A SHOWER!

Ok. I do shower on a daily basis. Just not usually when I'd like to. I normally have to wait until Ethan is napping. And if I need sleep too, well, I have to make a choice. Wait until the 2pm nap to shower, or skip my nap. This has frustrated me to no end. And with the switch to one nap looming ever closer, the non-naptime shower is becoming more and more important.

So, I did it today. I haven't tried it in months because it made him mad to be shut in the bathroom with me, and it made me mad that he kept trying to climb into the shower. But today, we came home from the grocery store and Ethan was mad that we weren't staying outside. So I put on his Blue's Clues DVD to appease him. The boy completely ignored me while I put the groceries away. And it occured to me that maybe I could do other things while he was thus engaged. I went for it. I was smart enough to leave the bathroom door open, but block it with the gate, so that he could wander over and talk to me, but not come in. It worked GREAT! He would walk into the hall evey minute or so and yell, I'd say something back, and he'd go back to his show. I'm so excited!

Now that I have the magic DVD, what else can I do without interruption? Scrapbook? Cook? Nap? Well, not nap. But I feel like I've discovered a secret. He he.

I Miss Church

I do actually make it to Sacrament meeting, but I haven't been to Sunday school or Relief Society in a while. I miss the spiritual boost from studying the gospel with a group of people with different perspectives, and especially from our society of strong, amazing women.

Part of why I've been heading home after the first meeting is Ethan's nap. (He is such a great, happy kid because I refuse to let him miss any sleep. When he does miss a nap, life stops being fun at our house.) The other reason is that John teaches the 4yr olds in Primary. So if I did stay, I'm on my own with a boy who really likes to explore EVERYTHING. You'd think that our ward of young families wouldn't mind him crawling behind chairs and digging into diaper bags, but we have just enough elderly and handicapped to make free roaming impossible. The constant vigilance means I miss out on things even when I stay.

But nursery is only 18 Sundays away. I can't wait!

Congratulations!

This past week, Ethan's aunt (my sister) was engaged! Congratulations to Dorothy and John!

Kisses

I had a rough day yesterday. It wasn't really a bad day, but I just wasn't dealing with things well. I'm sure that I spent too much time yelling, and not enough time playing. So when John came home, he gave me a big hug and kisses. I was holding Ethan at the time, and he found this very interesting. As soon as I turned and looked at him, he leaned forward and planted a big slobbery kiss on me. It (almost) made up for the bad day.

Crib Play

I used to wonder what other moms were talking about when they would talk about playing in the crib instead of napping. If Ethan was in his crib, he was either sleeping or crying for us to come get him out. This changed in the last few days. Now, when I put Ethan down for a nap, he plays for a while before falling asleep. He is hilarious. He talks to his baby, plays with his blanket, and even runs around in circles. And he has been asking to play in his crib at all times of the day. If we go into his room, he wants to be in the crib! What a weird kid.

Hmmm.... Maybe this will allow me to sneak in a shower while he's awake!

The New Baby!

No. I'm NOT pregnant. I'm talking about Ethan's new doll. At playgroup last week, Ethan was obsessed with the baby dolls. You know, the ones with a soft body and plastic extremities. He would carry them around, kiss them, show them to the other kids, etc. I told John he needed a doll. "As long as it's a boy doll" he said. So I sent the boys out yesterday to buy a boy doll. It's actually a girl in blue clothes, but when you take off the headband and the frilly frock, it's in a blue sleeper and looks enough like a boy. Ethan LOVES it. I almost put the little bottle away, thinking Ethan wasn't ready for that kind of play, but then I changed my mind. I asked Ethan if the baby wanted a bottle. He walked over, grabbed it, tried it himself first, and then fed the baby! (I know that this represents a developmental milestone, but I can't remember what it's called right now.) He's growing up so fast!

So loungy

I know loungy isn't a real word, but we use it all the time. When Ethan is playful, (or imitating us) he will lounge around on his little couch, a throw pillow, a blanket, etc. It's so cute to see him throw himself down, get a little grin, and wait for us to say "Look at Ethan! So loungy." He thinks it's so funny! And watching him nuzzle into a blanket or draped over his couch is so cute, we can't help but encourage it.

Scrapbook

I'm moving forward quickly on Ethan's scrapbook (finally). I'm about halfway done, and at this pace, I'll be done in a few weeks. Yay! Then I'll figure out how to scan each page in (they're 12X12 and our scanner is letter size, so it may take me a while to match up my pieces) so that I can show them off! I'd show you the pages I have finished, but b/c it's based on the alphabet, it works better all together. Watch for it probably early March!

(I'm saying this so that it will push me to finish it. So go ahead and bug me to see it.)

That Look

John and I were given "The Complete Calvin and Hobbes" for Christmas, and I am slowly working my way through the first tome. I very quickly came upon my favorite strip ever. And it's even better now that Ethan gets the same look when I tell him to stop destroying something.

Check it out (you will need to copy and paste this)
http://www.progressiveboink.com/jon/images/calvinhobbes/jon6.GIF

He said what??

We just realized that Ethan has been saying "Mommy" and "Daddy". Don't ask how we missed this, we just did. He's been saying Mama and Dada for a long time, and we don't say mommy or daddy, so we're not sure where this came from.

I discovered it when John was in the bathroom and Ethan was outside the door yelling at Dad to come out, as usual. We tend to not really pay attention to the babbling, so it suprised me when I realized Ethan was saying the same thing over and over, and it sounded familiar. It was Daddy, without the D's. It sounds kind of like "ahie". And Mommy is "awie". Now we notice it all the time. When he wakes up, he calls for us. If he thinks we are in the bedroom or bathroom, he yells at the door. Even when I'm at the computer and he is peeking over the gate at me, he is saying "awie". This is his first really consistent word usage and we are so proud!

Cute Naked Boy

As John was getting Ethan's bath ready, the boy escaped and ran around the house naked for a few minutes. His little bum jiggling as he ran away was the cutest thing I've ever seen! I love my chubby little naked boy.

Is that a chew toy?

I've found myself sorting through Ethan's toys once again. This time, asking myself if each toy is OK to be gnawed on. I started this after I found a big chunk missing from the Nerf football. I found most of the foam Ethan had bitten off, but I think he managed to eat some. I'm also a little concerned about the electronic toys. Will the batteries give him a shock? (Would that be a bad thing?) Anyway, I'm doing this for the second time in as many weeks, and wondering what Ethan would do if I only left out one toy at a time. Hmmmmm.......

Just a Note about the Site

I activated the comments links. Don't feel pressured to comment. I was catching up on the blogs of some friends and realized that I liked to be able to say something when they posted a really cute picture of their kids or did something really fun. If no one uses them, in a few weeks I'll deactivate them. If no one even reads my blog, I'm Ok with that too. I like that I'm recording the little stuff somewhere, even if it's just for me. :)

Missing Out on Snuggles

John always puts Ethan to bed. We started this because I work evenings and we wanted to be consistent. It's also a great time for the boys to spend together. (And the bath is hard on my back, tired at the end of the day.)

Tonight, John is babysitting for some friends. Their little boy goes to bed late, and I needed the break, so John went. (It seems like we've been doing a lot of babysitting lately doesn't it. But we get our fair share in return.) I got to put Ethan down. The bath was tough, but I loved to watch Ethan bounce around in his crib while I was trying to get his PJs on. (John doesn't like trying to catch him, but I just think it's so cute!) Then we settle into the rocking chair for a bottle. Ethan was so tired tonight, we skipped the book and song. After I finished saying a little prayer, he snuggled into me. Those little hands tucked in and he immediately fell asleep. I had to hurry and put him down so that I didn't wake him up with my tears.

Ethan is a snuggly boy in general, but he doesn't fall asleep in my arms anymore. I miss holding my little sleeping angel. Maybe I'll put him down more often, so that I don't miss out on that closeness.

3 kids for 2 days

A friend went out of town on thursday and asked if I could watch her kids while her husband was at work. So for 6 hrs on thursday, and 9 hrs on Friday, I had a 1yr old (Ethan), a 2yr old, and a 5yr old. It was easier than I expected (her kids can be tough sometimes). Ethan was the most difficult of the bunch. He wouldn't let me leave the room without him, so I frequently had to carry the two youngest up the stairs together to avoid screaming. Needless to say, I'm exhasted and my body hurts everywhere.

But it gives me some hope. It will be so nice to be able to make lunch without Ethan clinging to my legs, dragging him around the kitchen. And get anything done without Ethan trying to "help." And maybe go to the bathroom ALONE! I'm looking forward to Ethan growing up. This is a fun stage, but trying sometimes.

Evolution vs. Intelligent Design

I know that this isn't about Ethan, but I have the forum, so why not use it.

I was just reading a blog entry from a while ago discussing intelligent design and feel the need to vent a little about the debate.

First, I am frustrated that the people who are the most vocal about these issues see them as mutually exclusive. As a member of the scientific community, I decided to ask around to see if people really thought that way. Surprisingly, EVERYONE I talked to agreed that the theory of evolution seems to be accurate, but evolution had to have had help. Just look at how complex we are.

Second, and more important, I don't expect that to be taught at school. God is not a scientific theory. Science in school should teach the theory of evolution. It is a key part of understanding biology. So who teaches my kids about God, you ask?
ME!
ME!
ME!

It's sad that parents sometimes need to be reminded that school isn't a substitute for parenting. I'll get off my soapbox now. Thanks for listening.

Sleep cont.

Ethan remembered today that he likes to sleep. I think the last few days were bad because of teething and dad being around to play with. With dad at work (I'm just not as fun apparently) and a little motrin, naps are back to normal. And mom is managing to hold on to her sanity. (Sort of.)

Not so big

The other day I saw a baby in the store that looked about Ethan's age. I asked the grandmother how old he was, only to discover that I was looking at a 25 pound, 32 inch SIX MONTH OLD! I'm grateful that Ethan's growth has slowed down. Just thinking about caring for that baby makes my back hurt.

Sleep? Why would I want to do that?

In 2005, our church meetings ran from 11am-2pm. Ethan usually naps from 9-10:30am and 2-3:30pm. This was a wonderful schedule for us. In 2006, church is from 9am-12. Naptime. Yesterday, we took Ethan to church with the hope that he might sleep during sacrament meeting. No such luck. Ethan ONLY sleeps in his crib. But, not to worry, we were prepared. John and I drove separate cars, so I headed home to put Ethan down for a nap. It was hard work keeping Ethan awake the entire drive home. (If he falls asleep in the car, he wakes up as soon as you stop and won't go down again.) Ethan made it home awake and proceeded to scream for 15 min before finally falling asleep. It was a short nap, and the afternoon nap was hard-fought as well.

On to today. Ethan woke up before 5am. I had promised John that he could sleep in, so I got up, did the little routine, and put him back down. It always works for John, but not for me. So John got up and tried. No luck, Ethan was having none of it. Back to me. I got to sit on the couch and hold him while he slept. I should be sleeping to right? Ethan is just to big for me to hold comfortablly, so I sat awkwardly for an hour so that Ethan would get a little more sleep. On to the morning nap. Oh wait. What morning nap? All we had this morning was screaming.

What happened to our champion sleeper? I am hoping that he is sick. Or miraculously switching to one nap on his own. Either way, when John goes back to work tomorrow, it won't be a good day.