Christmas Traditions

I LOVE the holidays, I love everything that comes with them--decorations, holiday music, pumpkin spiced drinks, Santa Claus and giving gifts, including the crowds (and why be so rude, that is what I don't understand, we are all miserable in the line) and the bills (I tend to hate even looking at my statements this time of year, its just depressing).  I have so many memories of things that center around the holidays.  Maybe because growing up in a small town things tend to be bigger in your mind but Christmas just always seemed to be something that stands out every year for me.  The holiday party at Nanny's is always one that I remember, with the pickin' and grinnin', endless amounts of food (oyster stew, prime rib, ham biscuits), Sara spiking the tea with Southern Comfort, the "yoddling" incident (don't ask, well ask Cara, she retells it well), garbage bag bicycles (my very first 10 speed) and the drum set (wow, our parents may have never forgiven Nanny for that one), and who could forget the endless table of cookies, that I am not joking, had probably 40 different types of cookies, fudge, and other treats that Nanny made.  (Crinkle cookies are still my favorite and the recipe was in my wedding favor booklet as my favorite recipe along with Red Velvet Cake, another good Christmas specialty.)  Cara, Sara and I used to always put on a show at this event for all who attended, specfically, we used our Michael Jackson microphone and liked to sing Whitney Houston (I think I am thankful for no video footage of that!).  I also randomly remember other things, like my cousin Dustin giving me a basketball when I was 5 and I loved it and kept it forever, until it basically cracked.  Uncle Steve gave all of us this really cool remote controlled 18-wheeler that I also loved.  Tanna used to always tell this story about me coming out to see everyone at Christmas (I must have been around 4?) and saying that I would have been out sooner but I was blowing out my hair and getting dressed while flipping my hair (my Mother used to put me in a VERY fancy dress for Christmas and I apparently loved that.  And well, if you know me, you know that I am obsessed with my hair, so I have no shame on this story.)  I also remember going to Jonesville UMC and going outside and lighting a candle and singing Silent Night.  I thought it was so fun to be outside in the street at night and everyone doing that.  There was also a gentleman who would call us on Christmas Eve and pretend to be Santa Claus and give us a prediction on his arrival time.  One of the best things I have ever witnessed was Lauren opening her gift and saying "that was just what me needed" as she took out a full set of plates, bowls and other kitchen items (I think she was 2 or 3 and totally adorable).   Roland and Nazrin were always a part of it too and Sandy always did neat things with us at Christmas.  All these wonderful memories that I need to share....

So, Adrian and I are starting some traditions of our own with Teddy.  We are doing a Santa breakfast at the Club with him, but honestly he HATED the picture part.  I mean it was pure torture.  He was cool with Santa until we tried to take his photo.  I guess we have to wait a little longer on that to come.  He LOVES this recordable book of the Night Before Christmas that has my Mother reading it to him.  He begs for it several times at night.  We also are going to take him to see the ICE show at Gaylord National Harbor, which is an incredible experience.  I have an annual cookie party to set the stage for holiday cheer that may grow into Santa making a visit, we shall see. 

Given that we alternate Christmas between my family and Adrian's, last night we went to play with the Azer cousins and had so much fun opening up toys and having matching outfits for all the cousins (I am sure at some point that they will hate us but I always buy the girls a dress and now I am buying all the boys a matching sweater, so they will just have to accept it a little while longer.  Blackmail photos in the making I think.)

Actually, what I love most about the holidays is not the gifts, even though I have definitely received some amazing gifts over the years.  What I love the most is spending time with family and making memories.  The gifts accentuate the memories from when I was younger but now that I am older I enjoy watching the young ones open things with anticipation, quickly throwing them aside for the next gift and then go crazy from the sugar and wrapping paper high of playing with this mountain of toys.  I always say that because we are so busy, time is our most precious gift, so when I can give the gift of time with loved ones, it is the least expensive but means the most coming from me. 

I look forward to many more traditions and creating new ones with our family and friends.  Now, the one peculiar stage we are in with Teddy is one where he is learning how to be selfish--as in, your toy is his toy and everything is his.  Yes, friends, we have officially entered the "MINE" stage.  I gave him an early gift on Saturday, which was a stick puppet of Gymbo the clown (from his Gymboree class).  When I was showing it to Adrian he ran up to Adrian and began shouting very loudly and very clearly "MINE, MINE, MINE" until Adrian relented and gave it to him.  I could not stop laughing so now Teddy thinks it funny, and along with calling everyone (seriously, everyone) Mama and constantly making the sign for "more" he just makes me laugh which encourages this bad behavior.  What can I say, he is his Momma's pride and joy (and his Daddy's but Daddy did say out loud the other day "Not on my cashmere" and ran away from Teddy's chocolate icing covered hands....). 

Happy Holidays to everyone from the Azer crew. 

Gratefulness begins where Entitlement ends

This title of this post was a quote that the pastor gave last Sunday at the church service Teddy and I attended.  The quote was in the context of a sermon about giving, why you should give (because you are blessed beyond measure), how you should feel about giving (obviously, it will make you feel good), etc.  Instantly, I went to thinking about Teddy and wanting to teach him about the gift of giving and how good that can make you feel.  Now, I realize that teaching a 15 month old how to share is difficult enough at this point and I may need to lower my expectations some, but it is a good point (I mean I am happy when he shares without hitting someone, so baby steps here.).  We (the Adams-Azer family) have many blessings and many things to be grateful for and acknowledging those gifts is a powerful potion for my soul (I someday dream about winning the lottery and giving most of it away; I really think that would be fun in a Mr. Deeds sort of way.). 

Here is a partial list of the things I am grateful for that I am not entitled to (because as the quote says, you are only grateful for things you don't feel entitled to, ergo, to feel grateful you must stop feeling entitled):

1.  Teddy Azer--the ultimate gift in our lives, he has taught us many things and continues to make every day brighter and better.  Most of all, he does make me want to be a better person, not just a better mother, but a better person and help make the world a little better while I am at it as well.

2.  Adrian Azer--the ultimate other gift in my life who also teaches me things (and puts me in my place, even if I would prefer to just stay on my highhorse a little longer).

3.  Family--wow, sometimes you just cannot underestimate what family can be for you.  Pick you up when you are down, unconditionally love you, support you and help you.  I can say without fear of contradiction that I would not be where I am today without my family.  

4.  Friends--as an only child, friends have always been very important in my life and have had to be in many ways my family.  I would not be the person I am without the love and support of my friends.
5.  Job--I am grateful to have a job.  I complain about it a lot but it does keep me centered and allows me to afford things for Teddy and others that I would not otherwise be able to.

6.  This blog--I am grateful to have a place to share my family, my thoughts and forever immortalize embarrassing moments with you all.  I get a boost with every post and love hearing from people that they like a post or a picture. 

7.  French fries--I love french fries (if they are on a menu, I almost always order them, as in almost everywhere I eat) and, many days, they are the only things that Teddy will eat, which gives them an added boost in my book. 

8.  Holidays--I love that we all have traditions to share, music to sing and gifts to give. It really is the most wonderful time of the year.

9.  Photos--I am a picture taking freak and I love that I have them.  When we lost everything in the fire, I cried the most about losing my photos.  (I am a sentimental soul.)  Another nod to Sandy Roberson, a friend who is like family, for giving me this passion.

10. You--because if you are reading then blog, then you must care about us in some way.  Caring about others is really special, so if I know you, then here is a big ol' hug and if I don't, I hope to one day meet you and learn more about you.

Watching your child grow is a really special thing.  I know many who have lost someone and it is heartbreaking to hear them talk about what they miss.  I am grateful for every minute on this Earth that I can watch Teddy grow, play with his friends and mine, and create this life we are living.  I am just...grateful for everything right now. 

A big shout out to Teddy's PopPop for making him this amazing wooden toy chest.  Dr. Azer, is an orthopedic surgeon but has taken a shine to woodworking and made this by hand as a special heirloom for Teddy's 1st birthday.  We love it!

New Haircut, New School and Eating French Fries

So Teddy Roo went and got his first big boy haircut last weekend!  He did not cry, but boy did he squirm.  I almost cried because, well, my baby has been replaced by a little boy now.   The older gentleman who cut his hair asked if I could keep him still and I said, umm, No. So we did the best we could to get it cut.  

We also joined Gymboree to help Teddy burn off some pent up energy....he LOVES it.  He just ran around, climbed every obstacle, poked the bubbles, ran under the parachute, and even played with Gymbo the Clown (who is a little scary looking but whatever).

We also got some crazy news this week....Teddy will be starting a new pre-school in December.  No longer will he be just 6 floors down from my office but now he will be in a full fledged pre-school in our neighborhood.  I am excited for him to begin his learning journey but really sad to not be able to just run downstairs.  I am not sure who will have the bigger transition in this, me or Teddy.  Having him downstairs made work bearable to come back to and it was definitely my security blanket to know he was just right there.  I guess I will have to accept that he is growing up and getting bigger.  His teacher Miss Helena was very upset too but I told her that Teddy will be back in the Center on days when the school is closed and she can see him.  We love the Teddy Roo.

Teddy is also saying a lot of new words:  Thank you ("tankoo"), ball ("baaaal"), and everyone he sees is either Mama or Dada.  We are working on car and bus.  He sometimes will say "Choo Choo" but less often that just pointing.

Which brings me to food--Teddy is still a picky eater.  I have resorted to just feeding him whatever he will eat, which sometimes means French Fries for breakfast.  I know, I know but what can I say, I want him to eat something.  (Not sure where this comes from as you know me, I am an EATER, always have been, always will be.  Never saw a plate of food I did not like.  If I had not been pregnant in the summer of '09 I would seriously question if he was my child.)

Teddy the Tiger

Well October has certainly been lively in our house.  We went down to visit good ole' UVA and Teddy loved the Lawn!  But then he gave us quite the scare and were ended up in the ER with him severely dehydrated among other things (somehow Mommy also is the only one who gets the stomach virus from Teddy yet again...).  Once we got through those little issues, it was already almost time for (dun dun duh) HALLOWEEN or as we have renamed it Teddy-Ween.

This year Halloween came with the long awaited visit from GrandNan and Papaw and, the surprise guest star, NANNY!  who made a flight up to see us here in DC!  We were all very excited!


Teddy started the Halloween weekend off right by charming the mommy's in daycare with his outfit.  (Seriously, he has the women fooled.  He flirts with them and one mommy even told me he gives her a hug everyday...he also apparently tried to pat her leg one day...no clue.)  He gave his girlfriends lots of kisses and waved in the parade (around the DC city block) to everyone and thought they were all there for him.  (Such a show-off.)  He even began clapping for himself and throwing kisses...hilarious.

 We dressed up as a tiger this year and Teddy showed everyone why...he is rambunctious and will jump on you almost immediately.  He also likes to swat at everyone with his paws and bite you, so a tiger seems fitting.  (When I asked his daycare teacher if he should be Pooh or Tigger, she said, without hesitation, "he is not meek like Pooh, he is Tigger, jumping and bouncing everywhere".  Um, yeah, that about sums that up.)

  

 
Teddy gives meaning to the phrase "bull in a china shop."  He will destroy it or you (ask Adrian, who got a Harry Potter-esque scratch on the forehead from Teddy just in time for court hearings and meetings...yay!).

He had a Halloween play date with Jack, his due date twin, and they had fun, except Teddy was mean (of course) had to be spanked multiple times (yes, we spank, no choice) and made Jack cry a couple of times (well, I don't know what to say).  They were successful at giving each other a high-five!

 And I think Teddy's shirt speaks volumes about where we are developmentally.....

I swear he is a sweet boy...just not all the time...and, well, as they say, he is all boy.

Little Cassanova



Little Cassanova



I have not posted in some time because, hmm, well, how do you write a post about your son and his already pronounced "chasing" (literally) of women.  The past few weeks have been filled with many tales of me picking Teddy up and asking (demurely) "What did he do today?" only to be answered with "He stole the Boppy's from the babies, tackled a little girl to kiss her and rubbed another mother's leg when she came to pick up her son."  That has been our past 2-3 weeks in a nutshell. Seriously.  Stop laughing, it's not funny.  (Okay, it might be a little funny but it is really embarrassing.) 

The stories about the babies goes like this:  in the past month Teddy went from being the youngest to one of the oldest as many of the older toddlers transitioned out.  Now there are 5 babies and 3 toddlers in his room.  Given that he wants to always be the center of attention, when the teachers started holding the babies, playing with them, etc, Teddy decided he had enough and stole their Boppy's when the teachers were not looking.  He also taught the other 2 toddlers this fun trick so they were all stealing the Boppy's.  Yes, Teddy got time out--a lot.  We had many talks about sharing, being gentle, etc.  Apparently, now he is better with them and not stealing Boppy's but that was a stressful week.

Then he decided that he wanted to give another little girl lots of kisses.  So he tackled her and just sat on top of her as he planted lots of slobbery kisses (and I wonder how he is always sick...).  I have taught him to blow kisses but he apparently prefers the real thing with the little girls.  This all in all makes me scared.

So imagine my surprise when I went in to pick him up one Friday and they told me about him hitting on another Mommy!  She has a baby in the room, so she bent down to pick up the baby and Teddy came over to stroke her leg.  This was very disturbing.  They said the other mother laughed and Teddy just giggled at her.  Such a flirt.  This makes me doubly scared.



The "owl-neck" move



Then another day, we ran into two of my female co-workers.  Teddy blew them kisses and did all of his tricks.  They were showering him with praise.  But then a pretty lady walked behind them and Teddy moved my head so he could see her.  He began shouting at her to notice him and he literally did the owl-neck move to watch her walk by.  Already a ladies man. 



Flirtling with the ladies



Then we went to the sushi restaurant in our neighborhood.  Teddy LOVED the waitresses and they just spoiled him.  He stopped eating when they walked by and then decided he wanted to play with them instead of eat.  And let me tell you, he ate up all the attention. 

In development news, Teddy is babbling constantly.  Sort of saying words (well, I count the "sha" as "shoe" when he says it as we point at the shoe) and pointing at things all the time.  He will be a talker, which will not surprise anyone that knows either of his parents.  He is also wild.  Just running everywhere and asking to be noticed.  He gets very upset if you do not notice him.  (Right Cara?) 

 Every morning on our way to daycare we have a routine.  He gets off the elevator and must walk over to the female security guard and have her say hello to him.  If she is not there, he gets very flustered. Then he has to walk over to the building manager's window and make her say hello to him.  There is not a shy bone in his body.  He literally runs away from me now at daycare and just charges in and does not even blow me a kiss bye-bye anymore. 

Teddy also wants to do everything that Daddy does.  Everything.  If Daddy says a word, then he wants to say it.  If Daddy plays with a toy, then Teddy wants to play with that toy.  They are peas in a pod.  Literally, twins in every way.  Same facial expressions, mannerisms and everything. 

That Mom

I am working very hard on not being "that Mom" on the playground/in the office/at the activity.  We all know the stereotype: talks incessantly about all her child's accomplishments while degrading your child's (e.g. "Bugaboo is walking now." "Superhumanchild has been doing that forever, he is really almost running."  As if next week she is signing him up for the Olympic trials.) , lectures you about what you feed your child (e.g. "Are you feeding your child processed food?" Asked while you feed your kid applesauce that has high fructose corn syrup and artificial flavors.), lectures you about your parenting style (e.g. "Spanking is not good for children-it's barbaric." Said while you are spanking your kid for throwing a tantrum after they pulled some little girls hair and she cried.) and in general makes you feel like you are behind in every way (e.g. "Have you got Bugaboo on the list yet for [insert name of incredibly expensive and snobby pre-school that feeds into the incredibly expensive and snobby private school]?  I put Superhumanchild on a year ago.  Did I mention that I got a promotion and the volunteer of the year award last week?"  Said to you when you have not slept in days, you have no makeup on and the shirt you are wearing has dried up food and spit up stains, while you check your blackberry and see an email from work needing something else after you left and forgot the papers at work.). A friend of mine sent me a really funny link to an animation about this Mommy-centered competition that we do.  (Maybe Dad's do it too, but Adrian likes to retort that Teddy is so advanced that he still needs a diaper and that his puppy was easier to potty train than Teddy.)   I am really trying not to be that Mom. 

Now don't get me wrong, I am incredibly proud of my darling son and, if you read this blog regularly, you probably know that already.  I love that he rolled over quickly (even if it was because he was born superhumanly large and was already in 3rd grade at 2 weeks old), crawled early and walked early.  I am very proud of all of these things, but they have absolutely nothing to do with me or with Adrian.  In fact, I am 100% sure they are attributable to being in daycare and watching his friends do them all day long and wanting to be like them.  I wish I could take credit for them but the simple truth is that much of his advancement has little to do with me and is all about his personality.  My amazing Godmother Ernestine wrote me about my last post and said that maybe they treated us like little adults but that we have to let kids be kids.  And frankly, kids are messy, develop at totally different paces, learn to walk, talk and eat regardless of what we do, and will misbehave no matter style of discipline we adopt.  So I am going to take this good advice and try to be less caught up in the pace of Teddy's development (but really, I long for the day that he will just tell me what is wrong instead of throwing a tantrum and will just do what I tell him to do instead of what he wants to do, is that really asking too much of a 1 year old?). 

I tell a single girl I work with here in the office that I have 2 pieces of advice about your single years:
1.  Spend all the money you want to on all the clothes, purses and shoes while you can.  In fact, stock up because when you marry someone like Adrian, that will quickly be put to a screeching halt. 
2.  Travel all you want and veg in front of the TV all you want.  Free time becomes a thing of the past.  All my "free time" now is devoted to Teddy and I LOVE LOVE LOVE every single minute.  (In fact, I actually cannot remember what I used to do at night and on the weekends before Teddy.  Apparently, I used to do things but I have no idea what they were and how I filled up that much time...oh wait, I watched a lot of TV, cooked meals, had dinner with friends, saw movies, got manicures and pedicures regularly, went to the gym and went on weekend getaways.  Yeah, I would not trade it all, not even for a minute.  I even find that the nursery rhymes get stick in my head and I sign them instead of whatever is on the radio...Allee Galoo Galoo.)

So if I have an episode of being "that Mom" please excuse me, I am a work in progress. But if you hear me tell you that I just heard a seal crying, then slap me, I have gone over the edge and way too far.

Teddy is causing trouble....Again

Well folks, after a long hiatus, the terrorizer of the Koalas Room is back.  We thought we had taught Teddy to be gentle and play with the others kids, but of course, we were wrong.  I came to pick him up on Thursday only to find out he had pushed all the other kids down, pinned one little girl down and pulled her hair and insisted on eating lunch with the teachers and not the other kids.  What are we going to do with this kid?  Apparently, he intends to prove that even if he is the youngest and smallest, he is going to try and be the alpha in the room.  Yikes!  (Yes, this sweet little face he gives you after he misbehaves does make it hard to punish him.)

Back story is that he is still the youngest toddler in the room but likes to "fit in" with the bigger kids.  I think when they don't do what he wants, he gets upset and does not really know how to express it except by being a bully to older and bigger kids??? <<>>  Then when his favorite teacher went to lunch, he apparently threw a tantrum (yes, he is learning from the older kids to throw a tantrum at 1 instead of 2, thanks) and insisted to go with her.  Then he ate her food, another teacher's food and got mad when they got in his view of the TV in the teacher's lounge.  (He does not watch TV with us, it may be on but he does not watch it.  Not sure what was on, maybe soap operas!)  I have no idea where he gets this from.....okay, maybe we do but I expected this later not at 1.  His personality is certainly developing early!  Needless to say, he was in TIME OUT again that day.  

In other news, the pediatrician diagnosed Teddy's Exorcist ways as severe reflux, so we have him on Prevacid, and so far, (crossing fingers and knocking on wood) it seems to be a big help.  He is eating and sleeping better (Praise Jesus!) and we are not having as many Exorcist re-enactions and spit up episodes. This is all after a rough two weeks of a cold that led to an ear infection while we were in Chicago (yes, we made him fly with an ear infection but in our defense, we had no idea it was an ear infection...).   Being the little trooper he is, he smiled through almost all of it (biggest exception to this was when we tried to give him the antibiotic, he would scream and spit it out all over us causing a huge dry cleaning bill).

Teddy is showing an early interest in golf, or at least, eating golf balls!

Teddy's First Birthday

Where, oh where, to begin.  You see, we have an incredibly spoiled child (what you thought that an only child of an only child could somehow not be spoiled...ummm, No).  Not only did the Tedster have a birthday party in daycare with his friends there, complete with cupcake mashing goodness, he had another family birthday party on Sunday.  It was a weekend of Teddy (I personally celebrate a week to month of my birthday, so Teddy has a ways to go).  My parents flew in to spend the weekend with us and praise Jesus they were here.  Poor Teddy came down with pinkeye on Thursday so he had to stay home on Friday (his actual birthday) with my parents as babysitters...dun dun dun.  They survived, barely!  He is a handful and into everything and lightening fast.  I think he had them on their toes!

But let me begin with the daycare party.  His beloved teacher, Miss Helena, made his grandparents a collage of all his fun at daycare.  It was a huge hit.  We brought down the cupcakes for him to share with his other buddies and they all had a lot of fun.  (Cupcakes are big business these days but these were good old gourmet Safeway specials.  The good stuff is to come.)  I took many photos and Teddy had a lot of fun.  He LOVES having people sing and clap for him (I think he just likes being the center of attention, but I mean he does have shy parents...okay, even I could not keep a straight face on that one.  A guy in the elevator the other day said it was a real shame I had such a shy son after Teddy spent the ride giving him high-fives and bahbahbahing to him.).

That night GrandNan and Papaw arrived and it was fun fun fun for Teddy.  He must have had the baby equivalent of a carnival with them.  It was presents galore and lots of attention.  We went to the park to play then we just let him run wild at the house (sugar rush I suppose).

In the middle of all this madness, Mommy ended up having to work some major hours and miss a lot of the fun.  Adrian, Teddy, GrandNan and Papaw went out to eat then took Teddy to the driving range (clearly I was missing from this escapade, I mean, I would NEVER choose to golf on a birthday).  It looks like they had a lot of fun.  Then on Saturday it was riding his new Choo Choo Train from Murad, Benedicte and Alexander, playing in the pool, going to the park to swing, getting all the love and attention that GrandNan and Papaw can muster, and playing with all his new toys.  We let him try some new foods, but like father like son, his favorite is fruit over chocolate (sometimes I question whether this is my actually my child, then I see the stretch marks and remember).  Probably the funniest story from Saturday was Mommy going to get the balloons for his party.  At his friend Jack's party the week before, Teddy stole Jack's balloons (literally, he tried to run away with them at the park, it was hilarious).  So I made sure to order some balloons for his party.  Problem that I did not consider was how to transport all these balloons in my car.  You see, Adrian took our SUV to Baltimore to his friends wedding (yay Jason and Michelle, mazeltov!) and left me with our little sporty coupe.  Umm, 40 balloons do NOT fit into a sporty coupe.  I seriously looked like a clown car, as I had them coming from every place possible and I had to drive like a granny home, plus had them hanging out of the trunk.  People were laughing and pointing at red lights...and I would have too, it was a sight.

Sunday was the big day of his Ferrari themed party.  Teddy was decked out in Ferrari gear thanks to his Auntie Viv and we were off to the races.  It was a super hot day, so we made sure to have everything outside of course.  (I figured if I had to endure having a 10 lb baby in August everyone can endure his birthday outdoors in August.)  We had a full speedway theme going on at the Azer estate on Mount Vernon Circle.  Teddy loved every minute of it, especially the singing, clapping and cake.  People showered him with love and spoiled him with many gifts!  We appreciate everyone sending us gifts, as Teddy has already tried them all out, and surprisingly the wrapping paper was not his favorite toy from the party (the cardboard however could be a close second).  It would not be an Azer family party without a story.  Needless to say, I made home with about 36 of the balloons I purchased and I made sure to keep them separated to get them to the party.  Guess who decided that they could just grab them all in one hand and try to shove them into our SUV???  Not naming names here <<cough cough Adrian cough cough>> but it was an unmitigated disaster.  They become almost hopelessly tangled and we could not get the doors shut to get to the party and try to untangle them there.  So, we spent about 30 minutes in our driveway untangling balloons while the neighbors laughed.  Now you know who to call when you need me to untangle your fishing lines, apparently I am an expert according to my Father (thank you hours and hours of prom decorating at JMS and LHS in the 90's!).

Thank you to everyone for helping us celebrate the Teddy Roo's first birthday!  Here are some photos of the event in a slide show.

Oh, yeah one more thing.  Someone though that Teddy needed a haircut.  I personally thought it could wait.  So someone just took our kitchen utility scissors and whacked at Teddy's hair cutting a gap.  I tried to fix it but I think we need a professional, when it grows out some.  Here is the evidence of the first cut before I tried to fix it....the guilty shall remain nameless <<Adrian>>.

A Letter to My Son from his Adoring Mother on the Occasion of his First Birthday

Today is your first birthday, congratulations son!  To say you have been a joy is an understatement and words cannot describe how much we love you.  You came into this world one year ago on a very hot and humid DC day.  Today was perfect; sunny, breezy and hot, but not too hot.  (I ordered the weather special delivery for you.)  You woke up this morning with a little pink eye and a bruise from that other child in daycare who bit you when you tried to take his toy, but neither one seemed to bother you.  We sang Happy Birthday to you at 6:30am and you clapped for yourself and gave us high-fives.  Your smiles were extra large and so were your hugs and kisses.  I treasure each one as if it was the first. 

You are such a delight to parent.  You rarely cry, unless I leave the room or punish you, which I rarely do.  You smile and blow kisses on cue, which delights even strangers.  You light up when I am picking you up each day and race over to give me love. I look forward to seeing you the moment you are out of my sight and I count down the minutes of each day until I pick you up. I love reading you stories and listening to you babble.  I dream up adventures to take you on, places to see, people for you to meet and love.  I take as many pictures as I can to embarrass you with later.  I tell and re-tell stories about your funny ways to anyone who will listen.  I imagine the man you grow to be and dream about the life you will lead. 

We will celebrate this weekend and take many photos for you to look back on and cherish.  We will delight in your antics with cake and frosting, laugh as you eat the wrapping paper and ignore your gifts, and sing as you clap for yourself.  You have changed our world, made us better and more loving, feeling people.  We cannot thank you enough for choosing us to be your parents.  You are gift from heaven; a little angel here on Earth. 

My love for you is as steep as the hill, as many grains as in the mill, as dry as the desert, as deep as the ocean, and as infinite as the stars. I love you as much as a mother can love.

Happy Birthday Teddy Azer, my precious baby boy!

In case you wonder where he gets it from

Don't look at me.....the evidence speaks for itself:

These are the moments

Sometimes I love a really cheesey song, you know the Whitney Houston "I Will Always Love You," Celine's "My Heart Will Go On," Bette's "Wind Beneath My Wings," and the list could continue.  I make no apologies for liking basically easy listening music (it takes way too much time to like something that is outside the Top 40 for me, I mean, I barely have time to look at current events much less discover the coolest indie pop band).  Now with Teddy I try to sing to him (yeah, not an American Idol contestant but Teddy does not seem to mind, Adrian on the other hand, well, you know him, always making his preferences known) and have dance parties, both of which he loves.  It's amazing to watch children really connect to music and recognize songs and words when they are not able to be verbal. 

 

I also like photos and I like to take a million photos (not necessarily of me, because, well, that just ain't a pretty picture) but of Teddy, Adrian, family and friends.  (This probably stems from two things (a) the fire that burnt down my family home in 1999 and (b) Sandy Roberson and my love of her photos.)  I also want to be sure we have lots of photos to cherish for years to come (and probably embarrass Teddy and our other children with later).  There is also something unique about looking back at a photo and recalling why it was taken, the circumstances, and many times, the fun memories it captured. 

Recently, I have been following a blog about a little boy who was born the day before Teddy with cancer and I blogged then about how watching that struggle can give you perspective on life and your blessings.  He passed away last night a week shy of his first birthday that he would have celebrated with his twin next week.  I am again thinking today how blessed I am to share all these precious moments with Teddy and Adrian.  I can hardly believe he will be one year old next week and we will sing, laugh and celebrate the fun and joy he has brought to our lives.  I wish that I could bottle all this up and savor it.  I feel like it will not be long before he is running away from me at school or embarrassed that I am picking him up.  I want to acknowledge that he is a blessing, every friend we have is a blessing, our families are blessings and learning to appreciate these are the lasting legacies of Hudson and Declan.  Sometimes we all get caught up in work and other drama, but I am trying to appreciate that spending time with family is the most important thing we can do and we should do it more often.  I am excited to spend next weekend with my family to celebrate Teddy's birthday! I will post lots of pictures of the event, likely set to cheesey music ("Memories" anyone), and will likely sing an off-key voice to him "Happy Birthday"!  All of this will be to create a memory in photos and video for Teddy that he can watch later and appreciate all the love and joy he brings.  Children really change your perspective and I LOVE that mine has changed.  Teddy Azer has changed my world for the better and made me a better person (I hope) than I was before.  I have never laughed as hard, cried as much or worried more than I do now but being a parent is the best thing to happen to us and we love every minute and every tear. 

P.S. Thank you again to everyone who reads this blog!  You can become a follower if you want so I will know how to tailor the content, as I know not everyone is family.  But I appreciate you reading and welcome you into our universe--it's a wild ride but we are loving every minute of it!

My Grandma Lillian

Now that I have a child I want to share him with everyone (which is maybe why I started a blog, with the added side effect that our children (yes, Adrian, plural) will have a record of their beginnings).  For some reason that is somewhat unexplainable I started missing my Grandma Lillian.  It brought me to tears to think about how she is missing out on Teddy and just thinking about how much she would have loved to see him.  Instead of reading bedtime stories last night, I told Teddy stories about her and all the things I could remember doing with her as a child. I thought it might be best to relay some of those here for him to treasure later.

If you know me, then you know I LOVE TV, especially reality TV.  It has been said that today's reality TV is the new soap opera, and for years, I have LOVED soap operas.  I grew up on a little Y&R, Days of our Lives, Another World, Santa Barbara, Passions, and probably some others I am forgetting.  I can also remember my Dad telling me how these will make me dumb and dumber and now Adrian repeats the same thing about my reality TV shows (peas of a pod I tell you).  Well, I like to think of it as an homage to Grandma.  You see, Grandma was another loyal and devoted soap opera watcher.  When she was babysitting me, I could not even ask for something during her "stories" because they were on and she had to know what would happen next (as if the cheating, lying, killing, reincarnating, kidnapping, and weddings would change in a days time).  So of course, at the tender age of 4, I was hooked.  But then, sometimes I had another babysitter who watched different stories than my Grandma and I got addicted to those more than Grandma's.  We only had 1 TV in our house at that time (can you even imagine a time when a house only had 1 TV?) and given my age, I was not going to be in control of that remote.  I began to whine and make Grandma miss part of her stories.  She told my parents that if she was going to keep babysitting me, I had to have my own TV to watch my stories while she watched hers....and my parents capitulated.  So at the age of 4 I had my very own TV.  I will always be grateful to Grandma for that!

Grandma, at least by the time she was taking care of me, was not so into cooking.  I cannot really blame her, given she had 9 children of her own, plus helped raise several of the 30+ grandchildren she had.  At that time, there was a restaurant in town called Woody's.  Grandma and I would walk there (she did not drive, not because she couldn't, she just did not like it.  I too prefer to be chauferred and also attribute this to Grandma), eat whatever we wanted and charge it to Daddy (and by charge I don't mean on a credit card, I mean they actually would just run a tab and send you the bill at the end of the month).  It was great because I was a super heavy kid (some things never change) and Grandma would let me eat whatever I wanted; burgers, fries, milkshakes, etc.  It was always so much fun with her.

For years Grandma had 2 jobs:  she worked at the public library and wrote a column in our local newspaper.  For a woman without a high school diploma, she certainly had a way with words.  I used to love getting a card from her, reading it as if it were a novel and thinking how special I was to have a card from her.  She also taught me a love of books.  I can remember going to the library and reading and reading and reading, which I also attribute to my mother. They both would encourage me to read, and even as much as I read for work, I still love to read a book for pleasure.  I also take a special joy in reading to Teddy and eveytime I am near a bookstore, I buy him another book.  There is something special about owning books and it makes me think of Grandma and my mother everytime.

Grandma had a sharp tongue and did not mince her words.  (I know, I know, apple does not fall far from the tree.)  It was always funny to see what she would say.  I remember the day I was leaving for college and we stopped to stay with her.  She was so proud of me.  Towards the end of her life, she and Aunt June would come to Jonesville for a couple of weeks at a time to stay with my Mom.  Aunt June and I spent one of these trips canning a bunch of vegetables from the garden.  Even though Grandma was not really able to help, she still "directed" us on the finer points and made her preferences known.

When she passed away in February of 2004, Aunt June (blessed saint who took care of Grandma for years through many illnesses) found some really neat things I had forgotten that I sent Grandma.  She had a letter where I met this author and I wrote her that even though I liked interviewing the author, I wanted to be an attorney (I went wrong very early on you see).  She kept that letter for almost 20 years and I have no idea why, but I am so glad she did.

I said at Teddy's Christening how much I missed her but that I knew she was still working her magic.  She was truly a special lady, instrumental in my life and in so many memories of my childhood and early adulthood.  Love you Grandma!

Teddy is a Chipmunk

People always ask me if the name Teddy is short for Theodore.   As you all know, it is short for T. Edward Azer (I know, I know, I said I would never use a middle name as the name in use but what can I say?  It adds character!), and truth be told, I liked the name Theodore but Adrian used his veto power over that one.  It's too bad that he did because I think Teddy is really that cute little green chipmunk that is friends with Alvin.   We are working with Teddy on solids and I find that he hides food in his cheeks, just like a chipmunk.  The other day he spit out a piece of apple that we had fed him from about 3 hours earlier and he had eaten since that time as well.  So weird.  Today I found blueberry way after he ate it. Teddy also likes to eat his food then spit it out, apparently all the almost 1 year old babies are doing that this season, its the newest trend.

We had a fun playdate with Alexander.  Here is a photo:

We also jinkxed ourselves and of course the one weekend Adrian is supposed to be away is the one weekend that Teddy gets sick.  Even the doctor was not sure exactly what it was (maybe coxsackie again) but it was enough to make a miserable weekend without Daddy worse.  Then Daddy came home sick.  Truly, this was a weekend to avoid this Azer family but we made the best of it.

Here is a question to ponder:  why can't babies be born with teeth already partially in so that this whole teething thing could be avoided?

Improvements?

I just wanted to brag on Teddy and his behavior, for once. When I went to pick him up last night, there was no time out to report. I literally almost screamed with joy! And they even had a new baby in the room, an infant, and he was "gentle". Truly, I thought someone was playing a joke on me but they assured me it was a fact.

But did I tell you about Monday? Oh, I conveniently have left out that he tackled another child (a child, who is 15 months by the way, that loves Teddy and when we walk in, he runs over to give Teddy a hug and play) not once, but twice. They pulled Teddy off of him and he ran over and just tackled him again. No idea why. In case you wonder if we let him do this at home, the answer is no. (He is somewhat rough but not tackling us or other weird stuff.) I have no idea where this comes from, but I do know that he loves that Time Out chair he has. And I think he better get used to it, something tells me he is going to see a lot of it in the future.

This is the face he makes when he thinks he is in trouble. (This is after he has already peeked to see if we are watching.)



You tell me if you could punish this face, especially after he blows you a kiss or two. I know, I am a sucker for a boy with a great smile.

Teddy Walks the Line

If you are familiar with our blog then you are familiar with Teddy's "unique" way of showing his love for his Momma. This weekend would be no exception. Adrian and I like to take turns getting up with Teddy on the weekend [this kid is a early riser and likes to be up and playing by 6-6:30 everyday, I mean come on, just once I would love to have the kid who sleeps until 8am]. Saturday was Adrian's turn to get up with Teddy and then later brought him in to wake Momma up. Teddy was not happy with that plan and decided to "express his displeasure" which included a full on back arch into Momma's mouth (Greg Louganis would be proud of the back arch form, perhaps he will be an Olympic diver). I immediately tasted the metallic in my mouth and ran to the bathroom. The Roo got me good...a nice big fat lip with cuts on the bottom and top of my lips. (If you did not know better, you would think Adrian has abused me but luckily now it looks like a bruise on my lip and is not swollen.) Now that he also has these 8 teeth he likes to bite and HARD. He has been vamping his way through Daddy and me. I feel sorry for those poor teachers of his, I can only imagine what he does to them...

However, the cutest thing he does now is that if he thinks he is in trouble, he will blow kisses. If I say no, he just melts my heart with the blowing of kisses, like he knows he is charming you but playing you at the same time; little rascal.

KISSING

That brings me to the Teddy discipline story of the week. I went to pick him up this week and they told me he had to be in time out for about an hour that day. He apparently finished his bottle before all the other kids and wanted them to play with him, IMMEDIATELY. They were slow, so he went around knocking all of their bottles out of their mouths and throwing the bottles so they could play (I guess that makes sense to an 11 month old?). That was time out number 1. Then later they all wanted their passy's, and now that Teddy has one there you would think this issue was fixed, but you would be wrong. He threw his passy and stole all of theirs, again, you guessed it, and threw them. Time out number 2. Apparently he got so bored in time out he took a nice long nap that day. I swear, this kid is just too much. If he does not have your attention, he will get it, by any means necessary!

We have made a lot of progress though in other areas. At music class, Teddy started shaking the maracas and banging the drum instead of just trying to eat everything. He started waving his hands and clapping (not exactly in time but, hey, small victories here people). I think we have a music man on our hands.

As you know, Teddy has been trying to walk ever since we got home from Grove Park Inn. He has made great strides and is now officially walking everywhere. It is his preferred method of locomotion now and he likes to move all around. I like to call his swagger the Nixon, watch the video and you will see why:

WALKING

We are excited to visit with our friend Molly and Richard's baby Henry, more wolves in the pack! We are also getting excited for the big birthday party coming up in 1 month...time flies!

How much fun can you pack into a week?

Well, it has been a while since I was able to post. (This little ol' thing called work got in the way. You can tell my parents there is no need to hide that secret trust fund any longer.) We recently wrapped up a whirlwind tour of Lee County, East Tennessee and Western North Carolina. I must say, I could move to Asheville, but that is beside the point. Adrian and I got to take our first vacation since Egypt with Teddy!

We went down to Jonesville for the 4th of July with my family in Lee County. We had an awesome time (if you don't count the food poisoning that kept me from all the fun on the 4th, but it's not a holiday if someone isn't sick in our family). Little Philip is getting huge and Teddy had so much fun with him. We also had fun seeing Ava Grace and little Logan and having such a big playdate that I think it was a big ol' dose of, um...reality, with more than one child in the house (is that a diplomatic way to say it?).



However, Teddy loved it and did not miss daycare quite as much when he had all of these people to bully, I mean play with, around. (Have I mentioned that he is still quite the bully, but he loves that girlfriend of his, Olivia....made me bring in a passy just so he can give it to her, what a gentleman. She is now leaving daycare and he is getting some infants in his room....they better watch out.) We had a little pre-first birthday birthday party to celebrate with all the Jonesville folks and Nanny! It was a Cookie Monster cake and Teddy really enjoyed it (side note, Kami Harber is a VERY talented baker and cake artist and does amazing work). Daddy put a quick stop to the sugar rush, but Teddy just played and played and played in that icing.

Nanny got him his very own 4-wheeler like his Daddy and Papaw so he can ride around like the big boys.



He likes to make it rev the engine (this scares me for when he is 16...which feels like it will be tomorrow.) We have also had a spate of teeth come in and we are now up to 8 teeth in total, and Lord help me, I cannot wait for that to be over. Little Vampire Teddy now likes to bite me all the time, especially on the neck. It looks like I am necking with Adrian from the bruises but its little Teddy trying out his True Blood impressions.

Did I mention that Teddy is now trying to walk? Did I mention he thinks he can walk, so he let's go, then falls? Did I mention he did this and cut his gum? Yeah, it was traumatic for me because I was not there and I freaked out when I saw the cut. Poor little man, he just cannot catch a break with those front teeth. But he did officially take his first steps. I would like to thank the Grove Park Inn for the nice long hallways it provided to help us with this milestone. Teddy and I would "walk" up and down the hallways and by the time we got home, he just thought he was walking. (Okay, you caught me, I am overstating his capabilities. He can take 2-3 steps then fall but I count that as walking.) He is really enjoying this independence and Mommy and Daddy are having fun chasing him around. (On his first day back in daycare they wrote me a note that he is climbing on the tables and what a big boy he is now climbing. The real story was that he climbed upon the table and was peering over to see where his girlfriend was in the nap area. Imagine a height of say 1.5 feet. I smell trouble....lock up your daughters, no seriously, lock them up.) He also got so used to seeing us that week that he had a hard time transitioning away from us. (Okay so I sort of made this up. He walked into daycare and basically shut the door in my face.) He loved all the attention he got at the Grove Park Inn but could not figure out who the annoying kid was following him.



All in all, I have to say I am just truly blessed. I could not have imagined how fun it would be to get married, have an awesome baby, a boy no less, and watch him play with grandparents and greatgrandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles. It really has been the most fun thing I have ever done to watch my son play with his family, especially his Daddy. Now I know I call Adrian out a lot (hello, he totally deserves it), but there is nothing that makes me happier than watching the two of them chase each other around and play hide and seek. I think Teddy is going to start really talking soon, so watch out, actually just listen up, you will definitely be able hear him!

Please disregard

I am pretty sure we have all done it before, you know, asked someone to (or assume that they will) disregard something we said, we wrote, we did or did not do; ordinary, garden variety things that happen on a daily basis, most of us generally disregard. (I think we also tend to take things for granted in the same context, like oh yeah, I totally said thank you to you for handing me that, holding the door, picking up my shoes, it was totally implied by my look/nod in your general direction.) So given that this is our daily existence, I find it hilarious that most people cannot disregard children misbehaving. As a Mommy, I have learned to disregard the looks of disdain when I am hauling Teddy out of a store as he screams at the top of his lungs because I would not let him throw each box of cereal into the aisle (yeah, I really don't hear it anymore, really). I also disregard the stares of people as I pick up that spoon he dropped on the restaurant floor and stick it back in his mouth, because, well, germs are a way of life and I believe in the 10, 20 and 30 second rule (whatever is appropriate applies).

The evidence of most disrgard is hidden-stares, sideways glances, etc. But not with a baby, no sir. No sooner did Teddy get his front two teeth than he promptly went around and chipped one of them. I mean really, seriously, how did that happen. Oh, it could not possibly be because he puts EVERYTHING in his mouth (everything is not an overstatement, if he touches it you can assume it's going in the mouth; door knobs, hands, TV controls, scent diffusers, vases, whatever it is will be tasted by Teddy). All I really know, and the facts here are not certain, is that I was making Memorial Day dinner and when I checked in on Teddy, I noticed that a tooth was chipped. Adrian saw nothing, heard nothing and said nothing. The next day the pediatric dentist said that if it's not lose or changing color then no worries. But, hello! I look like the worst mother who lets her 10 month old baby run around and eat things that break his teeth (side note: Teddy will put everything in his mouth except food, which is a mystery, especially to his porky mother).

Then there is the issue of visiting other people's homes who don't have a child Teddy's age. (Disclaimer: We have not really childproofed because I want to prepare him for the reality that life is not about being protected, oh, did I say that online, I mean, it's actually just for this situation, other people's homes are not like ours and "Teddy Ready".) So when we went down to visit my Mother, little, precious Teddy proceeded to break 2 vases in the first hour we were there. (He is fast at that crawling stuff.) I mean you turn and he is across the room, in the drawers pulling everything out. Or you put him down, switch the light on and it looks like a Tasmanian devil spun out of control. I just overlook these things, I mean broken stuff is the norm at my house, but I am super embarrassed when it happens outside our home.

So PLEASE DISREGARD any broken items that Teddy leaves in his wake. If I don't acknowledge that he broke it, just send me the bill. Please disregard that broken tooth, I really do watch him and try to pay attention, but he is fast. Please disregard if he hits you, pulls your hair or steals your toy. I cannot punish him just yet and he smiles with such love and affection when he gets his way that its just hard for me not to melt and forget he just ripped a handful of hair out. Please disregard any implications that it may have on our parental oversight capabilities because it is simply out of my hands.

I am going to work on disregarding people who shoot me death stares, don't hold the door when I am struggling with a stroller and look at me with those disapproving eyes. I am going to work on disregarding an invitation to compare stages of advancement of my child vs. their child because, well, that just cannot be good for anyone. I am also going to work on disregarding Teddy's crying just a little more when it serves my purposes...

A Celebration of Sandy Roberson

We sang, we danced, we loved and we remembered. Sandy would have been so joyous to know that everyone had an amazing time on Saturday night at her celebration. Roland gave an amazing speech that would have made Sandy so proud and I am so proud of both Roland and Nazrin. Sandy and Jim have raised two amazing children who possess such grace and humility.

Sometimes as an only child you miss out on things, like having a constant playmate, having someone to call and share your good news with or cry with at the bad news. If I try to describe the relationship I have with Roland and Nazrin, I always end up saying that they are like a little brother and sister to me. I love them as if they were my siblings and each of their children will always be a nephew or a niece to me.

It was an amazing night to celebrate our beloved Sandy. I can just imagine how much she would have loved having two bands, more food than 2 armies could eat and more friends that we could count at her house. I know she would have been the first person dancing and singing and she would have also been the last to leave. She will always be that firefly dancing, smiling, laughing, singing and dancing with us.

And, of course, there would be photos for all of us the next day....enjoy!

A tribute to Sandy

Many of you have only known me as an adult, which bless your hearts, is probably enough. One person, other than my parents, who has had the distinction of being at virtually every significant event in my life was Sandy Roberson and the entire Roberson clan. If you ask me a memory about my childhood and I cannot recall, I am likely to call Roland and Sandy for clarification, because they were there for them all. I love the story, as Sandy told it, about me storming into the hospital and demanding that everyone move so I could see "my RORO" and making all the adults move away from the newborn. (Being a mother now this makes me even more embarrassed but I just imagine that it made Sandy laugh and laugh to watch a 2 year old demand to hold her newborn son.) Then there were the countless trips to the river to float and camp out (yes, I used to camp out folks, I know its hard to imagine me doing that now but we did it every weekend and I LOVED it). It felt so exotic, but really we were just going down the Powell to the fake beach (which I thought was so cool) that Jim had made for us at the river. Over countless campfires Roland, Naz and I would come up with different ways to eat our hamburgers (some weeks it was ketchup only, then ketchup and mayo, or maybe ketchup mayo and mustard) and then roast marshmallows. I specifically remember one time we dug a huge hole in the sand and stuck Nazzy in there, which she did not like (we were not always the nicest of kids). I can also remember playing in the basement of the A-frame and having "experiments" with painting and other chemicals. Sandy was never afraid to let us make a mess and learn; she always encouraged our creative side, whether it was exploring rocks or making a mess, she never got angry with us for spilling paint, gasoline or traipsing through cow paddies.

Sandy also started many traditions for us that I treasure now and we have continued though we live far apart. Every New Years Eve, we all call each other right at the stroke of midnight to say Happy New Years. We also spent many Super Bowls, Fourth of July's and Christmas Eve's together with memories that are irreplaceable. Sandy took so many photos of everything that we all have it documented. I used to love coming into Jim's office and seeing what photos might be in my chart from our recent adventures together. (In some ways, I have tried to emulate this about Sandy because I loved it so much.)

At my wedding, Sandy was honestly one of the most excited for me and was one the first to promise to attend. She had such a wonderful time at my wedding and at the Jonesville reception. We still talk about her dancing and dancing with my Mom and my Mother in Law. She really was the life of the party! Then when I found out I was pregnant, Sandy also showered me with love. She sent me her favorite books to read to Roland and wrote in each one. I called her right before I had Teddy and she gave me the advice my own Mother could not-how to raise an amazing and devoted son. She was incredibly proud of Roland and Nazrin and was an amazing friend to everyone. Sandy never forgot a birthday or special event and she always made you feel loved and special. I will truly miss her and I will do my best to make sure that Orlando and all her other grandchildren know how wonderful she was.

I love you forever Sandy! Thank you for being there and always making me feel special; you will be missed but I know you are smiling and laughing with us each day as you watch over us all.

Tall and Thin are not words Mommy knows

Teddy just got back from his 9 month appointment today...turns out he is tall and thin. If you know me, you know that these two words were never part of my vocabulary. Short, pudgy, thick and mushy are more my speed and tall never even appeared on the reading list...more like average. So when she handed me his percentages, you can imagine my shock when she said the two words I have longed to hear my entire life..."Teddy is TALL AND THIN." It is just not fair that my son gets to be this cute and be tall and thin.

I always used to say that if I just had a few more inches, it would spread everything out a little more evenly. I suppose I will just have to wait on the plastic surgeon to make that a reality.

Anyway, Mr. Teddy is super healthy and happy at 19 and 1/2 pounds and 29 inches. He is hugging and kissing everybody in sight, with more teeth coming in everyday. Pretty soon he will need to drink some TruBlood if we are not careful with the "kissing."

Here is a good shot of the teeth he has in now. We may have to change his name to Bugs or Eric or I suppose he could just use Edward (but I hate Twilight) (for the TruBlood fans...Eric!).

Lots of Teddy Love to go Around

Well ladies, its official...Teddy is out to get a girlfriend. I came into daycare this week and his teacher, Miss Helena, told me that he pinned down both little Olivia and Na'ama to give them kisses. Apparently, he also chases them around the room to give them kisses. I am only slightly scared about our little Lothario but he is such a sweet baby, I cannot stop encouraging him. Here is some video of the kisses he likes to give now, feel free to stop by and get one for yourself.....if you can take the pain.....

Learning some Life Lessons

Thank you to each of you who emailed me or messaged me about Little Miss Hudson.  I have no idea why God chose this little angel to join him now, but I know that she is smiling down now with her big smile.  Her passing has really forced me to re-evaluate my priorities and think more thoughtfully about the direction that I am walking in this life.  It was so touching to see how many people have reached out to Mandy and Ed in this tragedy and that is all a result and testament to what amazing people they are.  Mandy is definitely an inspiration to me as a mother and a mentor.  I am hoping to carry these lessons on and be the best mother to Teddy that I can possibly be. I also want to be a better wife and friend.  I want to make sure that I tell people how important they are to me and make them feel appreciated for everything they have given me.  I am at a leadership training conference right now and something the professor said today really hit home for me as I am soul-searching.  He said that its not only important to be self-aware of how you portray yourself, but also be cognizant of how others perceive that portrayal.  After everything last week, I just really need to start making others know how much I value them and making my family and friends my priority.  I want to make sure that Teddy knows he is our number one priority, the joy of our lives and the absolute best thing that has every happened to either one of us.  I hope he can one day appreciate all of the things that we are doing to make sure he has all the advantages that we can provide and all of the opportunities that we want to provide.  I think that life lessons come to you in different forms and things happen that force you to review your life and confirm choices and paths. 

I want each of my friends and family to know that I am sorry if I have not always been as good a friend to you as you have been to me.  I always talk about what amazing friends I have and how supportive they are in every facet of my life.  I want to strive to be the best mother I can be and focus on spending quality time with Teddy and Adrian.  I am going to try to appreciate people for everything and acknowledge their presence in my life as a gift.  There are no guarantees in life and we have no assurances about what the next day will bring.  I can only control my reaction to it and I need/want to begin being a more positive force in the universe.  Thank you again to everyone, you are such an inspiration and it has given me a renewed belief in community and family.  Again, thank you and I love each of you.