2 years. Really? 730 days. (almost) It's gone so fast. A million hugs and kisses. (maybe more) A new baby brother. (You're an amazing big sister, little girl. The best.) A million new words. A million new memories. She'll turn 3 soon. I don't know if I can allow that. ;-) I'm sad. I'm happy. I'm immensely proud. I'm blessed.
(Comparing these two reminds me even more that I need to finish losing my baby (#2) weight. Ha!)
Beach pictures are coming tomorrow. :) How many is TOO many to post? Hmmm..
We're back, and we had an AMAZING vacation. I have over 80 edited pictures.. trouble is in deciding which ones to post.
Pierson said his first word during vacation: MAMA! We were all at the dinner table, so EVERYONE serves as my witness that he did, in fact, say Mama to get my attention. :) I was feeding him his bananas, but I guess I wasn't fast enough. Brooke first said Dada, so the fact that I got Pierson's first word makes my heart happy.
Pierson is crawling EVERYWHERE. He keeps me on my toes, because he constantly gravitates towards the things he's not allowed to touch / eat/ climb on/ get into. But aside from that, I have to say that it is quite a relief to be able to enjoy this newly contented little person who is no longer fussy now that he realizes he can actually get around the entire house without me. He's past that "I'm highly annoyed here" stage where he's old enough to realize there's stuff to get into, but not mobile enough to reach it.
He started crawling at 8 months 5 days, (2-3 "steps") but now is SUPER mobile. He'll be 9 months old in 10 days... Brooke was crawling backwards at 9.5 months, (just looked that up in her baby book) but she never was really into crawling. She liked cruising later on, and generally got around the room by "crab crawling." (dragging one leg.. it was funny :))
Brooke is one hilarious little girl. No, she really is. It's funny to think about the fact that this time last year she was only sporadically speaking, just getting by with what she HAD to say. But NOW.. well, now she's a constant little chatter box. It's funny to read the e-newsletters I get talking about her development, and they'll say "by now your child is likely speaking in 4-6 word sentences." 4-6? Maybe on a quiet day! She talks about how you or I would, only she omits a necessary word or two. :-D
Speaking of which, the other night I was putting her to bed, and she disobeyed me for the umpteenth time about SOMETHING. (I forget now, and it's not important. She was really testing her boundaries that day. :)) But before I could reprimand her, she got a stern look on her face, and said, "Brooke Avery! What you do?!" I tried to stifle my laughter, but I cracked up, so NOW she thinks it's hilarious to say it over and over. :) Oh, to see yourself imitated by your child.. file it under "You know you're a parent when.."
Brooke is not generally into story telling. That is, she doesn't generally MAKE UP things, and pass them off as "this really happened." Nor does she tend to go off on imaginative tangents saying things that aren't really true. So, when she woke up Friday morning at the beach house, telling all of us, "I woke up and saw TWO HANDS on the wall. They coming to get me! They tickle me on my back" (complete with hand gestures) it had us scratching our heads. We went over all the possible scenarios with her of what she actually saw, but she kept telling us "no," and stuck to her story. Creepy? (But hey, we adults have vivid dreams all the time, why can't a nearly 3 year old?)
Yesterday, my theory on men and cleaning was only further proved as I watched my husband spend over 10 minutes meticulously dusting our TV stand. I know the magazines tell you that more and more men are helping out with household chores these days, of course, very few of whom I actually KNOW of in real life, but the magazines SAY they exist. But, I do believe that men can actually be better cleaners than women if they want / decide to. (a theory I first developed many, many years ago after witnessing my Dad vacuum a single room for over 20 minutes) It's because they don't multitask. They focus on one job, and one job only, so they just plain do it better. I've never SEEN our TV stand look so sparkling clean, aside from maybe when it was brand new. That's not to say that I don't ever dust--I do--but generally, unless they're BOTH sleeping, I'm dusting while keeping an eye on two small children and also doing 15 other things. This is why I also think men are (generally speaking) better drivers than women. If a man has a car crash, it's never caused by doing their makeup or fixing their hair in the mirror. Unless, of course, men are trying to multitask while driving, which is just a recipe for disaster, because they're not as efficient at multitasking as we are. (Don't get me started on being a passenger while my husband tries to multitask AND drive. Ay yi yi.)
THEN, my husband did one better, and cleaned my Explorer so thoroughly that I would feel comfortable licking any interior surface. Now you can't tell we had two small children in it for a collective 15 hours, or that we kicked it into 4 wheel drive and took it up the beach several times during our vacation.
More later. Next post will include pictures, I promise. :)
See that picture up there? That's where I will be this time tomorrow. (Well, sorta. THAT is Florida, where I'll BE is the Outer Banks. Details..)
I may update while I'm gone with a quick picture or two. I can almost guarantee it. BUT, if not, expect an update when I return. :-D And yes, I plan on writing more once I'm back home and not so busy preparing for a big trip.
But until then, I'll be sunning, frolicking, relaxing, (maybe? hopefully?) and watching happy little faces enjoying the beach and all that a beach trip entails.
The rain seems to have sapped my energy today, as it often has the ability to do. But, I went to the gym anyway and got in my hour of cardio. (Wednesdays are my day off from weights) Like always, I was glad I went in spite of it. :) I've found that if I just GO, I'll somehow find the energy to make it through, and feel so much better for it. And my kids really love going to play there for an hour. :-D
I haven't tried any of the classes they offer there yet, (they are all "free" with only one or two exceptions) but I am tempted. Back in college I used to take kickboxing, and really LOVED that. I think that's the best shape I was ever in. My gym now does have kickboxing, but I couldn't do BOTH my morning workout AND kickboxing, or I might die. But! They have a class called Kukuwa that is pretty enticing. It seems to be a bit like Zumba. (I admit with only minor embarrassment that the infomercials really got my attention, and I'm dying to try it ;-)) I wish they DID have Zumba offered, but Kukuwa (toted as "come and move your boombsey!") seems to be along those lines. (high intensity dancing)
Only problem is... it's from 7-8 at night. In my house, that's when I'm feeding Pierson, cleaning the kitchen, chasing Brooke around the house, playing on the deck, or taking them both to the playground. It's a pretty busy time of day, right before bedtime, and I just don't know if I could in good conscience leave Ryan alone to do it all. :) But then, I believe it's only ONCE a week. I could swing it for ONE day, right...? Maybe? Thoughts? Has anyone tried it?
In other news, Pierson turned 8 months yesterday. :) It's going FAST, which I know everyone says, but it's so frighteningly true. (In FOUR months, he'll be a year old.) He's an amazing little boy. He really is. He's SO good natured, and happy, and cuddly. Unless he's teething, as he's been for quite a while now, in which case he's just all around pitiful. He's definitely Mommy's boy, though extremely fascinated with Daddy, he'd rather have Mommy. He's very ticklish, and has the most adorable BOY laugh ever. Recently he's doing the CUTEST thing, ever, where he'll grin and bury his head in the crook between my neck and my collar bone when someone tries to talk to him. :) He loves me.
Brooke requested a home movie, and the one she picked out was from her first birthday. (so little! Was she really that little?) It's on right now, and the more I watch this DVD, the more I'm convinced of two things, 1) Holy wow, I was really tan and thin, and 2) with my Dad's comments, several times, about how he was "volunteered" for video taping duty, and "when I've fulfilled my obligations, I'll come sit down and eat" etc, I feel guiltier and guiltier for ever asking him if he'd mind taping the party for me! (Ryan was manning the grill, and I was wrangling Brooke, so I had to ask someone.. I trusted him most :)) Apparently he has no recollection of ever saying those things, and he says he didn't mind, but there is proof right here. :) Ah, well.
Vintage Brooke
Also? Brooke's FLIP FLOP cake (courtesy of my mother-in-law) was so cute, I can hardly stand it. I can still taste it, too. Yummm. :-D
This morning I was getting Brooke dressed to go to the gym with me. Like we always do, (we all go every week day) I got up on her bed to change her into her clothes, and asked her oh-so important things, such as if she slept well, and what she was going to play with at the gym child care center. Out of the blue, she tells me, "I saw a widdle bug!"
"You did?" I asked. "Was he outside?" (she incessantly looks out her windows, and so I figured she probably saw one crawling out there.)
"Nooooo," she replied, "over dare!" and pointed to the other side of her room.
"Really..." I said, "what kind of bug was he?"
"Brown!" she said, excitedly, and added, "I love bugs!" (and then giggled.. she really DOES love bugs)
Oh boy. So, I asked her to show me where she saw the bug, and I swear she ran over to the pile of books which were laying on the floor, (trust me, they all start out IN the bookcase before bed) and my heart skipped a beat. The girl saw a bug on her books?! :( When turning over the book failed to result in a bug sighting, she told me that the bug was "all gone."
That's when I noticed the massive STINK BUG on her bookcase next to her. Awesome. Now, I know stink bugs are harmless, (unless squashed, that is) but they are hideous, they are NOT "widdle," and I really don't appreciate critters in my house, ever.. ESPECIALLY my childrens' rooms.
So, like the super mom I try to appear to be, (I would never want to be the CAUSE for either of my childrens' fears) I retrieved a lidded cup from downstairs, captured the bug, and released him outside, explaining to Brooke that, "bugs think they want to be inside, but their home is outside."
It really figures, you know, that this reformed bug lover (I adored them as a kid! Hard to believe, I know.) turned bug hater now has a little bug lover on her hands. I'm thankful, though, that she's not afraid of them. Those giggles I heard at the sight of the "widdle bug" are WAY better than the mass hysterics I COULD have heard this morning when she first discovered the bug.
So, there you go. My bug story of the day. YES, I am posting again, and rather than get into WHY I'm posting again, (ahem, reading older posts and feeling sad that I won't have those casual everyday memories or thoughts to remember later down the road) lets just say that I'll be posting from now on. They may not be BIG entries, and they may not always contain pictures, (too much pressure!!) but I'll be back nonetheless.
Happy Tuesday, all! (yes, all FIVE of you at last count :))
