A Moment in Time

Last night I walked into the living room to see this:

Aiden, leaning over August's playpen and reading to him. Totally unprompted. And totally digging it. 

He just picked up one of the board books and started reading to the baby. And August, smiled and cooed and kicked in excitement as Aiden read him not one, but two books. 

When the story was over, Aiden turned to me and said, "Mommy, each day I'm gonna read him a different book so he could get smarter and smarter." Totally unprompted. And totally digging it. 

I've been reading to Aiden every single day since he was, well August's age. (He's got two bookcases overflowing with books and I still don't have enough space for all of them!) Even now that he's in the second grade and fluently reads chapter books on his own, I still read to him. It's our thing. I pick a book one week, he picks a book the next week, and I read a couple chapters of the book to him every single day. I love it because I have his undivided attention, he loves it because he gets to cuddle up with me and listen to my best storytelling voice, and... it's our thing. 

Last night, I got to witness him passing on the tradition to his baby brother. 

And then my heart exploded. 

There are moments when I just want to freeze time... when all is right in my world... when, no matter what else is going on with me or around, that one moment makes everything okay... when I can take a second to not think of all the times I screwed up or all the things that I need to "fix"... when I can take a second to not worry about life and the future and goals and grinding... when I can honestly say -- with confidence -- that everything's gonna be alright...

Last night, I experienced was one of those moments. Because, right there, in that moment, I felt like I was pretty good at this motherhood thing. 

Ever have a moment like that?

August Kingston, Two Months Old

I can't believe it's been two months since I gave birth to Baby Delicious! Not gonna lie, the days have been long. Very long. And tiring. And emotionally draining at times. But it's been absolutely amazing. And he's just... perfect. And sweet and cuddly and lovable.

I'm in love.

So in love.

August's likes:

• Smiling, cooing, and "talking" with me, Aiden, HEB, and his mobile animals
• Ninja posing
• Breastmilk. Lots and lots of breastmilk 
• Taking naps in his stroller
• Playing with his tongue (he discovered it and can't get enough of it)
• Making raspberry sounds
• Sticking his tongue out like a little lizard
• His pacifier (which is weird because he refused to take it for the first month of his life because he would only suck at the breast)

August's dislikes:

• Taking long naps. (I don't know what long naps ever did to August, but he seriously has something against them.)
• Whenever I wipe his neck or face with a wash rag
• Extended tummy time

He's now sleeping through the night, going to bed at around 10/11pm and waking up around 5am. During the day, he's a pretty chill baby -- alert, active, taking in his surroundings, cooing, smiling, and "talking" nonstop.

Right now, I'm knee-deep in trying to figure out his childcare situation for when I go back to work next month. I'm meeting with families and interviewing nannies for a possible nanny share and Aiden is not here for it. ("Mommy, I don't feel good about leaving August with somebody else. What if they're a bad guy or something? Can't you just take him to work with you?)

Right now, he's nursing less and drinking breastmilk from the bottle more. Because I'm trying to mimic the schedule we'll have when I get back to work.

But as much as I'm trying to prepare things for when I get back to work, I'm trying to cherish this time with my baby.

I'm trying to soak it all up. To remember the curve of his lips when he smiles, to remember the sounds of his coos, to visualize his favorite ninja pose or how his eyes widens when he's studying his hands (or anything else that he finds interesting).

Because the days may be long, but the time is flying by so quickly. I mean, he will never be two months again. And, as much as I wanna see how he'll grow into who he's called to be, I kinda wanna freeze time. And bottle it all up. And give him all the hugs and kisses and cuddles I can get.

Because he's just that precious.

The Things Our Children Think About Us...

A&A

There's this questionnaire going around on Facebook where parents have to ask their kids questions about their parenting style, likes, dislikes, and other things. The questions must be unprompted so as to elicit an honest response from the child and to see what the child actually thinks of the parent.

I thought it was pretty cool so I asked Aiden the questions, and since I want to save his responses forever and ever, I decided to publish them here.

Aiden, Age 8:
1. What is something I always say to you?
Listen in school. Don't talk back. And that you love me.

2. What makes me happy?
When I follow the directions in school.

3. What makes me sad?
When I don't listen in school.

4. How do I make you laugh?
By saying funny stuff about August. And singing funny songs to him.

5. What was I like as a child?
You were a good, kind person.

6. How old am I?
Easy! 31.

7. How tall am I?
Like 4 feet or something.

8. What is my favorite thing to do?
Play with me and August.

9. What do I do when you're not around?
Talk about me with [HEB]. And maybe hangout with your friends where kids can't go.

10. What am I really good at?
Teaching me how to learn stuff.

11. What am I not very good at?
Racing.

Me: Ummm... Aiden, I'm actually very good at racing. I used to be on the track team. And I could beat you in a race any day. 

Aiden: Yeah right! 

12. What do I do for a job?
You work as a Dean at a school.

13. What is my favorite food?
Sausage, egg, and cheese on a roll.

14. What do you enjoy doing with me?
Playing games.

15. How much do I weigh?
Like 40 something pounds or something.

16. Who do I love the most?
August... and me.

17. What's your favorite thing about me?
That you're funny.

bros.

It's so interesting to see what our kids think of us. Especially because, as parents, we spend so much time thinking about the one thing we're doing "wrong" even though we're doing thousands of things right. But, every now and then, our children let us know that we're doing a really good job.

Cheers to that!