Kelly in NC

Grayson,
Where did this month go? I swear that it has passed the quickest of them all! Or maybe it just seems like a blur because I’ve spent most of it chasing you. This month you learned to say “come on” (pronounced “mon” and used with a sweeping up-and-over arm motion) and you say it constantly. You want us to feed you: “mon eat” + hand motion toward the kitchen. You want to play basket ball: “mon buh ball” + hand motion running toward the goal. You want to go out side: “mon ou-si” + hand motion moving toward the door. You get the picture. If we do not listen the first time, you will choose one of two approaches: 1) repeat the request with a louder voice and bigger hand motion or 2) grab us by the hand and drag us to the requested location. I am pretty certain that you learned this new trick from your cousin Ella. She was telling you all about “come on” when you visited her house not too long ago. She’d tell you where to go and you followed her all over the place. Then, next thing we know you came home and started repeating it the next day. Too funny!

Speaking of funny, this month you have laughed over a million times over the game Hide and Seek. We started playing it a few weeks ago with Daddy. After putting on your pajamas, Daddy hides and then we search around the room looking for him. You have gotten really good at guessing where he might be and you giggle everytime you’ve discovered where he has hidden. This past week, you decided to start hiding too! You have declared some of Daddy’s best hiding places as your own- such as under the crib, in the closet, and behind the curtain. The funniest part is that before we even have a chance to begin looking for you, your laugh gives you away. And as if those elfish giggles weren’t enough to give away your hiding spot, you only give us 3 seconds before you peak you head out and wave “mon” before hiding again. I think that we are going to have to keep working with you on the strategy for the game- but strategic or not- we have a blast playing it!

In the past 31 days you have learned to put two and three words together. I believe that it began with you saying “Dada truck” and has now progressed to you giving us commands- “move Mama” or “more milk peas”. You boss Ozzy around- “Beep, beep Ozzy” and are working on your color words “boo tractor”. You can identify a circle and a heart and are working on naming your other shapes. Your cartoon repertoire has expanded to include Thomas and Friends (aka- “choo choo”) and Bob the Building (aka- “tractor”) although you still love to watch Blue’s Clue’s.

Now in your opinion, the coolest thing that you learned this month- better than saying sentences or learning how to hide- was learning how to hop. You have been working on this movement for quite sometime, but is wasn’t until a few weeks ago that you finally figured out how to propel youself forward. The look on your face was priceless- determination mixed with amazement- so glad that you had finally discovered how to hop like a bunny. So now when you get excited you jump around the house and often yell to us “Mon jump!” I have attached a little video highlighting your latest moves and I hope you know that Daddy and I are proud of your determination. There are so many things about you that make us proud…so many things that we can’t help but brag about to anyone who will listen.

Each day I look and realize something new about you. And so I aim to caputre each fleeting glimpse because I know that they will not last for long. I want to remember everything about being your mom and having you as my son. Already I forget how tiny you were in my arms at birth and the memories of you waking every 4 hours at night have also faded. So from this month, I want to remember you reciprocating a raspberry on my stomach and thinking is was hilarious. I want to remember the sound of your voice as you make the animal sounds when I sing Old MacDonald’s Farm- usually intermingled with giggles. I want to remember hearing you call my name first thing in the morning and feeling your hands tighen around my neck when we walk up the stairs before bed. I want to remember it all! Grayson, you are such a wonderful gift in my life and pray that I never take you for granted. So as always, thank you for another special month.

I love you more and more each day!
Love,
Mama

I started this post 2 days ago and then somehow clicked the wrong button and lost everything. I was so frustrated, I just walked away from the computer…so anyhow, I will try again!
~For Valentine’s day Tim went out of his way to make the day special. He brought home dinner, a bottle of wine, flowers…the whole 9 yards. We had a really nice time just the two of us (after Grayson went to bed). I usually hate Valentine’s day- but this year absolutely LOVED it! Yeah for Tim!
~Last Saturday Carri and her fiance Dave came over for dinner. It was nice hanging out with the two of them. It seems like it had been while since only the four of us got together. We broiled Mahi-Mahi (after unresolved issues with our grill), ate corn on the cob and salads, and hung out, enjoying the company.
~ Last Sunday, we went over to GB’s house (my FIL) to watch the Daytona Race. I had a hoot chasing all the kids around the house and tickling them until my fingers almost fell off. Even then, they kept asking for more- especially Kellynn. Writing the word “kids” to describe Grayson, Jack, and Ella almost breaks my heart. They truely are turning into kids now. Expressing thier wants and needs, running around in circles, coloring at the table. I just can’t believe how big they have gotten
Not to worry though. Apparently we will have a new baby joining the NC crowd in October. On Sunday Kate and Marc finally let us know that we would be expecting another nephew/niece. (We had actually heard a few days before via the rumor mill- but weren’t officially told until Sunday.) So congrats to Kate and Marc and congrats to us… I can’t wait to have another baby in the family!
Also at GB’s, Tim and his siblings presented GB and Mom B (via speaker phone) with their retirement gift. All the kids went in together and purchased them a vacation at the Aventura Spa Palace in Playa del Carmen. Tim and I went there in 2005 and have highly recommended it to anyone and everyone who would listen. Jill and Chris went for their honeymoon and Marc and Kate went in October. Everyone has loved it. GB and Mom B were both ecstatic and have called numerous times since last Sunday to thank us for the gift.
~For the past two weeks, I have been working on organizing a career fair for our middle school students. On Friday, all of my work paid off and the career day ran smoothly. There were over 25 careers represented and I think that the kids enjoyed themselves. Now this week, I will have to work on moving my office. A new building was finally finished at school and I get to move. Have a ever mentioned on this blog how much I dread moving? Luckily my new office is really nice- so I am not complaining too much. I just wish that I had someone to move all of my stuff for me!
~On Friday night, I went to PF Changs to celebrate Carri’s birthday. I listened to the waiter when selecting my meal (the sea bass) and really think that I was “up-sold” for no real purpose. The waiter claimed that the sea bass was the best seafood on the menu…my opinion- it was ok- but definitely not an original dish. I felt like I could have ordered it from anywhere…so for those who love PF Chang’s- skip the pricey sea bass. It really isn’t worth the extra cash. Now don’t take all of this to mean that I did not enjoy my evening. I really did. The food was great and the cake that Dave & Emily bought for Carri was delicious. So Happy Birthday Carri! (And thank you Tim for volunteering to watch Grayson when we couldn’t find a baby sitter.)
~On Saturday, Grayson slept in until 9:50- at which time I finally woke him up. Then he took a 3 hour nap in the afternoon. He must be going through a growth spurt. He ate like a horse for both lunch and diner and I swear he feels heavier than before. It’s amazing how much he changes from week to week. He has learned how to hop foward (like a bunny) and is putting short (2 and 3 word ) sentences together. He wants so much to be independent and it is funny when he struggles to accomplish something- but refuses to ask for help. Oh man, what am I in for? I am seeing glimpses of the terrible twos and am scared to death of what awaits me in a few months…Somebody say some prayers for me!

Well, I guess that’s the recap of the past week and half. Hopefully my next post won’t take so long!

My latest digital scrapbook page:

These pages were created using the following products:
Papers, Flower Embellishemnts, 31: http://freedigitalscrapbooking.com/index.html
Font: Footlight MT Light
Editing Program: Microsoft Digital Image Suite 2006

~Forgive me if this post doesn’t make alot of sense. I only got 5 hours of sleep last night. For some unknown reason Grayson decided to get up at 12:45 last night. He was wide awake and refused to go back to sleep until 4 am. No temp, no sickness- just wide awake and full of energy. For over an 1.5 I tried making him cry it out, then I finally put him in bed with me. That didn’t work either. For the next 1.5 hours I was tortured with his little fingers being poked into my eyes, him constantly sitting up, repositioning himself, trying to get out of bed, calling my name, etc, etc. At 3:45, just as I was about to throw in the towel and make Tim go on duty, he finally fell asleep. Whew! Needless to say, I am exhausted today!
~My mom came up from Florida this weekend to celebrate my niece Kellynn’s 6th birthday. After the birthday party, we went back to Kevin and Renee’s house for dinner and the race. I had so much fun watching Ella and Grayson run around the house, playing with each other. It’s funny to hear them talking to each other and mimicing each other. When did they get so big???
~I’m over my rut at work! I think that I was just suffering from those February blues (that Dena mentioned) as well as a VERY busy week. Maybe a little stress?? Last week ended on a good note and I here by declare my funk long gone!
~I am SOOOO glad that Lost is back on! It is my favorite show- although I must admit that I am dismayed to hear that there are only 4 episodes filmed. At least the writter’s strike is almost over. Maybe it will not effect this season…I NEED Lost!!!
~I have become addicted (no pun intended) to the new reality show- Celebrity Rehab. Is anyone else watching this? It’s on VH1 on Thursdays. (I DVR it and catch up on the weekends.) Dr. Drew is treating a number of celebrities for addictions. Perhaps it’s by back ground in counseling- or my curiosity about famous people- but I really like watching this show.

Lately I’ve been in a funk at work. It’s the wierdest thing. I mean- I like everything about my job- the people I work with, the hours, the kids…did I say the hours??? But there has been something “eating” at me for the past two weeks. I can’t put my finger on it-I just know that I haven’t been enjoying my job as much as I did in the past. Part of me thinks that I am missing the challenge and that my job feels stagnate. This is my 5th year at the same school and I feel like I have settled into a “rut”. Anyone else ever feel this way? Anyone have any suggestions? I really don’t want to leave my school. I mean where else can I work only 4 days a week, have time off for spring break, christmas break…not to mention a fall break. And like I said- I LOVE the people I work with. Maybe this is just a funk that will disappear in a couple of days. Whatever it is- I’m ready to be over it!