If life had a pause button, I would have used it this morning. Charlie and I had one of those precious moments that I’ll spend lots of time recalling when he is a teenager. He was wearing only a diaper and I was in my pajamas, and we were snuggled in a chair together with a couple of his super soft baby blankets. For over half an hour we sat there, just enjoying each other. The TV was off and the house was silent except for the sound of Charlie crunching on Cheerios. Words cannot describe the joy I felt in holding him close to me and breathing in his scrumptious baby scent, kissing his soft hair, and watching him feed himself so easily when it was such a short time ago that he was just developing motor skills. Either he was in an extra cuddly mood or could sense that I was exploding with happiness – whatever it was, I am so thankful for those 30+ minutes that he let me enjoy having him in my arms.
….Said (by Charlie) in the span of a few minutes while jumping on the bed:
“I’m gonna have a little baby sister. And she’s gonna have a little baby daddy.”
“I’m just a little boy.”
“I’m just a growin’ up boy.”
“I’m ready to rock.”
NOTE: We are NOT NOT NOT NOT expecting. We do not discuss this with Charlie. He wants a little baby sister because his friend, Tommy, has a little baby sister. And Finley is so precious, how can he not want a little sister???
This morning we got on an elevator with an elderly couple. The man was almost doubled over with osteoporosis, which inspired Charlie to start pointing and saying “THAT MAN IS SICK,” over and over again. I couldn’t get him to shut up stop saying it, because the kid loves to repeat himself when he doesn’t feel like his point has gotten across. I apologized and kind of awkwardly rolled my eyes and laughed about kids saying the darndest things, and got down on his level to distract him until we could get off the slowest elevator on earth. The poor man just quietly sat there while his wife gripped the handles of his wheelchair and looked at us disapprovingly. Pursed lips and all.
It was a lovely moment, and I look forward to many more.
John and Katie raved over the homemade lasagna I made last week – seriously – they ate it for breakfast, lunch and supper until it was gone. Naturally, as soon as we got started on this week’s grocery list, lasagna was the first request. But this time it might taste a little different, thanks to Charlie’s special touch. As I’m layering the ricotta cheese, Charlie picks up a newly-opened juice box, pulls out the straw and pours about 3 tablespoons of fruit punch into the pasta sauce. Who knows, I might have an award-winning recipe on my hands! **UPDATE: Lasagna with a hint of Juicy Juice is really weird.
I PROMISE that we’ll get back to blogging posts soon, but until then, I have to share this educational rap! Incorporating music into each and every subject helps me learn better than any other tool.
So I’m chatting on the phone with my mom, listening to how amazing and beautiful and incredible and perfect Hawaii is and what an awesome time they’re having, (green with envy), when I hear a little voice from the stairs say, “Hey, Mommy!”
Uh oh.
It is 1:33 p.m. Charlie should be asleep. Naptime started at 12:30 and usually lasts 2.5 to 3 hours. This means that he has accomplished two things today: climbing out of his crib and opening his bedroom door.
Sigh.
I’m so excited for him – he’s reached a big milestone! Soon he’ll be in a toddler bed! But I also feel exhausted thinking about how he’ll be exploring his newfound freedom and how we all might lose some sleep.
I can barely keep myself from laughing because of how cute he is, standing on the stairs and trying to figure out how this situation is going to unfold. My mom is DYING laughing over the phone and giving my dad details. So now she’s in paradise AND laughing at me. Hmph.
Before I do anything else, I must get a video of this! We rush upstairs and I capture him climbing out of bed for the second time.
I let Charlie come downstairs and watch TV for a little while because I can tell that he’s pretty excited and won’t go to sleep. Plus it gives me a little bit of time to think about how I’m going to handle getting him into bed: How am I going to handle this using Positive Discipline, and How can I get him to take a nap that I so desperately need he needs?
I don’t know what to do so I choose to wing it. Even if I have my mind set on how I will get him in bed and STAY in bed, I don’t know if he’ll go along with it. And I need this naptime!!! We watch TV for about half an hour, and then I ask him if he would rather go take a nap in my bed or his bed. I know he’s going to pick my bed, which might help me eventually get him into his bed after he doesn’t settle down. (Setting my child up for failure…definitely a Positive Discipline technique, right?)
As always, I’m right. (Right, honey?) He jumps on the bed nonstop while I tell him a couple of times that he needs to lie down and rest. After he gets up and starts jumping a third time, I inform him that it’s time to go to his bed for a nap because he isn’t resting on my bed. He is more than happy to cooperate and responds:
Charlie: Climb back out of bed! Me: No, bud. It’s naptime and we all need to rest right now, so I need for you to stay in bed. You don’t have to go to sleep, but it’s very important that you have some quiet time. Charlie: ‘Kay.
Yeah, right!!! I can see the mischief in his eyes before I even turn to leave the room. I walk out, close the door, and stand there. Immediately I hear movement and then a loud “THUMP!” Two seconds later he is opening his door. Surprise!!! He is completely shocked to see me standing there. It takes all of my strength to wipe a huge grin off my face. My child is SO CUTE!!!
Me: Charlie, you need to take a nap. It is time to rest and not time to climb out of bed. Charlie: ‘Kay.
Yeah, right!!! I park myself outside his door again and wait. Rustle, rustle, THUMP! He’s back at the door and looking even more surprised that I’m there a second time. I say the same thing and put him back in bed. The next time it happens, I say nothing and scoop him up and lay him down. Repeat 8 or 9 times. The final time, he is not happy but he stays put. Not even 3 minutes later he is fast asleep. Woohoo!
Since then he has stayed in his bed. We’re taking bets on how long that lasts.
This site is even funnier than the North Georgia attraction, Goats on the Roof, (yes, we’ve been there and it was awesome!), but not quite as funny as Fainting Goats.
So often I read the blogs of others and feel exactly the same way about a post so much that I would rather just share that and say, “Exactly.” Here is an example:
There were also great moments in 2009, many of which are written about on this blog. How can there NOT be great moments with John and Charlie in my life?!
I’ve decided that 2010 will be an amazing year and the start of an amazing decade. I’ve needed a new decade for a long time.
Ansley and I have had this idea rattling around in the back of our heads for a couple of months now that we’d focus this blog more on family life and parenting and I’d start a new blog that would focus primarily on discussing Objectivism. We both kinda felt that the dual foci (is that right?) of the blog wasn’t the best set up for it. Some folks could care less about my views and just want to see fun updates on the family! Some folks were getting linked here by other, Objectivist focused blogs and probably didn’t care too much about the little details of everyday life in the Cox household. And, hopefully, some of you enjoyed both of them.
Rather than try to continue to write for two separate audiences in one place, I’ve set up Sacred Ego as the place where I’ll be discussing Objectivism, philosophy and politics, and John & Ansley will maintain it’s focus on our family, and our views on parenting. Right now, all that’s up on Sacred Ego are all of the posts on Objectivism I’ve made over here throughout the year. I plan of adding to those at a fairly rapid pace, with more links and short discussions of items as well as the longer, heavier pieces that I’ve done in the past on this blog.
So – go check out Sacred Ego, and let me know what you think of it.
