Toddlerhood, Here We Come.

Brian has a new word. His new word is "NO".

Let the games begin...

Happy Valentine's Day!!!!

A Pain In The Leg

Brian had his fifteen-month checkup at the pediatrician's today. While I always enjoy finding out my babies' height and weight statistics, I really, really dread these check-ups, because of the awful shots. Today, Brian had to receive two of them. Two sharp needles piercing into his little baby thighs. It just breaks my heart.

He was happy as could be for the entire checkup. He babbled and smiled at the doctor while he examined him, showed off some of his budding vocabulary, and proudly waved around the wooden tongue depressor (a.k.a. "Popsicle stick") that the pediatrician handed to him. He kept trying to stick the depressor into my mouth, copying what the doctor did to him during the exam. He waved bye-bye to the doctor as he left the room, and then he turned to me and flashed a big smile.

I felt my stomach churning slightly as I thought about what was coming next. I dressed him as much as possible, leaving his little legs uncovered, and waited for the arrival of the nurse. Brian happily waved at her when she walked in the door, and lay quite cooperatively on the table, all the while still attempting to jam the tongue depressor into my mouth.

And then it happened. The nurse stabbed him in the leg. Not once, but twice. He looked at me in horror, let out a few brief cries, and then sat up. He glared at the nurse in anger, and she apologized and quickly left the room. Brian turned to me with teary eyes, and I felt like I had betrayed my little man. I wish there was a way to explain "why", but thankfully a toddler's memory is still a bit short-termed. By the time we left the office with a giant "Cars" sticker on his shirt, he seemed to have forgotten the whole thing.

But tonight, in the tub, he discovered the band-aid on his leg. He poked at it, and looked up at me quizzically. I'm not sure whether he remembers...

I hope not. Shots are no fun...for babies or for Mommies!

Insomnia

Beth had her seven-year-old checkup a couple of days ago. As she sat on the examining table, crinkling the stiff, white paper that lay underneath her, the pediatrician asked her a series of questions.

"Any headaches? Any trouble seeing the board at school? Any trouble hearing the teacher?"

She responded in the negative to each question, until finally he asked about her sleeping habits.

"What time do you normally go to bed? What time do you usually wake up? Do you ever have any trouble falling asleep?"

Beth slapped her hand down on the table, and threw back her head.

"Yes!", she responded. "I'm sooo glad that you asked me that. I always have trouble falling asleep. I'm usually soo tired, but I share a room with my sisters. They keep talking and talking, and I can't fall asleep until someone comes in and tells them to stop. Is there something you can do about that?!"

The pediatrician suppressed a smile, and solemnly told Beth that this was out of his realm.

Beth sighed, and the pediatrician moved onto the next question.

Perhaps it's time for some ear plugs...

Not Your Average Three-Year-Old

Erin and Amy had afternoon preschool today. As we watched the snowfall becoming heavier and heavier, I decided to turn on the TV to see if their preschool was going to cancel school for the afternoon.

Erin lay on the floor next to me, sucking her fingers and twirling her hair.

"I really, really hope that there's no school today", she confided. "I need a nap so badly. I've been thinking about a nap ever since I got out of my bed this morning".

I'm not sure if she's three...or eighty-three.

Peace And Quiet

I know. I know. It's been ages since I've written on the blog. I'd like to blame Brian for this, although it's not entirely his fault...

We've certainly found this school year to be challenging. I've been working many more hours on the weekends and during the evenings, and with the constant "mad dashes" from school to gymnastics to dance class to choir practice and back to dance class, I've found it very difficult to actually sit down at the computer and type. When Erin was a baby/toddler, she was always perfectly content to sit at my feet and play with toys while I worked on the computer. But Brian is cut from a different cloth entirely. His constant ear infections combined with his "rough and tumble" personality make sitting alone near the computer a very unpopular activity for him. When I even begin to walk towards the computer, he throws himself on the floor and wails. Very loudly. He demands Mommy Time, and screeches at the top of his lungs until I finally sigh, admit defeat, and sit down on the floor to play with him.

I can't tell you how many blog entries I've started to write over the last couple of weeks, only to give up within a couple of sentences. But Brian will only be a baby for such a short time, and someday, I'll look back and wish that I could once again sit on the rug with him and listen to his gleeful laughs each time the block tower crashes over, or the truck smashes into the wall. I'm truly enjoying his "little boy" time. There will be plenty of quiet days for blog writing, but my play-days with my son are limited. I'm quite sure that the time will come when I'm no longer his first choice for a play-time friend.

But right now, all four kids are out at a birthday party with Dan. I've been sleeping the morning away after working an overnight shift last night, and now I'm taking advantage of this peace and quiet, and attempting to actually write something here in cyberspace.

I think I hear the car pulling into the garage now, though. Yep. There's Brian's little baby voice yelling "MAMA!"

Duty calls...!