I’ve spent the past week looking at pictures on Facebook.   It’s pretty much required me to spend the entire week looking at them, as I have a lot of friends and I’m super nosey and have a tendency to stalk them.   There, I’ve said it!   I’m a Facebook addict and stalker.   You don’t like it, un-friend me, or is the correct term “de-friend”?  Either way, what started this post was the fact that I’m a little curious on your take out there, parents. 

I’m a stay at home mom (obviously) and in order to become one, my husband and I had to make some monetary sacrifices.   We no longer have the luxury to buy nicer things, as there’s really no need for them at all.   Most of my son’s clothing comes from hand-me-downs, consignment sales, and family members buying for him (like both sets of grandparents and his aunt).  I’m not ashamed to admit that.   I’m actually proud of it, because while a lot of people are out there spending top dollar for name brand clothing for their little Junior or Susie to wear, I’m out there buying it for more than half off.  

Since Davey was only 14 months old at Christmas and still not fully comprehending everything, we decided to get away again this year with being very minimalistic with his Christmas presents.   I mean, the child loves the ribbon and tissue paper more than the actual gift itself.   So, this year we bought him a 200 piece megablock set and an easel.   That’s literally what came from me and my husband (and the easel was bought by my mother in law at a clearance price).   He’s played with both of them along with his other toys and hasn’t seemed bored.   But is it enough?

So, upon looking at Facebook pictures and reading status updates, I must admit I’m feeling a bit guilty for the fact that we didn’t spend a lot of money on Davey this year.   And truthfully, for those of you who purchase tons of gifts for Christmas for your little ones, do you purchase throughout the year and just save them up for Christmas or do you just save up money throughout the year to buy the gifts at the huge holiday sales?    And do you buy your children used toys as well?   Davey has a lot of those from consignment sales too.  

Should I feel guilty for not getting him as much?   And if I shouldn’t feel guilty about it then at what age should I start focusing more attention on the gifts?   I know I’m giving him (as well as my family) one of the greatest gifts by choosing to be a stay at home mom, but there are a few downsides and the biggest one is the monetary end.   Guess I’ll start saving now for Christmas 2013.

I am so thankful for the many gifts and blessings in my life.  I’m thankful for my family, my health, my friends, my God, my mind and my heart.   I’m thankful that our Lord has decided to bestow so many blessings on me, a lowly sinner.   These days I find myself more and more thankful for my husband…a wonderful father, husband, friend, and companion.   

This week, I’ve found myself chuckling at him and even losing my patience with him at times.   With it being Christmas week, my husband has decided to pretty much take the entire week off.   It’s been such a blessing at times as Davey and I are usually flying solo during the week and Davey only gets about 2 hours a day with his daddy.   I know he’s enjoyed it as much as my husband has, but I suppose I’ve enjoyed the fact that I’ve had a partner in crime or a musketeer to help me out with the day to day routine.  

And I guess I’ve enjoyed having some one with me.   It’s actually felt a little like the whole misery loves company game.  

My husband took the week off and I’m sure that he thought it would be a relaxing week for him.  He could play with our son, catch up on some reading, and spend some time with me watching movies.   What he didn’t expect was to deal with my day-to-day routine on a whole new level.

Santa definitely thought Davey was a good boy this year.   I had to take down the Christmas tree in the family room much earlier than normal just to make room for all of his toys!  It’s insane.   And even though he got all of those toys for Christmas, he still seems to love my Tupperware, measuring spoons and cups.   I even tried to take a bath this morning, but couldn’t seem to relax and read one of my books because Davey was banging pots and pans, trying to climb up bookshelves and basically being his normal self all for my husband, his daddy.  

I can’t lie and say it’s bothered me that Davey has treated his daddy the same way he treats me.   It’s actually been wonderful and while I haven’t wanted to keep my husband from having a relaxing week off and while being a stay at home mom isn’t misery by any stretch of the imagination, well, let’s just say…Misery DOES love company and my oh my have I enjoyed the fact that my husband has been along for the misery ride at times.  

And by the way, I’m so very thankful for my beautiful baby boy and my husband.   Without either one of them, I think I’d have a very mundane life.

I am so thankful for the many gifts and blessings in my life.  I’m thankful for my family, my health, my friends, my God, my mind and my heart.   I’m thankful that our Lord has decided to bestow so many blessings on me, a lowly sinner.   These days I find myself more and more thankful for my husband…a wonderful father, husband, friend, and companion.   

This week, I’ve found myself chuckling at him and even losing my patience with him at times.   With it being Christmas week, my husband has decided to pretty much take the entire week off.   It’s been such a blessing at times as Davey and I are usually flying solo during the week and Davey only gets about 2 hours a day with his daddy.   I know he’s enjoyed it as much as my husband has, but I suppose I’ve enjoyed the fact that I’ve had a partner in crime or a musketeer to help me out with the day to day routine.  

And I guess I’ve enjoyed having some one with me.   It’s actually felt a little like the whole misery loves company game.  

My husband took the week off and I’m sure that he thought it would be a relaxing week for him.  He could play with our son, catch up on some reading, and spend some time with me watching movies.   What he didn’t expect was to deal with my day-to-day routine on a whole new level.

Santa definitely thought Davey was a good boy this year.   I had to take down the Christmas tree in the family room much earlier than normal just to make room for all of his toys!  It’s insane.   And even though he got all of those toys for Christmas, he still seems to love my Tupperware, measuring spoons and cups.   I even tried to take a bath this morning, but couldn’t seem to relax and read one of my books because Davey was banging pots and pans, trying to climb up bookshelves and basically being his normal self all for my husband, his daddy.  

I can’t lie and say it’s bothered me that Davey has treated his daddy the same way he treats me.   It’s actually been wonderful and while I haven’t wanted to keep my husband from having a relaxing week off and while being a stay at home mom isn’t misery by any stretch of the imagination, well, let’s just say…Misery DOES love company and my oh my have I enjoyed the fact that my husband has been along for the misery ride at times.  

And by the way, I’m so very thankful for my beautiful baby boy and my husband.   Without either one of them, I think I’d have a very mundane life.

Nine years ago, I made my way over to a modest apartment.   It was nestled in some trees and built on rolling hills, not far from some of the best shopping and eating destinations our city has to offer.  It was a week before Christmas, and I didn’t have a gift.   It was still a bit earlier, since we had only met a few weeks before.    This was to be my last night seeing my new boyfriend, as he was travelling back to NY to see his family for Christmas, at least until a few days before New Year’s Eve.

When I walked into his apartment, the room was candlelit, Frank Sinatra played in the background and a beautiful dinner was set up on the table.   My breath was taken away.   How wonderful this was!   I couldn’t believe someone would go to this effort for me.

After dinner, I was treated to wine and a movie.   It was a movie of his choosing and he was eager to share it with me.   He told me it was his favorite movie of all time.    I sat back on the couch, my wine glass in hand, a bowl of popcorn sitting alongside me and watched as the movie credits began to roll.   I nearly gasped when I saw the names “Bing Crosby” and “Rosemary Clooney” pop up with the title “White Christmas”.   My boyfriend’s favorite movie was a musical and one that I knew by heart!  We laughed and sang and reminisced all night about this movie.   It was one of my most treasured times with the man that would become my husband.

This year, much like any other year, we pull out White Christmas usually a couple of nights before Christmas and watch it together.   We did it last year when Davey was not even 3 months old, much too early to really comprehend anything, as he slept in my arms.   This year was much different and just as treasured as that first time I saw it with my future husband.

Davey loves music, as do most children I assume.   He quickly learned to dance, or at least offer up his version of it, shortly after he began walking at 9 months.  At first, he looked like one of those tall pole-like windsock men, the ones you see outside of car dealerships everywhere.   He would sway and jerk from head to toe, doing his best to keep up with the beat of the music.   These days he’s becoming a bit more advanced.

I love that he climbed in my lap and watched the non-singing parts of the movie.   I chuckled when he would drop everything for the rehearsal of the “Minstrel Number” and stand in front of the TV, eyes unwavering as he soaked in every movement the dancers’ feet made.   My heart actually sighed as I thought back to my first time seeing this movie as a child with my Uncle Doug and Aunt Linda.   I progressed through my memory with each time I watched the movie and it all culminated together to the truly greatest moment I’d had with this movie…my little boy watching it with me.

Will this always be the case?   Will he always enjoy this movie and look forward (much as I have) to a tradition my husband and I started 9 years ago?   Probably not, but to watch him as he intently focused on this movie melted my heart and put me in a state of pure bliss.   It’s not a huge thing and every family has their traditions.   And maybe this wasn’t exactly a blog worthy time, but for me it was literally the best Christmas I’ve had, second only to last year which was my first as a mother.   Those cherished moments of Davey sitting in my lap are fleeting, but they’ve now officially been added into the file of memories kept away in my mind.   Easy to pull out and never changing.    I can replay it over and over in my head and for me, that’s a great gift.

When is it going to happen for me?  For him?  For us?

What are our friends and family thinking about my abilities as a stay-at-home mom?   Am I falling short?

I’ve written numerous times about my incessant worrying as a stay-at-home mom.  I’ve told you all about how this job is more difficult than any other job I’ve had.  The stakes are higher with this.   There’s really no margin of error for screwing up.   His life is in my hands and I’m the one responsible for molding him into the young man he’s going to be one day.   It’s overwhelming!

Lately, I’ve taken to doing a lot of reading about where Davey should be developmentally.   I know he’s ahead of the game with his motor skills.   The boy can build 8 blocks high by himself.   He can hold a crayon in his hand and draw a line, a circle, and even try to color in a picture.   He’s been walking since 9 months, running since 10 months.   He can put the basketball in the goal, and can kick a soccer ball WHILE running.   Developmentally, Davey is kicking butt!    I couldn’t be prouder.

His comprehension skills are phenomenal.   He knows his animals, letters, and colors.   He’s able to pick them out and bring them to me.   He knows his body parts, or at least the most basic ones (we’ve learned them by doing the hokey pokey).   He knows which book is which and can bring me the one I ask for even when it’s stacked up in a different place on the shelf.   My son is a bright kid, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been worried about his speech skills.

For months, I’ve listened to other mommies boasting about how their little one is saying all of these magical words.   Little Susie can say “car” and “tree” and “dirt”, while little Bobby says “garbage”, “cake”, and “oven”.   Of course, little Susie and Bobby are also in Davey’s age range by at least a couple of months, but my little booger has held pretty steadfast to only saying “mama”, “dada”, and “sissy”.   I suppose I should be impressed that he can say sissy, and I am.   I just wish he would say more.   Well, that time has finally arrived.

Yesterday, Davey started saying the words “color” and “truck”.   At first, I was hesitant to get excited.   After all I didn’t want to be one of those moms who were projecting onto my child.   You all know what I mean.   I didn’t want to think I was hearing the word “color”, when actually he was doing nothing more that baby gab.   Fortunately, my husband was home for lunch yesterday while Davey and I were coloring.   Davey held up his crayon and said, “Color”.   I held my breath and didn’t even look at my husband.   I was sure he hadn’t heard it.   Then he jumped up from his stool at the counter and came running over to the table.

“Did you say ‘color’, buddy?” my husband asked.

Davey held up his crayon and said, “Color, Dada.”

I haven’t ever been so excited and I’m sure my excitement will be exacerbated each day as he learns something new, just like today when he finally said “truck” while looking at the cement truck across the street.

I’m so ecstatic that it’s finally happened!

Apparently, it’s a new thing in our house.  I suppose that since every day of the week has a meaning and purpose to everyone else, then the days should have a meaning and purpose to my son as well.   Right?

As he’s getting older (and a lot smarter), we’re learning the days of the week.   While he may not say the days yet, he can pretty much point to the words on paper or on the calendar.   Maybe that means he’ll start reading soon?!?!?!  A mother can hope.

So, in my attempt to help Davey learn the days of the week, I’ve tried to give each day a fun theme.   Something he can stick to, like a Clean House Monday or a Wacky Wednesday.    They don’t have to rhyme and they don’t to serve any sort of purpose other than to help my child learn.    Well, today I forgot to give Thursday a theme when I got Davey out of bed.   Truthfully, this is so new for me, that I can’t seem to keep it at top of mind.    As a matter of fact, I became distracted with other things in the office, while Davey was watching his DVDs in the family room.   When I returned, what a shock I received!

My son was standing alongside the coffee table, his half empty sippy cup of milk sitting there patiently along with a handful of uneaten Froot Loops, not an unusual sight.    What really caught my attention were his bare legs and his pants down around his ankles, while he clapped along to the songs playing on the screen.   I couldn’t help but laugh and of course he turned around.

“What is this?” I asked Davey.

He patted his legs in the same way a penguin flaps its arms.   It’s something he does when he’s excited or happy.    Then he let out a little gobbledy gook of baby gab.

“Do we not like our pants?” I inquired.

He patted his legs again and attempted to dance around in a circle.

“So, I guess today is No Pants Thursday?”  I said almost as a question.

And to that Davey clapped his hands, which I can only assume means he agrees with today being No Pants Thursday.

So, here it is in our household…NO PANTS THURSDAY.    Have a blessed day.