Churkey and cheese

This week, R has had a come-and-go fever. It started last Saturday night. It seemed to come out of nowhere. R never complained. If we had thought about it, he wasn't quite himself all day Saturday, but it wasn't until he laid down on the floor in the kitchen and I noticed his glassy eyes that I realized he was fighting something. Tylenol and a good night's sleep drove it away ... until Tuesday afternoon when it came back again the same way. I stayed home with him on Wednesday, and we watched too much TV but also painted and colored (R made "maps" for me and A) and went to the park for a little while. He seems all better now.

This has been a big week for R. He learned to throw a Frisbee. Today, he taught himself how to whistle. He has been doing a lot of cooking and baking - really helping! He loves to make French toast (he cracks the eggs, stirs up the batter, uses the spatula to flip the toast in the pan) and he helped A make brownies today. We no longer have to let him "help" while we cringe as he spills and licks batter and drops in eggshell bits. The other night, he uttered a beautiful and heartfelt and perfectly spoken grace before dinner. And, this afternoon, R tried riding his bike without training wheels! He got frustrated pretty quickly, but I'm so proud of him for trying.

The biggest development, though, is that he's finally learned to wipe himself! (Insert Kristen Happy Dance here) When I heard about our town's requirements for kids entering kindergarten, that was the one that made me nervous. R has no trouble writing letters and numbers and he's on the verge of all-out reading (he can sound out pretty much anything). But until now, he has shown virtually no interest in taking responsibility for his personal hygiene. (Why do it yourself if Mommy will take care of it for you?) So this is a huge relief. :-)

All this growing up is wonderful and bittersweet for me. So, when R referred to turkey as "churkey" tonight, it made me so happy. It's nice to have at least one vestige of his babyhood.

I also love when he tells me that he wants to live with me forever.

What's going on

Because I can't seem to pull together my thoughts enough to write a real post, here are some tidbits from my life at the moment...

A and I are looking at music programs for R for the fall. R is very musical and is interested in several instruments, but I think we're going to start him off in a group piano lesson/singing type thing that also teaches about music in general, recognizing chords, understanding rhythm and tempo, etc. Ultimately, I think the guitar will be his instrument of choice (just like his daddy), but I think starting with singing and piano will be easier for him. We're also looking at some kind of sports activity for him to try - most likely soccer.

I had to start using a BlackBerry for work (I fought against it for years because I hate the idea of constantly being available for work, but when every other director in my department had one and I didn't, it was embarrassing - because I'm the IT Director!). But I found Bible software for the BlackBerry, and it's been great! I read the Bible on the subway to and from work. So I get my daily Bible reading in, plus I don't have to carry the real thing and add extra weight to my backpack. When you're carrying a laptop, handbag, lunch, notebook, tissues, gum, etc. on your back every day, you start to get very conscious of any added weight. (I even dump out all my change before leaving for work - just a few coins make a difference!)

The bathroom project is done! Well, except for the final painting, which A has to do. But we have a vanity and toilet and working tub and shower, and it's so beautiful. It's the nicest room in our house now!

I can't believe the summer is nearly half over already. A and I feel badly because we really haven't done any big, special things yet with R. We've had our rocket outings and gone swimming (in our pool and at our town reservoir) and gone to the movies to see Wall-e (which we LOVED) and gone strawberry picking, but that's really it. We do have a big vacation coming up soon, but we need to start planning some day trips for the weekends. A wants to take R to a nearby water/amusement park and we'd also like to go visit my hometown of Plymouth, MA, to check out the Mayflower ship and some of the historic houses, maybe even Plimoth Plantation (which I highly recommend if you're up this way). It would be fun to go to the drive-in, too, which is really close to my dad's house. The weekends always seem to get eaten up with errands and little things, so we have to make an effort to do something out of the ordinary. One thing we've been promising our friends is hosting a "Margaritas and Chicken Wings" party. A has had cravings for these for awhile and keeps telling everyone, so we need to pony up. :-)

What fun things do you all have planned for the rest of the summer?

Back

I'm back from my friend's father's wake and funeral. We drove down to Connecticut on Tuesday, stayed overnight at a hotel, and drove back yesterday afternoon. We were going to stay and hang out at the lunch after the burial, but poor R had had enough. He got to swim in the hotel pool for an hour on Tuesday, but other than that, he had to behave, be quiet, and sit still for way too long over the last two days, so we needed to get him home. We are all completely exhausted. I can't believe I have to work today. I'm in a complete haze.

I'm always amazed at how much a funeral affects me. I knew my friend's dad and loved him, and my heart is just so full for my friend and her sister and mom. And, for the two sweet new babies who will never meet him on Earth. Between the babies coming last week and the wake and funeral and everything, I'm emotionally spent. Last night, I made the mistake of watching "Supernanny" and ended up sobbing on A's shoulder. Everything just came out at once.

And, it's so weird to try to get back to "normal" life again. I just want to be with my friend and hold the babies and help in any way I can. It was painful saying goodbye to her at the cemetery to head home. We kept walking away, then coming back together to talk about little things. I didn't want to leave. But I know she's in good hands this week with her mom and sister and the rest of her family. :-)

Thank goodness I have a big vacation coming up soon! I definitely need it.

Roller coasters

Tonight, we headed to see my friend and her new family at the hospital. (I was itching to hold the babies!) The babies are so beautiful and sweet, and R was absolutely in love with the baby girl in particular. He kept begging to hold her and was so gentle and amazed when he did.

When we arrived tonight, my friend told me what she had just found out today: her dad passed away last night at nearly the same time as the babies were born. He's been battling brain cancer for almost two years, and we knew that this week would probably be his last because he was going downhill very quickly, but it was still a shock. So much joy and sorrow all at once. It's been an emotional roller coaster to say the least.

But, to keep with my friend's attitude, I'm posting some happy pictures from today with the babies and last weekend at our local carnival.




Proud Granny J holding her new grandson:


R, so excited to hold a very sweet girl:

Babies!

My best friend had her beautiful babies today. I got to be there for everything, and I feel so blessed to have been part of it. It was a long day, but the end result was two big and healthy twins (boy and girl) and a very happy (and tired) new family. Praise God! And, may my dear friends get some sleep tonight.

Yikes!

That's lightning hitting my office building - when I was in it. We felt the building rumble a few times, and I actually saw lightning hit other buildings in Boston this week. We've had crazy thunderstorms every day. Massachusetts is the new Florida!

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Hope you had a wonderful Independence Day!