What happened to the weekend?

I know I may sound like a bit of a broken record every Monday morning, but this time warp I seem to be living in lately is starting to freak me out a little bit.

I started out on Friday with a to-do list that was officially 2 miles long. I was, in fact, so overwhelmed by it that I left the office early on Friday to tackle some of the items on the list. The critical piece was to get Joshua a haircut. We'd been working on that for literally 2 weeks, and everytime we'd get in the car and take him to the barber shop, they were closed. My ragamuffin son was in desperate need of some trimming, to the point where I considered doing it myself. Except that I remembered the time that Jason attempted to give Watson a touch-up cut and it didn't turn out well. At all. If we can't handle animals, I was pretty sure we needed to draw the line before we touched our son. He looks decidedly better now.

The list included so many varied things. Really, I think I should post one of these lists here sometime. We could all have quite a time comparing our weekend job lists to one another's. But mine included everything from cleaning the house (that's about 8 lines of the list), stripping beds and doing the laundry, to starting the toy removal process to make room for things like bouncy seats and swings, to cleaning out Joshua's snack cupboard, making cupcakes for Joshua to take to the birthday party we were attending on Saturday evening so he could participate in the cake time, using up a few very ripe bananas and making banana bread, to digging through Joshua's newborn clothes downstairs to find his side snap undershirts to reuse for the baby. I did not successfully cross off the part of the list that required me to measure Joshua for his Halloween costume so that I can order that. Nor did I do the baby's laundry so that things are ready for use. I had to draw the line somewhere. But I did cook a relatively involved dinner on Friday night as well as get our dinner for tonight pre-cooked so that it could be thrown in the crock pot for this evening. I was like a woman on crack, I swear it.

Joshua boycotted naps on both Saturday and Sunday, which I'm starting to just get used to. Frankly, it's paying off in good nights of sleep for him and an easy time getting him to sleep at night. By that time of the day, I'm just about out of steam, so it's been a blessing. And when he's this happy to see us in the morning, he's apparently getting enough rest.

During this "awake" time yesterday afternoon, I decided that we should take a run to the mall. I was in search of an "I'm A Big Brother" book, which was not to be found anywhere at Borders. We did find a few other very cute books that we've been enjoying. It's been a long time since we updated Joshua's book collection, and he seemed to enjoy picking out a few new ones. Our favorite so far has been "Llama Llama Misses Mama". Given the intense separation anxiety we've been dealing with in recent weeks, I thought this might be a good idea. I could see his little wheels turning this morning as we read it three different times before I left for work. I have a theory on this issue, and maybe that's information for a different post when I'm feeling a bit more Dr. Phil-esque, but I think I'm on to something.

Anyway, while at the mall, I decided to continue my search for socks in the smallest size. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find small socks? I did not. All of the socks I've found are for 0-6 months, and let's face it....the feet of a newborn are far different from the pudgy pigs that you'll find on a six month old, so we really need the range to be narrowed a bit. I even went to the lengths to search through Joshua's stuff in the basement to find HIS small socks. I was sure I had some plain white ones......but nope. All of them had footballs or baseballs, or a little blue stripe on them. Darn it! Anyway, imagine the joy in my heart when I happened to walk into the Gap and found the following...

Pay no attention to the purple outfit I fell in love with for......less than $10! It was the little miniature white and pink socks I located that made me feel like I won the lottery. I only have 4 pairs of small socks, but at least it's something. Now I just have to scour the other Gaps to see if I can find some more! Neither Joshua nor Jason found the sheer amazement I did in my sock treasures. Clearly you can tell how happy I was if I took a picture of it to share here. Sometimes I scare myself.

And so the week begins. We're gearing up for a big trip to Lewistown this weekend for a Penn State game (please pray for cool weather and an empty seat next to me for some extra room...wouldn't that be a miracle?) and then the all-important first birthday bash for Brooke. We cannot wait.

"It looks like this might actually be happening, huh?"

"Yep, it's getting serious now."

This was the conversation between Dr. Miller and I yesterday during our checkup for the baby yesterday afternoon. It was almost comical.

At 34 weeks, things are checking out 100% perfectly, which was a relief to me. The aches and pains of the final stretch are starting to sink in, to the point where I almost thought I was in labor on Tuesday with some serious pelvic bone pain and some pretty intense practice contractions. (One or the other wouldn't have had me scared, but the combination deal I was getting had me wondering for a few hours if I ought to be concerned.) I asked about it yesterday, fully expecting my very-matter-of-fact doctor to tell me to suck it up and brace myself because these last few weeks aren't all sunshine and roses. Much to my surprise, they took my reports pretty seriously and checked things out officially, only to find that I just need to suck it up and brace myself because the last few weeks aren't all sunshine and roses. Not really....but there is no activity that would signify that Baby Dugan is attempting to break through the exit door on her own far ahead of schedule. Thank goodness.

I return in 2 more weeks, and then weekly until the big day. Even though our doctor has delivered well over 6000 babies in his career, it's amazing to me that they still get excited as delivery approaches....at least they make it feel like they're excited and you're not just "one more baby" to deliver. Because I'm really starting to get excited to meet this little one (and to get her off my pelvic bone)...but mostly to see who she looks like, what her personality is going to be like, and all of those other things you anticipate with getting to be a part of a new life.

I also registered at the hospital yesterday afternoon. There was a serious baby boom going on- with brand new little people being wheeled about the labor and delivery floor left and right, much to the contrast of my stay there with Joshua. I believe there was only one other baby there when we were there. The hustle and bustle was actually quite exciting and as I waited for my appointment, I just sat in the waiting room watching new dads and visitors coming and going with the happiest smiles on their faces. I can't wait until those are people that we know! They gave me some great information about time schedules for surgery, arrival times, what to expect when you're doing this on a scheduled basis instead of the "hurry-up" style that we earned the first go around. The breastfeeding nazi as I so affectionately (or not) referred to her during my first experience appeared to have turned over a new leaf and answered all of my questions kindly and with great support for what we'd been through the first time. I am optimistic for support in that area, although we made it quite clear that I fully intend to feed the baby without guilt while I'm in the hospital, whether that comes from me or a bottle. I'm no longer afraid of formula feeding since learning that it's not actually rat poison and will not hesitate to move that direction if we're doing a repeat performance of October 2006 (except minus the tears from me and the guilt trip from the nazi, thankyouverymuch).

We'll see Dr. Miller again on September 10th (one very special little girl's #1 birthday!) and then start the once a week rotation.

Joshua's only question was (once again) if I got his baby sister out of my tummy yet. When I told him that today wasn't the day he said, "Soon Mommy?" Yep. Soon buddy.

Mixed bag...

A puzzling picture to start with. Go ahead and put your "I'm-almost-three" imagination cap on and take a stab at what you think this might have been a picture of last night. I'll give you a hint. It is not the tray to Joshua's toolbox with drumsticks along the side as you might have been tempted to guess.

We'll let the Jeopardy theme song ring in your ears for a few seconds while you ponder this one.

This was, in case you didn't get it right, our campfire last night that Joshua built. Go ahead and look again. It really was a campfire.

Here you'll see our little pyromaniac wearing his protective fire proof gloves (his socks) while he and Bear waited for our s'mores to finish cooking. (The s'mores were the little green and yellow squares from his wooden tool kit that had the plastic bolts from his tool bench on top of them). The Handy Manny power drill behind him was our coffee maker that made a few very yummy cups of coffee for us to enjoy while we warmed up by the fire. I could not make this up if I tried.

Here you'll see Joshua putting some glue on our fire (his sippy cup amazingly went from having water in it after the grass cutting last night to being a container of glue). Because I don't know about you, but every time I've sat around a campfire, the occasional addition of glue made all the difference in the world.

Have I mentioned how much fun it is to watch his imagination at work? This stage is awesome!

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In other news, guess who I got to spend the day with yesterday? One adorable, almost one-year-old little princess who could not possibly have been any sweeter. She now knows how to say "Bye Bye" with an excellent wave, can stand up unassisted from a sitting position, babbles incessantly and does a far better version of the Hot Dog dance than even Mickey Mouse himself.

My "hooky days" have become some of our favorite days over the course of the past year. They started soon after Brooke was born, and I was a new aunt having a terrible time with the fact that I never got to see my niece. When I did get to see her, it was as part of a family weekend when Joshua was very much along and very much NOT into me having any cuddle time with this little baby girl who I so loved. And so the hooky day was born. Over the past 12 months, there have probably been 5 or 6 of these days where I take off in the morning and return home at the end of the work day. But I high-tail it to Lewistown, park myself at Libby's house, eat a yummy lunch and spend time just enjoying Brooke and my sister. Sometimes Nana even gets to join in on the fun. I get back in the car at 3:30 and make it home by 5. We almost have it down to a science.

Yesterday was extra special because we got to visit with Stacie and new baby Anna. I can't believe that she's a month old today, but she was so sweet. Stacie's doing a bang up job as a new mom. I was smitten with Anna, as you can't help but be with a brand new little bundle. I was amazed at just how miniature she is and found myself looking back and forth between her and Brooke, who still looks small to me compared to Joshua. Needless to say, I thought I was the mother of a giant when I got home and picked up Joshua after having had the baby in my arms for a little while. I almost could imagine for a second what it was going to be like to hold our own daughter, except that I'm sure I have no idea. I just know that I'm looking forward to it now more than ever as the time gets closer and closer.

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And as a final note, I would highly recommend the new Selah CD that was just released yesterday. Jason says I have a problem, but I just really LOVE Selah. That CD is like an amazing church service on a little portable CD. Touching. Perfect. Hymns. Beautiful music. It's fantastic. I can't see it getting replaced as the prime occupant in my CD player for quite some time.

Take me out to the ballgame...

I was a skeptic. When we were making plans to participate in State Farm's Lewisburg Community Night at the Crosscutters in Williamsport, if I had placed bets, I'd have guessed we would have been packing up our toddler and heading home no later than the 3rd inning of the baseball game due to scrooching, general disinterest, and the potential for a full scale meltdown.



Boy was I ever wrong. Just goes to show how little I know about things. Or maybe how unpredictable said toddler really is. (Let's go with that one.)



Last evening was a beautiful night to be somewhere other than inside our house, so I'm glad it worked out that we had somewhere fun to go. I had officially shirked my duties as a junk hander-outer with the other State Farm clad representatives. (It's too hot, and I'm too fat to be standing around handing out things with State Farm on them. Besides, I wasn't about to take the maybe one hour of cooperative time with Joshua and use it to hand out goodies. So thanks to the others who were there, they took my purchased contributions and handed them out minus me.) We happened to spot Jason's co-workers and sat with them. Joshua quickly made friends and spent his evening running back and forth between the legs of people to his buddies down the row. If he stepped on their toes as many times as he did mine, I should apologize. Between Jason and Donna, he got quite an education about baseball. He cheered loudly for the homeruns (there were 3) and decided that someday he wants to be a pitcher, despite his Daddy's advice that he could make far more money as a football player. We'll see how that shakes out.



The highlight of the evening was certainly Boomer, though. While most 2 year olds would likely be afraid of a large, brightly colored, overzealous cartoon animal with a person inside it, Joshua most clearly was not. Every time he spotted him, he had to run up and give him a hug. It got to the point where I was starting to get embarassed about the number of times we were up and down to stalk Boomer around the stadium. There may be charges filed. I can't really say for sure. Boomer gave Joshua a baseball card with his picture on it, and it it probably Joshua's most prized possession today. He was also quite fond of the roll of carpet...an odd choice for a mascot, but someone was advertising something, so all bets are really off when it comes to that. I've spent a good number of hours in a State Farm Good NeighBear costume, so I really don't have much room to be critical.





When it was all said and done, Joshua summed it up in the car by saying, "Thanks for taking me there. I had so much fun." He also asked to include meeting Boomer and going to the baseball game in his prayers of things to thank God for last night before he closed his eyes. I guess it was an evening well-spent. And for the record, we made it all 9 innings.

And the best story of the night goes to......Daddy!

I don't have any pictures to back up this little tidbit of Joshua-ness and you'll see why in a second.

Jason told me this morning that he had something he thought I should know. I feared that this could be a big one...like the John Deere tractor he has been teasing me about buying is now on order or would be delivered to us this weekend, or something along those lines. But instead he told me that when he came upstairs to bed last night he had a funny encounter with Joshua. I was puzzled, because Jason was already asleep when I left Joshua's room after getting him to sleep and I didn't recall any interactions between the two men in my life.

Evidently as Jason climbed the steps, he saw Joshua sitting straight up in his bed. He looked adorable in his "Crabby" pajamas. (I may have added that part, but I'm sure it's true.) Joshua quickly shooed Jason back downstairs. When he asked why he had to go back downstairs, Joshua said, "Daddy, we have to be really quiet. Mommy is sleeping!"

Busted. I'm one of those people who, when their head hits the pillow, it's a matter of seconds before I'm out for the count. Generally after I make it through the books that Josh has selected for the night (Peter Pan and How Lucky You Are were last night's choices), I'm yawning and perfectly ready to nod off. Joshua was particularly stubborn about falling asleep last night and insisted that I needed to lay down beside him. And there you have it folks. One asleep Mommy. And one not asleep little boy. But wasn't he sweet for not waking me up?

Hello Joshua. Welcome to 1984.

We've been doing quite a bit of time travel at our house lately. Remember Christmas in July? Well, last night, Jason took Joshua on a little trip down Memory Lane into the 1980's. The rain had squelched our plans of an outside evening mowing our now more than ankle high grass (thank you very much rain showers every day at 4:30). So Jason decided it would be a good idea to see how Joshua did with a very educational game of Pac Man on the X-box. Because when you're 2, you'd better start honing your hand-eye coordination if you ever have dreams of being a good video game player. Or something like that.

I have to say, I was rather impressed with Joshua's mastery of up-down-left-right directional maneuvers. He quite often got himself backed into corners and got eaten by ghosts, but just flash back to your first time playing Super Mario Brothers (the original one) and imagine how many times it took of running into the little mushroom men before you figured out how to not do that anymore. And I was about 10 when I was working on mastering that.

I've now also become the joke of our household for things other than my pregnancy induced snoring, frequent falls and spills, and the other normal things that Jason likes to pick on me about. He's amazed at the fact that I have never actually played Pac Man myself. My only memories of Pac Man as a child were at my Aunt Karen's house where Scott and Cory had an original Atari that I was far too small and most definitely too uncool to play. But I do remember them playing it and having fun. Maybe if I would have developed the coordination and skill necessary to master the game, I wouldn't have had such a hard time with Mario when the 1990's hit and Santa brought us a Nintendo. Hmmmm.

Courage & Confessions

If you ask my opinion, this is a true depiction of courage when it comes to a 2 year old. Grandma came this morning with a bag of craft goodies for Joshua. He immediately locked onto the wooden bear cutout and asked to paint it. Luckily, I had some kids paints in the basement, so we set him up with a sponge brush and the orange paint he selected and let him go to town. I think both Judy and I were impressed with his determination and relative accuracy at putting the paint where he wanted it to go. I knew this was a hit when the child who I have been peeling off of my body to leave for work in the morning didn't even bother to say goodbye. He was enthralled with his painting. Looks like I'll be making a trip to a store specializing in wooden things that children can paint on. Money well spent...

And I also thought I should confess that, at the six week mark from our scheduled meeting with our daughter, the not-so-glamorous parts of my personality are starting to rear their ugly heads. The good news is that "Mean Megan" who we met around 37 weeks in pregnancy #1 has not been coming around. However, the emotional Megan has been. It all started with a complete and total emotional breakdown to my Mom on the phone on Monday night. I'm pretty sure she thinks I'm a complete loon, except for the fact that she probably gets it even without any discussion from me. She's my mom, after all. I have absolutely no explanation for it and can do nothing but apologize. There was no rational reason for it. But, rational is really not my specialty these days. I recognized that there was a pattern developing when I was quite literally sobbing on the way to work this morning listening to the country song on the radio about "When I bow my head tonight...". It's a really great song, I know that. But the part that got me was that he said, "just watch my wife and kids, please Lord." Kids. Plural. That's what did me in. I'm going to have two kids. I'm going to be able to say the plural. Be a mom of 2. And while I know that's a lot to take in, there's really no rationale that explains why it hit me like it did this morning. So watch out everyone....there's no telling how this might go. I was prepared for Mean Megan, but this emotional train wreck stuff is not quite what I was expecting...and certainly not so soon. The good news is that six weeks from today we'll have her here with us...likely in my arms or Daddy's (or the arms of someone who has come to visit us). I just might cry thinking about it. (Just kidding.)

Evening fun...

Last evening was one of those nights where not a whole lot got accomplished, but we still had a good time. We made some taco salads for dinner, spent some play time outside and then headed to Rita's for a treat. What else are you supposed to do when it's this hot? Joshua did his part to entertain, as usual. In fact, I snapped these two pictures from two of our giggling episodes.

Exhibit #1: Hiding.

One of my favorite parts of the day has become the "SURPRISE!" welcome I get when I come in the door from the office. There's just nothing better than having someone that happy to see you when you get home. Our departures in the morning have been less than happy lately, mostly involving tears and Joshua's begging of me not to go. It's ripping my heart out, but slowly preparing me for the day I drop him off at preschool to the wails that I know full well are coming. (But that's a whole different issue for a whole different post.) So last night when we saw Jason's car pulling into the driveway, Joshua told me he was going to hide from Daddy and surprise him too. This is what he did to hide behind the coffee table.


Exhibit #2: "Good night Bears."

The pie cabinet Joshua is standing in front of is called "the shed" according to him. He will open and close the door to that cupboard no fewer than a thousand times a day. In my futile efforts, I always go around and open it back up again. (Neurotic tendencies, what can I say. I prefer it OPEN!) Last night, after we had eaten our Rita's, he pulled me over to the cabinet and told me I had to be "veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery quiet". When we got there, he opened the doors and whispered to me that the Bears on the shelf were fast asleep. He must have checked on them 10 times before we went to bed for the night and raced down there this morning again to make sure they were still sleeping. They were then greeted with a very robust "Good morning Bears! How was your sleep?" Just wait until he has his baby sister to declare that to in the mornings!

6 weeks from today I'll be gearing up for my last meal before surgery (and you can bet it's going to be a good one. I screwed that one up royally last time, and I will not repeat the same mistake!) and enjoying our last evening as a family of 3. It's almost unbelievable.

Back in the land of the living...

I apologize for the delay in my posts lately. To say that we have been a little under the weather would be QUITE the understatement. Joshua and I would have qualified for "Sick and Sicker" titles over the past week. It's been a long one, let's just say that. I believe today is the first day that I've gone more than 10 minutes without blowing my nose. And finally, Joshua is feeling well enough to play and eat and sleep. Thank God for miracles. Jason had been sick a few weeks ago and so graciously shared it with Joshua and I. Let's just sum it all up by saying that things hit a really low point on Wednesday and Thursday nights when Joshua was so congested that he literally could not breathe. He was struggling for breath all night long those nights, breathing in only when I would open his mouth for him to gasp for air. We were panicked...in a way I can't quite explain...except to anyone who is a mom and has spent a night or two on night vigil with their sick child. I think we've all been there- with a fever, or a stomach bug, or a bad cough or whatever, but this breathing thing was a whole new level of anxiety for us. Add to it that I was also sicker than I've been in quite some time (and also unable to medicate thanks to being pregnant) and we had a serious mess on our hands. We got the go-ahead from our pediatrician to give one drop of Afrin nasal spray in each nostril right before bed on Friday, which granted both Joshua and I an improved night's sleep on Friday and Saturday. The doctor said it was OK to do that for 3 nights, but we didn't need to use them at all last night since we were pretty much back to normal....thank goodness.

We were in Lewistown this past weekend to celebrate my cousin Jeannine's ordination as a pastor. What a special weekend it was for her, and we were so proud of all she's accomplished. The Richard family was asked to sing during the service as a gift to her, and we gladly participated. I find it amazing (except that I shouldn't) that we were handed sheet music to sing from 30 minutes before we sang, and still managed to put together a hymn and a Gaither song in 4 part harmony without a single rehearsal. Many of us had never even seen the one song prior to singing. It was a gift to Jeannine that we sang, but I believe we were all blessed by standing together and using our gifts as a family. The other highlight was that we got to see Stacie and baby Anna at church, although the closest I got to either of them was a few pews away. I always marvel at just how miniature newborn babies are and how much you forget about how teeny tiny they're going to be. The idea of holding our own in a few weeks blows my mind.

Given our "conditions" this week, Jason thought it best to make an overnight out of our visit, so we actually headed to my parents' house on Saturday morning. It may also have had something to do with him wanting to play golf with my brother-in-law, but I couldn't say for sure. So, we all camped out at Mom and Dad's for the day/evening and enjoyed the kids. I kept a serious distance from everyone making sure not to spread the germs any further than the Dugan household. Oh how I hated not being able to play with Brooke. Joshua insisted on being outside....in the 97 degree heat....which nearly killed me. We quickly brainstormed options to keep him a) out of the sun which would clearly have caused him sun poisoning despite the SPF 70+ I had coated him with and b) entertained enough that he wouldn't constantly be pulling one of us out into the heat with him. Below you will see what we came up with.


One tub suitable for putting ice and drinks into for a picnic and one garden hose.

Which led to this type of a smile when...

Pap started to spray the water over Joshua's head and clothing.

Pretty soon he was so soaked that the clothes and shoes came off and he was left in his diaper to explore the water. I told my parents that I'll gladly contribute to the increase in their water bill for the month. He was out there for well over 4 hours spraying everything that he could. It was well worth it for us to sit in their garage remaining relatively cool while Josh had the time of his life playing out in the driveway, mostly in the shade.

We headed home Sunday after the luncheon in Jeannine's honor at the church. It was still stinking hot, so we got the pool out for Joshua to play in after his nap. He had a blast. See?

It was a great weekend. And boy is it good to feel good again. And, for me to say I feel good approaching the 33 week mark tomorrow is quite a statement. That just goes to show how bad we felt last week.

A glimpse into our former lives...

Let me start this post by first keeping my father from having a heart attack on the off chance that he reads this. This fire was at the far corner of the patio, nowhere close to our house or anything wooden that could possibly have ignited. It also was not windy. Not even the flower petals close to the fireplace were harmed. I know....you just worry about us. And I'm glad you do.

It was a strange weekend at our house, but a good one despite some odd circumstances that wouldn't normally be considered "good". Jason has been sick, really sick, for the better part of a week. As last week ended, he was starting to come out of the fog....just as Joshua was entering into it. Friday, our little buddy was pretty miserable. He was mopey and whiny and pretty much glued to me from the time I got home from work until his little eyes closed for sleep. We even ate our dinner on the couch because getting up and being separated wasn't an option. He didn't feel good....at all. The only good thing to come out of this evening, besides some very concentrated cuddle time for mommy and Joshua was a newfound movie on our frequent play list. Joshua is now a fan of the "Sulley Movie" as he calls it....Monsters, Inc. to the rest of us. It's cute--- hadn't seen it before the three times I watched it this weekend. Let's just say it's a nice change of pace from Horton Hears A Who which I can basically recite from beginning to end while standing on my head. Except that I don't have a prayer of standing on my head these days. Seriously. 31 weeks and 6 days pregnant. Now wouldn't THAT be something?

Saturday Joshua started to perk up a little and was playing a little more, but still wasn't 100%. I, however, began to spiral into the depths of whatever this thing is. Despite that, we managed to cross off a very long to-do list by exhibiting some of our very best "teamwork parenting". Jason and I both said, at the end of the day, that we felt like we had accomplished quite a bit for one day. Normally one of us feels slighted because our lists have been neglected in favor of the other one's being deemed more important. It was a good feeling. Joshua had refused to nap because he heard that we were planning a trip to Target after he awoke. Clearly this meant that he COULD NOT POSSIBLY sleep with something so exciting on the horizon. The Target trip worked out just fine and he was relatively pleasant through it. This all went to pot in the evening when he was so tired that HE.....my non-sleeping child.....suggested at 8:00 that we go up to bed. He had had all he could take of the day. So, at 8:30, Jason and I found ourselves relatively awake, with to-do lists accomplished. What?

I came downstairs to put the milk cup in the sink and smelled something burning. Don't worry, Dad. When I looked outside, I saw the picture above. The outdoor fireplace that we had purchased to replace the chiminea that rolled down the hill and broke into a thousand pieces in a windstorm two years ago was ablaze. I had mentioned to Jason, while coming home from our Target trip that I was in the mood for a campfire, and he heard my request and made it come true. What a husband. Ever since we bought the fireplace, we've wondered why because we NEVER EVER EVER sit outside and enjoy it. The nights are too short and too full of things that need to be done, and let's face it, fire and a toddler aren't a good mix. At least not a toddler like Joshua.

We sat on the porch together, just the two of us, and had a conversation. Amazing. We talked about how nice it was to be able to do that, and how we used to do it all the time. We talked about how we even used to have friends that we could sit on the porch with in the evenings and talk to. We marvelled at how different things can become, and how now, all of those people have their own children who need to have their heads on their own pillows at that hour of the night, making such meetings improbable and just plain hard to make happen. It was after 11:00 when we came inside, smelling of campfire. I had to wash sheets the next day that smelled of smoke, but it was so worth it. It was almost like, for a few hours, we had our old lives back.

But don't worry...the monitor was plugged into the outlet outside, so in the background we could hear our snoring little man happily dreaming away upstairs. In all honesty, it was the best of both worlds. I wouldn't trade our new life for our old one for a single second. But it is nice to visit the past every now and again. And it's good to think that when the dust settles (read: give us another 2 1/2 years until our daughter is in a reasonable sleeping pattern and our bodies have adjusted to the new new normal of life with two children) we just might be able to enjoy a few more of these grown-up nights on the porch with a fire blazing. And I just may stock some marshmallows in the pantry in case it happens again.

Bear

I caught a few pictures of Joshua and Bear the other morning that I thought were cute and might mean something to Joshua someday. I can't really even explain the love he has for Bear. He often proclaims that Bear is his best buddy. He was given to us as a gift when Joshua was born. He had been made by someone at the Bloomsburg Fair, and a fellow State Farm agent sent him to me as a baby present. You might recall that this is the same Bear that we lost at the mall one time and recovered by the grace of God the following morning after he had been discovered by the cleaning crew in the Bon Ton. We were sure he was a goner...and I was devastated. He has been stepped on, had a bike ridden over him, been forgotten, puked on, washed, dried and stitched back together more times that I can count. He's showing some wear and some dirt for sure, but I call that the love of a 2 year old little boy. I think I look that way too, sometimes, after Joshua gets done with me.

I think my Dad was right when he suggested that Bear might need to be immortalized in some kind of a frame when Joshua outgrows his friend for something else, although I can't see that day coming any time soon. But Bear is a pretty significant memory in Joshua's life- ever since he was just a few months old and could hold onto things. For Joshua, he's a friend. For me, he's a symbol of these years that I try with all of my might to etch into my memory. I don't want to forget a thing....which is why I write some of the things down that I do on this blog and in letters to Joshua that someday he'll maybe want to read. It just goes by so fast. It may seem insignificant to some, but I think that all of us who are moms get it. There's nothing insignificant about anything, is there?

I wonder what, or even if, our baby girl will grow attached to anything once we get to meet her? I had a doll named Victoria who was far too nice of a doll (my grandparents got her for me) to be played with and "loved" as hard as I loved her. As I recall she ended up in my parents' attic with a half melted face from the summer heat in the attic on Edgewood Place, and only one fully attached arm after I carried her around by only one of her limbs at any one time. But I loved her....about the same way Joshua loves Bear.

I guess we'll have to see about our daughter and who she chooses as her most special friend. But wrap your mind around this for a second...... Eight weeks from right now, I'll likely be resting from surgery and holding her in my arms. Can you believe that? I can't. But goodness am I getting excited.

So is this little guy. Every day when I get home from work, he asks me if I got his baby sister out of my tummy today. Pretty soon, buddy. Pretty soon.

Simon gets more respect than I do.

I start this post with something a little different than the title, but stick with me for the details on Simon.

Sunday night, I was working on a project on the computer with Joshua at my heels. He got awfully quiet, which normally scares the dickens out of me because most times it's followed by a loud crash, an "uh oh Mommy" or the shrieks of pain. When I turned around, this is what I saw:

Evidently, he has decided to transform his "Sit & Spin" into a "Stand & Spin". Inventive, but dangerous. The faster he got it going, the more he loved it. And then he appeared drunk when he got off of this death trap and stumbled across the room into his table and chairs. Gotta love boys.

And now back to Simon.

Our relatively compliant, tub time child has turned into a bit of a rebel lately. As I think back on the transformation, it directly correlates with the time that we switched him into his big boy room and transitioned into doing our work that requires his cooperation on his bed instead of at his changing table. I'm one of those people who religiously used our changing table with Joshua. He was always so squirmy that me standing up and having a little bit of leverage, while he had limited space in which to squirm, was a help. We never really had too much trouble. Now, however, attempting to get him to hold still while I get him undressed or dressed is becoming quite the ordeal.

Last evening, after returning home from National Night Out one tired, fat lady, Joshua was wound up. It was tub time, so I rounded him upstairs and started the same routine we've always used. As I was asking for his cooperation, he was rolling about on the bed, hiding under the pillows, jumping up and down....I think you get the picture. (Actually, Mom and Libby...it's exactly the same thing he does when we're there and I'm trying to get him ready for bed.) So I've already shared that I was tired and fat, but let me reemphasize that. I had been standing on my feet in 86 degree heat at National Night Out since 4:00 pm. It was now 8:45 and we were just beginning what would require every last ounce of my remaining energy.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. I turned it into a game. And so, for the next hour, Joshua and I played Simon Says with his bath routine. "Simon says take off your socks." He did it with a smile. "Simon says stop jumping on the bed." He does it on the first request. "Honk your nose. Aaaaah....I caught you. Simon didn't say." Then we giggled. This went on until he was undressed, scrubbed, rinsed, dried, teeth brushed and pajama'ed. Brilliant, don't you think? The only problem I had with it as the night went on is the painful realization that Simon is most definitely getting more respect from my son than I am. And he's never even met the guy. Hmmm.

Family Time--- Reunion Included

I never got so far as to post this yesterday, although I had good intentions of doing so. It was just one of those weekends, followed by one of those Mondays where the end of your to-do list is never quite in sight. So we'll start Tuesday by finishing Monday's list. How's that?

Friday, Joshua and I had the pleasure of a vehicle repair in Lewistown. The vehicle repair wasn't so much the fun part, but moreso the visit we got to have with Nana and Pap, and Aunt Libby, Uncle Zig and Brooke AND Pappy Ray AND Uncle Jerry and Aunt Carol from Massachusetts. It's very infrequently that we get to see Jerry and Carol, so when their visit just happened to coincide with the availability of the ordered part we were waiting for for the Highlander, we jumped on the chance to go to Lewistown.

It was a yucky, rainy day in Lewistown, so we were confined to the great indoors. Libby and I decided that we'd take the kids to Walmart to cure some cabin fever and give Nana some time to roll out the home made pot pie she was preparing for all of us for dinner. It took just about all of my car seat installation know-how to get two kids' seats correctly placed in the backseat of a car. My mom's was the best fit, so that's what we did. I got soaking wet in the process and Joshua fell down on the slippery garage floor which ended in tears. All to go to Walmart. But we had fun. He came home with a talking, siren-blowing fireman's hat that he just loves.

My mom's pot pie was worth the trip in and of itself. Pot pie was a Grandma Mary specialty, and I haven't had it since the last time she made it for us. I have very distinct memories of watching her drop her home made noodles into the boiling broth to let them cook while I got the cole slaw or cucumber and onion salad ready. It has to have been 10 years ago that I last had that experience. But it tasted JUST like Gram's on Friday night. It was almost like she was there with us at the dinner table, to be honest. I know she would have been so proud of Mom's work. We actually have a running joke in our family that I always miss pot pie when mom makes it. I usually find out about it on a phone call with Libby when she says, "We're going to Mom and Dad's for supper tonight. Mom's making.......um.......supper." And I always know it's pot pie. But this time, I got to join in on the fun.

Saturday was the Richard Reunion at the church pavillion. Joshua had a blast riding his gator and digging in the stones. There also happened to be a huge digger in the parking lot that I believe he showed to every single person at the picnic. When he started to show signs of getting tired, we headed home and...lucky for me, he slept the entire way home. Sometimes I can catch a lucky break.

Sunday was a catch up day at home including cleaning, cooking, running to Wal-Mart, laundry....and everything else that I normally spread over two days but had to squeeze into one this week. Add to that that Joshua refused to nap on Sunday afternoon and we were crunched for time to say the least. But we managed. I just employed him as a helper on all of my jobs, and he did excellent work. He's great at dusting the lower things now that bending over and stooping down are getting to be an issue for me.

This week continues to be busy with one staff member at the office on vacation and a big United Way event that I'm chairing tonight at the park in Lewisburg. I'll actually be anxious for the weekend to get here, just so it marks the beginning of a "normal busy" week next week when we're back at full complement at the office.