Easter (and a little extra)

Somehow, the days just seem to get away from me.  This should frighten me.  Before I know it, May will have disappeared and all of a sudden, I'll be staring down the barrel of imminent childbirth.  I had an appointment with Duckie this morning and everything looks good.  I've been dealing with the cold from hell for the better part of a month and I'm FINALLY starting to feel better - and the doctor gave me the green light to get on a plane and fly to New Jersey on Thursday.  I've still got a condition called placenta previa, which isn't a big deal unless I go into labor.  Long story short - I've got another ultrasound at the end of May and if the condition hasn't resolved itself, I'll schedule a c-section for the first part of July.  This doesn't bother me in any way - and I'm starting to lean towards a planned birth.  I would be able to make sure that Jack and Blue were taken care of, have a few meals planned, and I'd have a set date when I'd know I'd be out of the office.  And, as an added bonus, my pregnancy would be shortened.  Still, I loved being in labor with Jack.  I thought it was the coolest experience ever.  But still, this little princess is shaping up to be quite the drama queen, so odds are that things aren't going to be as fantastic as they were the first time around.  Also, and mostly because I'm just writing about this pregnancy, I went and took a "bump" picture to document the fact that yes, I was pregnant at one point:

Obviously, I've had a lot of other issues going on this time around and I haven't loved being pregnant, but I think that things are finally starting to even out - I have more energy and I've felt pretty good for the past several weeks, with the exception of this lingering cold.  I've also had some weird food cravings - mostly for Cheetos and muffins, but that's really about it. 

Anyways, we've started talking to Jack a lot about the fact that there's going to be a baby here soon.  He knows that "Mama holds the baby" in her belly and that sometimes, I get sick and need to rest and take my medicine.  We're working on trying to teach him to be gentle around me and that he can't body slam me any more.  He knows the baby's name, but occasionally, he comes up with better names for her - last week he wanted to call her Goofy or Baby Blue-Dog.  Today, he told me he wanted to name her Baby Stinky.  It's all about context clues for him.  I happen to think we've reached a pretty fun stage with him - he's got tons of words and says exactly what's on his mind.  This morning, he whacked Blue and Jeff put him in time out.  When Jeff asked if he was sorry and ready to apologize, Jack told him "no."  At least he's honest.  And it means he hasn't figured out the system just yet.  

Our Easter was pretty routine.  We went to church and then to my parents' for dinner.  Jack and Wim were all decked out in their Easter finery and they had fun looking for Easter eggs and opening up their presents.  However, now Jack thinks that all eggs are Easter eggs and brought me a bar of soap the other day, telling me that he found another Easter egg.  And then he was upset that it didn't open and didn't contain chocolate.  

Last week, Jack went to Grammy Camp and it was gorgeous outside.  He and Wim had a blast playing outside with all of the forgotten toys.  

Today, it's raining/snowing again.  It makes it easier to work, I guess, but it's getting pretty tough to stay inside.  Now that we've had a few nice days, all Jack wants to do is go outside, run around and blow bubbles.  I'm hoping for a few nice days out in New Jersey so we can actually go to the park or do something outside.  I'm so sick of being cooped up.  

So, Jack's latest obsession is his Easter hat and sunglasses.  He has to wear this stuff every time we go anywhere - even if it's not sunny outside.  He always asks, "my glasses?" when we're getting ready to go and insists on wearing them everywhere.  I couldn't care less - he looks awesome.  

This past weekend was pretty routine - Jeff and Jack went to the mall for a haircut while I got a massage and ran errands on Saturday.  Jeff and I went out to dinner on Saturday night, which was a treat even if I couldn't taste one bite of my meal.  On Sunday, Jack and I went to church and then to my sister's house to drop off flowers for her birthday.  We went to McDonald's to play for a bit, but I think Jack was pretty tired.  So, we went home and we both took a nap.  When we got up, we did some art, played with Play-Do and watched Frozen - it was rainy and crummy out, unfortunately.  

And then, we're heading out to New Jersey for Baby Maddie's christening this week.  I'm looking forward to a little bit of a vacation and seeing all our family - who knows the next time we'll be able to get out there?  Anyways, I've posted a few more random pictures that I've taken of Jack over the past week or so - no really good stories to go with them, but like I said, he's at an awesome stage right now, so everything he does is funny!

Spring (Maybe?)

You wouldn't know it from today's forecast, but Spring has been in the air.  We've been going outside as much as we possibly can.  I don't know what it is about being outside, but something just shifts in Jack - he just loves it.  We came home from school every night last week and he kept asking "go outside, Mama?" and I have to run around like a crazy person to get our "chores" done so we can go play outside with "the ladies" across the street.  Or, you know, wrestle like a madman on the front lawn with Blue.  He runs around screaming, "Get Jackie, Blue-Dog, get Jackie!" and mostly, Blue just tries to bite his shoes.  But still, they seem to have fun enough.  We've also been blowing a lot of bubbles too - Blue tries to eat them and Jack thinks that this is absolutely hysterical.  

Jack also really digs "driving" the car and usually takes my keys when we get home every day and climbs up into the driver's seat to play.  Blue seems to think that he either needs to protect and watch over Jack or that he's going to miss an opportunity for a pretty sweet ride:

Anyways, we did have a fairly quiet week last week.  Jack has been getting up at the crack of dawn every morning and crawling into bed with us.  This is my favorite time of day, even if it means that I'm probably not going to get any more sleep.  But I always think that these days aren't going to last forever and one day, he'll be too old to snuggle with his mom in the morning, so I'll take the hit on my sleep.  However, because he's been getting up so early, he's usually a total wreck by lunchtime and ready to pass out.  At daycare this week, his teachers told me that he got up after lunch and went by himself to lay down on his cot and promptly passed out.  

By the way, that's his "piano" and one of the many inanimate objects that Jack forms irrational attachments to.  Other objects include a football and his sound machine.  

Anyways, last week was "spirit week" at his school, so there were all different kinds of dress-up days.  However, Jack wouldn't let me fix his hair for crazy-hair day, and pretty much threw a tantrum when he wore his pajamas to school, so let's just say he doesn't have the New Horizon spirit.  However, when he got to school, they seemed to do a pretty good job of getting him in the mood for some fun:

The kid really loves dressing up.  Every day when I get him from school, he's got his shoes off and the fire boots on, and usually something else unusual - like a head scarf or a toga.  He thinks its awesome.  They've also been able to go outside at school as well, which has cut down a lot on his behavior issues - like I said, something just flips in Jack when he's outside.  

In case you're wondering, he scraped his nose somehow last week while at Grammy Camp.  We have no clue how he did it - my guess is that he has his fingers in and around his nose so stinkin' much that one of his fingers slipped.  

Anyways, we actually had a pretty good weekend.  On Friday, we hung out around the house - Jeff was actually home on the earlier side, so that was nice.  On Saturday, I spent some time in the morning cleaning the house and getting our errands done for the week.  On Saturday night, we went out to Perkins for pan-pakes (that's what Jack calls them anyways).  It almost pains me to say this - but we're regulars at Perkins.  They know us when we walk in.  They know that Jack likes the "perky bear" pancakes and that he needs a bowl of crackers immediately.  

So anyways, Perkins was a nuthouse on Saturday night.  I don't know what was going on, but it took forever to get our food.  Jack got bored.  

But honestly, he was such a good little boy and I was really proud of him.  As we were getting dressed to leave, a woman came up to us and told Jack that she was so impressed at how well behaved he was during dinner and then told me that I was doing a good job.  Even though I wasn't particularly stressed out or anything, a comment like that just makes me want to cry - it's so nice to be noticed and encouraged, isn't it?  

Anyways, on Sunday, we went to church and Jack was a bit of a maniac.  My mom asked me if we wanted to go to breakfast, but I opted out as I was pretty sure Jack wouldn't have been on his best behavior.  Instead, we went to pick up his Easter outfit and I asked him if he wanted to go to Target but he told me he wanted to go home and take a nap.  Uh, fine by me!  So, we went home and had some lunch and he actually rested for a long time and was really happy when he woke up.  We did end up going to Target and picking up stuff for dinner and to make our Easter eggs.  Jack actually did a pretty good job - I boiled and dyed the eggs, of course, but he was really careful about how to put on all the stickers.  So, I would consider our success a joint effort:

We also put together all our Easter baskets and we're ready for the week.  I don't think we've really got anything big planned - it's supposed to be pretty cool outside all week, even though that didn't really stop us yesterday from playing outside on the back deck for a little bit - I was grilling hot dogs and Jack was practicing his "sweeping" and "shoveling" skills.  And, of course, this is Easter weekend and so we'll be going to my parents' house for the day on Sunday.  And then, we've got to start thinking about getting ready for New Jersey!  

Daycare vs. Law Firm

I dropped Jack off at daycare this morning, like I do every other Tuesday.  There were the anticipated and expected tears, per usual, but I really think that this is my son's way of manipulating his teachers so that Ms. Lala will come over and give him a hug and a kiss and take him off to do something special - just with her - until he calms down a bit.  He's not stupid, that kid.  Anyways, it was again, total bedlam in Jack's classroom and there was one little boy who'd discovered his ability to scream and was taking full advantage of it.  Every parent has heard it and been through the stage of the shriek.  It's piercing and awful.  Anyways, I left thinking to myself, "man, I'm glad I don't have to deal with that all day."  But then, I got down to my office and got a phone call from another attorney who was screaming and whining about something and it got me thinking - my day as a lawyer is probably no different than Jack's day at school.  And, since Letterman is retiring, in a homage to him, here are the top ten reasons why:

10.  You always have to watch your back.  

        Here's the thing - at daycare, you have to watch yourself to make sure you aren't struck by a flying toy or a flying tackle from the kid who's dad let him watch WWE over the weekend.  In the legal field, my personal policy is "CYA" because at the end of the day, no one else is going to.  

9.  You are responsible for cleaning up your own mess.

      Obviously, at Jack's school, the teachers are really trying to teach the kids to put away the toys when they're done playing with them.  At work, if you screw something up, there's really no one else who's going to fix it for you.  If you get yourself into something, you better be prepared to clean up the mess you made.  

8.  No one really likes to share.  

     I don't care whether its toys, a cheese sandwich, a paralegal, or clients, but no one wants to share.  I live and die by the billable hour and I make my living by being greedy.  Toddlers, maybe don't take it to this extreme, but just try telling one to share his blocks and see how that goes over.  That's how lawyers really feel on the inside when they have to share.  

7.  There's always someone who's shrieking or crying.  

      As evidenced by my experience this morning, Jack gets to deal with the screaming kid all day.  I get to deal with opposing counsel calling me to whine.  I suppose I do have the better end of the deal though.  I can always hang up the phone.  

6.  We all nap after lunch.  

      Just kidding.  Kind of.  

5.  In reality, we all kind of just want to be left alone so we can do what we want.  

     No one really wants to go to that unnecessary meeting or sit still during story time, but we do what we have to so we can have the opportunity to be left alone later to do what we really wanted to do during the boring meeting or stupid story.  If that makes sense.    

4.  At the end of the day, we'd all rather be home with our family.  

     Don't tell me that Jack doesn't know how to tell time.  He's just like Blue.  Both can sense when it's time to go home or be fed.  And the same goes for me - I keep watching the clock thinking about when I can/should/will leave to go home for the day.

3.  There are always going to be people that we just don't get along with.  

     I know that there are kids in Jack's classroom that he doesn't like.  At the end of the day, Jack likes to go around and give his friends hugs goodbye.  But, there's one or two kids that he avoids like the plague.  Consequently, they're also probably the kids that Jack bites, but whatever.  You can't like everybody.  No matter if you're two or thirty-two.  

2.   Sometimes, your only recourse is to cry.  

      Obviously, tears and two-year olds go hand-in-hand.  Kids cry.  A lot.  I don't cry as much as Jack does, of course, but there have been days where I just go into my office, shut the door and let it out.  This is my dirty little secret, but I've been called some pretty awful things in my seven years of practice.  Toddlers - they're more open about it.  If something upsets them, they let you know.  I haven't decided which practice is better, although I don't think I'd come across as professional if I broke down in tears after opposing counsel called me a b*tch or something, you know?

1.  There's ALWAYS someone around us who's sick.  

      Maybe this is on my mind because I've been battling a cold for the past two weeks, but it seems that, inevitably, there's someone in the office who's hacking and coughing away.  I don't think I can go a week without seeing some kind of sign at Jack's school that some kid came down with something - and things I've never even heard of.  Hand, Foot and Mouth disease?  Fifths Disease?  What is this crap?  

So anyways, we have been having a bit of a rough time lately.  I know that part of it is the fact that he's almost two and a half years old, but honestly, I think a large part of his behavior issues stem from the fact that we're not around to parent him most of the time.  Seriously, most of his waking hours are spent at daycare and then, he's with like twelve other kids and there's no way his teachers can devote the kind of one-on-one time to him that's necessary to correct behavior.  So, on Saturday night, we went out to the Mall of America.  We were there for fifteen minutes, maybe, when Jack decided he needed out of his stroller.  Immediately.  This really isn't a problem and, actually, I would prefer it if he would walk around.  However, Jack also decided that he didn't want to wear his shoes any more either.  So, he took those off and threw them.  In the middle of the mall.  I actually lost one.  And then, he threw a temper tantrum for reasons unknown.  I have no clue what he wanted, but he was laying on the ground in the middle of the Mall of America, screaming his ever loving head off.  I picked him up and carried him over to a quiet(er) corner and put him in time-out until he could calm down.  Which he couldn't do, so we left.

Then, on Sunday, Jeff took Jack to Lifetime Fitness to play while he worked out.  This also gives me a little break.  But they were back thirty minutes later because Jack got kicked out of the daycare.  Apparently, he wouldn't stop tackling and roughhousing with the other kids.  Jeff said that when he went in to get Jack, he was actually on the ground, wrestling with a ten-year old boy.  I don't know that it's all his fault, really.  I think that there's a lot of the "mob mentality" going on and he does play rough with Jeff at home and with Wim when they're together.  I've been working at trying to teach him to play nicely with others, not to throw things at other people, and to use our words to express our feelings instead of our hands and fists.  We read books about how you shouldn't bite or hit, and any errant behavior I see gets disciplined but then, here comes the guilt of the working mom - I'm not always there.  This isn't funny and I'm sick of the saying that "boys will be boys" because this is actually something that needs to be fixed.  We have conferences with his teachers next week and both Jeff and I have made it a priority to discuss this issue with them.  We've got a tiny human coming in roughly three months.  I don't need my two-year old thinking it's funny or acceptable to body slam her.

In any case, it's finally spring here in Minnesota.  The snow is melting and we can go outside without having to bundle up.  I took Jack outside on Sunday afternoon (after the Lifetime Fitness incident) to play while Jeff got in a quick run.  I took down his bike that he got from Grandma Jersey last year, and he's finally big enough to ride it - and it surprised me that he knew what to do too.

And that was pretty much the most exciting thing we did the whole weekend.  I had two trials last week and I was supposed to have one yesterday, so I had been pretty busy working to get everything ready.  By the time the weekend hit, I was ready to absolutely crash, and so I did.

Anyways, Jack continues to love the "Happy" song.  He asks for it all the time.  He's like some kind of monkey when I sing the song and he'll do anything you tell him to do - with one exception:

Jeff believes we may be raising a sociopath.  We've got a pretty low-key weekend coming up again, which I'm happy about.  I'd like to try and get a few more things checked off the to-do list.  Nana bought Baby Girl her first "pink" outfit too.  I want to have her room finished up in the next few weeks in case she decides to arrive early.  I had Chinese food yesterday and my fortune was something to the effect of "something special will happen to you on this day in three months' time" and I've decided that means she's coming.

And that's it for now.  Hopefully we can get outside some more to practice our bike-riding skills and maybe, just maybe, we can head to the park for some more playtime too.