My Secret Garden

Yesterday I wrote an entire post on my iGoogle Blogger gadget, and just as I was about to click "publish" the page reloaded and I lost the whole thing. I was ticked! So here we go again.

We've had a crazy week-and-a-half around here, and you'll quickly understand why.

1- We attempted potty-training with Cpc.

2- Cdc had his circumcision.

3- Fishy died.

I have NO IDEA why we decided that the week of Cdc's circumcision was the best time to potty-train. Nevertheless, it happened that way. I also have NO IDEA why we decided that this time was the best time to start introducing Cpc to caring for a pet. He was doing great with feeding the fish, but it was I who failed to change his water....so I take full responsibility. But it was a neat opportunity to teach him about death. I think we'll wait a while before attempting it again. Having two fish die under my supervision in 2 weeks was a little traumatic for me.

Anyhow, first let's discuss potty-training. Cpc has been using the potty for months now, so we really didn't think it would be that big of a stretch to tell him he just needed to use it all the time. We did the cold turkey method, which everyone tells me is supposed to just take a few days for the most part. Well, after 8 days, and very minimal progress, I was exhausted. Cpc had shown all the signs of being ready, but we just couldn't get him to the point where he went to the bathroom BEFORE going in his underwear. We had a handful of times where he would start yelling and we'd manage to get him there in time, but they were few and far between. We have however successfully trained our child to go into the bathroom and take his diaper off every time he's gone in it though. I'm not sure how that's beneficial. We finally decided that it will click for him at some point. For now, we'll keep letting him use the potty when he wants to. He did look really cute roaming the house in his underwear though.

Cdc handled his surgery very well, and is also handling being a little brother very well. Every time I go to the bathroom I am a little terrified because usually I come back to a terrified, screaming baby. Cpc tries to be gentle with him, but he really needs that supervision and the reminders still. So far we have no serious injuries, and the two seem to already be good friends.

Cdc was also patient enough with me to have a little photo-shoot this week. We only got one good one, but that's all we needed to send out announcements.

He had a Dr. appointment this week. The official news: 9 lbs. 7 oz. (opposite of his birth weight) and 22 1/4 inches. He's definitely growing well! We've loved watching him chunk up. He's going for the same body type as Cpc: long, skinny limbs, no bum and a big round belly. He has however grown some chub on his cheeks, which I am surprised hasn't been kissed off yet. He's remaining cuddly, so I still have a little package to hold on my shoulder, as his frog legs are staying very froggy! I guess I keep thinking he's going to start getting sick of it or something.

I make it sound as though Cpc isn't cuddly. He is, but he wasn't. As an infant he really just wanted to see the world, whereas now he ADORES getting mom and dad's hugs and kisses. He especially loves getting right between us for both of those.

Now, let's discuss Mom and Dad. Yeah, us two, the ones who started this blog in the first place. We're still here. How are we handling everything? Well, it's getting better.

Pmc has finally gotten into a routine for work/school. He is all caught up (I think), and is balancing all his responsibilities well....and staying focused!!!! YAHOO! He worked so hard to get to this point, and it really was a struggle. He has done a great job of reworking things so that he can handle his new responsibilities, both at home and at school. I feel well supported. He is not enjoying the program as much this semester, and his assistantship is with a professor who he doesn't see eye-to-eye with very often. But he has still been able to be professional and work out every situation in an admirable way.

I am slowly learning how to give two kids the attention they need while still running a smooth household. I realized that I am MUCH BETTER off if I get my daily kid-free walk, so Pmc has stepped up to the plate to help with that one. I am so grateful that he is so supportive. I absolutely love the way a brief walk can clear my mind, and heart. In fact, that reminds me of a song (which I can't find on playlist.com, so sorry you don't get to hear it) from The Secret Garden. "The Girl I Mean to Be" is a song Mary sings to herself, about needing a place where she can go to think straight and be herself, with no pressure to be anything she's not. My "place/secret garden" is my walks, and I'm grateful that it isn't actually a "place" because that would make it much harder to go there whenever I need it!

My Three Funny Valentines

I am so excited to write a post this morning. We have one of those flurry snowstorms going on outside....the kind where the snow just kind of floats around. I love them. They make we want to sit and cuddle my babies and drink hot chocolate all day long. Unfortunately one of my babies doesn't like to be cuddled for longer than 15 seconds. He needs to climb on me and kiss the baby and get off the couch and back on again and then off again to show me something and then grab my hand to pull me to what he wants.......and then either beg me for the thing he wants or throw a tantrum if I won't get up because I'm feeding the baby. However, I love this whole process just as much as I love cuddling, so I don't mind.

I have a few thoughts I'd like to share today about each of my three boys. These are some of the little things I just can't get over lately, and I don't want to forget them.

We'll start with Cpc. I still absolutely adore his shoulder dimples. I know, I mention them all the time....but I just couldn't resist bringing it up. What a fun physical feature. I am also still thoroughly enjoying his passion for learning. Maybe it's the fact that I love seeing that he is like me in that way, or maybe it's the fact that I get to look at the world through his eyes; either way I love it. I love that he watches everything I do throughout the day, and tries to imitate it. In particular, I love that every time I sweep, he opens the kitchen garbage for me to dump the dust pan. He also helps me get clothes out of the dryer, and empties the drain strainer in the kitchen sink for me throughout the day. I'm not sure if I ever brought up how he gets a hot-pad out of the drawer whenever he hears the oven timer go off. Whenever the microwave beeps he gets my attention so that I know the microwave is done. He also tries to get my attention whenever he hears Cdc cry. He also enjoys going to the window to tell us about the weather. Just now he walked to the window and said "No" while signing "Snow." Yes, Cpc is very observant of how things work in this world. A while back we bought the "twilight turtle" for him. This significantly helped his "going to bed" routine to go smoother. Well, I really have no idea how he came up with it, but he has a specific code for turning on the turtle. The turtle has three different colors of light. It turns on green initially, and then you can push three different buttons to select which color. Cpc knows that as soon as he's done brushing his teeth he can turn on his turtle and then he's supposed to climb in bed. Well, he doesn't just turn it on and select blue (which is his color of choice). He turns it on, then with a steady rhythm selects "orange, blue, green, blue." Occasionally he will mess around with it just to make us laugh, but before he climbs in bed, without fail he punches in that code. It NEVER fails to make me smile. The last thing I want to share about Cpc today is that he has learned how to open his bedroom door. I'm not the type of parent to put a kid-proof handle on there to keep him locked in, at least not yet. So far he's been pretty good about it, I mean he's still sleeping well. But now in the morning when he wakes up (like clockwork at 7am), he simply comes downstairs to our room. Since I am up often throughout the night with the baby I am LOVING that one of us doesn't have to go upstairs to get him. This also means that the first thing we hear from him isn't a cry to let us know he's awake. All we hear is little footsteps coming down the stairs. I think it's a fantastic way to wake up!

As for Cdc, well he's melting my heart as well. I still can't get over how cuddly he is. Pmc says I'm going to get tired of him needing to be held all the time. I doubt it, because it's more than just a need to be held. He nestles his head in the crook of my neck, and his face into my chest. I cannot resist him. He has increased his awake hours to around 6 per day, which I'm loving. Those eyes of his, with his blond eyelashes, just mesmerize me. I also adore his forehead wrinkles....I know I already brought this up. We'll need to get a picture of both he and I, so you can see how we match. But I did at least get one of just him, even though you can only see about half of the wrinkles.

Cdc also has angel kisses, and lots of them.....they're on his forehead, his left eyelid, and the back of his neck. He is so patient with his brother. I love watching his face when Cpc comes at him. You can see just a slight grimace behind his eyes, but he doesn't cry unless he really gets hurt. He gets the privilege of already having the virtue of patience, which makes me jealous!

And last, but only because I save the best for last.....let's talk about Pmc (My real Valentine)! We celebrated Valentine's Day last night. Usually we do so on February 15, but we decided a Friday night would work best this year (no class the next day.....SU doesn't celebrate President's Day apparently!....LAME). Anyway, first Pmc took Cpc with him to run errands yesterday afternoon, leaving me a bit more free to accomplish tasks and cuddle Cdc. Then I got the kids to bed a little early before being greeted by this FANTASTIC dinner.

It looked even better in the candlelight than in the picture too. I got to enjoy my very favorite food cooked by my very favorite chef. Seriously, I would much rather have this meal cooked at home than at a restaurant. We had Coconut Shrimp, a full rack of BBQ Baby-Back-Ribs, and Mashed Potatoes......followed by Chocolate Fondue. Can we say "yum?" Then when Cdc woke up to eat, Pmc did all the clean-up. Cdc went back to sleep and I got to enjoy my other favorite thing, cuddling with Pmc on the couch while watching a classic old musical - "Funny Girl." I seriously think I have the most skilled husband at creating simply elegant, and affordable, dates. He has worked so hard over the last two weeks to balance everything he has on his plate at work/school with everything we have going on at home. I have felt like I have plenty of support here at home, and that he takes more than his fair share of responsibility for child-care, and housekeeping. He's changed so many diapers, reminded Cpc that he needs to go potty a thousand times, carried Cpc and Cdc around on our errands everywhere, taken out plenty of garbage, shoveled the sidewalk and driveway over and over, cleaned up the kitchen many times, and disciplined Cpc with grace! On top of that he's made sure that I never feel like I can't handle Mothering 2 kids, and always made sure I get some time for myself.

And finally, I'll post a few other random pictures....

Cpc had his tongue hanging out ALL the time while he had this cold that lasted for a month...he also started sucking on his fingers. Gratefully the cold is gone (which all of us ended up having, including Cdc, which was AWFUL - I HATE watching a newborn suffer like that and will NEVER have a winter baby again, I hope), now he just picks his nose!

I think Cdc looked adorable with that hat on!

Cpc is loving the fish, which has officially been named "Fishy." He remembers to feed him throughout the day, a responsibility he will hopefully be able to keep when we eventually get a puppy! Actually, the first fish died after a week, so we're on number two. This one doesn't have the cool white tail, but he seems to be adjusting a bit better!

And here we have Cdc's second bath, and proof that he's starting to chunk up and leave the newborn phase! We sure love this cuddly boy!

Nothing Better

Some times are pure and great. Others are messy and trying. Those times are really hard sometimes, but it gets you to realize that there's nothing better than a good, pure, happy, easy moment with your family. I'm grateful tonight for parents who taught me to work hard for those moments. This week, we thankfully have had many more pure and great moments than messy, trying moments.

Although it's been a whole new ballgame, we are learning how to do this "parents of two" thing. It was nice to be the cute young couple with a little kid, but when you have two you are a bona fide family! We fill up a small pew at church now (though we haven't been together yet and won't for weeks to come - who'd take their newborn into that germ haven in the dead of a Syracuse winter? Not us!) It seems like there's always a mess somewhere, and it's harder to stay out of each other's way (or find some place quiet if you need it. Come to think of it, need has become a lot more relative...) I (Pmc) am even starting to see why so many families drive minivans. Not that we'll be getting one any time soon. Or ever.

Cpc is taking everything really well though, thanks, I'm sure, in large part to the fact that Grams came out from SLC to help out.

His sleep issues have nearly disappeared - he goes to bed nicely and sleeps well through the night. Now if he could just kick this cold once and for all! Thank heavens for Mentholatum cherry chest rub for kids. He's a great big brother. He loves to hold Cdc each night and has to kiss him before bed, just like Mommy and Daddy - I think he clearly knows that Cdc is part of the family and here to stay. I can't think of a single instance of jealousy - yet. He's been such a trooper through the transition that we rewarded him yesterday with his first pet: a goldfish! (Which I think he named "Heath", but Atec insists it's "She", as in fiSHY... but he can't be called "She", because She is a he and that gets confusing to a toddler).

We are amazed by the differences we see already between the way Cpc was, and the way Cdc is. Cdc is totally the cuddly little newborn, unlike Cpc who seemed to come out 3 months old. Cdc has his own cuteness, different than cpc, but just as charming! I (Atec) am in Heaven with a tiny little package to hold on my shoulder all day long. Cdc sleeps about 20 hours a day, and likely spends half of them in my arms. The short hours he's awake are cherished by all as we watch his eyes trying to focus and take things in. His circulation isn't fantastic, so I enjoy giving him little massages to get his blood flowing to his purple toes. I adore the way he shivers when he gets too cold. He has tiny little stick legs and arms, and no waist. He also has one of those sweet little button noses, with tiny nostrils. His super blond, silky hair melts me. Of all his daily adventures, his least favorite is getting his diaper changed. He's even very patient when Cpc ambushes him occasionally. He just has a little, quiet cry in him right now, which is really cute. Despite its mild tone and volume, however, it is accompanied by a sad and upset face which would rival the look of even the most experienced martyr.

I'm also loving the chance to show Cpc how to be gentle with Cdc. There are so many teaching opportunities throughout each day, and I couldn't be more pleased with that. Now I just wish I could take better advantage of the ones where I start to lose my cool. Cpc's lack of concrete communication skills, and his strong will and passion, can make situations volatile rather abruptly. But he's building his vocabulary day by day. And I am definitely fine tuning my parenting skills. Believe it or not, the toddler/terrible two's stage is still my favorite!
Today, since it is Super Bowl Sunday, I (Pmc) would also like to express my gratitude for the digital television transition that took place last summer. We never took the initiative to get a coupon for a converter box, the budget hit to just by one, or the contractual suicide to get digital cable/satellite. It took me a while to be truly grateful for it, but I found that happy place. In one of my classes this week, it was mentioned how one expert calls TV "the part-time job that every American has", since the average American spends 20 hours per week watching TV. That was when the realization of how much I no longer care for TV, and gratitude for that, began to hit me. I realized today that I have seen no more than about 15 snaps of NFL action this season, and I honestly hardly miss it. As I pondered that thought, I also had the disheartening thought that I couldn't identify anything substantial that I had been able to do with the time I saved by not watching. However, Atec assured me that what I had gained by abandoning even casual NFL fandom is a thousand special moments with my family. Now that there is another new little boy in my life to divide my time with, those thousand moments are even more invaluable.

Tonight, instead of watching the Saints and Colts face off in S.B. XLIV, we took some new family pictures and played Candyland. Time well spent for me. (Note: I am in no way trying to imply that watching the Superbowl was a waste of time for those of you who may have done that, provided you watched it with your family!) For me, there could have been nothing better tonight.

Brothers