Snow Day

This week we received our first snow of the year. Henry loved the feel of snowflakes hitting him in the face. Mama stayed home with Henry on Tuesday morning and tried to work while he ransacked the house. He literally took EVERY book off the bookshelf and unloaded all of the toy bins. You would have thought we had been robbed by the way the house looked when he was done, but I was able to get some work done and Henry didn't kill (or hurt) himself. He clearly enjoyed himself. : )

Henry stole Soph's toy and made a run for it! I am so grateful to have such a patient, gentle dog. They are best friends now that Henry can feed Soph Cheerios from his high chair. He giggles when she licks his fingers.

Smiley little man. It's no wonder his Mama is OBSESSED with him!!!

Henry can now stand on his own for 10-15 seconds. He (and his Mama) are quite proud. He is definately getting all the peices of walking down. One of these days he will put them altogether and be strolling around the house...let me take that back, running and bouncing off the walls. He also learned how to flush the toilet this week. I was getting ready for work a few days ago and forgot to close the toilet room door and all of a sudden I hear the toilet running. Thinking that something fishy was going on with the toilet I go in the toilet room and there Henry is with a HUGE grin on his face jiggling the toilet handle. Silly little man. Speaking of bathrooms, he also loves, loves, loves unrolling the toilet paper. If he gets his hands on just one square of toilet paper he thinks it is great fun to shred it into many tiny peices before trying to eat them.

Other than traffic being a nightmare because of the weather, this was a good week for Mom. I got my written performance evaluation for 2011 and it was quite complimentary. When feeling stressed (as I have been for awhile now) at work, it is nice to be recognized and complimented on your efforts. Now I'm anxiously awaiting for them to show me the money! Kind of unlikely since I work for a regulated utility, but if there are any pay raises (however small) approved, I should be elgible. Any money is better than no money. My new housekeeper started on Friday as well, and all I have to say is, I LOVE the fact that I don't have to clean my house this weekend!!!!! I also started planning my garden for this upcoming spring/summer. I want to build some trellises in the backyard and do some more container gardening. I think I am slowly starting to feel a little more like my old self again and my interests (like gardening, crafting etc.) don't feel so much like chores anymore. It is feels good to start feeling a bit more "normal."

Happy New Year

Look what Mommy made Henry! A new hat for the new year. Henry will only tolerate wearing it for about 10 seconds.

Just chillin' in Dad's recliner at the beach. Henry, Soph and I went to the coast to celebrate the New Year's holiday. We totally lucked out on the weather and it was dry both Saturday and Sunday. Our friends the Schwartz's/Sanchez's were down there as well for the weekend. It was a tons of fun watching Henry and Hugo (20ish months old) play together. They went back and forth mimicking noises and moving their race cars on the coffee table. One would "say" something and move his race car and then pause and stare at the other while the other would "say" something and move his race car. It cracked me up.

Other updates:

Henry is growing again! His 18 month clothes are fitting really well now. Okay, maybe some of his pants are a little long, but his 18 month onsies fit perfectly. How did my baby get so big so quickly!!!

The last week+ he has been battling a stomach bug. Poor guy has a horrendous diaper rash as a result. We've been really lucky for several months with no diaper rash, so I forgot how bad I feel when he is suffering. All the anxieties I felt during the first couple months of his life with a severe diaper rash came flooding back this week. It just breaks my heart to hear him cry when I change him. So, we've been just washing off in the tub when Mommy is home, it is kind of like his own personal bidet service care of Ma. No crying that way. : ) I also let him nap without a diaper this morning...daring.

Henry is walking with assistance better and better everyday and cruising around furniture. The stairs remain his favorite jungle gym. He knows he isn't suppose to go up them unsupervised, so he will crawl over to them, climb up a couple and then look over his shoulder to see if you are watching. Once you make eye contact he starts to giggle. Sneaky boy. He also learned how to open cabinets and drawers recently. Watch out, hide all your unmentionables and/or junk. Otherwise, Henry will be sure to find them, and then try to either destroy them or eat them. Since Henry's tummy has been bothering him, his doc said to go heavy on the starchy foods. He hasn't had a great appetite the last couple of days, but Mama made waffles this morning, and he was in hog heaven! A man after my own heart. Henry is also VERY verbal. I can't wait for him to start forming words.

As for Mom, I'm doing relatively well. Work has been particularly stressful the last month or so. January historically is a slower month, so I am hopeful that I can reorganize my desk and gain a more positive perspective about work. I only made three new year's resolutions this year: (1) simplify; (2) find peace about being a working mom; and (3) eat more fish. First on my list, in an attempt to achieve (1) and (2) I interviewed a housekeeper this morning. For those of you who know my husband, "letting" me hire a housekeeper is a HUGE (I repeat HUGE) concession on his part. I get the impression he thinks that only lazy and/or pompous and pretentious people have housekeepers. Call me lazy and/or pompous and pretentious, hiring a housekeeper will give me at least a day of waking time back to me to be with my son a month...that is nearly two weeks a year. I NEED more waking time with Henry. This is one way to help me accomplish that. All in all, I am optimistic about the year to come. I suspect it will be filled with many new adventures, much laughter, and I am sure I will grow even more fond of my son (if that is even possible!). Another plus, only 5 more weeks of nursing (although a part of me will probably miss all the close bonding time with Henry). A little curious how I am going to manage pumping in a Seatac airport ladies room next week when I am there for work, but I'm sure I'll make it work one way or another.

Happy New Year!!!