Two More Sleeps

Holy cow! We are leaving for the Dominican on Monday! I can't even believe it. It seems to have just snuck up on me. I am really sad that Christien isn't coming with us. And maybe that's why it seems to have come out of nowhere. We aren't all going, so we aren't all anticipating it at home. He's excited that we get to go. And said if mum and dad ever want to take us anywhere ever again, there is nothing that is going to stop him from coming with us. We are excited though. I asked Reid today, if he wanted to go on a trip and he said "otay". And I told him that we are going to see Grandma and Grandpa. And he's been looking for them and asking for them all day.

Now, he calls dad Pappa - which is all his doing. And calls mum - Baba (or something like that) and again, that's all him. My parents seem to think that we had something to do with him calling them something other then grandma and grandpa. What can you do. He's his own little dude. Franklin is "Daydee" no matter what. For two years it's be Franklin and he comes back with Daydee all the time. Yet we're at Christine's the other day and the puppy is all of a sudden Patch. What a guy.

Now it's Saturday. I have most of our stuff laid out on the bed ready to be packed. Lists have been made. I'm starting to scratch a few things off the list, meanwhile adding many things to the list, but I have faith that I will be done by the time our taxi is here to pick us up on Monday night. Then it's off to paradise. I've got some books downloaded. Imagine, to read a book on the beach. Read some magazines and gossip with Stacey? I can't wait. Eeekk... Getting super excited.

Prison Break

Well, Reid can now successfully get out of his own crib. No falling out. He can execute the dismount perfectly. I blame gymnastics.

I put him down on Tuesday. Didn't hear anything out of the ordinary. Went to the basement to work out. Franklin was ripping around the house, so at the end of my work out I put him outside and then turned on the monitor - still not hearing anything from his room. On the monitor I could sort of hear him chattering, nothing much, but I kept checking (I can't keep the monitor constantly on cause it just makes me crazy). Then I heard some jingling/rattling. I ran upstairs and opened his door and there he was. Sitting by the wall shaking his piggy bank. His room was trashed. He had opened the top drawer of his dresser, where all his diapers and wipes are kept and just launched them all over the room. He had a big glob of Vaseline on his cheek and had unrolled a whole roll of diaper bags. I was just dumbfounded. Not only at the mess, but how on earth did he get out of his crib. Especially when I heard nothing. I kinda gasped when I walked in and he looked at me and looked around the room and started making funny sounds as if to say "What? Oh my. Look at this mess. Who on earth broke in here and did it?" I kid you not. Then he got right up and helped me clean it up. I eventually put him back in his crib and sat right there to see how he managed to escape. Sure enough he walked to the corner of the crib, pushed himself up, swung one leg over then the other, then slid right down. Are you freaking kidding me?

Needless to say, nap time has been hard these last few days. He hates to nap and over the last few months he's been basically screaming or crying or yelling himself to sleep. He'll usually only go on for about 5 minutes, but it's just been awful. Now that he's managed to figure out how to get out of his crib, that's all that he does. I put him down, he gets up and goes straight to the corner to plot his escape. I spent an hour and 45 minutes sitting outside his door on Wednesday cause he needed a nap and I didn't want him climbing out of his crib hurting himself. So every time I'd hear him get up and close to the rails, I'd just peek my head in and tell him to lay back down. It eventually worked. Yesterday all I had to do was tell him once. That sent him into a screaming frenzy but he did eventually lay down. And it lasted all of 2 minutes. And then he was out. I took a shower after my workout and after I had gotten out of the shower, I heard a crash. Not the sound of a baby falling out of a crib, but a crash. I ran into his room and there he was, behind the rocking chair. He had pulled the lamp off his change table. I guess he just decided it was time to get up and out of bed.

He's OK at night. He's still up between 4 and 5 at which time I usually get him and bring him into bed with me, cause I know that we'll get an extra few hours of sleep if I do it that way. I think when Christien comes home it's time to transition his crib into a big boy bed. Sigh... Just when you think you've got parts of it figured out, those parts are all awash. What a guy.

New Mattress = Better Sleep

Christien and I bought a new mattress today, and it's been a long time since I was really, really excited about a new purchase. Our old mattress is Christien's old mattress, so let's say it's at least 10 years old. We've tried to revamp it by getting a memory foam thingy for the top, which totally helped. But even now Christien is having issues sleeping with that. We've tried flipping the mattress and memory foam, all to no avail. My back aches every day when I wake up. Christien spied a big sale at the Brick for today and we were there first thing this morning to pick out our new mattress. Of course the sales guy had us try the best of the best first off, and then nothing compared to it. At 50% off you can't really go wrong. Plus a 180 day sleep guarantee. I'm so excited for it to be delivered tomorrow. Reid has gotten better at sleeping longer periods throughout the night, so this is just the next step in getting a better sleep and feeling more refreshed in the morning. Who would have thought that this would cause me so much joy? Can't wait to try that puppy out!

Happy Halloween!!

Reid's second Halloween was much more fun then his first one. He still didn't have a clue about what was going on, but he definitely knew that something was different. He was the cutest little sock monkey ever. A cute gift from his auntie Kerri. I'm super surprised that he kept his little hat on for as long as he did. He definitely liked to be dressed up. He loved the pumpkins, but wasn't too into taking the guts out. Too gross. He thought that it was pretty cool when they were all carved out and lit up. Christien took him around to a few houses in the neighbourhood and he had a blast. He tried to walk right into a few of the houses. Not shy this one.

Poor little monkey ended up getting sick at the end of the night. We first thought that it was cause of all the candy that he was chomping on, but by the time he had thrown up for the third and fourth time in the middle of the night, we realized that there must be something else wrong. I knew that he was a bit off all day. Kinda sleepy way before his normal nap time. Kinda fussy. Then in the evening after his nap he seemed to perk up. That didn't last for long. Poor poor guy. He was red, but not feverish all day today. We all just took a sick day and cuddled on the couch and watched movies and he napped a bit. He seems to be feeling a bit better now, but still not himself.

Beyond Exhausted

I don't know what to do with this little guy anymore. He just refuses to sleep, hates to nap and definitely is not close to sleeping through the night. He's so active. And I get him outside as much as possible to pump all that fresh air into him and still. It's a massive battle at nap time now. And he's just not quite ready to cut it out of his routine. Not only is he still tired (cause he'll sleep for at least an hour an a half), but I can't imagine not having that little bit of down time to myself. If you thought I didn't keep a clean house when he was napping wait till we're on the go from 6am to 8pm. Well, today he decided to be up at 430. It was awful. He was so crabby all morning. Then I went to put him for a nap, fell asleep in my arms but the second his head touched the pillow he was up and screaming. And for those of you that think, when I say screaming, I mean that he was just loud crying, or you might even think screeching. Also, no. He was full fledged, at the top of his lungs screaming. It sounded like someone was being tortured. I am beyond surprised that nobody called the cops. I just don't know what to do with him anymore. How can I be the best mum possible if I wake up exhausted and crabby every morning? I think that Christien feels the same way. He mentioned that Reid's lack of sleep is really interfering with our relationship. And on top of that, how am I so exhausted and he's just fine all day. I don't get it. I need a sleep class. I need someone to come into my house and tell me what's wrong with my baby. Until then I might resort to sleeping in the basement. Cry it out little boy. Cry it out.

Pumpkin Hunt

Reid went on his first pumpkin hunt on Sunday. We went this early so that Christien could join us and so that we could beat little Miss Dunhams arrival. It wasn't the most beautiful day to spend outside. Kinda windy and cold. However, we still had a blast. Cash and Reid both found super great pumpkins! And we got to check out a few of the animals and we had a tractor ride to the pumpkin patch. Good times. Good buddies. Fun Sunday.

Found one dadaCash too!Reid's first pumpkin huntAnd with mummyWagon ride back to the farmMomma and Cashy boy

After the hunt we sent the boys home for a nap and then the Shorts joined the Dunhams and the Hassmans for Thanksgiving dinner. Was a great afternoon. Cash and Reid had their first bath together - momma Dunham got some incriminating pictures of them. And we just walked that little baby out of Christine. Well, we tried too. And today she made her I cannot wait to meet Miss Chelsea Lynn Dunham!! Congrats Brian, Christine and Cash!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Happy Thanksgiving! Seeing as it's a nice time to reflect and to give thanks to what and who make us what we are, please indulge me....

I'm thankful for my amazing husband. He'll do anything for his family. He loves us unconditionally and is always open to try out everything with us. He will support us no matter what and that's always the first thing in his mind. We love him with all our hearts. "Oh dada..."

I'm thankful for my lovely and sweet little boy. He is the most amazing person I have ever met. So smart. So cute. So fun. I might not be thankful to his inability to sleep, but I am thankful to have him in my life. I would be lost and sad and lonely without him.

I'm thankful for my parents and my in-laws. They offer so much support and love. I'm really very lucky to have been born into and married into these families. We love you with all our hearts and appreciate everything that you do for us.

I'm thankful for my brother and sister in-laws (that includes you Miss Stacey and Miss Kerri). The love and support that you have always shown us is unbelievable. We love you to death and would do anything for any of you.

I'm thankful for my honest friends. Not my facebook friends (although some of you might fall into that category) but to my real friends. Friends who have always been there for me with a shoulder to cry on, or an ear to listen, or glass of wine to share. I hope that you know who you are and I will love you always.

I'm thankful that I am able to stay home with my son. The first year of his life was great and very documented (thanks to a lovely camera... that I still don't know how to use, but stay tuned..). Now that I get to take him out of daycare and stay home with him indefinitely.. I can't even tell you how amazing this is. We are able to do so much together. My mum was able to stay home with myself and my brother when we were young and I think that was a great opportunity for us. I'm very grateful that I'm able to provide my son with this opportunity as well.

I'm thankful for my health and the health of my family. We all suffer through our droughts but so far we've all come out on top. Fighting and stronger then ever. For that I am grateful. Because as you fall, you learn, and you become more and more grateful for what you do have rather then wanting for what is beyond your grasp.

I'm thankful for the sun that shines on my face and warms my body. I'm thankful for those senses. I'm thankful for the rain that helps my tulips and grass to grow. And for the snow, that I know we are going to make many many snow angels in this winter.

And finally I'm just thankful for my life. I'm bound to falter every now and again, but when I take one step back, how could I not embrace this. My husband, my son, my friends, my family and my health. I love you all and thank you for making me thankful for being me. Hugs and kisses, and Happy Thanksgiving!