Single Parenting

First things first, Jon and I spent a really nice night out last night with a number of our friends to celebrate Jenn's upcoming birthday. We stuffed ourselves silly at Straits before heading to see Valentine's Day (I enjoyed it, but wasn't expecting much to begin with). Logan's Aunt Catherine drove down to babysit Logan for the evening and the two of them had a wonderful time playing and eating ice cream and staying up late, reading 10 more bedtime stories than usual. :) Thank you again Catherine! We are so glad you were able to come down and spend some time with Loganito (and allow us some time off!).

So, today. Day 1 of single parenting week is now done. WHEW! :)

After we dropped Jon off at the airport, Logan and I hung around for a little bit to watch several of the airplanes take off and/or land. He was VERY mad at me when we finally had to leave. So, what to do? Onto our favorite donut shop, since I can't very well screw up the weekend tradition that Jon has started, now can I? ;-)

After a tasty donut and milk, we headed over to the hospital for Logan's Sibling Preparation class. I had orginally thought I wouldn't bother signing up for one of these, but a co-worker of mine talked me into it. The class is built for older children, about 3-8 yrs is the range, so I was afraid it would all be over Logan's head and not worth the time nor money. But, my co-worker said she still took her daughter (and then son) to the class when they were about 2-2.5 yrs old and felt it was still worth it. She mentioned a few things that they did that sounded pretty cool (mind you, her experience was up at a hospital in Redmond, but I figured the classes were all pretty similar in content and structure) - like learning to hold a baby (with dolls), swaddle a baby, keep the babies safe, ways the siblings can "help" and that it's OKAY if a baby is still crying, even after being changed, fed, burped, etc.

In addition to all that, we watched a short video, which Logan was only half interested in, sat and listened to a story, which Logan was only half interested in, and made the baby's first birthday card, which Logan LOVED.



He was also extremely interested in holding the baby (doll), but would NOT let me help him swaddle or show him how to hold the baby (at one point he got up to run away from me, dangling the baby by one arm), and thought it was REALLY funny to touch and poke at the baby's eyes.

I guess we have some work cut out for us. ;-)

At the end, he got his own "I'm a Big Brother" t-shirt and diploma for completing the class (with coloring book). He was by far the youngest kid there but I'm still glad we went. My only regret was that the maternity ward tour portion of the class did not happen due to the current H1N1 concerns. :( They said that we won't be able to bring the kids to visit once the baby is born as well - although when I called the hospital to book the class, I actually spoke to the lady about that and she said as long as we have proof of his vaccine, then he'd be allowed in to visit his baby brother. So, hopefully the lady on the phone was right rather than the teacher today! We'll see....

Logan was pretty beat (as was I!) after the class, so we headed straight home and got ready for nap time. He really fought me but finally fell asleep and slept a good 3.5 hours. Which was WONDERFUL because I got to rest myself, catching up on a few TV shows and even sneaking in an hour nap in the end (thank goodness, I was really beat!).

After nap time the two of us played and cuddled on my/Jon's bed while Toy Story ran in the background. Once it was over, we took off to the grocery store to get some much needed supplies for the week. It was pretty late in the evening since his nap ran so long but I risked it anyway, and I'm glad we did. He was a champ and "helped" me pick out groceries (he was VERY insistent on fresh strawberries and Goldfish crackers) and even helped me carry a few into the house once we got home.

We fixed up dinner (where he ate an ENORMOUS amount of food) and watched a few clips of the Winter Olympics that I'm severely behind in. He was especially interested in the Men's Snowboarding competition - exclaiming, "He's FLYING!" And he was totally right - those guys are ridiculous on the slopes!

All choked up

I've noticed since I was pregnant, I've become increasingly emotional during various events. I've always been a pretty emotional person anyway, but boy when those crazy pregnancy hormones kicked in, I found myself weeping at bubble gum commercials for God's sake! And, while I wasn't too interested in babies beforehand, I suddenly had this enormous love and affection for the little one growing inside of me, who I had yet to meet.

So it was no surprise, that once Logan was born, that emotional bond I felt with him increased ten-fold. Suddenly, any little event would trigger a surge of love, pride, affection and happiness.

And, I would get choked up.

Any new development of our little man. A smile, a laugh, sitting up, wearing a brace, then not wearing a brace, rolling over, jumping, kicking, finding his voice, finding his hands, finding his tongue, finding his feet, finding his penis, watching the dogs play, pulling my hair, reaching out to me, laughing uncontrollably as he swiftly crawled to the dogs' water bowl to splash in, pulling up and trying to walk or contemplating how to get back down.

You name it, I get choked up.

But, it's not just those "little" things that Logan does, that gets me choked up.

Seeing a hip-hop popper from Texas break down in tears of joy when he got picked to compete in Vegas, and eventually move his way through to the finals - and actually WIN "So You Think You Can Dance" - was touching, endearing and just made you want to give the kid a big hug. Sappy, I know. Yet I couldn't help but get choked up.

Watching Phelps ROAR when his teammate swam the fastest split in history; I guess you could say my motherly instinct kicked in. I swelled with pride. For Phelps, for Lezak, for the United States of America. For all boys, young and old, who work hard to make their dreams come true. Yes, I got choked up.

And, listening to Michelle talk the other night, both lovingly and respectfully of her parents, her children and of course, her husband. That entire family is nothing but hope and inspiration. And, I got choked up.

Logan and I, together, watched Barack's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention tonight. I realize he doesn't even have the faintest idea how we were witnessing some of the most powerful history in the making. Still, I looked down at my son, gave him a quick little hug, and told him that man speaking on the screen that he was watching so quietly and intently; that man was going to be the next President of the United States for the next eight years.

The first eight years of Logan's life.

And he was going to make a difference.

And, I got choked up.

Just the two of us

Jon left for San Diego today, to help celebrate his sister Catherine's 30th birthday this weekend (Happy Birthday Catherine!). Logan and I decided to stay home -- my back's not up to another road trip this soon after LA, and we also have our buddy Robert's 1st birthday party to attend to this weekend! :)

Though Jon is never one for drawn out goodbyes, I know he will be missing us this weekend. He has these rare Daddy moments that are sometimes out of place for Jon, which just touches my heart. The other evening, Jon came home "early" (10:30pm) from his D&D game night, and of course, Logan was already down for the evening. Still, Jon pulled him out of his crib, laid him in our bed and laid down next to him for awhile, before putting him back in his crib for the rest of the night. Luckily for all of us (mostly Jon), Logan didn't wake the entire time Jon did this.... and as much as I didn't care for him risking waking our little guy up, it really melted my heart to see him bond with our son. I usually give Jon quite a bit of shit (on various things, it doesn't really matter, does it?), but we both know he's taken to being a Number 1 Daddy for Logan from the very start.

Our little guy has been doing great sleeping through the night - usually a full 10 hrs uninterrupted - which has been just wonderful for Jon and I. It started regularly about the time he started crawling, so I'm sure the extra activity is helping him sleep more soundly. At any rate, I hope the trend continues, especially this weekend while I'm on parent duty by myself! *knocks on wood*

We had a nice dinner with a number of our friends tonight (the Hicksons, Jodoins and Chouns) and then watched the 2008 Olympics' Opening Ceremony for a few hours before calling it a night. We're looking forward to the weekend where we can just relax and watch the many summer games that will be playing for the next two weeks! :)

All are outstanding, but here are a few of my fave shots:

Go USA! :)