Birthdays

A lot of time, and even more money, goes into kids birthday parties. I spent a lot of time finding the best jungle themed birthday decorations, ordered a custom cake, booked Gymboree as the venue, bought numerous drinks and snacks and ordered WAY too much food from Pizza Hut. I tend to go overboard on everything I do and the birthday party probably cost me $700-800 by the time I was done. So when 5 adults and 3 kids cancelled the day of (two people a couple hours before and everyone else AFTER the party started) it is infuriating! That is a lot of people to pay for meals for and have them no-show. I have no problem with people cancelling the day before but any later than that I just have no patience for when dinner is involved. For the Americans out there...how do you do it?!?! That would definitely be a culture shock for me if I moved to the US where, as I understand it, RSVP's usually aren't done.

Besides that, the birthday party went amazing. Connor's favorite teacher ran the class, my best friend ran around helping ensure everything was organized and remained on time and I think all the kids (that did attend) had a blast. I have to say that I truly love kids birthday parties! The look on Connor's face as people sang to him and his enjoyment and "wow, wow, wow" over the presents was priceless. So, regardless of my complaining, it was a success!

The problem is that even with attendance mishaps...I'm already thinking about what I can do for next year...

Swim Lessons and Urinals!

Swim Lessons and urinals...you would think that the two would be separate topics, wouldn't you??? I thoroughly enjoy watching my husband go out of his comfort zone...which I'm sure he appreciates! Swimming lessons started on Monday and all seemed to go fairly well, minus the fact that Connor would see other things he wanted to do during the lesson and I could occasionally hear him give his dad hell for not letting him go do whatever it was he saw. Most of the lesson was smiles, so successful. At the end Connor played in the kiddie pool for a while and had a great time. When he decided that climbing in and out was the best part is when it was time to go. Chris causally asked if I wanted to take him to get him changed...no, thanks! So grudgingly Chris and Connor disappeared into the change room. I was waiting at the doors for them to emerge from the change room...when they walked out I could immediately tell something had happened. Chris had a lopsided smile on his face and was looking guilty and Connor was grinning ear to ear and looked very pleased with himself. Apparently while Chris was changing Connor ran around the corner...so he pulled up his shorts and went after him, only to find him elbow deep playing in the urinals. The looks on their faces were priceless and all I could say as I started to giggle at Chris's now mortified expression was..."did you wash his arms?"

How do germaphobes handle being parents??? I admit, I was bad in the beginning and I still have my limits but the things toddlers eat, play with, handle...at some point don't you have to shrug and go with the old age "what doesn't kill them makes them stronger"??

Terrible Twos? I think not...at least not yet!

Connor is 2 today! I'm so excited and definitely going overboard. I never thought I could love a little monster so much and want to do everything and anything in my power to spoil him rotten! I'm working through lunch to get home early so that I can go to Toys R Us again...can a kid really have too many toys?? (OK, maybe don't answer that!) Everyone talks about the terrible twos and yet I think that this is the easiest stage yet. Perhaps because he was an infant that wanted to be in arms continuously or because it took him a while to sleep through the night or maybe I've just learned to relax and trust what I am doing (most of the time). So far 2 is by far the best age!!!! I'm loving the communication...even the "No, no, no!" finger waggling that has started (thank you again toopy!).

Sorry for the absence...we went on vacation for two weeks. Will write more on the birthday party coming up this weekend, the toopy and binoo live performance we will be attending as well as camping with a toddler shortly...this week is insane so this is short and sweet!

Mommy Instinct

I always tell everyone...trust your instinct...ignore most of the advice you get and do what is right for your child. Well...I should have stayed home on Wednesday when I wrote my last post about how guilty I was feeling. On my way home with a birthday cake in hand for my husband, my cell rings and our care provider says that Connor woke up from him nap feeling worse and was it ok to give him some Tylenol. I, of course, said yes and hurried home (I was about 10 minutes away) cause she sounded really worried. When I got home he didn't even get up off the couch to great me...which is beyond strange...and when I went over to him he just looked at me with his huge blue eyes and his breathing was really raspy. I had a moment of panic. Picked him up and told her to grab his shoes I was taking him to the walk in clinic. Phoned my husband on route and told him to meet us there. It took about an hour to see a doctor who immediately sent us to urgent care with a letter of what he had seen. He wouldn't tell me what he thought it could be just that he's struggling for air and needs a chest x-ray. By the time I got out of the walk in clinic, Chris was waiting ,and the first thing I said to him was "We have to get to urgent care NOW. I'll explain in the car". The whole night was horrible. Breathing masks, medicine, inhalers, baby x-rays (which look like mini torture devices). Later that night they said that it was actually the best case scenario and was pneumonia. Being the best case scenario we could take him home. If there was the slightest change we were to go straight to the Children's Hospital. We got home that night absolutely worn out. You would think that after 3-4 hours of scream crying Connor would have passed out on the way home, but no, so we got his prescription and picked up McD's (instead of the rib birthday dinner I had planned). It was a rough couple days after that but now he is feeling much better, although hates the antibiotics and fights me on it twice a day. I'm still waking up multiple times a night to watch him breath. I don't know how long that will continue but I just need to sit there and watch him breathing to confirm that he is in fact ok. The first night after the warnings to keep an eye on him I don't think I slept at all and would watch his chest for a few minutes every half an hour. I should have trusted how badly I felt about leaving him and stayed home...there has to be something to this mommy instinct.

Heartbreak and Cuddles

There is nothing more heartbreaking than having to walk out of the door in the morning when your toddler doesn't want to let go and has been up most of the night ill. It is gut wrenching. Connor was sick two days ago and then his nose started running yesterday and he was up all night having trouble breathing through his nose which would wake him up. He thought he should get to watch toopy and binoo at 1am. Poor little man. Usually he is asleep when I go to work but I opened the bathroom door to mommy calls and there he was standing in his little monkey pj's with his rabbit in one hand and a sippy of water in the other looking at me like I had abandoned him! It was horrible and only got worse when it was time to go. I ended up leaving half an hour later than normal because I'd try and leave and he'd start to sob so I'd sit and cuddle him and tell him I loved him but I have to work. The horrible guilty feeling of leaving was only enhanced when I read my monthly update email from Pampers on 23 months that had a section on giving your child lots of love and cuddles when they aren't feeling well. Can't wait to get home for cuddles...

Monkey Man

I haven't posted for a couple weeks because life has become ridiculous. I am beyond busy at work and working overtime so when I get home Connor needs me to make up for not being there. I need my vacation to get here NOW! I'm so close to crashing and I know I'm becoming less productive which makes it all the more disheartening. Connor is an active child regardless, but now that he feels the need to make every moment with mommy count, if I stop to wash the dishes or do laundry he climbs something. His room being monkey themed seems more than appropriate now. He is my little monkey and he has the best monkey impressions ever...so freaking cute! The climbing is getting to be a bigger problem though. I got home from work and after a bit of play time decided I needed to get the dishes done. I reached into the dishwasher for some plates, stood up, and he's sitting at the really high bar stool at the kitchen island!! A three foot drop to hardwood...I shrieked and ran around to grab him before he fell and he just gave me his little evil grin as if to say...did you think I'd let you empty that dishwasher lady??! He proceeded to climb the couch and balance on the arm well calling "mamma" in this little testing voice and then climbed over his highchair and was stuck upside down on that when I reached him. We moved into the playroom and I got distracted putting a couple of the toys away and when I turned around he was standing on the arm of the chair climbing over it onto a rocking horse giving me his little devil grin. It is unbelievable how fast they can appear on the top of something! He is also now moving objects so that he can get leverage to climb other items that he otherwise couldn't reach. He carried his little singing table into my bedroom and used the edge of my bed to climb onto it so that he could stand in the middle of it and reach the TV. Un-freaking-believable!!! There is no safe "out of reach" area now. Everything from the top of dressers to the table are fair game if there is something he wants. The best part of it all is that he's got the mommy manipulation down to an art! If he knows I'm getting mad he'll come over wrap his cute little arms around my neck, give me the best little smile, say "mamma" in a loving little voice and give me a huge kiss. Now tell me how you are supposed to stay mad at that?!?!? This is definitely the most work of any age I've encountered yet but also the most fun. He loves to be going and laughs continuously. It is amazing...and frustrating!

Family

Most of us have that one family member that creates angst and stress. When you are in the process of growing your own immediate family what is the best way to deal with these members of your family? Ignore them, push them out, embrace them??? I don't think there is a "right" answer. I think you need to approach it in a way you are comfortable and able to. There is no easy answer because even when you push the person out of your life to avoid the stress of the situation on yourself and your little one it is always going to be in the back of your mind. There comes a time in our lives when we need to be responsible for our actions, regardless of what life has thrown our way or what issues we need to overcome. As parents we need to learn to let go and let our children grow and develop into their own people which can be especially difficult when our children face more difficulties than normal. We all want our children to know they are unconditionally loved but sometimes conditions of that love has to be put in place for their greater good. I hope more than anything in the world that I will never experience that in the way I have watched others face. I think it takes a lot of strength to put those conditions in a relationship whether it is for children or parents. I am incredibly lucky to have a great support group of friends and sisters (as well as a frustrating husband;-) ).