Jack Update

My blog-friend, Emily, is very good about writing posts chronicling things her kids are doing. I'm going to steal her idea because I've been saving up a bunch of things Jack has recently been up to and meaning to record them.

Jack is now 20 months old! I'm not sure how much he weighs right now (somewhere around 24-25 lbs) but he is definitely more and more a toddler and less and less a baby. That makes me sad but we've also been having so much fun with his emerging personality.

--Jack LOVES Elmo. I may have mentioned in previous posts that he will not pay attention to any TV shows but recently, he's become a big fan of Elmo. He points to the TV and says his version of "Elmo." Originally, we were just DVR-ing Sesame Street episodes but he wants us to fast forward through any part not exclusively starring Elmo so we recently went and bought some Elmo's World videos.

--For Halloween, Jack is going to be Elmo. This was not by plan...his parents were a little slow in planning and acquiring a costume this year and went out at the last minute last weekend and basically wound up with Elmo. At least it's appropriate for his current tastes! Pictures to come!

--Talking! He is saying more and more words. He likes to say "night night" and the other day, was trying to give Bailey (the dog) a big hug when she was lying on the ottoman. She wasn't having any of it and moved to another couch. He followed her and laid his head on her and said "night night." One of my other favorites is when he will imitate and say "green beans."

--Lately, Jack has been very into cuddling with his mommy. This is a relatively new development from a kid who has always wanted to go right into his bed at bedtime. I've been enjoying some cuddly moments in the rocker before bed with him.

--He's learning animal sounds. Basically, he only does a dinosaur growl but it is so cute. He puts his hands up near his face like little claws and growls. He will also point to the farm where there are cows on our way to daycare every day and say "moo." However, he says this whether there are cows out there or not so I'm not sure whether he thinks the field says moo or the cow. :-)

--He likes to point to wedding pictures of me and Jared and point out "Mama and Daddy." He also points to pictures of himself and says "baby."

--The other day, Jared stayed home from work so our morning routine was a little different. When I loaded him up for daycare, he started crying and saying "MamaDada" and it was the first time I heard him voice a preference for staying home with us. I think he thought it was a weekend. It warmed my heart that he wanted to be with us but also shot pangs of guilt through me that I wasn't staying home with him!

--If I ask him where the baby is, he will pat my tummy.

--He is OBSESSED with the computer. He knows how to turn on Jared's computer monitor so there is no tricking him into thinking the computer is "off" anymore. He has also learned how to climb onto the barstools in the kitchen, which gives me and Jared a great deal of heartburn. He does, however, look pretty cute sitting at the counter like a big boy.

--We've been working on time-outs lately. Unfortunately, we've spent a good amount of time in time-out during this process. Sometimes he will deliberately do something he knows will land him there and will happily trot off to time out, almost like he wanted to go. Other times, he is less than thrilled to sit there. But, he seems to understand it is a punishment.

I love this little boy and I'm getting to the place in my pregnancy where I am so excited to meet my new little baby but also struggling with being sad about Jack growing up and how I will handle two kids. I can't imagine I could possibly love someone as much as I love Jack!

Contentment

36 weeks pregnant! I NEVER thought we'd make it this far in a pregnancy, so I am absolutely thrilled. It's looking more and more likely that we will have a full-term baby and, even if Baby Charlie was born tomorrow, we would likely get to bring him right home. Now, instead of worrying about a protracted hosptial stay, I'm getting more worried about what it will be like to be vaulted into instant baby-dom. When you have a baby in the hospital, one of the silver linings is that you do get a little time to catch up on your sleep before they send you home with a baby. :-)

I've been DVR-ing old ER episodes. I was actually never a big ER watcher; I liked the show but never watched it consistently enough to keep up on the story lines. A couple months back, I found that a channel was starting the series from the first episode, so I've been recording them. I was watching the episode in which Dr. Greene dies the other night. It starts with him writing a list of all the things he wanted to do in his lifetime and ends with his last days in Hawaii with his wife and two daughters. It got me thinking about what things would go on that list for me. I realized pretty quickly that the things that I have always truly dreamed of doing--I've already achieved. Now, that doesn't mean there aren't things that I would like to do if given the chance but I'm pretty fulfilled. In a nutshell, my whole life, I wanted to be a wife and mother. My marriage and my son pretty much fill me up. Of course, I dream of all the things I would like to see my children do and think of how Jared and I will be when we are grandparents, etc. but the fact that I am a wife and a mother--well, it's enough for me.

As I type this, I'm watching my husband bathe my little boy. And, I'm happy to say, it's all I need.