If my kids and husband are ever looking to top this Mothers’ Day, they’re going to have to pull out all the stops. Because this has been the best day for a long time. For starters, everyone slept in their designated beds last night all night long. AND both kids slept until 7:50am. Hallelujah. Mothers’ Day gifts included a genuinely beautiful hand-picked bouquet from Benjy; a hand-painted placemat also made by Benjy; some refrigerator art by Benjy, Henry, and Olli; and a Snickers bar. Church was great- Olli was totally on top of things as the kids ran helter-skelter (we don’t have a Sunday school as such, just a creche in the back of the church. This is both good and bad. Another blog post topic, I think). My in-laws came over. My MIL brought lunch, my SIL brought chestnut chocolate fudgy awesomeness, and I made lovebird pie (strawberry meringue). I ate and ate and ate. And then the pièce de résistance, a family outing to the local amusement park after naps. Henry, although initially terrified of all rides, found himself thoroughly enjoying everything just a few minutes in. He especially loved the horse ride, gaining enough confidence to wave at the passers-by. He even went on rides without his Mommy and Daddy! I told Benjy to keep an eye on him during the train ride- Benjy took his job seriously
Quick note: I spelled consciousness correctly without the help of spell check. I rule! Today it’s raining. Yesterday it wasn’t raining. Yesterday, I was supposed to go to the brand new Starbuck’s that just opened up at the Helsinki airport (just a 35 minute bus ride away!). This is the first Starbuck’s in Finland. Let’s hope it’s not the last. Anyway, I was supposed to go there yesterday, but as I said, it wasn’t raining. I’ve lived in Finland long enough to know that you can’t waste the non-rain days in a bus across town. You need to go OUT and you need to go OUT NOW. So instead, Henry and I had a date at a hillside cafe on the bay. Just Henry and I. Benjy was with my MIL (bless her!) and Olli is out of town. Again. Olli has been either out of town or sick for the past month. I told him I’m keeping score. At our wedding, our pastor said, “Love doesn’t keep score.” When we were first married, we would repeat these words back to each other. As a joke, of course, because we both definitely keep score. I digress. So, I had a date with Henry on this beautiful sunny day at a beautiful outdoor cafe on a beautiful hill overlooking the beautiful bay. And I wanted to take a photo. And
The first thing I see when I look at these photos is my sweet little boy. His sweet little eyes and soft little smile. I remember how immediately after he posed for this shot (which he NEVER EVER does, by the way), he jumped up, came and looked at the back of the camera, pointed and started repeating, “Enwy, Enwy, Enwy,” which is how he says his own name. (Ps. Longest sentence ever, right there). I also noticed that sometimes his eyes looked crossed, and other times they don’t. Strange, considering these photos were taken roughly 1 second apart. We’re seeing the doctor on Wednesday to sort it out. But then, after I’m done marveling at the wonder that is my gorgeous boy, I start to think that his head looks like it was superimposed on his body. Doesn’t it? Doesn’t it look like I cut and pasted his head? That it’s really just floating there on some other creature? I swear I did not photoshop my kid’s head onto someone else’s torso. Just try to focus on his cuteness and not on the tricks of the eye
It’s his patented nose crinkle smile that I absolutely adore
This is my 19 month old ecstatically reading the Hunger Games. You never can start too early
Here’s the thing. Part of me totally wants Henry to sleep in his own room. Part of me really wants my bed back, my husband back, my sleep back. But the other part of me looks at this sleeping beauty and knows that it’s all going to be over in a matter of seconds. He’s going to be thirty with a life of his own, he’s going to forget to call, and I’ll hear he’s having a baby because of a status update (or whatever they have in 29 years). And so the other part of me- the part that’s winning out right now- doesn’t care at all- AT. ALL.- that he’s in our room, taking over our lives night after night
I was hoping that by the time I wrote this post, there would be a happy ending for all. The happy ending would be something like this, “And while it was hell there for a few months, eventually everyone returned to their own beds and we all started sleeping through the night once again.” That was my hope. That is not, however, reality. Nor does it seem to be in our immediate future. The truth is that Olli and I have not slept in the same room, much less the same bed, since January. Henry has spent more nights warming my pillow in 2012 than my own dear husband. Benjy’s roommate is no longer his little brother, but his devoted father. And before that, it was Grandma. The deeper truth is that we haven’t had consistent full nights of sleep since… well, since Henry was born. But it’s just degenerated since our return from America. When we got back to Finland in October, Henry would randomly wake up in the middle of the night and cry. And because they were sharing a room and we didn’t want Benjy to be woken by Henry, we’d just pick Henry up and have him spend the rest of the night in our bed. It was right about then that we took away Benjy’s tutti (pacifier), and he wasn’t sleeping particularly well, either. He’d
Our monkeys don’t jump on the bed… …but standing, wrestling, somersaults are all fair game. ps. I totally cut Benjy’s hair myself. He can thank/blame me later. pps. I would have taken more photos of Henry if he’d just STAY STILL long enough for the camera to focus&#
My kids are clearly not happy with the way that I’ve organized the house. Consequently, they “redecorate” and rearrange at every opportunity. Where’s Benjy’s hat? On top of the computer speakers, of course. Where’s the frying pan? Under the couch, silly! Where’s my Nook? On the bathroom floor! Duh! Where’s Henry’s pacifier? On the kitchen counter! *eye roll* Clearly, there’s a logic that I’m missing here. I’m sure there’s a reason my high heels are all over the house, despite not having worn them for at least five months. Just like there’s a reason a pair of socks has made it into the stroller basket, our mixing spoons are in the bedroom, and our phones are MIA. I suspect the reason is that these kids take after their spectacularly disorganized Mother… It’s genetic- they didn’t stand a chance
I’ve been waiting for months for the perfect combination of good light, camera present, barber on hand for Henry’s first haircut. Unfortunately, I forgot about the most important ingredient. Okay, second most important- clearly the camera will always be the most important. I forgot about the DVD player to provide the distraction. Because Henry was NONE TOO PLEASED to have his mullet chopped off. Even pulla couldn’t provide the necessary comfort. He was all about the party in the back- and today he was shorn. He’s all business now, folks. A respectable almost 18 month old
Yesterday was a momentous day in the history of Finland. My children’s children’s children will hold May 15, 2012 up as a day to be remembered and celebrated for all of time. Someday, we will find it hard to believe we ever lived in a time BEFORE May 15, 2012
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So, here’s how it’s going to go down. First, I’m going to finish this final slice of Lovebird Pie. Then I’m going to wake up tomorrow and head to Starbuck’s for their Grand Opening and a Salty Caramel Latte. And THEN I’m giving up sugar again. It’s not so much
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If my kids and husband are ever looking to top this Mothers’ Day, they’re going to have to pull out all the stops. Because this has been the best day for a long time. For starters, everyone slept in their designated beds last night all night long. AND both kids
Read more
Quick note: I spelled consciousness correctly without the help of spell check. I rule! Today it’s raining. Yesterday it wasn’t raining. Yesterday, I was supposed to go to the brand new Starbuck’s that just opened up at the Helsinki airport (just a 35 minute bus ride away!). This is the
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