Birthday Wishes

 

Bear's b-day is on Thursday. The big numero "3".  And, what does he want for his birthday? Asked numerous times...this is the answer we get:

" A Lion, a Zebra and a Hippopotamus"

Sound Sleeping

 

When Owen was four or five months he stopped sleeping through the night.  Not that he ever slept "completely" through the night.  The first two months he woke up frequently to nurse, and then for the following two months he would sleep for four or five hour stints.  So when at four or five months he started waking up every hour or two, we were distraught. This horrible sleep pattern lasted until a week before I went back to work when Owen was 10 months old.

Now, (knock on wood) he sleeps through the night 98% of nights. On some nights just getting him to stay in bed is the problem!

Last night, I waited for the sound of little feet upstairs, for doors opening and closing, for the call - "mom!" Nothing came. Woohoo I thought. Turns out I just didn't hear the footsteps over the sound of the dishwasher. I went upstairs at 9:30 and found my son fast asleep in MY bed, with his How to Catch A Star book, and my book - God Delusion - beside him. It seems he fell asleep reading!

I quietly moved him over, and crawled in beside him. I didn't have the heart to move him to his own bed.

Growing Up

Did you wake up one day and realize your baby was no longer a baby? Did they one day somehow seem older by some sort of divine misfortune?

Somewhere along the way Owen stopped being a baby. I don't recognize the exact moment. But rather it seems a series of moments that all equal the sad fact - Owen is now an independent 2 year old.

Obviously there is no fine line between "baby" and toddler or pre-schooler, but once your little one moves from being a baby it seems strangely evident - at least to you. All of a sudden, the words "me do it" break your heart every day. They walk up the stairs on their own - not crawl. They insist on pouring their own apple juice, getting the water out of the fridge dispenser with no help from you. They have figured out how and when to pout, the perfect funny face to make you laugh. Maybe, like Owen they have learned to fake cry - but aren't old enough yet to keep it going for long enough to trick you yet.

They have developed their own personality, compassion and humour. You can see their future in this new found individuality.