Hat o' Cheese

And yes, there could only be some great pictures to go along with that title, right? Of course! And then we can write a book, and call it "Everything can be a Hat".

Sunshine

I swear this boy gets more lovable by the day. Slowly but surely, he's trading in tantrums and frustrations for other wonderful things, like coloring or reading or chasing me around the house. Last night he just wanted me to lie on the floor so he could fall on me and "mush" me. He'd grind his head against my cheek and laugh. I'd try to get away, which would only make him laugh harder. Then I'd sit up to try to escape, and he'd try to throw me on the floor again to play more. Then we'd take turns chasing each other around the house.

He has this crazy run these days. He giggles like a madman while racing down the hallway, legs twirling in every direction imaginable, hands waving, head bobbing. I can't stop laughing long enough to get it on tape. It's just too funny! I have to force myself to calm him down so that he can go to sleep instead of staying wired. But it's hard. I never know when these phases will begin or end. And I'm having so much fun that I hate to miss out on even one minute.

I guess there's not really much big news these days, though. He's doing wonderful and enjoying life. I'm learning to share mine with at least 30 minutes of Wiggles per day (though I think it is driving Daddy a bit crazy). My mom has a crush on Anthony (the blue Wiggle) and is always complaining about him being happily married. I've got a special place in my heart for Anthony, too...but who doesn't, right? Now Dorothy the Dinosaur I could live without. She and her "rosy tea" obsession gets on my nerves a little bit more each day.

And until I perfect my brittish accent a little, I'm forbidden to sing Wiggles songs in the car. Brent gets very angry about that. I can't help it...sometimes they just get stuck in my head!

I'm nursing one of my kittens (can you still call them kittens when they are 8 yrs old?) back to health also, but she should be better in no time, I hope. So things are busy. But in a good way. Life is good. Better than good, it's PA-good!

Good times

I don't have much big news to share these days. Lately our lives have all been made up of little things. Even sleeping through the night (and I feel I can write it without being jinxed, since it's been three or four weeks now) seems like a little thing. I go to bed at night KNOWING that I will sleep through the night. I never thought the day would come, and now that it is here it seems like no big news at all. I can see how crazy that sounds, but that's how it seems.

In other little news: Brent can match so many puzzle pieces now. Frogs, alligators, elephants in addition to the well-known doggies and kitty-cats and bears. I feel like I'm sitting there with the next Einstein, watching as the world's newest genius learns new names and shapes...watching as he tries out the different crayon colors. He painstakingly tries to color the shapes that I draw on the paper, with his poor little hand gripping the crayon so tight I think it may break at any second. He works so hard to keep it between the lines, and for a few seconds he can manage. But eventually his tight grip on the crayon causes it to shift in some direction too fast for him to control it, and all is lost. And he immediately loses interest and goes onto the next project, mad at himself for being so clumsy. Sometimes he'll throw the crayon or slam it down. Sometimes he'll stand up and grunt (which is usually accompanied by a strange and fast foot stomping procedure). It kills me to watch it. I want to take his hand and guide his coloring until it's perfect, or at least perfect to him. But of course I can't - and he wouldn't let me anyways. I urge him gently to try again, and on rare occasions he will.

Is he a perfectionist in the making? Is this normal toddler behavior? Who knows :) All I know is each day I get to see more and more of a person instead of a child. The way he babbles quietly in the bathtub, having conversations with his favorite plastic fishpole. The way he points to the window in the morning saying "sunshine". The way he understands concepts like the remote control. The way he tries so hard to put his socks on, holding it just like he sees me do, and yet unable to make it work yet.

The other day he was walking through the yard, and turned the corner from the shade into the sun. The wind caught his hair and fluffed it for few seconds. The sun shone on his face with just the right tone. His eyes squinted slightly and he had the slightest smile on his face. That one tiny moment felt so perfect to me that I almost broke into tears. Sometimes I get so busy planning dinners and bedtimes and going to work, that I forget just how blessed I am every day. And what a wonderful gift I've been given in raising such a crazy little boy. Perfectly crazy :)