I’m not sure how anyone keeps up with their blogs because I just can’t seem to find enough time in a day to get anything done let alone a short post. I nagged Ben for months to help me get this site set up so I can keep family and friends caught up. Unfortunately I’ve done a crappy job since my last post was in September. I simply have my priorities all mixed up because I can seem find time to clean a toilet or mop a floor but I can’t find time to type a quick note. I’m not even going to try to make excuses; I’m just a slacker!
There has been a lot going on since my last post, but I’ll give the short version. Nathan is becoming a “grown-up” little boy and that makes me happy in some ways, but sad in others. It seems like it was just yesterday that we brought him home from the hospital bundled up in a blanket and dependent on us for everything. Now he’s running around, finding ways to climb onto everything then jumping from them, he’s talking non-stop, and he wants to do everything on his own. I feel so unwanted at times that it hurts a little. The only thing that saves me from bursting into tears is when he runs up to me and pinches my leg then runs away. That is his way of getting my attention so that I run after him and smother him with hugs and kisses. Sometimes when I’m sitting on the sofa, he climbs up the back and asks me for mommy kisses. I think this is a tough stage for parents because their toddlers are like cats…they just want your love, affection and help on their terms.
Speaking of jumping, Nathan was Tigger for Halloween. He loved putting on his costume and bouncing around the house. He loved trick or treating too. He picked up the process at about the fourth house. At first he just wanted to run inside everyone’s house once they opened the door. But then he figured out that all he had to do was ring the doorbell, say trick or treat, thank you, and run off to the next house. We started out early in the evening thinking that he would get tired by dusk…wrong…he kept going well after dark and we had to drag him home kicking and screaming.
In celebration of Nathan’s second birthday, we had two parties. It is so hard to get families together near the holidays that sometimes it’s just easier to split things up a bit. I was hoping that this strategy would be a little less crazy than last year’s party with a million kids running around creating chaos. Well my plans failed. I didn’t account for the “two year old factor” when taking this approach. I still ended up cleaning dog crap off of our floors and carpet because a guest stepped in it on the way into the house (not our dog’s crap and not our guest’s fault…we just have an inconsiderate neighbor). Then of course I discovered birthday cake in places I didn’t think kids could even get to. The fun didn’t stop there, I found an empty juice box in Nathan’s toy chest…the juice had leaked all over the bottom which resulted in an hour of cleaning sticky toys! The good news though was that Nathan and his friends had a great time. I loved watching the kids playing together and I kind of liked getting them wired on sugar so their parents could enjoy them later. It was also nice to see some of our friends that we don’t get to see very often. I suppose at the end of the day I don’t mind the dog crap or sticky messes as long as everyone had a good time.
Our Christmas vacation didn’t go as planned this year. We had intended on spending it with family in North Dakota, but some last minute snags forced us to stay in town, such as Ben’s last-minute knee surgery! Poor guy…I should stop kicking him in the knee when he forgets to take out the garbage. We ended up having a blast anyway, but we missed having the family around to share the joy. The good news though is that another reason for us staying in town was because we found out that we are pregnant! We felt it was best to stay close to my doctors because of my unpredictable cervix. A couple of days before Christmas we found out that we are having a boy! Nathan will have a little brother to play with and I couldn’t be happier for him or us. I’m due on June 17, 2009 just two days before Ben and I celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. What a nice anniversary gift! Ben, this doesn’t mean I don’t want that vacation to Mexico on our next anniversary!
Well that’s the short version of what has gone on over the last few months. At this point I will attempt to make a New Year’s resolution…to post something at least once a week. I can’t be a slacker forever!
Filed under: tidbits on January 10th, 2009 by Charlotte | No Comments »