Revelations

Not of the biblical kind though.  More of the parental kind.

Saturday, I needed a little "me time" so I took myself to lunch.  The diner I chose just happened to be near our branch of the MSPCA, so I just HAD to stop in.  Because I'm that type of person.  We used to have two kitties, but they passed away in 2008 and 2009, and we have not replaced them because of the children.  Well, because of one certain precocious child in particular. But I really miss having kitties, and hope to add a couple to our home SOON.  But that certain precocious child is still precocious, and I think it will take time to find just the right kitties.  The MSPCA (and I imagine othe shelters as well) have info cards on the animals, so you can see their history (if known) and disposition.  One of the items of concern is whether or not they are good with children.  99% of the time, "babies and toddlers" is not checked off or says NO in big fat letters. Often with and exclamation point as well!  Hence why it will most likely be some time before we are able to adopt a pair.  But  most of the time "older children" IS checked off or has a YES next to it.  The category in between is what led to my revelation.  "School Aged Children".  Sometimes yes, sometimes no.  I was skipping over those as well (OK, I wasn't skipping over them, I oohed and aahed over each and every kitty!), until it hit me.  Had JT been born 14 days earlier, or if we lived in another state, he WOULD be school aged!  Heck, we just registered him for kindergarten the other day, so maybe that makes him "school-aged" already.

So, can someone please tell me how this sweet little baby boy weighing 7 lbs 14 oz and measuring 21.5 inches

is now this big boy that weighs about 50 lbs and is at least 48 inches?????

My heart is full

Before I became a Mom, I thought I knew some things.  I thought I "knew" it would be hard.  I thought I "knew" it would be the best decision I ever made.  But in all  honesty, despite listening to all my Mommy friends' and relatives' advice, I didn't really KNOW.  And I didn't know how conflicting it would be either.

Today hasn't been anything out of the ordinary.  LW had me awake at about 5:20am (maybe earlier - I was sleepy and I'm blinder than a bat without my glasses or contacts), JT was up shortly thereafter.  Daddy was in the shower so they joined me in bed.  Sometimes I can turn on the TV and it will occupy them while I doze a little.  Not this morning.  They were fidgety! And as usual, I went to bed too late last night (got hooked by a new show on VH1 - "The OCD Project" - and I'm fascinated!!), and I'm not exactly a morning person, so I started out a bit..oh how shall I put this...GRUMPY.  JC gets them set up with breakfast downstairs before he leaves for work, but after that it's time to be Mommy.  But did I mention I am not a morning person???  So until I get some coffee in me (I was not a coffee drinker until..oh...about 4.5 years ago..hmmmmm) they'd better behave themselves or the volume gets a little loud.  But once the caffeine kicks in, I'm usually OK and relatively pleasant.  And such was the case this morning.  I was entertained by LW shedding his PJ's in a not so graceful fashion.  And JT re-discovered the whoopie cushion that was included in a birthday card at some point.  Lucky me!  Eventually we made it back upstairs to get dressed.  As usual, it took me about a half hour to get dressed, since they just can't leave me alone for five minutes straight!  For some reason, this time I turned on the TV, and Bonnie Hunt was on, talking to a guy from Animal Planet, who of course brought some animals.  The kids once again made their way into our room and the animals caught their attention.  Which then prompted some wildlife imitations, as well as some wrestling.  Some days this would bother me, but today it just warmed my heart.  This is one of the days that they play well together and the squeals of laughter outnumber the cries of frustration or pain.  But that's not the point where my I felt my heart felt like it would burst. That occurred after lunch, before nap.  I was sitting on the couch, while the two of them sat together on the recliner.  Content. Not complaining about anything or anyone.  Happy. I sat there staring at them for a while, thinking about how cranky I was at the very early beginning of my day, but how happy I was at that moment.

It amazes me at how my emotions as a mom can run the whole spectrum in just a few days or hours.  Tuesday was what I considered the start of summer vacation.  JT finished preschool for the year on Friday, but Daddy was home for the long weekend so that doesn't count.  Tuesday was NOT one of the good days where they boys play well or happily together.  I found myself wondering out loud "how long until September???"  But today is a good one, so I'm happy that I get to be home with my boys.  I get to be the main influence in their lives.  And I get to feel my heart about to burst with love, even when it's just an ordinary, simple day.  So yes, my heart is more than full.  And I certainly wouldn't change a thing. Well, I would like to get more sleep.  Some day.

Adios Amigos! And other cute things my kids say

Since JT is 4.5 years old, his speech is USUALLY pretty clear and understandable. At least to us.  But he still has a few words that he just can't seem to say right.  Like "mucis" instead of music, and the proverbial "pasghetti" instead of spaghetti.  I only make a minor effort to correct him, because it's just too darned cute, and I'll miss those words when they're gone. Now however, he says phrases or sayings that make us chuckle.  For instance, a couple of months ago at preschool they used "101 Dalmations" as a way to teach numbers.  So now he points out the number 100 if he sees it, and wants to count to 100 together.  And he also started telling us he has "100 energy".  He doesn't know what it really means, but I still don't like the sound of it!  So today when I went to pick him up at preschool, I couldn't go in because LW has been getting up before the crack of dawn and fell asleep on the way there (again!).  They sent him out the emergency door (after disarming the alarm!!), right in front of where I parked.  Normally when you go in to pick them up, they have a white board outside his class with a little description of what they did that day.  Of course I didn't get to see that today so I had to get all my information from him. A 4 year old...enough said!  Before we even got in the car, he said "hey, there's AJ!  Adios Amigos!".  To which AJ's mom and I both chuckled.  I assumed he got this from Dora the Explorer, though thought it was an odd time for him to start using the phrase.  Well after we were in the car and started leaving, he had his window open, and started yelling it to everyone he saw!  After I shushed the heck out of him so he wouldn't wake up LW, it dawned on me.  Today is Cinqo De Mayo so they must have done something about that in school.  When I asked JT, sure enough they had indeed had a Cinqo De Mayo snack and taught them Adios Amigos.  How about that...he really does learn while he's there!  Now I just need to figure out what they had for snack.  Despite the fact that as usual, snack was his favorite part of the day (and apparently "delicioso", pronounced as well as he pronounces spaghetti), he couldn't remember what they had.  The description I've gotten from him, in bits and pieces, is it was long and orange, not cheese or sweet, and the teachers got it from the refrigerator by the door they go out for recess.  Okey Dokey!  Any ideas?

Then there is LW.  He is going through another language explosion. He doesn't just come up with new words everyday (my favorites being Chocweet for Chocolate, though it's often used to describe other brown food items, and "HUG!") he's also using/repeating phrases ("Hey? Where'd it go?" for one).  The other day we were chatting with a neighbor as he walked by.  S is a friendly guy and will talk your ear off.  Well he's no match for our chatty little boys, who run to him as soon as they see him.  You can tell he doesn't understand LW, but he plays along.  After the conversation was finished and we were saying goodbye, LW chimed in with "haveaniceday"!  It ran all together like that, but was clear as day otherwise. Not something I expected to hear from my not-so-little-anymore boy.

Listening to their language development is one of my favorite parts of motherhood.  Hearing the little voice repeat something in context though they probably don't understand, or later realizing they DO understand what they are saying, is just amazing.  Their little minds absorb so much information in a short time.  But it's one of those bittersweet moments as well, because as I watch them develop in leaps and bounds, I realize this is one of those things I'm really going to miss when my boys are all grown up.