Well...it's been awhile since my last blog. I used my last days of maternity leave/summer vacation to soak up every little minute I had with my two babies. Starting back to work wasn't easy - didn't think it would be. The first day back was hell, but it was without kids (students). And honestly, I don't like anything about the adult part of my job. I'm a teacher because I like kids. The second day was MUCH better...22 excited and nervous kids just like their (somewhat) excited and nervous teacher. It was actually a great day. I brought 3 beautiful pictures of my babies to keep on my desk and I kept going back to stare at them throughout the day. They got me through. After all, they are the reason I work in the first place. And that is precisely why I will blow my first paychecks on them entirely (well...mortgage too....guess that's indirectly for them though).
Joey doesn't just scoot around anymore. He full out crawls everywhere. He's a little speedster and will follow his big brother anywhere. I absolutely love the way Joey's little face lights up whenever Colin moves, speaks or glances in his direction. Colin is getting to really like the little guy too. He talks to him, "No no JoJo!" or "Ni-Night JoJo!" Colin will hug him and tickle him.Watching them interact actually makes me prouder and full of joy than the days they were born. They will always have each other and I'm going to make sure of it.
Joey got his first tooth...FINALLY!!! He drools more than any baby or dog that I have ever known (even more than Espn, my sister's dog). The poor thing needed to pop that thing through. Now that his first one came through, he is ready to get a few more in. He's going to go from baby food to steak and potatoes in no time. Unfortunately, because I have gone back to work, my milk supply has gone down. I've desperately been trying to save/increase it but without luck. Tonight I caved and began making him a bottle (of straight formula). Brian took over as I started to cry. You should have seen Joey's face when he saw that bottle....little tongue moving, legs pumping....he was excited (my mom has been giving him bottles of breastmilk all this time so he knew what it was). Brian took him upstairs and fed him.....tonight was the first time in a really long time that Joey fell asleep without a fuss. Guess Mommy needs to get over it. A full tummy on formula is better than a half-full tummy on breastmilk.
On to Colin.....he's been talking so much more lately. His speech therapy has been going so well and he absolutely adores his therapist. His new favorite phrase is, "Help me!" which he uses ALL of the time to get what he wants.....and he knows exactly when to use it.....like, when he wants chocolate pudding for lunch. :-) How can you possibly say no to big brown eyes and "Help me!" Well....we HAVE to say no or we're going to have Maury Povich baby....100 pounds at 3 years old? No thanks.
He can sing most of the alphabet song and can count to 14. He calls so many people by name now. I am so proud of him. I worry so much that either of my children will struggle with learning. I guess it's a fear that comes from being a teacher. I know that, no matter what issue either of my boys have, we can get through it. But I'd just love for them to have things easy.
Brian and I talk a lot about that with our parenting....it breaks our heart to think about the kids struggling at all in their lives, but we know how important it is for them to encounter struggles and learn how to cope through them. Otherwise you get spoiled brats who only turn into delusional adults -- those types of adults who think that they can control other people to prevent their own struggles. We want to raise good boys. And we will make sure that they have good hearts.
My older sister had a beautiful baby boy on the 27th of August. She did a great job and I absolutely love that little boy already. I hope that our kids are as close as we were growing up.
The small stuff:
Last weekend I went to the store with my sister and JoJo. When we returned, I pulled into the driveway and noticed that Brian and Colin were in the backyard of our neighbor's across the street. Brian must have told Colin that I was back. When I got out of the car, Colin was running toward me (leaving his friends and the swingset behind). He held his arms out wide and yelled, "MOMMYYYYY!" No prompting....all on his own. Best feeling in the whole world.
And today, when I got home from school, I knelt down on the carpet. Jojo hadn't noticed that I had come back yet. I called his name and he whipped his little body around, smiled a HUGE smile at me and crawled quickly to me. I know he was thinking, "MOMMYYYYY!" too! :-)
A good friend of mine relapsed with leukemia this week. The news hit me hard and it's something else I've been carrying with me this week. It's been a tough one...but not as tough as it was on her. I can't stop thinking about her and pray that she will get through it again...she deserves it....
Joey doesn't just scoot around anymore. He full out crawls everywhere. He's a little speedster and will follow his big brother anywhere. I absolutely love the way Joey's little face lights up whenever Colin moves, speaks or glances in his direction. Colin is getting to really like the little guy too. He talks to him, "No no JoJo!" or "Ni-Night JoJo!" Colin will hug him and tickle him.Watching them interact actually makes me prouder and full of joy than the days they were born. They will always have each other and I'm going to make sure of it.
Joey got his first tooth...FINALLY!!! He drools more than any baby or dog that I have ever known (even more than Espn, my sister's dog). The poor thing needed to pop that thing through. Now that his first one came through, he is ready to get a few more in. He's going to go from baby food to steak and potatoes in no time. Unfortunately, because I have gone back to work, my milk supply has gone down. I've desperately been trying to save/increase it but without luck. Tonight I caved and began making him a bottle (of straight formula). Brian took over as I started to cry. You should have seen Joey's face when he saw that bottle....little tongue moving, legs pumping....he was excited (my mom has been giving him bottles of breastmilk all this time so he knew what it was). Brian took him upstairs and fed him.....tonight was the first time in a really long time that Joey fell asleep without a fuss. Guess Mommy needs to get over it. A full tummy on formula is better than a half-full tummy on breastmilk.
On to Colin.....he's been talking so much more lately. His speech therapy has been going so well and he absolutely adores his therapist. His new favorite phrase is, "Help me!" which he uses ALL of the time to get what he wants.....and he knows exactly when to use it.....like, when he wants chocolate pudding for lunch. :-) How can you possibly say no to big brown eyes and "Help me!" Well....we HAVE to say no or we're going to have Maury Povich baby....100 pounds at 3 years old? No thanks.
He can sing most of the alphabet song and can count to 14. He calls so many people by name now. I am so proud of him. I worry so much that either of my children will struggle with learning. I guess it's a fear that comes from being a teacher. I know that, no matter what issue either of my boys have, we can get through it. But I'd just love for them to have things easy.
Brian and I talk a lot about that with our parenting....it breaks our heart to think about the kids struggling at all in their lives, but we know how important it is for them to encounter struggles and learn how to cope through them. Otherwise you get spoiled brats who only turn into delusional adults -- those types of adults who think that they can control other people to prevent their own struggles. We want to raise good boys. And we will make sure that they have good hearts.
My older sister had a beautiful baby boy on the 27th of August. She did a great job and I absolutely love that little boy already. I hope that our kids are as close as we were growing up.
The small stuff:
Last weekend I went to the store with my sister and JoJo. When we returned, I pulled into the driveway and noticed that Brian and Colin were in the backyard of our neighbor's across the street. Brian must have told Colin that I was back. When I got out of the car, Colin was running toward me (leaving his friends and the swingset behind). He held his arms out wide and yelled, "MOMMYYYYY!" No prompting....all on his own. Best feeling in the whole world.
And today, when I got home from school, I knelt down on the carpet. Jojo hadn't noticed that I had come back yet. I called his name and he whipped his little body around, smiled a HUGE smile at me and crawled quickly to me. I know he was thinking, "MOMMYYYYY!" too! :-)
A good friend of mine relapsed with leukemia this week. The news hit me hard and it's something else I've been carrying with me this week. It's been a tough one...but not as tough as it was on her. I can't stop thinking about her and pray that she will get through it again...she deserves it....
