Fabulous Day!

So... Today is my birthday. And. It. Was. Fabulous. The perfect day, from start to now ('cause it isn't finished yet). Robbie (and the dog and the husband) let me sleep until about 7:15. I woke up to a happy baby babble and listened to it for about fifteen minutes until my bladder propelled me out of bed. I stood at the door for a few minutes, watching Robbie through the crack. He spied me after a few seconds and played peek-a-boo.

We had breakfast and opened some presents and cards. Justin got me a very thoughtful necklace. I almost cried when I opened it because I could tell all the thought he had put into it. If I spelled it all out for you, it would sound corny and cliche. And it was. Perfectly cliche. He bought me a necklace with a Hershey Kiss pendant; whenever we close our emails, we sign them "Kisses and Love." And now I will always have a "Kiss" with me. See? I told you it was perfectly corny and cliche.

We went to the Boston College game with some fabulous friends and, responsibly, left Robbie and Jack with a trusted babysitter. Trusted and very, very brave. Elena had both boys for nine hours. And she bathed both of them. And had them both asleep when we came home at 7:30. If you need her number, let me know. She is amazing. I don't know that I (mother-of-the-year that I am) could have handled two kids (one 16 months and one 18 months) for that long.

The game was really great - at least the second half was! And it was a game right down to the end. Like the last play. And, in honor of my birthday, BC won. Fabulous!

We made our way back home, and went to ...Cakes, where Amy picked up an amazing birthday cake for me. I think this store may be my new addiction. Cupcakes. Muffins. Coffee. Calzones. Fabulous. Absolutely fabulous. Then it was off to Tango for steak and sangria. And more sangria. And birthday cake. And a great combination of friends. I sometimes get nervous introducing people from different aspects of my life, but it worked out perfectly. It was good timing, too, since Amy an Allie are both going on the girls' weekend to Montreal in three weeks.

We came home to my second floral delivery of the day. The first was from my mother-in-law, who sent me a gorgeous fall bouquet. My neighborhood florist had delivered these (from my fabulous brother) on her way home. It's so nice to be friends with the florist around the corner. She called to make sure someone would be home to get them.

So now, with sangria making my fingers move quickly (if not accurately) on the keyboard, I'm going to sign off and enjoy the last four hours of my birthday.

Thirty-One

This time last year, I was (admittedly) a little panicked about turning thirty. I tried to cram in doing things one more time while I was in my twenties ("This is the last time I'll go to the gym in my twenties," "This is the last time you'll kiss me in my twenties"...). After all, our twenties are when so much of life happens. It seems much more defining than the first two decades. For me, it was really when all of my major life events happened: I graduated college, I finished grad school, I got my first "real" job, I met Justin, I moved to Georgia, I got engaged, I got married, I moved to Boston, I got laid off for the first (and, please God, only) time, I got into Boston College, I got pregnant, I had a baby. It was a pretty busy decade.

And I'm sitting on the couch in my freshly cleaned house (mostly because I was going crazy searching for tomorrow's football tickets, which were, incidentally, on the floor of the closet; I should have asked Justin four hours earlier than I did), doing a little reflecting on the past year. I don't know that there have been that many "defining" moments, but it's my favorite year so far. There was the time I spent appreciating my family and relishing the quiet. Finishing up grad school (surely for the last time) and walking at my graduation. Getting a new job, my dream job. Spending four weeks in Lexington over the summer. Swimming at The Res when Justin got home from work. Running my first 5K.

Maybe my twenties were just the foundation. I know they say, "Life starts at thirty." There were so many wonderful things before thirty that shouldn't be discounted. But, you know what? I don't think I'd go back to twenty-nine for anything.

And, since I know you're dying to ask, yes. There is one thing that I want to do before I turn thirty-one. I'm going to finish the damn stocking that's been in my grandmother's sewing box half-completed for five years. Just have to sew the back part to the front part, and I have 96 minutes to do it!

But before I go, you should all know what a thoughtful husband I have. He started celebrating my birthday weekend early with a dozen roses. I hope you are all so lucky in love!

Late Nights

Robbie had to stay at daycare late tonight. Super late. 7:30 late. I haven't gone that long in the day without seeing him since I was taking classes last spring. I rushed all the way from Lawrence to get there, even though I knew he would be asleep. And he was. Zhining was waiting for me, so I didn't have to ring the doorbell. She slowly opened the door to the room where Robbie was sleeping, and we peaked in on him.

Robbie rolled over and briefly opened his eyes. He slowly closed them. And then quickly opened them. If he was coordinated to jump to his feet, that's what he would have done. He ran to the side of the crib with an award-winning smile on his face. It was one of those I've-been-waiting-to-see-you-all-day-and-you're-finally-here smiles. I picked him up out of the crib and he threw himself at me. Then he pulled back from me and just looked at me, a slow grin spreading across his face. He touched my cheek like he wasn't really sure I was there and then hugged me again (Cuddle Baby is really working!).

I'm not saying that I would want to have Open House every week. But, it was nice to be gone long enough for Robbie to really miss me. Usually when I pick him up from daycare, he opens the door, looks at me, and runs the other way. But not tonight. Tonight, I was the one person he wanted to see. And, at the end of the day, that's all that matters.

Cuddle Baby

As you may have guessed, Robbie does not have any tolerance for cuddling. He's down for kisses because they are quick and he can be on his way. I also thinks he gets a kick out of how kisses sound. But hugs? Forget about it. They require actually stopping what he is doing. He can kiss and walk, which is acceptable.

I, on the other hand, have always dreamed of having a baby (err... little boy) who loved to give hugs and cuddle. So, being a mom who likes to conform others to fit her expectations, I have begun training Robbie to cuddle with me. How? (I know you're out there! The other moms with kids who don't want to give hugs) Easy. I made it a game that involves rapid movement, one of Robbie's favorite things.

I started a few days ago hugging him close to me, saying "Be a cuddle baby!", and swinging from side to side so his legs bounced around. There are a few key things here. First, it was important to hold him close the way I always pictured my little boy hugging me (you guessed it: head on my shoulder). This way, he knows what to do when I say the trigger word (can you tell I'm the one who trained the dog?). This leads me to the next point: you need to have a name for the game. For us, it's "Cuddle Baby". This lets Robbie know what he should do when you say that word. Kind of like he's figured out how to bow when Zhining says, "Thank you" in Chinese. And, finally, I swing him from side to side because he thinks it's hilarious. That way we both get something fun out of the experience.

Is it possible that this actually works? Yes. Well, most of the time. There are times when Robbie is too busy to even think about Cuddle Baby. But then there are the times that he thinks it's fun, and I love that he leaves his head on my shoulder for a few extra seconds after we finish playing. Soon enough, he'll be crawling into my lap to cuddle while we read books together... Right?

Daddy

Justin worries that Robbie doesn't miss him when he's gone. Robbie doesn't always look up and come running when Justin walks in the house. After all, sometimes a toy that lights up and plays music is more exciting than a dad walking up the stairs...

I've been trying to convince Justin that this is not true, that Robbie does really miss him and love him and know exactly who he is. But, what do I know? I'm just the mom who listens to the kid say Dada every day Justin's gone. I'm just the mom who watches Robbie lift up the sheets and look for Justin.

The proof came today. I was in the kitchen getting dinner ready when Robbie came running down the hall with Justin's shirt in hand, gleefully yelling, "Dada! Dada! Dada!" Now if only I'd caught this on video for real proof...

Repeat

I've been waiting for this phase for quite some time, and I think it's finally here. That's right. It looks like Roberto is in the repeating phase. In the past, when I asked him to say a word, he just laughed and said, "Da" (is this as irritating to other mothers as it is to me?). It occurred to me that this must have changed when Zhining told me she was teaching QiQi to count. I nearly did a double-take. This kid just says ma, da, dog, cat, ball, light, and (how could we forget) hi. But, as usual, she proved me wrong. Zhining called out, "Yi" and my child looked up and called out, "Er".

So, I figured I would try this out with Robbie over the course of the evening. We tried out car, cheese, and, much to Robbie's delight, cookie. I'm sure he has no idea what they mean really. He just enjoyed the sounds. There's one that I know he does understand. But it's a strange one. One I'm not sure I should admit that my kid knows. He knows what sound a fish makes. How? Well, every night he feeds Jake the Fish (he figured out how to shake the food over the bowl awhile ago and has to feed Jake the Fish every night before he'll go to bed).

Since we got Jake the Fish, I've been making fish noises whenever he eats. Partially because it entertains me and partially because Robbie gets so tickled. Tonight, when Jake the Fish grabbed a flake, Robbie looked at me and, with a huge grin on his face, yelled, "Gulp!" I have a feeling I'm going to have to watch what I say much more carefully.

And in other big boy news... I discovered that Robbie's streak of independence has extended to the Halloween candy I thought was hidden. He came into the kitchen waving a Tootsie Roll pop. Since it was wrapped, I didn't think much of it. Until he came back to show me that he'd gotten it unwrapped and he was enjoying it. I'm just not ready for this... Talking? Sneaking his own candy? Can I just have my baby back?

Excused Absence...

I've been MIA since last Thursday... And, in all honesty, it's all Justin's fault (as are most things in his life). We actually got to have a family weekend, and I got so caught up in actually living my life that I forgot to write about it. It probably won't sound like it was anything that fabulous, but Justin hasn't been home for a full weekend in a month. In the past two months, I've only actually had him home two weekends.

Friday night we took Robbie to his first high school football game. It was the first high school football game Justin and I have been to since we moved to Massachusetts. And, let me tell you, it disappointed. High school football in Massachusetts cannot, in anyway, compare to high school football in Georgia - or even Kentucky. When we lived in Georgia, it was an event. The entire town came. Teachers went. Students went. Parents went. Alumni went. The stands were packed, especially if it was an in-town game. At Lawrence? Not so much in regards to attendance. There is a beautiful facility, and it was mostly empty. The visiting team had more fans at the game.

It wasn't just the attendance that made it so different; it was the whole atmosphere. We're used to football and cheerleaders and marching bands. Sure, there was football. Mediocre football that no one actually paid any attention to. And there were cheerleaders who could barely do toe-touches and took five girls to put one girl up in the air. You would have thought I was there coach (and, in the shocking revelation of the day, I actually was a cheerleading "coach" for the freshmen at Houston County). And the band? Oh, the band. How disappointing it was for Justin, who was most excited about the band. They played once, between the first and second quarters. There were no uniforms. There was no marching.

I'm still glad we went, though. Robbie actually tried to run away from me (surprise, surprise!). When I got to him, I heard someone yell, "Mrs. Manna!" When I turned around, it was one of my favorite students who pointed to the guy standing next to me and said, "That's my dad!" I got to meet my first parent (to my teacher friends out there, I haven't gotten any emails or phone calls complaining about my performance as a teacher - A.Mah.Zing!). It was nice to be able talk to a parent, especially when I had so many good things to say.

Last night, Justin and I had a date. Not the pathetic excuse for a date we had last time (massage - not pathetic - followed by rushed grocery shopping - pathetic). We went all out last night after Justin got home from class (so we missed him for Saturday). We went to get massages and then out to Tango for a nice dinner together. It was so strange to sit and talk over a leisurely dinner. We had a pitcher of sangria. We slowly ate our meal (what I wouldn't give for another filet...) without moving the plate from groping fingers. There was no rush to leave because someone got antsy. There was no mess to pick up under the table. Well, other than the mess Justin left... We even had time for dessert. And, you know what? We still like each other! There are still fun things to talk about. Every now and then I worry that we will run out of things to talk about. And one day we might. But, thankfully, that wasn't last night.

Today involved a failed attempt at church. We had to make a break for it after the homily when Robert melted down. And then it was chore time. Major chore time. I'm talking shampooing the upholstery. I'm talking raking leaves. And bagging them. Thirteen bags worth. We even swept. It looks like fall never even happened at our house! Justin and I got it knocked out in about two hours. Yard work is so much more tolerable when there's someone doing it with you. It also helps when a certain baby takes a nearly four hour nap...

I told you it wouldn't sound like anything super fabulous. Of course, I left out some parts. Like that I've taught Robbie how to give hugs and play "cuddle baby". He'll throw his head on my shoulder and laugh. Since Robbie isn't really a cuddler (or affectionate beyond blowing kisses), this is a big step. I'm hoping at some point he'll move to spontaneously giving hugs and not trying to wriggle his way out of them after five seconds.

And now I need to go. After all, family weekend isn't over yet. There's still dinner with the Sillettos and bath time. Oh, and laundry to put away and the house to get picked up before it gets cleaned tomorrow. And then a clean couch to lounge on while I work on finishing the Christmas stocking I started making for myself five years ago...