I love being a mom. This is what I was made to do. Raising another human being is not easy, but it is so rewarding. I feel blessed that God chose me to do this for George.
Here is why I love being a mom:
George is teaching me to be the best version of me. Having to teach someone else to be a good person definitely keeps me in check of how I am living out my life and if I am being a good role model to him. There is also nothing more humbling than teaching a kid to eat with a fork and pee in a toilet. There is something about potty training that really makes you think about your priorities.
He gives me a reason to explore the world around me and notice the little things. George is so amazed by everything. From the dogs’ tails to bark on the trees, you can just see that everything is magical in his eyes. I love being able to experience everything differently through him. I feel like our life has more substance because we are taking the time to enjoy each moment because George is living full throttle all the time.
Baby smiles and laughs have got to be real medicine for the soul. Nothing can warm up your heart quite like the baby giggles.
The outpouring of love and joy can be overwhelming, but it is such a great reminder that I am needed and I have a purpose. When George wraps his little chubby arms around my neck or runs up to me at the end of the day, I know that he loves me. I tell him probably every 10 minutes or so how much I love him. It is something I never want him to question. And I don’t think there is anything wrong with spreading more love around in this world. And he is just so happy. I mean he can throw the biggest tantrum but give him five minutes and he has forgotten the transgression and is laughing so hard. If all of us could just get past the little things and just seek joy, I think the world would be a better place. I want that to be ingrained him so he continues to pass it along.
It has grounded me even more in my faith. George is an answer to our prayers, and he is a daily reminder to seek God. Whether that is when I have lost my patience, or I am emotionally grateful about this gift, I need to always trust that God is there and He has His plan for me. And now that we are trying to teach George about God and prayer, it is even more reason to make sure I am strong in my walk with the Lord.
Having a kid is a great excuse to have chicken nuggets at least once a week.
Days go by so quickly, and I want to remember the little things.
I saw another blogger record just a random day for her family, and it prompted me to do it for us. Our days change so much with our schedules, and with an ever changing toddler, but I thought it would be nice to see just one day of our lives laid out.
And I also happened to do it on a Monday. The day that I rarely have my crap together. Sounds about right.
My alarm goes off at 5:10, but I hit the snooze until about 5:30 when I grudgingly get out of bed. This day, George was still asleep so I rushed into the shower to get done before he decided to join the day. Every day is different though. Some days he wakes me up before my alarm, other days I have to wake him up 15 minutes before we have to leave.
This Monday however, he stayed asleep until I got out of the shower and dressed. He EVEN read his books quietly for about 5 minutes before I went to get him up for his milk.
One of my favorite parts of the day is when I pick him up out of the crib is that he hugs you so tightly. Seriously the best. It warms my cold morning heart right up.
First thing on the agenda for little man is getting some milk. He is barely awake so he usually gets upset when I put him down so I can get his cup ready.
He is obsessed with this chair. He carries it around with him, and he will sit so proudly in it. He looks way to big sitting in it. I do not approve.
Most mornings though he isn’t done snuggling, and this morning was no exception. So he crawled in my lap as I ate breakfast and did my morning devotion. However, I think the snuggling is all food motivated because he generally gets some cereal in the process. (He eats a full breakfast once he gets to the sitter’s.)
Every morning George shuts us in this room to get ready. I have the door open, but he feels so proud of himself that he can shut the door on his own so he does it anytime he can. Even though all his toys are behind the door, he usually finds other things of mine to play with, like my scarves. He LOVES my scarves. He is often carrying them around like Linus in Peanuts, or he wears them as scarves are meant to be warn. He is infatuated with them.
He also loves this box and that he can sit on it like a chair. Surprisingly, he will sit on it quietly for about 5 minutes just content with the world on a box.
At about 7am, we are finally getting George dressed for the day. And I take the opportunity to get some good snuggles in.
And in the car we go. Folks this Monday, for some reason I decided to make this the day that we no longer use a pacy in the car. It might have been because my car stash had all made it into the house, and I didn’t feel like running back in to get them. But hey, Mondays already are the pits so why not endure a screaming toddler in your backseat.
(He did really well actually. He only cried for maybe 3 minutes on the way there and on the way home. This was our week I guess!)
I also need to mention that I got all the way down the street before I realized I was not wearing real shoes. So we had to turn around so I could grab work appropriate shoes instead of my slippers. #Mondays
This Monday apparently was like the heavenly Monday because I made it to work on time as well, even with the lack of shoe debacle.
My day at work was a pretty light day. I only had one student meeting. We also had a huge event planned for Tuesday (that I was co-running), so I had a lot of prep work to do for that. Bulletin boards, last minute emails, random printouts, and event set-up were on the docket to make it successful. I also have been working through a personal financial planning course for the last 6ish months, and the final exam was this week. I blocked out a lot of time to study for that, and my test anxiety came back real strong. But I passed it! Now I will be able to talk with students about their personal finances more effectively since our office sees so much of these struggles and looking for options.
I am loving that it is still daylight once we get home which is sometime between 5:45 and 6:30 depending on the day.
We are trying to teach George how to get from the car to wherever we are going. It is a process. Sometimes he loses footing or his focus.
His hugs. Can’t.Get.Enough.
George looks like he is having a very important meeting.
We generally play a little bit before dinner, or while dinner is cooking. He loves his puzzles.
I have started letting George record himself while holding the camera. He thinks it is great, and I find the videos hilarious to see his viewpoint.
George knows how to feed himself a banana, but some days he will only eat it if I hold it. If I try to give it to him, he throws a tantrum. Some days I am up for dealing with the tantrum. This Monday, I was not.
We had spaghetti and meatballs with brussel sprouts for dinner. Truth: the meatballs were from a bag in the frozen aisle.
George needed some reassurance before getting in the bathtub.
Sometimes toddlers are odd.
George just climbed up on this chair to assist his daddy with getting ready for work. Tom was on the midnight shift, so he gets ready after we do bath time.
It’s not easy to say goodbye, but at least we have these moments.
He may not be talking much, but he can follow instructions.
He does a really great job brushing his own teeth now. It makes me so proud!
Whenever Tom is home right before bedtime, George gets to jump on our bed. HE LOVES THIS! Jumping is a new development in the past couple weeks.
Before we go to bed, we have to say “night night” and dole out hugs to everyone.
We usually read two or three books each night. I let George pick out at least one of the books each night, and he ALWAYS picks the “That’s Not My” series.
Once Gdubs is in bed around 8, I get my me time since Tom went to work. Monday nights I don’t worry about any dirty dishes or the toys every where. Whether it is Dancing with the Stars or the Bachelor franchise, Monday nights are my nights. I am a bump on the couch and enjoy my ice cream watching the drama go down.
I start getting ready for bed around 9:30/10pm. I am asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.
Pretty good for a Monday if I may say so. Every day is a new day trying to make this thing work. But we all made it to where we needed to be…on time…and eventually wearing shoes. So that is something!
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