Whew!! What a super busy month December was. I don't usually like January, but this year I am so glad the holidays are over. I am typically always eager to pack away the Christmas tchotchkeys, but this year I wanted to do it even before New Year's Eve. I just felt like I was extra sleep-deprived and stressed out this year, and I wanted to put it all behind me and start anew.
Which isn't to say we didn't have any fun this month...
Earlier this month I took Max to the dentist, and, weird as it may sound, I actually had a lot of fun doing so. I got a sitter for Sam, so it was kind of like a special outing for just mommy and Max. (We don't get a lot of those anymore.) The best part about it?--He was SO good. I mean extra special pride-inducing good behavior. Almost brought a tear to my eye and definitely put a beaming smile on my face. Max has been to the dentist a couple of times before, but this was his first time actually getting his teeth cleaned. They had him hold the wand (or whatever it is called) for the air and then "kiss" the end of it whenever suction was needed. He held so still and did just as they told him, and he never even flinched when they sprayed his teeth with water (he is a better patient than even his own mom for that bravery). He laughed and responded so sweetly to all of the questions and even engaged in conversation with the hygienist. I think the whole staff must have marveled all day about what a sweet, perfect little patient he was for the exam and in general. I can't say it enough: he was amazing!
Max also had his 3-year-old check up this month.
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It would have been fun except we had Sam with us--he who is HORRIBLE in waiting/exam rooms. Max, however, was really cute with the staff. I think he was finally glad that for once at Dr. Tannous' office the attention was focused on him (I have dragged him along to all of Sam's many appointments, which, when you consider all of his ear infections combined with all the regular well-baby checkups the first year of life, is quite substantial). Anyway, he weighed in at 35 pounds (70th percentile) and 38 inches tall (also the 70th percentile).
Sammy (aka "Baby Rambo") has been keeping us busy as well. When he is not propelling himself off of tables and chairs, he is destroying another door or wall or piece of furniture with either a toy or a kitchen utensil. My doors have so many dents and dings from this kid, and our brand new refrigerator looks 10 years old. I swear we are not buying anything new anymore until the kids are in college.
Doesn't he look super guilty in this picture?
Or, super cute!
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The Sam-bot.
While he does keep us on our toes, Sam is just so dang cute and so stinkin' funny. And finally, he is really starting to talk. About a month ago Paul and I were remarking that at 15 months Max spoke so many more words than Sam. I have always felt, however, that Sam could communicate his needs very efficiently without words (or maybe as a more experienced mom I just understood better). We were never really alarmed because a lot of people say that the second child takes longer to talk, and he completely understood any request we made of him as evident by his ability to follow commands. But suddenly one day in late December he just started talking! Not quite in sentences yet, but he went from 3 words to 30 practically over night. He especially loves to point out the anatomy of the body--the nose, eyes, ears, mouth, belly and toes being his favorite. So, now I have to say that Sam is just like Max: a genius!
In fact, I have already got him potty trained!
... I wish! He loves to sit on the potty, though. Whenever he poops he points to the back of his diaper and says "pppaah". He then beelines for the bathroom, looking back every couple of steps to ensure that I am following him, and motions for me to put him onto the seat. He especially enjoys waving "bye-bye" to the contents in the bowl when we flush. I am thinking that he actually might train himself!
And now on to the Christmas stuff...
Last year Max was a little wary of Santa and did not want to sit on his lap, so we didn't force the issue. This year, however, he was very excited to tell Santa everything he wanted for Christmas. In fact, every time we went to the mall he begged to sit on Santa's lap. The only problem with this was that every time he would ask Santa for a different toy.
I don't think Sam really liked being held by this bearded man with the funny hat--makes for a classic picture, though. It is hard to tell from the scan of the picture, but he has this mortified look on his face and he is just bawling. I only tortured him like this for a minute or two--enough time to pay $20 for a flimsy picture.
Our little family posing for a self-portrait in front of our half-lit, irregularly decorated artificial tree.
Max had a little Christmas program with his preschool class. Paul had the day off and was finally able to see Max in the preschool environment.
We drove to Vermont to spend Christmas at Mimi's house. I convinced Paul to let us leave close to bedtime so that the boys would sleep most of the way. I have to pat myself on the back because it turned out to be a very successful plan and the travel time is much shorter and less stressful without two little ones to entertain. (Maybe I should just start taking red-eyes when I fly to UT from now on.)
When the boys awakened they were very happy to discover that they had been transported to Mimi's house.
Here is Sam on Christmas morning after discovering that Santa had left a handful of mini-peanut butter cups inside his stocking--Sam's very favorite treat! He has an entire one in his mouth in this picture--breakfast of champions.
Max loved his batman costume but would only wear it without clothes--so batman was running around in his skivvies all weekend.
The boys love their Mimi!
As a joke I got Sam these blue high heels. He is always wanting to wear my shoes so I thought they would be perfect. They were from the dollar store, though, so much to Paul's dismay they broke in less than a day.
We had a lot of fun in Vermont. Max even had his first sleepover at Koa's house. It was the first night in 6 months where he didn't climb into bed with us in the middle of the night.
We had a lot of fun in Vermont. Max even had his first sleepover at Koa's house. It was the first night in 6 months where he didn't climb into bed with us in the middle of the night.
While in Vermont we played a little in the snow, but perhaps the neatest place to burn off energy was Mimi's basement. It was just the right size for the boys, and they had a blast riding the tricycles and the tractor around and around. We adults had to crouch or bend over the whole time (or sit), so it was not quite as fun for us--but the boys loved it.
Unfortunately Sam doesn't know how to peddle yet, so one of us was always stuck crouching down while pushing him around and around. He wanted to keep up with the big boys.
When we came back to PA we got to spend a whole week with daddy. Since we didn't really take any vacations in 2010, Paul had a lot of time he needed to use before the end of the year and ended up with 14 days off. It was so nice to have him around all the time, and Max really turned into quite the "daddy's boy". Paul and I celebrated a very quiet and uneventful New Year's painting the basement and watching a movie.
At this juncture I do not know how to describe 2010. My first instinct would be to say that it was a great year. We dearly miss our friends and family in UT, but we are starting to carve quite the little life for ourselves out here. At least we are happy even though Paul and I both agree that we would take any opportunity to move back to the "promised land". We have a lot of great friends out here, there is so much to see and do (we haven't even scratched the surface), and we get to spend a lot more time with Paul's family.
Upon a little more thinking, however, I might describe this last year as busy and stressful. It seems like we were so busy that we never really took much time as a family to explore and enjoy all the wonderful cities and sights and attractions around us. We experienced a lot of stress and frustration when we decided to undertake remodeling our basement--that was definitely not a highlight of the year but a headache on so many levels that started over 6 months ago and is definitely bleeding into the New Year.
Nonetheless, I would say that, considering all things good and bad, throughout this last year we were fortunate. 2010 was a good year because we are all healthy and happy and doing great. I am lucky that I get to stay home with my boys and enjoy all the wonderful rewards that come with just savoring every piece of them and not missing out on this fleeting, joyous time of childhood.
