out of (or in) the mouths of babes...

so, Little Dude's school just called. they always preface the call with "he's fine!" since, as like other parents, my first instinct is that he's ill or hurt. however, they went on to tell me that they are having to write up an incident report...they caught him drinking out of...

the urinal.

ewwwww. it was evidentally flushing and he saw it as a good opportunity to quench his thirst. was kinda baffled when his teacher made such a big deal out of it. this is a story we're going to hold over this head when he's a teenager, dontcha think?

time flies...

is this not the cutest thing you have ever seen? as we prepare, mentally at least, to have a new baby in the house again, it's nice to be reminded of just how fleeting those precious days were. when our little one was small enough to tote about on a hip, with rolls of chub to pinch and squeeze; discovering every new thing with delight. the tall, lanky, tousle-haired boy before me bears only slight resemblance to this little babe...except in the dead of night, buried under his soft blankie (in the very beginning, he called it his "kinky") making his sweet snuffles as I nuzzle his damp forehead.

that is when he looks exactly the same to me.

(we really must give snaps to that precious dog, who tolerated with such patience the little exploring fingers that pulled her ears and poked her eyes. she was always still as a statue until she couldn't take it anymore and scurried away to a safer locale. my fondest memory was hearing her whimper, and looking over found our babe with one of her cheek jowls in each hand gleefully yanking upon them both. she didn't budge, just pleaded with her eyes and a slight whine for rescue.)

every blessing You pour out...

I turn back to praise!

This was our family song for the weekend. A wonderful, relaxing, fun-filled, three-day weekend. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Amazing how you grow to appreciate the little things...I worked our annual sales conference last week that culminated in three 14-hour work days. I barely saw my boys, and was exhausted and running on only 7 hours sleep a night (not nearly enough while preggers...).

Friday began the blessings when my big guy was able to drive me to work that morning (nothing like being chauffeured and sipping coffee on the way to work!) and then later joined me at our closing dinner (and driving the 45 minutes home!). Even though it was another late night, it's some how not as much"work" when your honey is there with you, getting you more Pelegrino and lime, or making your after-dinner coffee just how you like it while you work the room.

Saturday morning I got to stay in bed till I WANTED to get up. I laid awake for a bit and just reveled in my squishy pillow-top mattress and my fortress of pillows (I'm up to four these days). Then I got up and watched cartoons in my pj's with another little guy in his pj's and drank coffee until I felt like it. What a gift!

Took naps every day, went on a walk with a small boy on a tricycle, replanted three roses and bumbled about the yard in the warm sunshine, got my hair cut, drove with the sunroof open, went to the movies as a family, slept in as late as I wanted to, finally managed not only to choose new bathroom tile but ordered it as well, made dinner while the boys made train tracks on the floor and danced to 80's music.

It was just such a blessed three days! That song was playing on the radio while we were out and about as a family on Saturday morning, and Little Dude continued to request it every time we were in the car the rest of the weekend. Happy to oblige!

Here's to the blessing of "little things".

life is short...eat more chicken mcnuggets!

i realized that while i was feeling so sick over the holidays, i had fallen into the habit of rushing...rushing through the morning routine, rushing through the bedtime routine, rushing through dinner.

in a flash, i realized that i was overlooking a great and precious gift! my days with just one boy in my life are short!

soon i will no longer be able to give him my undivided attention. there will be another little person with whom to divide my time. the thought made me rather sad...not sad to have two boys, just sad that the days of being with my only son are numbered.

so, this week has been about slowing down. let's read three books before bedtime instead of two. i made an excellent "gold-fish pond" out of peas and bits of carrot over the weekend. so what if i arrive at work 30 minutes later than usual? we had a great time "hiding" under the covers and an excellent tickle-fest (Little Dude is the only ticklish person i know that LIKES to be tickled. when you stop, he yells "again!" then when he tickles me he wiggles his fingers on my shoulder or elbow and says "laugh mommy! i'm tickling you!"). last night we went to dinner as a family at McDonald's. not exactly mom and dad's first choice for eating out, but Little Dude sure seemed to enjoy it. and i really enjoyed watching him be happy. he's very generous with his french fries, too.

i know that my heart will grow to love two boys instead of just one (it already is), and we'll make time so that he still feels important, but i'll miss the days of just hanging out with Little Dude. i'm glad i have a few more months, and i'm glad God reminded me to take it a bit slower. these days are precious!

quote of the week: upon breaking a new toy...he brought it sadly over to my Dad saying..."Papa, I have a sad surprise for you!"


photo: a Gabe breakfast tradition - peanut butter toast!

from the mouths of little boys...

"Hey Little Dude...guess what?! You're going to have a baby brother! Isn't that great?"

long pause....

"Can we have meatballs for dinner?"






"Hey Little Dude, I heard that you're going to have a baby brother!"

"No, a baby sister. Her name is Ginger."

"I thought your Mommy said it was going to be a boy?"

"No, I changed my mind."



And lastly, how do smart mommies get little boys to eat their green beans? They build things...this one I'm particularly proud of. It's a bridge, complete with cars on the bridge and boats around it. Last night I made a picket fence with squirrels on it...they usually vanish in about five minutes. : )

Happy is she whose son eats his veggies...

It's a.....!

I bet you all are dying to know, aren't you? Yep, we found out what we are having. Is it a boy or a girl, you ask? Is Little Dude going to get a pesky kid sister, or a baby brother to torture?

I haven't had a chance to scan the photos yet. Wouldn't it be much nicer to SEE the pictures when you find out what little Baby Gabe is going to be?

Yes, you say?

Ok, we'll wait till we have the photos up. Such sweet pictures...the tiny little profile. A perfect little spine. His wee little hands up by his face.

Oops.

; )