5 months!

I cannot let another day go by without posting about Wesley being 5 months old. Time is flying by and he is becoming more and more awesome with each day. He is starting to sit up and can do it for a few seconds alone. He does better without his helmet and you can see how proud he is as he realizes he is doing it. He smiles all the time and laughs hysterically at Evan. He can roll from tummy to back with ease and can roll from back to tummy without his helmet. His blue eyes have not started changing color yet and Grandma Kathi may get her wish of a blue eyed grandchild! He has discovered his hands and I am afraid he may be a thumb sucker! He always has his little thumb in his mouth, but I am hoping that will stop when the two little teeth threatening to make an appearance finally pop through. He is HUGE and we cannot squeeze his fat little legs into his Bumbo seat. He has passed up his tiny cousin, Autumn, and already outweighs her by almost a pould! Ivy was right when she told us last week that, "Baby Wesley has a fat face!" She is right, he totally does!! He loves his little walker/jumper car and cruises all over the kitchen in it. He will be happy when he figures out the whole crawling thing. He longs to be mobile!

I think of him wearing his little helmet for 23 hours a day and it almost makes me weep. I feel like weeping, not because he has to wear it, we are beyond that. I feel like weeping because he wears it without too much complaining. Every now and then he cries when the strap gets stuck to the floor or when the edges dig into him while I am feeding him, but for the most part, he just wears it like it is the most normal part of his day. I long for the day that I get to snuggle him and kiss his fuzzy head for longer than 1 hour a day, but freedom will come soon enough. I figure if HE is not complaining about it, how can I? We go to the dr again on Monday and I cannot wait! It is perfect for a numbers person like me to get to be obsessed with statics, measurements, and progress!

I simply adore this little baby and cannot believe he will already be 6 months old so soon! Time is definitely not holding still for this little guy!

He's back!

Tonight at around 11:00 pm Steve got back from Michigan. I was watching 'Sister Wives' (yes, I am still in love with reality tv) and he came up the stairs sporting his creepy cop mustache. The kids were in bed, the dishes were done, the house was straightened up. I did not need his help tonight, but it is crazy how much easier things seem just knowing he is back! On a side note... you better believe the mustache didn't survive long! "Hello. How was your trip? Go shave." :)

Homemade Red Robin Buzz Sauce is Good on Everything!

Yesterday, I was flying solo at my house for the third day in a row as Steve pretended he was a single 20 year old and went galavanting around Michigan with his friends from high school/college for the Iowa game. As the day started ticking by, I realized I would need to head to jen's for some reinforcement in order to keep negative thoughts of Steve at bay. I went over for lunch and stayed through dinner. (I had jammies and helmet supplies in the car as a back up plan). As dinner started approaching, Jen and I asked the never ending question of 'what should we have for dinner?' Well, Evan would probably like ... You guessed it, NOODLES. Me? I would adore Red Robin, but only for the spicey buzz sauce and I really can't imagine battling a dinner out with two children vs. one mom just for buzz sauce. That is when Jen had one of the best ideas she has had all year. We could stay home, make our own buzz sauce, roast some potatoes and save our sanity. Perfect! So, Mr. Internet tells us to mix 1/2 cup butter with 1 cup Frank's Hot Sauce over a hot stove and then to add 2 teaspoons of Cheyenne pepper. We left out the pepper and were amazed how perfect the sauce turned out! Spicey, hot, delicious! We ate our potatoes and then, as we were not finished eating our sauce, we started looking around her kitchen for other dipping options. Cheese? Delicious! Crackers? Yummy! Apples? Could we really do an apple? Yes! Lovely! The final straw was when Jen reached into the freezer and pulled out some chocolate chips. Spicey chocolate? Totally worth it! We stopped before we dipped the chocolate chip cookies she had made in, but we weren't convinced it wouldn't be just as surprisingly wonderful as everything else!

Steve's turn

It is that blessed time of year when Steve has too much vacation time stored up at work that he will lose if it is not cashed in before Jan. That blessed time of year when Steve gets to take EVERY Friday off. That blessed time of year when I get to go to work sans kids one day of the week, every week and enjoy every moment of it!

I love being a mom. I love being able to work from home and being able to be with the little guys all day, but I also love going to work for a few hours and giving Steve a turn. A turn to play cars for literally hours. A turn to fight over what will or will not be eaten for breakfast AND lunch. A turn to take Wesley in for an impromptu helmet appointment because it is rubbing on his cheeks. A turn to try to figure out how on earth he will get himself dressed for the day (forget other more difficult things like preparing and eating a nutritious meal for himself).

Today, while I sat at my desk (wearing real clothes and my best boots), I relished the moment when I got a text from Steve updating me on his latest battle with Evan. All the while I was eating a little chocolate treat and listened to the silence as I did not have to justify to anyone (especially an almost three year old little boy) why I got to eat the chocolate BEFORE lunch.

As I said, I absolutely love being a mom. This post does not change that. BUT there is something so wonderful about letting Steve be the mom for a few minutes and letting me be me, even if it is only for a few hours a week!