All. Nothing.

These are the only two options acceptable to little B, these days. Anything in between results in tears, a crumpled face, and maybe some angry fist pounding. For example, a whole piece of toast is okay. A kid-size strip of toast cut from a whole piece of toast is not okay. I found out that I somehow ruin the toast eating experience for Boden by cutting it into the appropriate size for him, thereby resulting in aforementioned fist-pounding unhappiness. This guy's hard to please.

What comes around goes around

I caught up with a friend who had a three week old new babe. Her family had recently left town and her hubby was back at work so she was home getting to know her wee one.

The same friend who listened half-heartedly when I told her stories from the early weeks of child rearing was reciting my same tales back to me (the overwhelming exhaustion, what really happens when your milk comes in, night sweats, lack of schedule...etc.). As I was listening to her version, I was reminded of when I was in the trenches with Boden in those first few (and sometimes horrible) weeks. I remember cursing my friends (in the nicest way possible, of course) for not giving me tips about the littlest things and wondering why no one tells you how exhausting and all-consuming a newborn can be.

Then it occurred to me--no one really cares about the details unless they have gone through it. When you're caught in the minutiae of day-to-day living with a newborn, the only people who understand and can really listen are those who have already been there. It's like a "My kid's a toddler now and I lived to tell about it" support group. I'm sure my friends who had babies before I did shared their anecdotes and warnings with me, but, I was only half listening and full of judgment (roll eyes, pass judgment: "I mean really, how hard can it be?").

I found myself giving my friend the same "oh, yeah--I remember; you'll get through it, too!" pep talk that I got from others. It feels good to be on the other side and I have a little validation that other new parents struggle, too. Whew.

(Photos: Kitchen - nearly complete and mostly usable!; Boden and Sloan playing ball).

Favorite things

Besides raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, one of my favorite things is when I go to pick up Boden from daycare and the older kids, who apparently keep an ever watchful eye on who pulls into the driveway, yell out a chorus of "It's Boden's mom", "Boden's mom is here!", and "Pat, Boden's mom is here to pick him up.". I suspect these kids are also great at informing Pat who wronged them during the day and the goings on of anyone who might be doing something forbidden, but, gosh, do I love hearing the words "Boden's mom" and knowing that that's me.

Little B had a rough week as three top teeth (it looks like the two front teeth and a fang) fought their way through his red inflamed gums to the surface. Considering everything that was going on in his mouth, he actually did fairly well sleeping and was mostly pleasant. Yesterday, though, he was stricken with either allergies (since everyone has mowed their lawn and the ragweed is out with a vengeance) or he got a cold: his nose produced oodles of green goop last night and it was plastered over most of his face this morning. Poor dude.

(Pictures: Boden, 10 months old yesterday, showing off the new teeth; Kitchen update: Cabinets in and we're slowly moving stuff back in to the cabinets we can use)

Kitchen Update

The short story is that the house is still in shambles...but there has been progress. Boden went to daycare all last week so work could get done--drywall was hung and Todd did the electrical...and that's about all I know.

Over the weekend, Todd primed and painted the walls with Boden's assistance (see pic), put the in-floor heat tubing in the floor and leveled off the floor so we're ready to put tile on after the cabinets are hung next week. There are probably tons more details that I'm missing (I hope), because reading that over, it makes me think "what the heck is taking so long?!". But, I did peek in on Todd, occasionally, and he was always working. I guess reality shows like Extreme Home Makeover make me think that the kitchen should have taken about 48 hours to do with breaks for commercials.

How has this kitchen remodel affected me, so far? My nutritional status is slowly deteriorating. I went two entire days without eating a fruit or vegetable...unless raspberry jam "counts". That's everyday living for Todd but not for me. Sure, I could have had a spinach salad or grilled some veggies, but meals become a lot less exciting when you have limited food prep area, you're eating off paper plates, you can't find a clean surface on your dining table and you're doing dishes in a laundry tub.

Our Snackmaster has sure gotten a workout, though--lots of hot pocket sandwiches over the past week. And to think I've put that darn Snackmaster in the Goodwill box several times only to be rescued by Todd with a "I can't believe you want to throw this out! This is perfect for any dining occasion." I will agree that it is perfect for a dining occasion during which your kitchen is completely non-functional...beyond that, I still have my doubts.