Staci the Mommy

Wow, I didn't realize that it's been more than 20 days since I last blogged. Can you tell my August has been fairly busy? Well, that and I'm avoiding all things that feels like work. And I guess blogging falls into that category right now. Here's a not-so-short recap:

Thanks to Cait and her ridiculously messy rooms. Yes, rooms. I feel like I accomplished a lot in a week or two this month. She had clothes piled and hanging in her room as well as Sean and Meg's old rooms in her house. We cleaned out Meg's closet, well the M-I-L did, and then after Cait went through her clothes we did some major organization of her clothes in Meg's closet as well as the one in her bedroom. Now she's down to two closets, which if you saw all the clothes that girl has, it's an accomplishment. After a fun and eventful trip or two to IKEA, Cait now has a new 8 drawer dresser, bed, and nightstand. Meg and I had quite a fun time putting it all together, but we both like seeing the final end result so we pushed through all bazillion screws, nuts, and bolts in no time without losing our minds. Now hopefully she can keep her "big girl room" nice and clean.

Aidan and his big boy bed are going well. When he wakes up he usually opens his door, then closes it once he's in the hallway, then heads down to our room. 99% of the time he comes to my side and says "hi mommy" with a big grin on his face. Once in a while he climbs onto the ottoman (yes, it's there so Toby can climb into our bed) and into bed with us. After naps he usually heads down the hallway and into the office to greet Sean. On days when he wakes up to an empty upstairs he's generally upset that he can't find anyone but is quite happy to see us when we meet him at the gate upstairs. Surprisingly we haven't caught him out of bed playing with his books yet, but maybe it's because we're still putting him to bed asleep!!!

Last weekend Aidan and I were lucky enough to have a four day weekend with Sean. Friday morning we had a follow-up appointment at CHOP Cardiology in Voorhees to check on Aidan's two heart murmurs. He was a little angel for the appointment, well, except when he decided he didn't want to wear the gown and instead wanted to walk around the room in his diaper and socks. No biggie. He did a great job with the EKG. The murmurs are still present but not as obvious so we've been released and only need to come back if a problem arises or his pediatrician has any more concern. YAY!!! After the CHOP visit we headed to Franklin Square to give Aidan his first experience at mini-golf. Boy was that fun. He managed to get two legitimate hole-in-ones! He also really enjoyed starting about a foot away from the cup. He had a ton of fun and so did we. After golf, we enjoyed lunch from Square Burger, eating it at a cute little table in the park. Aidan got his new favorite, a chocolate milkshake. After filling our bellies with delicious fries, burgers, and a taste of Aidan's shake, we headed over to the carousel for a fun family ride. I can't wait to get those pics up, Sean was even on a horse! Aidan thought it was great to have Mommy and Daddy ride next to him too. What a fun day!

Saturday was a fun day spent with the girls for Steph's bachelorette party. We started off at Viv Pickle, which was a surprise to Steph and she totally enjoyed it. Then we headed over to Continental Mid-Town for a delicious dinner, some great drinks, and lots of laughs. After a quick stop at Borders for a bathroom break and good laugh in a certain section, we walked to Lucky Strike to hang in the lounge before enjoying two hours of bowling. All in all we had a fabulous, fun, relaxing night. Steph had a great time which was all that mattered.

Sunday we welcomed home Sarah, a long-time friend of Sean's. She just returned from serving in the Navy in Afghanistan. She does all sorts of crazy stuff over there. We're certainly thankful that she's home safe and is able to spend time with her family.

Monday....oh Monday. Do you believe that we took Aidan to his preschool, yes PRESCHOOL, orientation on Monday? My little man is growing up too fast! We found an excellent program nearby that has a two year program two days a week for two hours at a time. It's just what he needs to get started since he's been with mom-mom since he was four months old. Orientation was great because after a few minute chat with the director the kids all went to their classrooms with their teachers and the parents stayed back. After about fifteen minutes the kids came back. Aidan didn't seem upset and it was only good things to be said about him (good manners, well behaved, good kid, so sweet, etc.). Sean and I were certainly proud of him. I must admit, it made me sad to think he's already big enough for that. Sheesh. Where has time gone? After orientation Sean went golfing with his dad and Aidan and I went to the mall to get that all-important backpack for school. Afterwards we enjoyed lunch and then some play and nap time at home.

Today I took him into the classroom with me. It's sometimes tough to get things done with him there, but today I had him put a pencil and eraser in each of the thirteen (yes, 13=too many!) student desk baskets and then a couple of other things on each of their desks as well. He also enjoyed painting with watercolors, drawing, playing with math manipulatives, and helping me clean up. Such a little helper!

My thoughts on life right now:
I'm NOT ready to start school again, especially since it means leaving my little guy.
Family time is still the best time.
Preschool already? Wow Aidan.
Aidan, you make mommy and daddy proud of you every day.

It's a big day for Aidan, his crib was converted to a toddler bed! Of course while I was trying to take the footboard off he was mommy's best little helper. He wasn't too happy when I moved themattress off, but was thrilled when he got to climb into his very own bed. He told us he would not climb out of his crib because he would fall, so I was hoping he would be just as cautious about getting in and out of the bed...I was fooled. He must have climbed in and out 20 times in five minutes. He thought it was great. He didn't even scoot down, it was more like a step off the side. All of a sudden we take away the front and he gets brave. Great. As usual he fell asleep cuddling with Sean after his milk. After a little while I performed my nightly routine of taking him up to bed. What an easier task to do without the crib front on! My 30ish pound baby wasn't so hard to lay down without waking. My back thanks me for the conversion. Check him out: