Stop the presses...

We're full-on celebrities...not really, but we did make three of the local papers this week! Woodward Talk, the Mirror, and the Oakland Press all ran articles about our marathon and Team in Training!

Toddler in Thomas PJs

When you have a boy...

...you find dinosaurs in the bathroom cabinet.

Splat.

Today Joshua fell on his face. On concrete. Again. I swear I can't take much more of this. A month ago his entire nose was a scab. This time he has a fat lip.

I swear the kind has zero sense of balance. He just spontaneously tips over.

I'm starting to look like a bad mother. The first few times I can write off as an accident, but they're starting to shake my confidence. How many times can your kid eat pavement before you start to blame yourself? Not many more...

What have I become?

I actually just complained OUT LOUD that Play With Me Sesame was a repeat.

Wow. I swear I never was this big of a loser. Motherhood is killing me...

Are you hungry?

Tonight, Nate & I are guest grilling at Mongolian BBQ with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training marathoners. Join us and eat overpriced rice, enjoy the fabulous company and help us raise some money for the Vancouver Marathon.

Not only that, you'll get to hang with the Vanovers, Paweleks, and Steins.

HOST: TEAM IN TRAINING MARATHONERS
LOCATION: BD's Mongolian Barbeque
430 S. Main Street, Royal Oak, MI (map)

DATE: Tuesday, April 4, 7:00pm
PHONE: 248-398-7755

Bottom line: if you're not coming tonight, then you're just not cool.

Joshua & Noah

Note the shrieking in Noah's general direction. Also note the drool - three molars came in that week. Perhaps there's a connection?

I think it's also my duty to point out how totally metro Noah is in this pic. That's his mother's word, not mine. I happen to agree, but I didn't originate the statement...if it were 1984, he'd totally be in Izod and Members Only.

Full Contact Walking

This is what happens when you learn to run rather than just walk.

Joshua vs. concrete: concrete wins.

Poop happens.

Here, it happens a lot. As a mom, you know you're going to have to change a million diapers. You are even able to ignore most of the stink, and just do your job as best you can. Open the diaper, lift & spread, wipe and wipe and wipe, roll up the diaper & dispose, then rebundle your little bundle of joy so he can do it all over again.

And as much as I've done that, I was still wholly unprepared for the poop that has happened this week.

Problem #1: we fed Josh spinach for the first time. He loved it - going IN to him was not a problem. Coming OUT of him was not pretty. Spinach bad. Very bad.

Problem #2: diaper rash. Caused by problem #1. This is only Josh's second diaper rash, and man, it was a doozy (how do you spell that word?).

The best solution for a diaper rash is a dry bottom and fresh air. So I did what any mom would do - if she wasn't considering problem #1 (see above) - I left his diaper off after a bath and let him run around naked. Then WHAM! Problems 1 & 2 collide, and I end up with number two (not problem #2, literally NUMBER TWO) on my floor. All over my floor. We had to run a side-by-side rescue mission - Nate and the carpeting, me with Josh in the tub. It was traumatic for all three of us - Josh still doesn't want to go in the shower because I hosed him down so agressively.

So that was last week...

Today, it got even better. First, a little background information - I have been on an endless search for inexpensive diapers. I have tried store brand after store brand, trying to find a way to save a buck or two (and often more like $7). My most recent diaper experiment are Kroger Ultra Comforts. Tres cheap - $7 for a 54 pack. And sadly, not even worth that much. They leaked. And leaked. And leaked. Did I mention that they leaked? Every morning, we had to change pajamas and change the sheets. Midday, we've had to change a few leaks. Last night, however, was the worst so far. By a long shot.

Josh woke up this morning with a very wet diaper and in a very bad mood. I can't say that I blame him - he was wet just about from the neck down...I'd be pissed off (no pun intended) too. So I changed his diaper, his pajamas and the sheets. Less than an hour later, he's sitting on my lap and I smell poop. Not through-the-diaper-poop, but fresh-open-air-poop. Sure enough, his diaper is on the verge of leaking...God is merciful, and I caught it just in time. New diaper, and life is beautiful again.

Fast forward TWO HOURS. Josh walks up to me, stops in the doorway to flash an adorable grin, and then keeps walking. That's when I notice a stripe on the wall. Yes, you read that right - stripe. As in skid mark. As in "ewww, sick". And he plops down on the floor, and his diaper pretty much pops. Totally explodes.

There's not enough carpet shampoo in the world. I've scrubbed and scrubbed but I'm sure there's some sort of leftover residue that will confess to the world that I cheaped out on diapers and my poor baby paid the price. Child Protective Services will come rushing in and say "clearly you can't handle the responsibility of being a parent because you won't by brand-name diapers." Oh, how quickly it all went downhill.

So let me tell you, I hopped into the mommobile and was at Rite-Aid faster than you could believe. And I bought Huggies. Baby, I'm sorry - that million dollar butt is back in brand name diapers. Mommy now knows that you're worth every damn penny of that extra $7.

One year old

My little peanut,

It's hard to believe, but today you're one year old. I get choked up thinking about hwo that can even be possible...how did you grow up so fast, my darling baby boy? It's so wonderful to watch you develop and grow, but it's bittersweet. You're now more than a foot longer than the day you were born, and you weigh more than three times as much! You still have the same sweet disposition, cuddling with your mom and smiling sweetly all the time. You're a joy to me every single day.

You can say mama, dada, dog, woof, and ball. You wave and nod and shake your head. Just over a week ago you took your first few steps. You're still not brave enough to take more than 3 or 4 at a time, but it won't be long before you're tearing all over the house.

You've conquered almost every child lock in the house. You're so smart. We're constantly trying to find ways to keep you out of the cabinets! You're infinitely curious, taking apart and examining everything you can get your hands on. I love to watch you learn - you're a wonderful mix of your dad's creativity and my analytical brain.

You're the cutest boy around - people ooh and ahh at you everywhere that we go. You're going to be a real ladykiller...I can see that already. You've won over every woman you've met so far!

Monkey, your mama loves you more than you will ever know. Perhaps one day you'll have a child of your own, and you'll get just a glimpse of the love that I have in my heart for you.

I pray that your next year is joyful. I pray that you're healthy. And happy. I pray that you continue to learn and grow, and that you never stop being so curious. I pray that you will always be so sweet and loving. I pray that you'll be safe. And satisfied. And peaceful. I wish you every good thing, my boy.

I can't wait for our next year together. I love you so much it hurts.

-Mom