Reflections on 2

My "baby" has been 2 for 2 days now. Hard to believe. I'd say overall this year has been easier than the first year. Don't get me wrong, it came with its own set of challenges, but I feel like I've kind of grown into motherhood this year. It just feels more natural.

And Spencer, well, the changes in him are just incredible. He's such a chatterbox now. I don't have to worry when he's in a different room but he's constantly giving me the play by play. "Bus" "Crash" "Boom" "I fall down" I love the talking. And he's such a sponge – he picks up all kinds of words. The other day I came home from work and he opened up a book and showed me "nut cracker". Seriously? It amazes me.

He's still incredibly loving. He loves hugs and kisses. He loves to read books just like his mama. He likes to help out around the house. He's such a boy – loves to tackle us, play with trucks, and dig in the dirt.

I feel incredibly blessed and lucky to have such a fun, smart, lovable son. Happy birthday Spence! I can't wait to see what's in store for us in the next year!

The Big 2

The second birthday is just days away and the celebrations have begun. Yesterday we had a party for Spencer that rivaled our wedding in size. Our wedding was small for a wedding and his party was big for a little kid party. But, like our wedding, it was a confluence of old friends, new friends, and family who we rarely get the chance to see all in one place.

I don't quite feel the same emotional rush I did when he turned 1. My baby hasn't been a baby for while now. But, he's so much fun. And so darn cute. I want to freeze him in time and just stay here in this moment.

Crying while we sing Happy Birthday. Notice the hand of red icing – he was not happy about his dirty hand.

 

Happy again and almost 2!

(Lots more photos by Typepad is being sooooo slow tonight. It's painful to upload them.)

Things I’d rather be doing than sitting at O’Hare

• Cleaning the bathroom (because then at least I'd be home)
• Making cute snacks for Spencer's birthday party
• Assembling favor bags for that same party
• Watching last night's episode of The Island
• Finding my swimsuit for tomorrow morning's swim class
• Lying in bed in total darkness

Things I might soon be doing here at O'Hare to waste another 2 hours:

• Eating McDonald's
• Perusing gossip rags
• Buying a snowglobe of the Chicago skyline

Good times!

Sick Day

Spencer woke up last night with croup. I heard what sounded like a seal barking in his room and immediately the word "croup" popped into my head. It's the first time he's had it and I'm not sure how or why I had croup knowledge embedded in this head of mine, but I knew exactly what it was. Weird how we store nuggets of info away that we can retrieve when we need them. 

I'm taking my first sick day since he was born to stay home with him. This is definitely the sickest he's ever been and I didn't feel right leaving him home today with the nanny. So, it's a day of napping, cartoons, and steam for us. It's rather nice in a way – he's so cuddly today. He just wants to curl up on the couch next to me and burrow his head into chest. I'm going to savor it.

But, before the croup struck, we got a chance to go pick some pumpkins. I'm going to repeat what I said last year, but I think pumpkin patches are the most perfect photo setting. I love how photos turn out with bright orange pumpkins as a backdrop. 

Back to back to back

Back from the beach.
Back to work.
Back to real estate – we're in contract! Moving! Yippee!

Had a really fab birthday celebration in Florida. My boys really treat me well. We had sun, splashing, napping, and yummy dinners. And I love my kindle! (I didn't know if I would since I have such a book fetish, but I really don't feel like I'm missing anything on the Kindle. Good-bye book clutter!)