Thursday, December 13, 2012

My present is presence...

Ha! Get it?

I said the title of this post to my mom in a conversation last night and thought I was very clever (you can laugh) so it's getting double-duty by appearing on the blog. But 'tis true.

There is something about this season, where on one hand you are full of joy and thankfulness and then a second later you can be overwhelmed with feelings of ohmygosh twelve more days till Christmas and there are no lights up outside, less than 50% of the gifts have been purchased, and the only gifts that have been wrapped were those that had to be shipped off (kudos to me for at least getting that done!).

But really. It's so easy to be overwhelmed. And dare I say, even more so when you've got a little one in the mix. But that little one, oh my. That boy - he is so demanding of my time in such a good way. I want to be on the floor wrestling with him every minute I can, or reading the books he's so carefully picked out and toddled back to me with in his chubby hands, signaling his wish to read said book.

For someone who finds delight in the hustle and bustle - the decorating, the wrapping, the planning, this year is so different. And while I still love those things, I am surprised at how easily and quickly I have lowered my expectations and let things go. Because there really is no greater present I can give my family - than to just be present.

And I think that makes us all feel pretty darn jolly. Happy holidays!

Our season so far - as seen through the lens of Instagram;)

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Ten months...


Oh hey! Look at us - ten months...I can't believe it! It's been a rough week and how I'm sitting here busting out this blog post, I do not know. Tobin's had his first fever and we got over that hump to be followed by his first bout of diarrhea (too much information? sorry...), but anyways, that's where we're at. We had a doctor's appointment yesterday that was supposed to be for his fever, but of course by the time we got there the fever was dropping and he had no symptoms and was as happy as could be. We turned it into our long overdue nine month appointment and I have real stats now - the kiddo is holding steady between 25-26 pounds at 25.5 on the nose and he's 31 inches long. I think he's keeping the weight down thanks to all the walking he's been doing lately.

Tobin and his partner in crime...
Yup, walking. Tobin - oh, Tobin. You started walking at 9.5 months exactly. You are indeed a crazy boy. You have been dabbling in the pulling up and trying to walk phase for a while and I thought you were happy there, but you woke from a nap one day and it was a whole new ballgame and you had decided you were going to walk - it was written across your face. In fact, I called Ty and told him "He woke up and has decided he's going to walk." And sure enough - you did and you haven't looked back. Now, of course you fall plenty. But you can walk around the bottom floor of the house - and have done many a stretch from the living room all the way back to the washer/dryer area without dropping. And, you're fast. I think if you would slow down you'd fall less...just a hint;)

I apologize in advance for sharing this video twice, here and on Facebook. The quality sucks but I'm posting here for posterity's sake. Also, it must be said - why do I sound so ridiculous?



In other fun developments you wave bye/hi when you feel like it - not at all consistently - but when you feel like it. And you clap, but it's kind of backwards, so it looks more like you're trying to wipe your hands off, it's funny. Noises and the imitation of them is your favorite and you are currently enjoying growling or clearing your throat loudly. It's very becoming when we're out places, thank you for that!

Evenings at the park and swings - a winning combo!

This last month brought with it Tobin's first Thanksgiving - which was much too fun and thankfully, also very relaxing! And now we're just THREE weeks away from Christmas...oh and then we're about SIX weeks away from a certain someone's first birthday. Pass the tissues, folks. I'm already picking out songs for his one year slideshow and planning a blurb book. You know, in all my spare time;)

Tobin and Grandma at Thanksgiving. Tobin and I share the same feelings about food, obvs.
Ten months and counting...and we're having a ball!