Poop.

Today Brighton and I took the plunge and bought a big boy potty. After waking at 5 AM heading to the airport at 6:00, going to Panera's for breakfast, stopping off at the mall to play on the "toot toot" merry-go-round, stopping (of course) at Starbucks, wasting 1 hour at Wal-mart only to get so frustrated with the constantly changing layout and the ever so not helpful staff I left my full cart in the middle of the pharmacy (yes I did. I was trying to find the ever elusive Hylands Teething Tablets & Hylands Teething Gel,) stopping off at Target to actually purchase items (they have Hylands Teething tablets - always in the same place in the pharmacy), eating lunch, FINALLY we made it home. My babe was SO exhausted. Mom was SO exhausted. We both laid down and took a nap. Mine for an hour, his for three.

Anyway, about the poop. No, he didn't actually poop on his new potty, but he LOVES to sit on it and exclaim "poop." then giggle. The last time, he said "mom poop!" so I crawled up on our big person potty and sat there waiting for him to go but he didn't. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall then. Brighton on his little person potty, mom on her big person potty, both of us talking "poop." Ha! AH well, maybe we'll try again tomorrow. In the meantime, here's a picture of him on his new potty. He's just out of the bathtub, but to curb all perverts and uncomfortableness, I attempted to cover his privates with a wash cloth. This was the 4th or 5th picture because he thought that, too, was hilarious.

Brighton Has a New Cousin!!

Brighton has a new baby cousin! Mom (Jayme) and Dad (Luke Jr. - Andrew's Brother) welcomed Mercedes Rose on April 18 2007 at 7:25 AM. She was born in 25 minutes! Jayme went from being 6 cm and 100% efaced to 9 cm in about 2 minutes. Mercedes weighed in at 6.5 lbs, 20 inches long. She is so pretty!! Brighton really likes her too! And I think she like's him!

Trying Times

These last couple of weeks have really been trying for the three of us. Brighton is getting 8 teeth right now. Yes, 8. Ocho. More than 7, less than 9. And they're all tough ones. 4 molars and 4 eye teeth. And he is grumpy. I can't say I blame him though. I'm starting to understand the "terrible twos" much better now. Even though I'm pretty sure Brighton's terrible twos have a lot to do with the fact that his mouth hurts, every time he eats he throws up (which makes mom and dad grumpy), and therefore he's hungry all the time. We found out today that Brighton has acid reflux due to the irritation in his tummy from all the mucus and saliva he's swallowing because of the teething and that's why he's been throwing up (we hope anyway). We got some prevacid to help with the reflux along with child size doses of tums and Maalox. He's been up every night in the middle of the night and ending up in bed with us. Andrew tells me I should be in bed rather than on the computer in case Bright wakes up. I know, but I have things to do!

Tonight while I was at work, Andrew and Brighton apparently had a great time (after Bright stopped crying...) Brighton and Dad exchanged stories. Brighton's most likely included something about shoes, toot toots, vrooms and kitties. Andrew told Brighton the story of The Three Little Pigs and the House Inspector Wolf and Feebee and the Three Bears. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall for those stories. Andrew really surprises me sometimes. He has such a dry sense of humor and then he comes up with something like the Three Little Pigs and The House Inspector. He's such a good daddy and husband. I don't tell him that nearly enough.

WHAT was I THINKING?!

I've been debating on cutting Brighton's hair short for the summer and I'm not sure what exactly posessed me, but I just decided lastnight before his bath to take Dad's clippers to him. OMG! It's cute, but he's just not my little boy anymore! I didn't intend on it being so short, I REALLY didn't. But it just happened...I feel so bad. His hair was at least 4 inches long and his hair growth pattern is difficult for mom to cut. I guess I should have listened to Janel and "left it to the professional." :o(

April Showers?

So I thought the old saying was "April Showers bring May Flowers?" So what do April Snowstorms bring? Ohhhh grumpy moms. Yep, that's what they bring. What is with this weather!? Hmmm who am I going to trust about Global Warming, the government (who has..ahem..no agenda for their opinion I'm sure) who says "Global Warming is a farce! A tool for those tree hugging democrats to scare us all into finding newer cleaner fuel and enforcing rules for our factories!" or the SCIENTISTS who, well, STUDY AND LIVE IT?! Yeah, my vote is with the scientists. I know there was a freak blizzard in April 1973, but maybe that was our warning...ya know? I know the climate goes through cycles, I know that El nino doesn't spell Armageddon but come on! Seriously, are you REALLY going to tell me that 40 degree variances in a week (and sometimes within the DAY), tsunamis, droughts, floods, dead honey bees, summer in Iowa lasting until NOVEMBER and winter lasting until April is really truly just a cycle? Well, I don't buy it. I'm not a big Al Gore fan but I think he's onto something this time. And I'm not talking about the Internet.

Anyway, back to Brighton. The Easter Bunny came to our house again last night! Apparently, he or she had left a basket at Nana Sally and Papa Tom's house for Brighton. His basket included LOTS of Brighton's favorite things like basketballs, baseballs, soccer balls and foot balls shaped like eggs! They all held little pieces of one of Brighton's other favorite things, CHOCOLATE! There were also two big eggs filled with pennies to put into his new piggy bank! And the EB brought bubbles, two new outfits, marshmallow bunnies, happy feet fruit snacks, a Reece's peanut butter egg (after Easter, they all mysteriously disappear!) and best of all, a Happy Feet and a Panda Movie! That Easter Bunny always knows how to make Brighton happy!

I think maybe if BRighton ever takes a nap today, (he's been lying in bed talking to the dogs for about 1/2 hour now) we'll defy the weather and go to the mall and play in the play yard. TAKE THAT APRIL SNOW SHOWERS! HA!

I Almost Forgot!

I almost forgot the biggest news of all! Brighton is done nursing. It's sad but good. He hasn't nursed since we went to Indiana. He will think about it, will sign "milkie" then mom says "no baby, momma's out of milkies!" and I'll grab some milk from the fridge and give it to him and he goes about his merry way. I'm so schizophrenic about this decision. The "up front" part of me thinks "Ok, you did it! No more fights for milkies before bed, or first thing in the morning, or first thing when he sees you!" then the deep down mommy inside of me realized that an era of his life (and my life for that matter) is over. He's not a baby anymore. Nursing didn't make him a baby, but it's part of what he knew the relationship with mommy as. That was our cuddle time. He'll cuddle now, and it's sweet, but it's not the same. It's almost like I'm just like everyone else now. Kind of the way I felt when I wasn't pregnant any more. I had to share him with the world, and I'm not sure I was 100% prepared for that feeling then or now. But I can't go back. It's good for him and for me. And, I have to look at it like this. I nursed him for almost two years. TWO YEARS! That is a miracle considering all the trouble we had trying to get it started! And two years makes him a strong healthy boy. I have to remember that he had the best start and he wasn't nursing for nourishment or antibodies so much anymore as he was for comfort. And I can comfort him in other ways, like a hug or a snuggle or a kiss on the forehead. I knew he would grow up some day, I just didn't expect it to be this quickly or this heartwrenching.

Easter Greetings

OK, so it's the day after Easter, and I haven't blogged in quite some time. We've been busy and I've decided to try to not spend so much time on the computer - something I didn't abide by this morning for sure. Anyway, we went to Indiana last weekend for the Indiana Gourd Show. We had a lot of fun, and mom spent too much, but it definitely sparked mom's creative bean. And I needed it. We spent one and a half days in Indiana and the last day in Ikea. Yes, almost ALL day! Ok, 4 hours or so. But still! We got there in time to have a $.99 breakfast (which somehow ended up costing $8 by the time we were all said and done) and then scoured the top floor for ideas and good stuff, then went back for lunch and then finished shopping downstairs. I love Ikea. I mean, I LOVE Ikea. If there was an Ikea closer than 4 hours to home, I'd be there weekly for sure. Anyway, we had a good time. So basically, we had a trip to Indiana with an Ikea chaser...HAHA.

Easter holiday really snuck up on us this year! I didn't even get a ham! But Andrew and I decided to spend the entire day at home, which Brighton loved. He needed a day with mom and dad. So after a long night Saturday night, we woke up to the Easter Bunny's very generous basket of goodies! Brighton had a basketball hoop and ball, several tubs of play-doh, a car, a bendy bunny, lots of chocolate, eggs filled with coins, colored easter eggs, and 6 whole chocolate peanut butter easter eggs. YUM!

Brighton spent most of the day helping mom and dad. Dad was finishing off the plans for a house, Mom worked on Brighton's piggy bank (that was started before he was born...) so that he had somewhere to put his coins, and Brighton ate reeces peanut butter eggs and played with his new basketball hoop and play-doh most of the day between helping us. Ok, mom and dad did most of the eating of peanut butter eggs, but he did have one...and a half. Because mom didn't get out to get a ham and all the trimmings (and didn't think of it until Saturday Night,) Dad cooked us chicken grillers from Fareway on the Weber, sweet potatoes and corn. YUM!

After all the fun, Brighton took a bath before sleepy time. Mom gave him a little bit of a hair cut because Dad was complaining that Bright's hair was getting too long. So I just cut his bangs and around his ears, which resulted in a baby mullet.

Sorry this post is so "discombobulated" (is that a real word?) I'm trying to get it all out!! We've had a lot going on!