Watching Him Grow Is Getting Harder

Watching Little Guy grow is getting harder to do. This is mainly do to his speed. The boy does not like walk. He prefers to run.

Big Poppy and I have tried to take his picture with Jeter on the 19th of every month. Sometimes we are a day or two later so hopefully Little Guy hasn't had a growth spurt in those two days.

This month was no different.

Sometimes Little Guy and Jeter can't stop to look at the calendar because they need a little kiss.

Sometimes one needs a quick sniff of the other.

Sometimes one needs to run quick to see what the picture looks like before the picture is taken.

Sometimes we need a little help from Big Poppy to get them both to sit still (or stand) and look at the camera.

Decorating by LG

Some strange things have been happening slowly around here. Big Poppy and I have always enjoyed completing home improvement projects. We do know our limits and have engaged the help of professionals from time to time. While the thought of having someone come to our home, get to know us and our lifestyle and completely furnish our home sounds great in theory, I have a difficult time spending that much cash.

I may have mentioned we were bored and I would go so far as saying I was disgruntled with our old artwork (can you call it artwork if it does not cost thousands of dollars?). Enter Little Guy and while it moves slowly, we do have baseball games to play, laps to swim and Jeter's to terrorize, Little Guy is finding his nitch in the decorating world. He sometimes even hangs a sign "Decorating by LG". I sure do hope he gives me a good discount.

The other day Little Guy I were running a few errands. I had the day off and Big Poppy was working which means Little Guy and I could wander a bit instead of going in, getting what we need and getting out. Enter LG. A quick find, a reasonable price and we were on our way.

LG hired a professional hanger, Big Poppy. Within 15 minutes LG has taken this blank wall from this:

 The first seven minutes are spent measuring the wall space to ensure the first part of the artwork (can you call it artwork if it does not cost hundreds of dollars?) was centered.

The next two minutes were spent hanging part two of the artwork (can you call it artwork if it costs less than one hundred dollars?).

The last six minutes were spent making sure the third and final piece was placed in the most eye pleasing position to LG.

Decorating by LG strikes again. He knows us so well. LG does his job very well. He's now telling me to buck up and spend some money on new furniture for this room. Until I'm ready to do this, I'll probably just rearrange the current furniture.

P

P is for prince. Do not be fooled by the sparkles. This is a phone of a Prince. The blue should have been your first clue. This is no princess phone.

Like any good Prince, there is a picture of his Princess set as his wallpaper. He also enjoys calling his Princess and his mommy or daddy.

And sometime in the not to distant future this Prince will not question his choice of cell phones. He knows blue is boys and sparkles attract the ladies.

Repairs and Maintenance

Last month we had some vistors at our house for a couple of weeks. You may have thought our home was odd and did not have a deck. Really, we were in need of some deck repairs and maintenancee (now if only I could expense this on my tax return to reduce my AGI...did I just go geeky accountant on you?). Because of the work involved we were lazy and did not bring up the deck chairs and table until after the work was completed.

Little Guy is a big fan of the work. Much to the dismay of the neighbors, though they are too kind to say anything, the rainbow ghetto pool now sits very nicely on our deck. This means we get to hear from Little Guy more often when he is ready to swim. (Which reminds me. I did make one call last week about swim class. At that time they will still processing past family's. On Wednesday I got the call. Little Guy is in however it is at 8 am on Saturday's. It was our second choice time but he's in!)

At the same time of the deck repairs, we also had them replace our stairs going to the second story. We can now sneak up and down the stairway without anyone hearing us. The squeaks are gone. I knew we would be replacing carpet upon completion however, I did not realize it would take so long to pick out the carpet, get the measures, verify the order, make small changes, etc.

Our stairs have looked like this for about three weeks now.

We FINALLY finalized our order on Wednesday. Now we get to wait another three to four weeks for carpet delivery and install.

Wood attracts dust and Jeter hair. Commercial grade wood that will be covered is slightly sticky.

I should have planned better and picked out carpet while the work was done. When the new carpets are installed in the living room, stairway, pool table room and our bedroom, I will be happy gal. Until then, I'm a gal constantly cleaning the stairs.

15 Months

Yesterday was Little Guy's 15 month birthday.

We busted out the balloon's, cake, ice cream...ok, maybe we took Jeter for a walk on the drive, bought some tickets for a high school football team's fundraiser and splashed around in the bath until Big Poppy said "enough" due the large volume of water on the floor.

This morning we ventured to the doctor's office for the 15 month check-up and shots. The best way to describe our morning - vocal.

Little Guy was not a fan of nurse one.

Little Guy was not a fan of the pediatrician.

Little Guy was not a fan of nurse two.

Little Guy was not a fan if I left the room.

Little Guy was not a fan if Big Poppy left the room.

Little Guy was a fan of snacks.

Little Guy let the entire clinic know he was unhappy with anything and everything.

How did it turn out? I'm skeptical of the some of the vitals because of Little Guy's vocal discord and the wrenching the body to get away from nurse one, the pediatrician and nurse two.

Vitals at Fifteen Months:

Height: 32 1/2" (90 percentile)

Weight: 25 lbs (50 -75 percentile)

Head: 47.5 cm (50 percentile)

Click here for a comparison at twelve months.

How's my boy doing now? By looking at him, you would never know he was full of piss and vinegar earlier. Go figure.

Swim Class, Please.

Little Guy loves the water.

I mean, Little Guy LOVES the water.

Many nights there are tears when it is time to get out of the tub. When he is at the pool (ghetto or real) there is normally a small (or not so small) fit when it is time to go. I have even seen Little Guy climb into our ghetto pool when it is completely empty, laughing at the memories of past pool experiences and smiling at the prospect of future swim opportunities. (Definition of a ghetto pool - above ground pool that is most likely an eye sore and has saggy sides to the pool. This is also known as a white trash pool which may be more fitting description of our pool since I grew up on the farm and there may or may not have been disabeled cars located on the premise.)

Recently the local warm water pool opened up registration for fall swim lessons. Registration began on July 28th. First thing Wednesday morning I completed the on-line registration and promptly received an email...returning families receive first priority, past families are serviced next and then us lowly new families will receive any of the remaining slots.

Now that a whole two weeks have passed, I wonder if it is acceptable to call the swim school and check in on the status of our registration. Luckily Little Guy is too young to grasp the concept he may or may not be in swim class for 14 (or was is 16) weeks on Saturday mornings with Big Poppy and I. I can only imagine the puckered up lips of disappointment if Little Guy is turned away.

Keep your fingers crossed for Saturday morning swimming this fall.

This is not a ghetto pool (aka white trash pool). This is a pool I would love to frequent more often...it will be two years before we return. :(

Weekend Recap

For me, the best weekends are ones spent close to home relaxing with those we love and love us. This past weekend was pretty close to ideal (there is always room for improvement but that would mean we would need more weekend and I don't think the U.S. work week is going to change for me).

Friday started off fairly normal except when Big Poppy left to take Little Guy to "school" (aka daycare) I was still home and not dressed for the office. I spent the morning spit shining the house and then off to yoga. Shortly after lunch, Little Guy came running when he saw me peaking around the corner and we spent the afternoon playing with Jeter.

Saturday morning was spent patiently waiting for 7 am so I could call the yoga studio. While getting ready for bed the night before I realized one of my earrings was MIA. After a CSI like search around the house, Big Poppy and I concluded it was not in our home. The yoga studio had indeed found an earring matching my description - a precious anniversary gift was safe! Big Poppy was playing in a day long softball tournament with friends. Add to his Saturday to do's was a quick trip between games to get my earring.

Little Guy and I did not go to watch Big Poppy this Saturday. Instead of going to the fun, the fun was coming to us. BabyMack was coming to play with Aunt Steffey (Mack was off to a park with her sister, brother-in-law and two nephews while MackDaddy had to work).

You would not guess it from this picture of Aunt Steffey, Little Guy, BabyMack and Jeter, but we had a great time together. The problem with this picture...BabyMack is not a fan of Jeter. Jeter could be across the room and if BabyMack and Jeter make eye contact, well, let's just say BabyMack needed to be saved from the big fluffy monster who loves to kiss everyone. (MackDaddy did share when he came to steal BabyMack from us that their cat, who is also fluffy and white, might tease BabyMack a little bit.)

After a nice long, hot, sticky stroller ride up the drive and around the lake, we took it to the deck for some cool and refreshing Popsicles (and there is no way Big Poppy, Little Guy and I had Popsicles for breakfast on Sunday too). The day was hot and sticky but we just didn't want to be inside. The ghetto pool returned for the afternoon on the deck. By this time, Big Poppy made it home (they did not make it to the championship game) and filled the ghetto pool while Aunt Steffey added warm water and bubbles. The result, a nice cool and refreshing pool for Little Guy, complete with rubber duckies.

And boy did Little Guy appreciate how nice the pool was. He snuggled right up to the side and hugged the ghetto pool.

BabyMack was not quite sure of the pool so we splashed some water on his feet or gave his legs a quick dip now and again.

Sunday was another hot and sticky day. We had a grill out for lunch (after not having Popsicles for breakfast) with two wonderful friends. Big Poppy had to rush off because of a baseball game and the four remaining stayed cool for a little while longer. Then we headed off to watch Big Poppy's game. Little Guy stayed cool with ice management. He would grab ice from the cooler and bring it to everyone. Then he got smarter and decided he would be cooler if instead of just grabbing ice, he could put it in his mouth and then give it to you. He stayed cool and happy...the rest of us didn't talk much. The heat sucked the life out of us.

Escape

A few people have probably thought I have escaped...or maybe captured. It has been ages since I have written about book club and that's because life got in the way and I had not made it to book club. This past Wednesday, I made it!

We were charged with reading Carolyn Jessop's (with Laura Palmer) book Escape. The story of her life within the FDLS church is riveting. The often shocking and bizarre accounts of her life are enough to keep the pages turning. A few may find the repeated accounts of how the sister wives interacted and the way to power within the household a bit repetitive, however this is a case where telling me a few times drove home the importance and impact this world had on Carolyn.

I really cannot say much about this book other than you must read it. No matter what your thoughts, you will think about your life after finishing this account. I do want to take a moment to go over a couple things. The first relates to a part that stuck out to me while reading the book and the other was from our book club discussion.

Members of the FDLS are under enormous pressure not to interfere with another man's family (page 214). This really struck a chord with me for a couple of reasons. I do believe there are busy-bodies out there in the world and at the same time, there are plenty of times when things are occurring and others sit back and do nothing when something needs to be done. It seems it depends on what side of the fence you are on if you see the person "interfering" or "helping". Admittedly, I have been a helper and and interferer (though in the moments I thought I was helping). Most recently, I have "messed with a man's family" and received so much hate that I really questioned if I did the right thing. When it came down to it and I asked myself would I do it again, the answer is YES. I am not happy about the outcome. It means, at least for now, we have less loved ones in our life, but I know I can look back and be OK with my actions - that I have nothing to be ashamed of. It has made me wondered how much I am not seeing in the world because, sometimes, doing the right thing isn't an easy thing to do (live with). Have I seen injustices and been blinded because seeing it means I would need to take action? Have I written a child's actions off as unmannered when really it was a cry for help?

The second chord struck was during book club. More than one female was surprised how, in this day and age, a woman's value was determined by how many children she had. The less she had, the lower her worth. I am not sure if mainstream culture is much different - judging a woman by her children. How often have you looked at a female and thought she was selfish for not having children? How often have you seen a woman with several children and wondered if she knows about birth control? How often have you talked about how breast milk is the ONLY good source of nutrients around a woman who chose not to breast feed? I'm guilty of the first two and judging woman who breast feed longer than I think is normal (some cultures breast feed for two years and I find it a little creepy when a toddler can ask for it). I've had women tell me they would never use formula because it isn't healthy for a baby (one woman even told me she will not have more children, though she previously wanted more, because she is now unable to breast feed). I know I'm guilty of judging women by their kids. I'm betting I'm not the only imperfect person - so it felt a bit odd to say it is unbelievable to judge a woman based on motherhood. It does not seem like such a stretch to me and I feel bad that I am not a better person. Judging is so harsh on all of us.

Now then. Go read Escape!

Another Great Day

While we wait for the painful tooth to push through, we had a yet another great day (most days are great days, don't get me wrong, this is just a day I have taken the time to write about).

Saturday started off with me waking up and heading off to yoga. Some yoga days are better than other yoga days. This Saturday morning yoga had me worked up. I had trouble focusing and staying in the moment. Instead, I was thinking about what I needed to do, what I wanted to do and what I would likely end up doing (oddly enough, these things hardly ever align - what I want to do is much too long to really accomplish, what I want to do does not always include what has to be done i.e. I rarely want to scrub toilets yet this is something that I should do, and what I end up doing is sometimes dictate by the weather or moods of others). In yoga, we are taught to stay present and keep in on the mat...the battle between my mat and the outside world was one sided this day. The outside world won. When this happens, the mat losing, it normally spells trouble for me. I don't stay focused on much of anything and accomplish nothing.

Well guess what. This Saturday was a day perfect for accomplishing nothing.

After a late morning nap, Little Guy had decided Saturday would be a great day to wake up 1 1/2 hours earlier than normal, Little Guy and I headed off to Aunt Steffey's. Aunt Steffey's niece is in town for the week and Saturday was earmarked as water day. Our dear friend PG, who has a birthday in a few days, Steffey, her helpful niece, Little Guy and I made plans for grilling, water and fun. The day was not a disappointment. Little Guy's ghetto pool was filled. The slip-n-slide was secured. Tubs were commandeered for even more "pools". Fortunately or unfortunately, little pictures were taken...too much fun was being had splashing around and laughing with joy.

Aunt Steffey's water park closed for Little Guy and I around 3. A nap was in order after all that time in the fresh air. Besides, we had to replenish our energy for a game with Big Poppy, GrandC and SmileyG.

At the ball park, Little Guy was able to watch one of his favorite past times.

Our seats were up close and personal (and better yet, bathrooms with limited access!).

Little Guy's cub of ice might have been empty but GrandC's heart was as warm as ever.

And my boy's were happy to see a win that keeps the streak alive.

All in all, it was another great day.