Me: "That was a tough little virus."
Husband: "Are you kidding? That hurt so bad. And then I got those cramps yesterday. It was like the Sickness' Last Stand and I was Custer."
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Happiness is:
Knowing that bedtime is near when my little one gets an unexplainable urge to start squeaking like a dolphin.
Discovering that chocolate is, in fact, the perfect solution for coping with a laundry room full of clothes, a sink full of dishes and the kid squeaking like a dolphin.
Starting Christmas music the day after Halloween--despite the husband's protests.
Nearing the end of my Christmas present-making marathon.
Coming to the comforting realization that I may never, ever, ever, ever, again engage in a Christmas present-making marathon (and am pretty sure I won't even feel guilty about it).
Listening to my husband wrestle Jackson into the bathtub and chuckling as I hear my little one shout, "HEY, what do you think you're doing?!"
Monday, November 16, 2009
Perspective
Lately, I've had a lot of time to think about perspective, which for me, is a good thing since I tend to live on the more pessimistic side of life.
Fortunately, my husband is a sickeningly positive guy. While I'm the type who will rant and rave about something like a flat tire, he's the one to respond, "Whew! I'm so glad the other three are alright!"
Doesn't that type of cheer just leave a pessimist exasperated? However, I married the man, and hence, this has become a quality I've learned to love about him.
While this post isn't exactly about my dear husband, his outlook on life has meant a lot to me lately--particularly since we've been trying to have another baby for nearly three years now without any success. It's been a test filled with several tears (mostly from me), and frustration at the number of times we've had to answer, "So when are ya gonna have another kid already?" to people we don't really feel need to know all our woes.
Jackson, unfortunately, has also felt some of the negative side effects of our baby discouragement. On my more emotional days, he's had to try far too many times to get me to play with him, and that's really not fair to either of us. We both deserve better.
My perspective, I've decided, needs to change. It finally occurred to me that, no, I don't have the family of evenly-spaced, well-planned children I had envisioned, but I do have a wonderful boy who leaves me in stitches most days, and I need to recognize that blessing for what it is. Will I still have tough days? Probably. But I'm determined not to let pessimism get the better of me anymore.
In fact, while I've been writing this post, Jackson started rooting around in the refrigerator because he decided he needed a glass of milk. I should tell you that we just got home from a three-day weekend away, and in my haste to get out the door this past Friday, I constructed a Leaning Tower of Pisa-type Tupperware hodgepodge in the fridge--right in front of the milk Jackson wanted. Without the proper engineering credentials, he wasn't quite sure how to dismantle the obstacle, and before my hubby could finish saying, "Jackson, no!" a dish broke right at our little one's feet and another container of peaches flew across the kitchen. We found peaches on the garbage, and even peach juice on the calendar a few feet above the trash.
This time, while my husband gasped for air as he surveyed the destruction, I didn't freak out. I lifted Jackson out of the damage path and surprised even myself at my ability to chuckle.
"At least it's a good mess," I smiled.
Then he exhaled and started laughing, too.
Perspective.
Fortunately, my husband is a sickeningly positive guy. While I'm the type who will rant and rave about something like a flat tire, he's the one to respond, "Whew! I'm so glad the other three are alright!"
Doesn't that type of cheer just leave a pessimist exasperated? However, I married the man, and hence, this has become a quality I've learned to love about him.
While this post isn't exactly about my dear husband, his outlook on life has meant a lot to me lately--particularly since we've been trying to have another baby for nearly three years now without any success. It's been a test filled with several tears (mostly from me), and frustration at the number of times we've had to answer, "So when are ya gonna have another kid already?" to people we don't really feel need to know all our woes.
Jackson, unfortunately, has also felt some of the negative side effects of our baby discouragement. On my more emotional days, he's had to try far too many times to get me to play with him, and that's really not fair to either of us. We both deserve better.
My perspective, I've decided, needs to change. It finally occurred to me that, no, I don't have the family of evenly-spaced, well-planned children I had envisioned, but I do have a wonderful boy who leaves me in stitches most days, and I need to recognize that blessing for what it is. Will I still have tough days? Probably. But I'm determined not to let pessimism get the better of me anymore.
In fact, while I've been writing this post, Jackson started rooting around in the refrigerator because he decided he needed a glass of milk. I should tell you that we just got home from a three-day weekend away, and in my haste to get out the door this past Friday, I constructed a Leaning Tower of Pisa-type Tupperware hodgepodge in the fridge--right in front of the milk Jackson wanted. Without the proper engineering credentials, he wasn't quite sure how to dismantle the obstacle, and before my hubby could finish saying, "Jackson, no!" a dish broke right at our little one's feet and another container of peaches flew across the kitchen. We found peaches on the garbage, and even peach juice on the calendar a few feet above the trash.
This time, while my husband gasped for air as he surveyed the destruction, I didn't freak out. I lifted Jackson out of the damage path and surprised even myself at my ability to chuckle.
"At least it's a good mess," I smiled.
Then he exhaled and started laughing, too.
Perspective.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Pancakes
Book: Curious George Makes Pancakes, by Margaret and H.A. Rey
After reading the story, I helped Jackson become more like the cook in the book by crafting a super simple chef's hat for him. We made the hat band by stapling together a couple strips of paper, and the poofy part is just a plastic bag with the handles cut off. Jackson helped me glue the bag to the hat band.
I know they're making pizzas in this video, but for me, I wanted Jackson to see other kids cooking and it made him excited to head to the kitchen where...
After reading the story, I helped Jackson become more like the cook in the book by crafting a super simple chef's hat for him. We made the hat band by stapling together a couple strips of paper, and the poofy part is just a plastic bag with the handles cut off. Jackson helped me glue the bag to the hat band.
While the glue dried, we learned a little more about cooking from Kids cooking with Angelica, available at YouTube.
I know they're making pizzas in this video, but for me, I wanted Jackson to see other kids cooking and it made him excited to head to the kitchen where...
we made chocolate chip pancakes and wore the chef's hat, which was dry by the time the video was over. (We'll be trying the pizza for lunch!)
Monday, November 9, 2009
Alphabet Madness
Jackson has been beyond bored with learning the alphabet lately, so I decided we'd make some fun little flashcards for him to practice with. He's really enjoyed picking out the colors for his cards, gluing on the popsicle sticks and writing the (albeit squiggly) letters on them. We may spruce up a few of these with stickers.
Game idea: hide different flashcards around your living room and have your kiddo search for a particular letter. This is one of Jackson's favorite activities and we usually end up playing it until I'M the one bored to tears!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
How am I supposed to know?
I was sitting at the table this afternoon looking at some news headlines when my husband, who was sitting across from me, said, "What is he doing?" I turned and saw Jackson diving head first (and I do mean diving head first) into a Lego bucket.
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