading it. I like the ladies, but, beyond being moms, I'm not really sure what we have in common. All the more reason to gather I guess.
I dunno it was awkward, but it was a good time. It was fun to go out and nice to have conversations with them beyond broken exchanges at the park. I wonder if I try to dominate conversation too much. Like if I'm not directly involved with a conversation I don't know how I fit in so I always try to interject. That's super annoying. I hope I'm not like that. Oh well.
Anyway, mostly I wanted to write because all of the other moms had two kids, except for two of us, and the two of us are pregnant (due at almost the same time!). What did I discover talking with these moms?
They are unhappy. They are worn out. They feel under appreciated. They long for child-free moments, which for them are so rare. These were all highly educated stay at home moms (I think one other mom works 10 hrs/wk). I was reminded of all these articles I've read about how having kids seems directly related to being less happy -- some statistics showing those without kids are indeed happier than those with. Is this true? Are all these parents and moms full of misery and sorrow?
I don't feel that way. I guess I feel pretty good, really. Sure I get down, but it isn't because I'm a mom. I don't feel like there are things I want to be doing that I can't be doing. Sure, I get stressed out when Sam is fussy and I have a bunch of stuff to get done and he needs more attention than I want to give him. But everyday I feel this joy from being with him that is unlike anything I felt before. He makes me laugh. Every little thing about life becomes new again. I learn it again. I try to see it through his eyes. Being a mom has made me feel more complete and more happy. I tried to explain a little of this with the other moms and no one else seemed to respond. Is it because they cannot relate? Is it because they have two kids and I just bask in the fun of one? Is it because I am working? Because Aaron and I alternate days of childcare? So we cannot go crazy from consecutive days of caring for a being that needs you all of the time?
Probably it was really nothing. And I am reading far more into things that weren't even there. Probably it was a group of tired moms that looked forward to having a table full of like-minded individuals where they could complain about things like kids and husbands to others who understood. Not that it is the complete story of their emotional lives, but rather a chance to vent some ordinarily pent up frustrations. And I was the annoying one in the corner saying "oh, my in-laws aren't bad" and "oh, sam brings me such joy" and all that junk.
(However, one husband did call his wife and let her hear the kids crying and then hang up -- no conversation...she got the hint, the party broke up, and we went home.)
Oh well, whatever. I guess it left me scared about how things might change. But I feel good too. I mean, I get jealous of all these ladies. Well, I get jealous of everyone. Big houses, nice cars, good incomes, blah blah blah. But I think the simple arrangement Aaron and I have figured out provides a balance we would not achieve if I worked more and had more money (being independently wealthy would be a whole different story of course...).
So anyway, I hope you moms out there are happy in your choices. You are sacrificing, but does it feel like a sacrifice? You are giving and giving and giving, but does it really feel thankless? Does it get that much harder once you have another one? Maybe I'm being a Pollyanna but I guess that's kind of a good and different twist for me.
And for those of you who don't know:
I have a two year old who uses the potty (!) and talks (!) and no longer uses a pacifier to sleep, sleeps in his own toddler bed, solves problems, and continues to grow so amazingly in front of my eyes. They days and weeks and months go by so fast. I do not easily measure the milestones I expected that first year so it is almost as though I miss them. But he is growing and changing so much. He is tall. He is funny. He comes up with his own ideas. He draws pictures of dinosaurs. He is going to be the big bad wolf for halloween (I suggested wolf and he said he wanted to be the "big bad" wolf). He is so fun. I will have to find stories to retell and photos to post. It is too bad I haven't made a record of everything. He is also just such a nice boy. He hugs the kids at the playground (of course, not all of them want him to), he helps kids when they fall down. He is sensitive and sweet.
I am trying to soak up every Sam minute I can before the new baby comes because I know everything will change.
Oh, I'm 12 weeks pregnant at the time of writing this. I think I will post it once I'm 13 weeks along and sort of officially "in the clear". Baby is due end the of April/beginning of May (due dates be damned! but it's May 1st if you really want to know).
But I left my blog in such shambles. All ugly and green with a header that didn't fit. Every time I went back to it I just didn't want to work on it. So, I decided to revamp the look. But I don't have the pics on this computer so I had to go to the other one. And the new design template stuff is a little confusing to me. And I couldn't find out where I had my header image and what size it was supposed to be and how to replace it. And photoshop was being super slow and I couldn't quickly zip through and resize what I wanted. And the time kept ticking on and I still have a visual mess of a blog. But whatever. What I felt like doing was writing so that's what I'll do.
Sorry it has been so long. I guess I'm not completely done with the blog after all. I thought maybe I was. I guess the big change is that...
dun dun dun
I'm pregnant!
So I want to go through it all again. Because. Well, maybe pregnancy makes me crazy. It makes me all reflective and introspective and curious and pretty much self-obsessed. So obsessed with how things are changing -- inside, outside. How things will continue to change inside and outside. I feel excited and scared and all of that stuff.
Today, mostly I feel worried.
So, I went to this girl's night out with the local moms. The new neighborhood has been really good. There area bunch of toddler's and Sam sort of has neighborhood friends. Very fun. Since I'm really not good at organizing activities for the little one, the impromptu playgroups at the park really are great. We can do them at our convenience and we see many of the same faces over and over. Which is good for a shy guy like Sam; he takes a while to warm up to new people. So the neighborhood mom's needed a night out a few months ago and organized a get together. They had another last month that I had to miss, and now tonight was the third gathering. I was sort of dreading it. I like the ladies, but, beyond being moms, I'm not really sure what we have in common. All the more reason to gather I guess.
I dunno it was awkward, but it was a good time. It was fun to go out and nice to have conversations with them beyond broken exchanges at the park. I wonder if I try to dominate conversation too much. Like if I'm not directly involved with a conversation I don't know how I fit in so I always try to interject. That's super annoying. I hope I'm not like that. Oh well.
Anyway, mostly I wanted to write because all of the other moms had two kids, except for two of us, and the two of us are pregnant (due at almost the same time!). What did I discover talking with these moms?
They are unhappy. They are worn out. They feel under appreciated. They long for child-free moments, which for them are so rare. These were all highly educated stay at home moms (I think one other mom works 10 hrs/wk). I was reminded of all these articles I've read about how having kids seems directly related to being less happy -- some statistics showing those without kids are indeed happier than those with. Is this true? Are all these parents and moms full of misery and sorrow?
I don't feel that way. I guess I feel pretty good, really. Sure I get down, but it isn't because I'm a mom. I don't feel like there are things I want to be doing that I can't be doing. Sure, I get stressed out when Sam is fussy and I have a bunch of stuff to get done and he needs more attention than I want to give him. But everyday I feel this joy from being with him that is unlike anything I felt before. He makes me laugh. Every little thing about life becomes new again. I learn it again. I try to see it through his eyes. Being a mom has made me feel more complete and more happy. I tried to explain a little of this with the other moms and no one else seemed to respond. Is it because they cannot relate? Is it because they have two kids and I just bask in the fun of one? Is it because I am working? Because Aaron and I alternate days of childcare? So we cannot go crazy from consecutive days of caring for a being that needs you all of the time?
Probably it was really nothing. And I am reading far more into things that weren't even there. Probably it was a group of tired moms that looked forward to having a table full of like-minded individuals where they could complain about things like kids and husbands to others who understood. Not that it is the complete story of their emotional lives, but rather a chance to vent some ordinarily pent up frustrations. And I was the annoying one in the corner saying "oh, my in-laws aren't bad" and "oh, sam brings me such joy" and all that junk.
(However, one husband did call his wife and let her hear the kids crying and then hang up -- no conversation...she got the hint, the party broke up, and we went home.)
Oh well, whatever. I guess it left me scared about how things might change. But I feel good too. I mean, I get jealous of all these ladies. Well, I get jealous of everyone. Big houses, nice cars, good incomes, blah blah blah. But I think the simple arrangement Aaron and I have figured out provides a balance we would not achieve if I worked more and had more money (being independently wealthy would be a whole different story of course...).
So anyway, I hope you moms out there are happy in your choices. You are sacrificing, but does it feel like a sacrifice? You are giving and giving and giving, but does it really feel thankless? Does it get that much harder once you have another one? Maybe I'm being a Pollyanna but I guess that's kind of a good and different twist for me.
And for those of you who don't know:
I have a two year old who uses the potty (!) and talks (!) and no longer uses a pacifier to sleep, sleeps in his own toddler bed, solves problems, and continues to grow so amazingly in front of my eyes. They days and weeks and months go by so fast. I do not easily measure the milestones I expected that first year so it is almost as though I miss them. But he is growing and changing so much. He is tall. He is funny. He comes up with his own ideas. He draws pictures of dinosaurs. He is going to be the big bad wolf for halloween (I suggested wolf and he said he wanted to be the "big bad" wolf). He is so fun. I will have to find stories to retell and photos to post. It is too bad I haven't made a record of everything. He is also just such a nice boy. He hugs the kids at the playground (of course, not all of them want him to), he helps kids when they fall down. He is sensitive and sweet.
I am trying to soak up every Sam minute I can before the new baby comes because I know everything will change.
Oh, I'm 12 weeks pregnant at the time of writing this. I think I will post it once I'm 13 weeks along and sort of officially "in the clear". Baby is due end the of April/beginning of May (due dates be damned! but it's May 1st if you really want to know).
Thursday, July 22, 2010
stuff n stuff
I am a single mom for a couple of days. Aaron is off to Nebraska (of all places) for one-night art exhibition. He had planned to do this last winter but a terrible storm and car accident kept him from it. So he rescheduled for this weekend. He's sick, though, and that will make it a challenge to do the long drive for such a short show. But he has left. He's going for it.
Sam just went down to nap.
But I'm not alone. Meg is just across the river and can help out, and Aaron's mom is actually coming to visit on Saturday. And I just got a message that she might come tomorrow night. So maybe I just have to manage one night on my own.
Things remain busy and scattered. I feel so all over the place. Like I can't keep up with seemingly simple things. Stuff I feel like I should be able to handle easily. I forget stuff. I ask stupid questions. This move has been hard for me and I'm not entirely sure why. Sure, it's change. And it's scary commitment. And it's hard to move with a toddler. And I'm not able to get enough sleep. And I don't do well with not enough sleep. And there is just so much going on. Already we've had a leaky shower, a clogged sewer line. (I seem to often have water problems where I live and blame it on my completely water-lacking astrological chart -- you astrologers reading this can tell me if that is nonsense -- it may well be.) We have all this other stuff we want to do to the house. It's easy to drop too much money on it, here and there. And then things like Comcast accidentally charging us a second installation fee don't help. I get so angry with Comcast it's silly. I'm only doing one job right now -- teaching. So I feel like I should be on top of everything. But I feel so completely not on top. It's exhausting.
Today I went to a playgroup through the mom meetup.com group here in town! Yay me! But I completely failed. I didn't introduce myself to people, though some people introduced themselves to me. And Sam was being completely shy too (gee, where does he get that??) So pretty much Sam and I played by ourselves while other moms and toddlers played nearby. Maybe I'm forcing it. Maybe I don't need more mom friends. I dunno. I would probably try again. Maybe an indoor setting works better because Sam and I can't just run off to another part of the park or whatever. The park the playgroup met at was right near our house, though, so we were able to walk to and from. But I didn't take the stroller because it is rocky/hilly terrain taking the back path there. And on our way home, we completely got soaked in an unexpected warm summer rain. It was actually pretty fun.
Aaron is doing better than I am at meeting other parents and toddlers. When I'm teaching he often takes Sam to play at the little park near our house and he has met neighboring families. So that's good. Sam, I guess, is still very reserved in those groups. Yet, he's very outgoing at the library lap-sit, which Aaron takes him to (again, while I teach). So I think he just takes a bit to warm up.
I have also been shopping around for a daycare. Aaron will be going to Iceland for an artist residency at the end of August. He will be gone two weeks. It is the first two weeks of the semester and I can't take the whole time off. So I am going to need help. Luckily, it seems some of our friends will be able to watch him a few mornings each week, so I'll take some vacation time but get some work time in. Still, I think it might be good to have more of a scheduled group socialization opportunity for Sam. I don't want him to be too shy or uncomfortable around other kids. And sometimes I really do think that preschools are becoming more and more necessary, just because more and more kids do them. It's almost expected that by kindergarten kids have already had some sort of "schooling". Plus, I do sorta wonder if other people know more how to teach my child stuff than I do -- I mean, I really don't know much about early childhood development and though it's interesting, I don't think I'd be able to learn it all just to teach my own children. I don't know. He's only two. There is time for all of this. But I will say shopping around for a daycare is hard. It's hard to know the right questions to ask. It's hard to find a program that does what you want. I am guessing we'll be waiting another year. But, I guess that's good, because waitlists can take a while.
wet from the rainSaturday, July 10, 2010
TWO YEARS!
So somehow the days just keep going by. I wake up at 6:45 and before I know it it's 10 pm. And in the midst of all of that, my little one has been with us for two years! two whole years! Today, we wish Mr. Sam a great big happy birthday!!!
He is currently napping.
We have moved to our new house. From move til today, sleep has been erratic I guess. It's not missing, but it starts late and ends early. So today he woke up at 7:30 despite going to bed at 10 or maybe later, so he crashed at noon on our way home from the zoo. Hopefully he'll get a nice long nap and we can get back to our regular sleep routine. Tough to have him tired and cranky on his birthday!
We converted his crib to a toddler bed. Jumping the gun? I dunno. So far he has rolled off onto the floor twice. Last night was the second time. Poor guy. SO sad to wake to him crying and pick him up off the floor, shocked, tired, and probably in pain.
This morning we got a donut and went to the zoo! Lafayette has a neat little free zoo that they are expanding all the time. They have a great wallaby "exhibit" and the wallabies have little joeys in their pouches! And the river otters are really fun too. Always swimming around. There is one of those tubes that kids can crawl through too and Sam always likes that. He might like the old-fashioned tractor by the petting zoo the most though.
His grandma is getting to town in about an hour (Aaron is picking her up in Indy right now). We will have a simple Sam dinner (grilled cheese and tomato soup) and cake and ice cream. And, of course, presents! Sam is starting to get into presents -- curious to open boxes and see what's hiding under paper. So that's fun.
Non-birthday updates:
Adjusting to the new house is going well. The first week was rough. Really missed the yard and land around the old place. We also had a leaking shower that required different plumbers to come and fix over the span of like four days. They inevitably would show up when Sam was (*finally*) napping, the dogs would go nuts, and there went the nap. And we couldn't shower. So it was rough. Dogs were having trouble adjusting to lack of privacy/yard and having strangers in their house. Aaron and I were seriously tired because moving with a toddler is HARD. You do not have nearly the time to settle and all of that that you did pre-kid. We had to wait until after 10 pm or so to get unpacking and settling in. Oi. But, finally, on Thursday we got internet so we could finally feel like home. Pathetic, but it did really feel that way. Plus, we're all just getting used to the new surroundings and dogs are getting used to being in a neighborhood again. I, however, cannot wait to get a fence installed.
I'm still tired and scatter-brained and feel like I'm all over the place, but we're settling in. Seems like it's taking forever.
Sam continues to grow like crazy before our eyes. He is talking so much more now. Sometimes it takes me a minute to realize what he's saying, but out of the blue he'll say some new word like "stairs" or "towel". He combines two words frequently; not usually three. He likes to play pretend. We have changed Mr. T's diaper, marched dinosaur toys around, pretended to be airplanes, or sleeping, or whatever. Two is a very fun age. He's getting bigger all the time. He is such a kid. I really think I need to find playgroups for him and stuff, but I'm terrible at it. I've started to look into daycares, but no obvious winners there. I had joined a mom group through meetup.com but so far have not really found a way in, despite some meager attempts. Hopefully I'll figure something out.
So that is that. Now for a few pics:
Signing "Mom" and saying it too
Signing and saying "Dad" (or "dee")
Signing "Sam"! We came up with a sign for Sam -- Thumbs Up!
The elephant sculpture at the zoo. He always puts his head under the trunk to get wet.
He loves drinking fountains.
The tunnel at the otter exhibit
Tractor fun!
First time we've done one of these. They had a step for Sam to step on.
The Erlewines found out Sam was into Dinos. Nuf said.
He is currently napping.
We have moved to our new house. From move til today, sleep has been erratic I guess. It's not missing, but it starts late and ends early. So today he woke up at 7:30 despite going to bed at 10 or maybe later, so he crashed at noon on our way home from the zoo. Hopefully he'll get a nice long nap and we can get back to our regular sleep routine. Tough to have him tired and cranky on his birthday!
We converted his crib to a toddler bed. Jumping the gun? I dunno. So far he has rolled off onto the floor twice. Last night was the second time. Poor guy. SO sad to wake to him crying and pick him up off the floor, shocked, tired, and probably in pain.
This morning we got a donut and went to the zoo! Lafayette has a neat little free zoo that they are expanding all the time. They have a great wallaby "exhibit" and the wallabies have little joeys in their pouches! And the river otters are really fun too. Always swimming around. There is one of those tubes that kids can crawl through too and Sam always likes that. He might like the old-fashioned tractor by the petting zoo the most though.
His grandma is getting to town in about an hour (Aaron is picking her up in Indy right now). We will have a simple Sam dinner (grilled cheese and tomato soup) and cake and ice cream. And, of course, presents! Sam is starting to get into presents -- curious to open boxes and see what's hiding under paper. So that's fun.
Non-birthday updates:
Adjusting to the new house is going well. The first week was rough. Really missed the yard and land around the old place. We also had a leaking shower that required different plumbers to come and fix over the span of like four days. They inevitably would show up when Sam was (*finally*) napping, the dogs would go nuts, and there went the nap. And we couldn't shower. So it was rough. Dogs were having trouble adjusting to lack of privacy/yard and having strangers in their house. Aaron and I were seriously tired because moving with a toddler is HARD. You do not have nearly the time to settle and all of that that you did pre-kid. We had to wait until after 10 pm or so to get unpacking and settling in. Oi. But, finally, on Thursday we got internet so we could finally feel like home. Pathetic, but it did really feel that way. Plus, we're all just getting used to the new surroundings and dogs are getting used to being in a neighborhood again. I, however, cannot wait to get a fence installed.
I'm still tired and scatter-brained and feel like I'm all over the place, but we're settling in. Seems like it's taking forever.
Sam continues to grow like crazy before our eyes. He is talking so much more now. Sometimes it takes me a minute to realize what he's saying, but out of the blue he'll say some new word like "stairs" or "towel". He combines two words frequently; not usually three. He likes to play pretend. We have changed Mr. T's diaper, marched dinosaur toys around, pretended to be airplanes, or sleeping, or whatever. Two is a very fun age. He's getting bigger all the time. He is such a kid. I really think I need to find playgroups for him and stuff, but I'm terrible at it. I've started to look into daycares, but no obvious winners there. I had joined a mom group through meetup.com but so far have not really found a way in, despite some meager attempts. Hopefully I'll figure something out.
So that is that. Now for a few pics:
Signing "Mom" and saying it too
Signing and saying "Dad" (or "dee")
Signing "Sam"! We came up with a sign for Sam -- Thumbs Up!
The elephant sculpture at the zoo. He always puts his head under the trunk to get wet.
He loves drinking fountains.
The tunnel at the otter exhibit
Tractor fun!
First time we've done one of these. They had a step for Sam to step on.
The Erlewines found out Sam was into Dinos. Nuf said.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Toddler Tummy
Oh and a frustrating and confusing rant about Sam's digestion and such -- experienced parents feel free to offer suggestions.
Sam had diarrhea for probably more than two weeks. After just over a week of it not sorting itself out, we went to see the doctor. The doctor had us collect a stool sample to test for parasites. Have you ever had to collect a stool sample for a non-potty trained kid?? They want you to line their diaper with plastic to collect it. So uncomfortable! It kept going up his but cheeks. Poor kid. So we got a sample and turned it in. Didn't hear from them didn't hear from them, then the doc called to say they needed more! So Aaron goes out to the lab and gets another specimen cup. They need to do a blood cult test. They want to see if there is bleeding in the intestines. So they give him the cup and say he can do that or do this hemocult (sp?) card thing. So we decide to do the cup because we didn't know what to do with the cup. By this point it's a good week since our doc appointment and Sam's stool is firming up anyway. But finally we collect it; it's after hours so we refrigerate it and intend to bring it to the doc the next day. We don't. So the day after that (now Friday) I call the nurse to see if it's too old. She said probably, most of the time it has to be within 48 hours, but I should take it in and ask. I take it in and ask and they said it had to be within 24 hours and I should just do the card anyway. I *politely* explain how this is stupid because we've wasted all this time and I'm probably the irritated overly vocal mother that embarrasses everyone. Anyway we plan to do the card and they throw away the old poop that has been sitting in our fridge!! Then another nurse calls to check back with me and explain that the poop has to be back within like TWO - FOUR hours or something. I'm like "how is that supposed to work??" They don't understand why it's a problem -- "oh, do you live out of town?" No, but we share one car, and there is nap time, and he often goes in the evening, and.... anyway finally someone tells me I can go to the hospital to drop off the sample if I need to after hours. Regardless, in this instance we just need to do the card. Fine. I will do the card. By now Sam's poop is back to normal. OH and this last nurse finally told me that there weren't parasites, so I guess that's good news.
Augh. So frustrating.
Now, however, Sam is back to very slow bowel movements -- like every three days. Three days!! He is drinking lots of fluids, eats wheat and whole grain, might have too much dairy, eats fruits and veggies. We now give him the yogurt with the bacteria for healthy digestion...We know to ease up on bananas, rice, applesauce... I worry about this kid. Hmm.
Also -- I'm pretty sure Sam was doing some teething when the diarrhea hit. Moms out there -- did your kids get this when teething?
Ah, to blog about poop. I have no shame.
Sam had diarrhea for probably more than two weeks. After just over a week of it not sorting itself out, we went to see the doctor. The doctor had us collect a stool sample to test for parasites. Have you ever had to collect a stool sample for a non-potty trained kid?? They want you to line their diaper with plastic to collect it. So uncomfortable! It kept going up his but cheeks. Poor kid. So we got a sample and turned it in. Didn't hear from them didn't hear from them, then the doc called to say they needed more! So Aaron goes out to the lab and gets another specimen cup. They need to do a blood cult test. They want to see if there is bleeding in the intestines. So they give him the cup and say he can do that or do this hemocult (sp?) card thing. So we decide to do the cup because we didn't know what to do with the cup. By this point it's a good week since our doc appointment and Sam's stool is firming up anyway. But finally we collect it; it's after hours so we refrigerate it and intend to bring it to the doc the next day. We don't. So the day after that (now Friday) I call the nurse to see if it's too old. She said probably, most of the time it has to be within 48 hours, but I should take it in and ask. I take it in and ask and they said it had to be within 24 hours and I should just do the card anyway. I *politely* explain how this is stupid because we've wasted all this time and I'm probably the irritated overly vocal mother that embarrasses everyone. Anyway we plan to do the card and they throw away the old poop that has been sitting in our fridge!! Then another nurse calls to check back with me and explain that the poop has to be back within like TWO - FOUR hours or something. I'm like "how is that supposed to work??" They don't understand why it's a problem -- "oh, do you live out of town?" No, but we share one car, and there is nap time, and he often goes in the evening, and.... anyway finally someone tells me I can go to the hospital to drop off the sample if I need to after hours. Regardless, in this instance we just need to do the card. Fine. I will do the card. By now Sam's poop is back to normal. OH and this last nurse finally told me that there weren't parasites, so I guess that's good news.
Augh. So frustrating.
Now, however, Sam is back to very slow bowel movements -- like every three days. Three days!! He is drinking lots of fluids, eats wheat and whole grain, might have too much dairy, eats fruits and veggies. We now give him the yogurt with the bacteria for healthy digestion...We know to ease up on bananas, rice, applesauce... I worry about this kid. Hmm.
Also -- I'm pretty sure Sam was doing some teething when the diarrhea hit. Moms out there -- did your kids get this when teething?
Ah, to blog about poop. I have no shame.
Craziness
I need to update my banner. Silly to see winter Sam in the hot and humid summer weather. I guess it's kind of refreshing though.
So, when I post so infrequently it leaves too much to say that I don't know what to say.
We are still trying to buy a house. Today is the 25th. We were supposed to close today. Didn't happen. Supposed to close Monday, won't happen. So now the goal is Tuesday. I hope it happens. The couple who took over our lease needs to get in the night of the 30th. Oi. That's Wednesday. We have to be out by Wednesday. We have a lot of stuff packed. We have a lot more packing to do. But instead I'm writing this blog. Aaron is doing some packing. I have a hard time knowing what packing to do next. Like I need to clear things out before I can know what to pack up. We're running out of boxes. I don't know how many dishes to keep out. I've already had to dig things out of boxes that were already packed.
I'm a sloppy packer. I pack ahead and I seal boxes and everything -- it's not like I'm packing as I load the truck. But I will pack things that fit the box well or balance the weight load instead of good sorting. Aaron is a good sorter, good organizer. I make boxes full of miscellaneous things and label them "liz miscellaneous" this has been a joke amongst us for a good long while.
I'm scared that we're buying this house. It is a cute house. It is a small house. It is on a good street near nice parks with good schools, close to campus, close to the library, close to restaurants...we got a great down payment deal. I should feel confident in this choice. But I'm having cold feet. Home ownership is exciting but always more money, more work, more commitment than it seems at first. These are things that are good about it too -- you get to put money into it, you get to accrue money in it, you get to make it your own. But every little problem you have with it is you problem, and it is a burden. But I think it will be ok. I'm scared to have close neighbors. I hope they are ok. I'm nervous about "settling" though it's something I've wanted for a long time.
A lot of my insecurities come up just because of lack of confidence. I'm teaching again. Bring on the self doubt. The class is going well, the students are good workers -- it's all fine. But if there is anything to ruffle my feathers it's teaching. I guess it just isn't for me. I keep thinking with more experience I will gain confidence. But you know what? I guess I've been doing this for five years now -- how much experience do I need?? (it has been on and off for five years though). Anyway, that kind of insecurity just makes me insecure about all of my life choices and all of that. But really things are good. I should feel good. And I think I do feel good. Most of the time.
We are busy. Too busy. I'm working full time -- or just under, with the gallery and teaching. I can't believe there are couples where both parents work full time. Yikes. We are exhausted even with this arrangement. I get home from an 8-hour day and I'm exhausted. I don't have the energy to pack, to clean house, to entertain Sam with something better than a movie or lying next to him while he plays with cars on our bed. It's terrible. It's terrible to not have the energy for my son. I sorta feel like I'm a wimp. There are so many parents that do this all the time. Surely they don't neglect their children all the time like the way I feel I'm doing? I guess that's extreme. It's not really neglectful. But it sure isn't what I would want it to be.
And then I feel neglectful of my spouse. Our summer at one point was going to be very relaxed; I would work some and Aaron would have time for his art. His time is now all for Sam and moving and house chores. It's taking it's toll.
But we will get through it. It isn't long now, actually. We should close next week. We should move next week. I'll take time off of the gallery next week, only teaching (four hours/day, three days/week). Then I'll work one more week at the gallery and be off until August. Then I have the two job overlap again for a week, then it's back to the gallery only. So it will ease up. Of course Aaron is traveling all over the country and world with art shows, so we'll see how we sort that out. If anyone wants to come watch Sam for a couple of weeks in August, let me know!
I started looking into daycare options in the fall. I thought maybe two half days a week would help. Sam is more into playing with kids and we don't do that too much. And it would ease things up for the two working parents. But I dunno. It's expensive; it's scary. Aaron is probably teaching just two days/week next term, so alternating schedules won't be too bad. I don't know. OH! this is also instigated because the past two years we've had a cheap and reliable sitter living next door -- Meg! But now we're moving, and so is she. She got a good job downtown and just leased a sweet apartment above some downtown shops. Very cool.
So it's change, change, change. But I guess it's good. It is exhausting.
A mixture of pictures:
Playing guitar over video chat with Grandpa
Washing his car. Serious business.
Cake is way more important than smiling for the camera. (Aaron's bday!!)
More serious car washing
Hallway in the house that may soon to be ours.
Living room.
Kitchen
Showing body parts.
This is Sam's pout. He is a total 2 year old. If he doesn't get what he wants, we see this face in an instant. We probably give in too much. Here, he wants me to put the camera away.
My beautiful boy.
Mom, put the camera away!
This is my Sam.Wednesday, June 2, 2010
yeah
So I am finally posting. It has taken so long to post that I no longer wanted to post because there is too much to say, and where do I begin?
I will begin with Sam and his talking, since that's where things left off.
The kid talks. He may still be behind his peers, but he talks. Since last post, the assessment team suggested Sam get speech therapy twice a week. We did one session with the speech therapist and she said that she was surprised they recommended so much therapy. Schedules got busy, almost every day Sam would learn a new word, so we quit therapy. This past weekend we went to visit family in Ohio, and that really encouraged Sam to speak more -- all the new people to communicate with, one of them a very talkative 2 1/2 year old. So now Sam just keeps saying more and more words and putting two and three word combinations together. Sometimes I don't understand him, but he sure is trying. He likes to say "Meg Home" and "Big Building" and "Big Car" and "Pink Ball", the other day he started saying "run" and this morning he said "keys" for the first time. He still does a lot of signing too.
Other than that, the big news is we're in the middle of buying a house!! I still have some jitters and anxiety about this commitment. After owning a home in Michigan for only a short time, Aaron and I were pretty convinced that if we were to buy a house again, it was going to be IT. THE home. I don't know that this is IT. We're not so married to West Lafayette. But we are here. And we like a lot of things about being here. The cost of living is so low and I like my job. But mostly this incredible deal turned up for a cute little bungalow in a neighborhood we like. With parks nearby and good schools for Sam and we can still walk to campus. So, we went for it. We are well on our way and scheduled to close June 30! We have recently submitted our inspection addendum with the fixes we hope they will make, and now we're waiting to hear back from the seller. I hope it all works out ok.
I am still working at the gallery and I'll be teaching a class at Purdue starting mid-month. It ends the beginning of August.
I guess that's a superficial update about what's up with us. Now I'm going to see if I can lie down for a few before Sam wakes from his nap, which could be any minute...
I will begin with Sam and his talking, since that's where things left off.
The kid talks. He may still be behind his peers, but he talks. Since last post, the assessment team suggested Sam get speech therapy twice a week. We did one session with the speech therapist and she said that she was surprised they recommended so much therapy. Schedules got busy, almost every day Sam would learn a new word, so we quit therapy. This past weekend we went to visit family in Ohio, and that really encouraged Sam to speak more -- all the new people to communicate with, one of them a very talkative 2 1/2 year old. So now Sam just keeps saying more and more words and putting two and three word combinations together. Sometimes I don't understand him, but he sure is trying. He likes to say "Meg Home" and "Big Building" and "Big Car" and "Pink Ball", the other day he started saying "run" and this morning he said "keys" for the first time. He still does a lot of signing too.
Other than that, the big news is we're in the middle of buying a house!! I still have some jitters and anxiety about this commitment. After owning a home in Michigan for only a short time, Aaron and I were pretty convinced that if we were to buy a house again, it was going to be IT. THE home. I don't know that this is IT. We're not so married to West Lafayette. But we are here. And we like a lot of things about being here. The cost of living is so low and I like my job. But mostly this incredible deal turned up for a cute little bungalow in a neighborhood we like. With parks nearby and good schools for Sam and we can still walk to campus. So, we went for it. We are well on our way and scheduled to close June 30! We have recently submitted our inspection addendum with the fixes we hope they will make, and now we're waiting to hear back from the seller. I hope it all works out ok.
I am still working at the gallery and I'll be teaching a class at Purdue starting mid-month. It ends the beginning of August.
I guess that's a superficial update about what's up with us. Now I'm going to see if I can lie down for a few before Sam wakes from his nap, which could be any minute...
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Assessment
Sam was assessed today!
So between filing the initial paperwork and having the assessment Sam learned: yes (nodding only, though he did say it once), no, ing-ing (for Ingrid in AZ), deedee (for kitty), boat, bone (pointed to a dog bone in an illustration in one of his books and said "bone"), plane, mo (more) ... maybe there are even more words. If I were to be making the decision today about whether to make the request for the assessment, I'm not sure I would. I know he is still technically behind in his speaking, but at the rate he's picking things up, I'm less worried now than I was a month or so ago.
Anyway, we followed through with the assessment. Two women came out -- I can't remember if one specialized in one thing and the other another. At first they seemed cold. They pulled up in separate cars and were each on their cell phones. I warned them about the dogs, we started to go inside and of course the dogs were barking. I asked them if they wanted/were able to do the assessment outside and they said yes, so that's what we did. Much nicer!!
They were impressed with how bright Sam was and he seemed to be able to do all the tasks they were looking for. He played nicely with them and was very quick to pick up new games. In the end, both women were really quite friendly. I asked what would happen next. They will submit the paperwork and the intake person I spoke with before will get back in touch with me. There is a speech delay, and they believe he will most likely qualify for therapy. But they also indicated that that doesn't mean I have to do it. They couldn't tell for sure if he wasn't speaking because he COULDN'T or because he didn't WANT to. Most likely it's just that he doesn't want to/doesn't have to. Usually if there is a muscle problem or physical problem keeping him from speaking, we would see problems in eating (and we certainly don't have that!). They didn't see any other sign that there was anything wrong -- just that he isn't talking at the rate that most kids are at his age.
So annoying that I really don't have any more information yet. It is not likely that there is a problem with his development, but he's not talking. We could do speech therapy. We don't have to. We could wait another three months and see. I should probably try to encourage him to speak more. And I should probably get him socializing with other kids more. Ugh. So far I haven't been able to get myself to do the play group thing. Guess I should try more!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Sam Stuff
There have been a lot of things I've felt like making notes about, but haven't gotten around to. So this post will be a random selection of stories and observations...
Sam and fast food
So the other night I didn't feel like cooking and Aaron and I were running around doing other things so we decided to pick up dinner. We decided to go to Dog 'n' Suds -- a drive-in sort of serve-you-in-the car hot dog and root beer stand. But the weather was a little chilly and we weren't really wanting to sit in the car so we couldn't decide whether to follow through with the plan. Aaron and I are going back and forth about this in the front seats, and Sam is quietly listening in the back. At one point Aaron and I decided not to get the food -- Sam started crying. I looked back and he was rubbing his tummy, signing hungry. He completely was following our conversation! So then we decided to go ahead and get food and soon as we pulled up to order, Sam started giggling and clapping. Ok, so this is not like unusual or anything, but it is funny and it still amazes me that my little baby has transformed into a kid who wants hot dogs and burgers.
Sam and late nights
Sam has gotten into a bad sleep schedule. I can't remember how it started, but one night last week Sam wanted to stay up and watch movies, eat popcorn, and cuddle on the couch. Aaron was gone and it sounded like the perfect evening activity. So I let him. He's been going to bed at 10 every night now. Negligent mom! All because I want to sit and watch movies and eat popcorn with him... Well last night we got him to bed at 9:30 so we'll ease back to a better bed time.
Sam and sleeping
However, Sam is now SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT!! MOST nights!! He goes down, and doesn't wake until sometime between 6 and 8 in the morning. What the heck?? Where did this come from?? Not that I'm complaining. But the first few nights I would wake up all nervous and confused because Sam hadn't woken and/or wasn't in our bed. the past couple nights it is very warm at bedtime and then gets very chilly during the night. He half wakes all cold, with his blankets off him, curled into a little ball. We hear his cry and go get him and bring him into our warm bed. Any ideas to deal with the warm going to bed and cold waking up? I don't want to put more pjs on him because he'd be too hot going to sleep, but he always ends up kicking the blanket off. Hmm. Poor little guy.
Anyway I feel like this whole sleeping thing makes me think that no matter what you try to do, your kid will do what he's ready to do when he's ready to do it.
Sam and Harry Potter
So, um, Sam loves Harry Potter. And since his mom is a Harry Potter fan too, she's sorta proud and sorta embarrassed. Sam loves to play being a wizard -- picking up any stick or pen and pretending it's a wand, stunning you. So fun. So cute. I mean, my kid is playing pretend! What fun! But I also feel a little mother guilt or something 'cause maybe it's not good to let your toddler watch scary movies like Harry Potter. And he loves the scary parts too -- like the big spiders and stuff. Sam even reenacts scenes from the movie and has signs to request certain parts.
Sam and socializing
We still go to the library, but Sam is very shy these days. He will say hi to other kids, and loves to watch kids, but he stays pretty close to mom. He is learning new words but still hesitant for talking, though he does a lot more "pretend" talking now, sounding like he's talking in sentences of gibberish. He even has "conversations" on the phone now! Which consist of a good hello and good bye and some mixture of words and sign language in the middle.
And now, for some reason, he's not going down to his nap. This is all a result of our weird sleep schedule, I think. So I guess I should check on him. But that's what's new with us. Spring and playing. Work is still going ok though I've had some rough moments. I still want to buy a house, but we're nearly convinced we should wait. I mean, we are convinced...but I still look at what's on the market...hmmm
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