Nothing In Particular

I have neglected my blog. Other than work and routine day to day life, there hasn't been much to talk about. So this is going to be a bunch of random stuff... enjoy! Super is a handful at all times but we're having fun learning new things. I'm always amazed to hear new words out of his mouth and I'm continually surprised that he is getting older and actually learns things. For the longest time it felt like anything we did went in one ear and out the other or he'd do something once and we'd never see it happen again.

Yesterday was a busy day for us. It started at the park with some friends, a refusal to take a nap, a long walk and a quick dip in the pool. On our walk (while he sported his awesome Superman PJ's), we stopped by the pool and he got in. Most of the time he'll stand there and then want me to hold him while soaking wet but this time he was surprisingly comfortable in the water. So I left him alone and gave him his space to explore. He did pretty well considering the last time we went to the pool he wouldn't get out of my arms. Today we went back and he was as happy as can be splashing around. There were some workers putting down straw and one found a tennis ball so they all played catch with him while they worked. It was so cute to watch Super in his little swimmer diaper run around and try to play catch with 5 different people.

Grout Daddy has been working like crazy and we miss him but we've been able to do a lot on our own. Especially now that Super is learning to follow directions and knows the dangers of running into the road. Blah, I'm not feeling inspired right now....I'll write more when I am.

Here She Is!

I call her MassageMama, my kids will call her grandma but the world will now know her as Suburban Earth Mama! My mother started a blog! I'm excited! I love reading all of the blogs of my close friends and now the woman that raised me will give all of us some insight into her brain. Let's welcome her into the blogging community, it wasn't so long ago that we were all newbies that just wanted people to read.

I Got Tagged!

Due to my lovely Big Sis that thinks I don't blog enough, I got tagged, but I'm game, lets do this!

1. What's his name? Danny, Sweetie, Baby, Daddy, Love

2. How long have you been married? Two years this past June 3rd

3. How long did you date? We got together in May 2005, about 2 weeks before he was going off to New Zealand for 3 months. We wrote letters, talked on the phone everyday and emailed. After he came home, we dated another 3 or 4 months before getting engaged.

4. Who eats more sweets? We're about even on that one. I'll eat a box of cookies over the course of a few days while he'll sit down and finished the box an hour. Now, when my cycle comes around, I head straight for the chocolate so that should tip the scales to me.

5. Who said I love you first? I did. He was going off to New Zealand (I know, two weeks, I'm so embarrassed) and I felt the need to tell him how it was. It made him extremely happy and now I don't think I've gone a day since not telling him I love over and over.

6. Who is taller? I have to laugh at this question and I'm sure Big Sis gave me this to fill out just for this reason. Danny is taller. Much taller. I'm 5'0", he is 6'8". There is a 20 inch difference in our heights but it makes us perfectly proportional. We even use the same mirror settings in both of our vehicles. Here I'll even put in a picture.

This is me as straight as I can go and him slouching over.

7. Who can sing better? I'm going to go with me. Danny doesn't really sing that much but I'll belt out a tune anywhere I go. Especially if it'll entertain my kid or someone elses kid. I love to sing. Occasionally I'll hear him sing along with something or sing Super his songs at night but that is it. He can actually rap pretty good for a white boy.

8. Who is smarter? *sigh* He is. I'm not exactly stupid but he is one of those golden people that are good at everything and can not study and get A's. We do balance each other pretty good though. I'm great at math and science but I can't spell to save my life. I'm better at working with people and problem solving but you can explain something to him once and he won't need to ask how to do it again.

9. Who does the laundry? Me. If he touches the laundry other than to put it away, I'll wring his neck. After having my favorite cashmere sweater shrunk to fit a barbie doll, he is allowed minimal contact with the laundry room. He does have to help more when I'm pregnant since I can't reach the bottom of the machine with a big belly.

10. Who pays the bills? Me. All of them. Since I have a better head for numbers and more patience, I take care of everything. I'm not at all perfect but I can only imagine what he would do to our budget.

11. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me. It was very natural for us to be together and we migrated to our own sides the first night. We tried to switch it up once when I was pregnant but neither of us slept very well.

12. Who cooks dinner? Me again. Danny can make some delicious eggs, french toast or grilled cheese but that is were his talents end. I love to cook so I'm perfectly happy with him not in my kitchen, making it all messy and leaving it for me to clean up.

13. Who drives? That's tricky. We rarely go anywhere together anymore. When we do, I do most of the driving because of my *surprise* control issues. When we were dating, we always took his truck and even when I was uncomfortable and pregnant in that bouncy truck, he still insisted on driving before I threw a royal tantrum. Now that we have the boy, we always take my car unless we go on a date and even then we mostly take my car because it's cleaner.

14. Who is more stubborn? I am going to call that draw. We are both really stubborn. I get what I want most of the time but that's because I have reasons for it. When asked to explain his logic, he usually can't so I win!

15. Who kissed who first? I really have no idea. It was probably me though. I went to meet him and his friends at the Pool Room for a few games and he put the "moves" on me. I've always been more forward about that kind of stuff. Curiosity always gets the better of me and had some sweet little lips. After that we were inseparable.

16. Who asked who out first? There was no real asking out. I met him and his friends one night and they came over and hung out for a while (we lived in the same apartment complex), I avoided them for a month after that because I had a life to run and was busy. He called me and invited me to the Pool Room so I guess the answer is him.

17. Who proposed? He did. We got lost one night in Pensacola when we were visiting my grandparents and drove in circle after circle. I finally got sick of sitting in the car so we stopped at a pier near Pensacola Bay. It was dark and the wind was blowing really hard and our conversation turned to marriage and he sprang a ring on me. Whoo hoo! We went back to that spot on our honeymoon.

18. Who wears the pants? I do. He'll tell you different though because he thinks he's running the show but, c'mon, we all know who is in charge.

That was a lot of fun! I tag Karen and I hope she's willing to fill it out. Let's keep it going, girl!

Superman

I was browsing through some of my videos today and realized that I didn't share this with anyone! We went shopping with MIL Sue and she picked this out for him. The shorts were way too big but the top fit pretty good. He began running around the apartment like he was super powerful and using a duster rod to defend the earth.

In other news, he has expanded his vocabulary quite a bit in the last few weeks and you can tell he's always making an effort to sound out words or at least get the right tone. The newest words are outside and shoes. He's trying his best the sing the ABC's with me and since he's really shy, there can be NO ONE around him besides me. He made a few quiet peeps at the grocery store until someone looked at him. I know he'll grow out of it but clingy doesn't look good on anybody.

For now, I'm going to let him save the world, starting with my living room and enjoy watching his imagination grow as fast as he is.

My Own Tribute to a Great Lady

I stole this picture from Big Sis's blog because I don't have any pictures of my own. This is my Grandma Leitch, better known as E-ma during my childhood. Many people look at my family and wonder where I got my sassy attitude, here is the reason. Raised in New York, Grandma Leitch was a tough lady that didn't take crap from anyone. She held onto her Finnish roots and instilled that heritage into me and my siblings.

I remember going to visit her for a summer, just me and her, when I was 12 years old. We were driving to the beach one day and we pulled up next to this car with some 20 something year old guys in it. They were blasting their 90's rap music and being rowdy. Not being someone to back down, she proceeded to crank up her Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture as loud as it would go and we began to conduct our imaginary orchestra together. It's a very powerful piece of music and the young men quickly rolled up their windows and quieted down while she squealed her tires as the light turned green. Ahhh, she was so funny. She'd always sing this little song that I find myself humming when I feel lonely or in need of a pick-me-up, or she's sing Memories, from the musical Cats.

The last time I saw her, I brought my boyfriend to meet her for a small vacation. We got to her house early and knocked on the door. She answered the door naked! Then made a few strange noises and literally threw her Christmas lights at us to hang outside for her while she got dressed. I guess she felt bad afterwards because she took us shopping at the Navy base. She made my BF at the time pick out his favorite beer and bought both of us a carton of cigarettes. When we got back to her house, we had ourselves a little party. I never thought I'd get drunk with my grandma but she out drank me (which isn't saying much) and BF. I slept in the next day and woke up to find her and BF sitting at the table, smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee like they have known each other forever.

She loved the Cubs and now I can't help but cheer for them too. She always left a lipstick mark on us when she kissed us hello in one of her 3 signature colors. She took Big Sis (and me, a few years later) to get our ears pierced. She had a Finnish flag on her car and one of those little licence plate signs that said, "Sisu" (Finnish translation). She could cook a mean pot roast and apple fritters.

I can't control myself right and I have to end this blog here. Super is antsy and I can't type through the tears. I'm going to miss her until I see her again in the next life.

Ha Ha... It Wasn't Me

For those who read this regularly, I was pulled over a few months ago for something stupid. Grout Daddy rubbed it in my face for a month or so that I was the one that was pulled over (I'm a "granny driver"), even if it was for a dumb reason. Now I get the last laugh (but the first tears) as G-Daddy got a ticket this morning. On his way to an early job, he decided to run a red light and BAM, ticket city. Oh well, at least I can force him into a defensive driving course and not feel guilt about it at all. I can't really get mad at him though, I was driving the other day with MIL Sue and thought I was in trouble because I know I was going 10 over the limit, but the cop got someone else, whew!

The Great Escape

Now that Super is approaching the 2 year mark, his personality is showing more and more everyday. A few things I've identified is that he's a "bolter" and a "climber" and I put these in parenthesis because there are certain defining characteristics that make these a special circumstance. All kids run away and all kids scare their parents on a regular basis but, a bolter is one of those kids that doesn't care what you say or do, they are going to take off in whatever direction they can go at any given time and they won't look back.


Here is my recent example. Aside from the fact that he is constantly running away, he doesn't think that his actions have consequences and that is very hard for me knowing that one of those consequences could be death. One of my clients stopped by my house to drop off some paperwork and a check for me to give to another broker. I met him at the door, took the papers, turned around to grab my purse and cell phone and I walked out the door. I didn't see Super so I didn't even lock the door and I went after him because I felt something was wrong. I leaped over the gate and started running, calling his name. As I'm trotting towards our parking lot, I saw a little blond head bobbing up and down, chasing after my client/friend's car and heading right for the street. Then came the adrenaline rush as I saw another car turning the corner and heading in our direction as he charged into the middle of the street. I'm screaming his name and trying to wave down the driver so they'll stop and running as fast as I could while dropping everything in my arms to get to my baby. Thankfully, I got their attention and they missed Super by 2-3 feet and I was able to get him.



That was the end of "Nice Mommy" and now he'll know my wrath when he thinks he can venture into the streets. I hate spanking him and I don't know if it works but I need him to be afraid of roads and streets so I'm resorting to making him fear me if he won't fear a car that could squish him. I'd rather him hate my guts than be dead.



Ok, that was the extreme example but me and MIL Sue took him shopping yesterday and he just ran around the store like it was his job. Ducking in and out of clothes, laughing and having a good time but making it very difficult to keep an eye on him. At one point, he almost ran out of the store but I was able to grab his arm as he was leaving through one of the doors. I'm afraid that someone is going to pick him up and leave with him. It can happen in a blink of an eye and I'm terrified. For the first time in my career as a parent, I'm actually considering getting one of those baby leashes. I think they're humiliating but I'd rather him be embarrassed than tortured by some stranger. I have a feeling I need to take him seriously when he's 7 and wants to run away because he doesn't get what he wants. That won't change my mind about whatever he's mad about but I'll install a Low Jack on my kid if it means I can find him.

Next, he is a "climber". Lifting himself onto tables and chairs isn't enough for a child like him. There must be challenge and a pay off... like climbing our shelves like it's a ladder so he can pull down my antique cat statues given to me after my Grandma passed, or standing on the arm of a wobbly swivel chair so he can turn the kitchen light on and off while I'm cooking, or getting on top of my car and jumping on it like a trampoline (I now know not to park near the curb, thank goodness no dents). Our latest adventure happened yesterday and now I'm not only worried about my furniture, I'm going to worry where he is.

MIL Sue and I came home after our outing with the boy and it was nap time. I put him down in his Pack N Play and we went out so she could have a smoke. A few minutes later I went to go check on him because sleeping babies are heavenly and low and behold, he ran out of the room as soon as I opened the door. Oh crap. I gathered him up again and put him down, read a short book and left the room. Something about our home, we live in a 1 bedroom apartment with a den (which we use as Supers bedroom) and the den doors don't close like regular doors, they just pull together, so we tie a piece of ribbon to close off the doors and he can't get out. Back he went into the PNP and I tied the door closed and went back to hang out on our deck with Sue. A few more minutes went by and I decided to check on him again. Given the recent events, I didn't expect him to be in the middle of the living room but there he was.... totally naked. I'm guessing this is what happened. He climbed out of the PNP, managed to pull open the doors and came out, turned the TV on, took off his semi-wet diaper, threw it in the trash can and proceeded to pee on our kitchen floor.

We laughed so hard. He was so obviously proud of himself and so happy to be naked. How do you punish or even discipline that? Well, you don't. You laugh until you cry and give up. The kid doesn't want to nap and now that he knows how to get out of the PNP, he isn't going to stay there.

Burgers and Hot Dogs and Heartburn... Oh My!

Don't take my title to mean that bad cooking caused the pain, actually, everything we ate was delicious but I really over did it. I'm not really a holiday girl. Christmas and Thanksgiving and Easter, they are all the same to me besides the acknowledgement of some very special deity offspring and the over commercialized lust for presents. Birthdays are my hot spots and I love to celebrate the lives of people I know or even those I don't (Hello! Cake anyone?).

However, I can accept a day of gluttony just as well as anyone else and we had 3 of those recently. After my swimming fun earlier that day, we went to Karen's house! Joe cooked us some mighty fine hot dogs and chicken that disappeared as it came off the grill. I didn't eat the burgers (because I really don't like burgers in general) but there was some controversy behind them so I'll leave that alone until another day. Super hates going over there now and I think it's because Karen watches him often on those days that I have to work and now he thinks we are going to leave him when we go there. It took about 30 minutes until he was able to get settled and eat a little something. I will say, that family is on there stuff. We weren't there 15 minutes when Joe told us it was time to eat. Heck yeah!

Super snuggled with his Daddy until I was able to get his food together and then I couldn't keep him off my plate. Or out of the soda. We don't really give him liquid sugar often so allowing him to wander off with my cup was a big accomplishment for him. He only returned to pick up half of my Popsicle and wander off with that too. He and Izzy were covered after their sweet, melting treat.

Doesn't she look so patriotic? I loved that little flag we were carrying around. After a few hours of eating to our hearts content, laying around and enjoying each others company, it was time to put the kiddo's down to sleep. We gave the kids a bath (which I have a hilarious picture of but won't post) and Super cried the whole time and then we put them to bed. Then it was time to be adults! After my 1 1/2 beers, sitting back and girl talking with Karen while the boys played video games, I was drunk and giggly and too impaired to drive home. Thank goodness video games keep you sober and Grout Daddy was able to collect his family and drive us all home. It was a Happy 4th.

The next day was happy too! Izzy was baptized and while I was not there, I heard the event was quite unforgettable. So we were back at Karen and Joe's, enjoying another cookout with even more awesome food to chow down on. I got to meet a friend of theirs that is just delightful. April is energetic, bouncy and a lot of fun to be around. Her boyfriend was a nice guy but we didn't get a chance to talk too much with everyone else talking at the same time. They are good people though and although they both live far away, I hope I'm invited the next time they come to visit.

I also hope we didn't scare those two away from marriage. We all let our claws show a bit but in a very funny way. However, everything I said was true but with a positive spin instead of a negative connotation like we portrayed. Anyone can tell that me and Grout Daddy are still crazy about each other. We left a bit early so they could all catch up since they don't see each other very often. The family all needed a chance to recover a bit and had a quiet evening together at home. Plus, I got to kick Grout Guy and Mistress Josh's butts at Scrabble. I love that G-Daddy calls me Kobe when we play. They'll get some pretty good words but I've been playing a long time and I know a lot of the little things that get you a ton of points for very few letters. The way I see it he NEVER lets me win at anything, heck, he never allows me the room to even let me think I'm winning so why should I do the same in return when we play this one game? I don't. Either get better or be prepared to be beaten by 100 points. What was it that I heard when I was learning how to play pool? Oh yeah, when you actually beat me for real, you'll feel a satisfaction that is 10x better than if I let you win. Eat your words, Danny!

There is No Rest When you're a Mom

It's the 4th of July! Happy Independence Day everyone!

In observance of the holiday, I did what every other red-blooded American is doing today. Sitting by the pool, having a few drinks and eating hot dogs. Super loved the pool but lately he doesn't seem to be very interested in going swimming. He is more inclined to cling to me, cry and whine when water touches anything but his feet.

Anyway, I took him to the pool to hang out with my friends Abbie and Brian and a few other that I know and a few that I don't. It's sunny, warm and I thought I would be able to actually lay out for a little while. Super knows Abbie and Brian pretty well but he's back to his mama's boy phase. I laid down thinking I had a few minutes until I felt the pitter patter of little feet on me. No, these aren't the most flattering pictures and I'm laying next to a girl that is 100lbs soaking wet but I think it gets my point across. Even when you just want 5 minutes to yourself, it ain't going to happen if your kid is in the area.

Locking the Doors

Ever since we converted Supers crib into a toddler bed, we've had to make sure that all doors are locked (or as close as it can be to locked) or we are in for an exciting morning. Guess what! I have a prime example. A few days ago, I was sleeping and was jolted awake by being slapped in the face at 4am. How did Super get out of his room, you ask? I'm blaming it on Grout Daddy. But that is neither here nor there at this point.

So, it being 4am, I'm still half asleep but I let the boy climb into bed with us and we all fall back asleep... or so I thought. This child got back up and proceeded to destroy our home. Our smart little offspring managed to find several things around the house to act as a step stool to reach everything that he wasn't supposed to.... like my purse, which he quickly emptied and separated all of my cards from my wallet, my ear bud pieces from my head phones, all of the caps off my make up items (including eating ALL of my good lipstick and gloss). The house was actually clean when we went to bed (as seldom as that actually happens). I have some pictures of the aftermath.

This is what I was greeted with when I woke up. All of that stuff on the floor that looks like sand... it's oatmeal. A whole canister of it! It's his loss though, I use the oatmeal to make his favorite waffles. I think he tried to clean all of it up after he realized what he did because my flat mop is in the kitchen instead of the utility closet. Smart man.

The living room didn't get too much damage but everything you see was dragged out of our room or the laundry room or a cabinet of some kind.

Ok, I know G-Daddy isn't going to be happy with his sleeping picture being posted but I had to laugh because there is a maple syrup bottle in bed with him. I guess between the oatmeal and the syrup, someone was just really hungry and wanted his waffles!

To top it off, while I was taking pictures and getting the house back into order, he grabbed a pen from my purse contents that were strewn about and tried to color the TV. At that point, all one can do is laugh. Getting angry with a toddler that was up way too early and was bored is too much energy to waste when all of this needed to be cleaned, we had to get dressed and out the door so I could make it to Karen's and my CE (continuing education) class. Yeah, I missed my shower that morning.

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Grout Daddy is a fantastic father. He loves me and our son with all of his being and I'm thankful for him. He makes me nuts like any man would but I wouldn't be married to (or procreate with) anyone else. Super loves his daddy just as much as his daddy loves him too. They light each other up, whether it's play time or when we have to discipline the boy, they are like two peas in a pod.

Super is getting at an age where we're starting to think about potty training. Mostly because he HATES a poopy diaper on him. He'll run around and climb up and down and destroy everything but when he unloads, he walks right over to me, says "Ewwww", lies down and waits for me to get a fresh diaper to change him. He won't move or squirm like he does when I just change wet pants. The "ewwww" is apparently from his father. I guess that when G-Daddy changes him he looks at what his son has created out of food, says "ewwww" and Super has picked it up. It's nice that I no longer have to rely on my nose to tell if there has been a bowel movement (and I'm really glad he isn't sitting in it) but I'm really tired of him tugging on my pants at all the wrong times and tell me "ewwww". I mostly get it at the pool while he's in his less-than-stellar water diapers that are a pain to tear off. Oh, and I always forget to bring wipes so I'm stuck trying to rinse him off in the sinks before trying to wrestle a wet toddler into a dry diaper.

I'm a little worried about the whole pooping shame. I've heard that if you make a kid feel bad about pooing, they'll hold it in and it can result in long term intestinal problems. It doesn't appear to have a negative effect on the boy though. He probably thinks that "ewww" means poopy. I'm much happier hearing "ewww" than, "Mommy! I poops a LOT!" like I did out of the mouth of a little girl in the grocery store a few weeks ago who had a rather embarrassed mother until I managed to stop laughing. After a brief sharing of information that I had a boy a year younger than her little girl, she told me a few more charming stories after using the book Everybody Poops. Big Sis told me about this book too and I'm curious enough to check it out of the library the next time we go. She also mentioned there was a book that could help you potty train your toddler in 4 hours with minimal accidents. I doubt Super is even interested but 4 hours is nothing in the grand scheme of things and if it doesn't work, I'm not in a position that is any better than where I began.

It stinks (ha ha pun) that this is what my blog is about but that is the adventure of raising children and I'm sick of even thinking about real estate. I am really excited about the business that me and Karen are going to start up. It's slow going now because both of us have full schedules with her starting school but in the long run, I'm really looking forward to sharing something like this with an amazing woman like her. I don't think I could find someone else so real, trustworthy and hardworking who has good ethics and doesn't put up with BS. Now I'm off to find a dress to wear to a bridal shower I'm attending in a few weeks at The Four Seasons. What does one wear to high tea?

20 Months

My big boy is getting so.... well .... big. When we were getting ready for church this last Sunday I couldn't get a single pair of his shoes on him. Luckily, I've got a full stock of shoes in every size until he's 3 or 4 years old (great sales on Ebay). So we tried on a few pairs and my little man walked out of the house in his size 6 1/2 shoes with his mother tearing up behind him. We only have 4 more months until he's 2 and I can't believe that time keeps speeding up. I try very hard to enjoy every single second I have with my man while he's still little because he won't stay that way for long. I was surprised that I could barely fit him into any of his good pants and was very thankful when one pair wasn't 2 inches too short.

My problem now is that I keep getting this feeling that my family is missing someone. I know so many other mothers in the world have felt this so I know I'm not going crazy. I was packing up Super to go out and kept looking around, like I was missing something, when I finally realized I was looking for a baby that wasn't here yet. I think our time is coming. I'm at a healthy weight and frame of mind, our careers are picking up, Super is getting at an age that he needs a sibling and I want another tiny bundle, even if it's just for a short while. I've loved watching our son grow up and as crazy as he makes me, I love every second of his existence.

I know it'll happen when the time is right. Super is a prime example that something doesn't always happen when it's "supposed" to but there are no mistakes in God's world and I hope to be blessed with more healthy children.