The Yes Man

I am writing this down because this is a freak of nature folks… rarely seen, barely believed… and I don’t know how long it will last..

Austin says “yes” to everything.

Can you believe it? A toddler who doesn’t relish in saying “no” and refusing everything that is offered to them????

Now, don’t get me wrong.. he still refuses things, but he doesn’t say “no" or shake his head. His way of refusing.. say food… is to fling his body sideways onto the floor or couch while flaying his arms around and smacking the food over, or onto the floor (to Henry’s delight) or anywhere else in a 10’ radius.

Drives me nuts.

I am actually trying to get him to just tell me “no” if he doesn’t want any yogurt instead of projectile flinging it across the room as he flings himself away from it.

But, I digress… this post is about all the things he says “yes” too and how super cute it is….

Do you want to take a bath?

Yes (he nods yes, by the way.. sometimes he’ll actually say it.)

Did you have a good day at school?

Yes.

Do you want a string cheese?

Yes.

Can you put on your jacket so we can go bye-bye?

Yes.

Do you want to go play in your sandbox?

Yes.

And my personal favorite….

Do you love Mommy?

YES!

Ok, so maybe I ask him this like 25 times a day because I never tire of seeing him nod “yes” to that question.. and like I said, this might be short-lived and any day he’ll start saying the dreaded “no” to everything.

So I’m soaking it up while I can! 

Mother's Day... crazy-eyed kid couldn't sit still!!!

Hi! I Just Met You.. But I Love You!!!

I have the friendliest kid in the world.

Seriously, I do.

I’ve never seen any other kid like him before.

Most people see babies or toddlers and approach them cautiously with “hi there, honey… how are you?” 

Speaking in a soft voice, trying to not scare the kid because the normal response is for that baby or toddler to hide behind their parent, or bury their face in their Mom’s shoulder and be shy.

Right?? 

Isn't that what most people expect?

Or for the baby or toddler to fuss and cry and reach for their parent when they are handed over to other people and have major “stranger danger.”

Well, my kid is so opposite of all this that people don’t know how the heck to react to him.

When I drop him off at school in the morning, he plays as I fill out his daily form and as soon as another Dad or Mom walks into the room to drop off their kid, Austin walks over to them, waving, and promptly asks to be picked up, hugs their legs, or offers them the toy he is holding.

We get reactions along the lines of

“Oh! Well, HELLO there to you too buddy!”

“aren’t YOU friendly????”

Or there is just plain bewildered looks from these parents when he does this and they look at me like “ummm help????.. your kid is clinging to my leg.”

What can I say?

He’s a lover.

He LOVES people… oh man.. take him anywhere and he just waves and waves the whole time, and holds his arms out to any old stranger, wanting a hug.

They started calling him the Classroom Greeter at daycare because every adult that walks in gets some Austin love.

other parents

other teachers

the director

the cook

everybody

Then there was the time I brought him over to my office for a chili cook-off lunch we were having.

I had to explain to my Vice President that I had a very friendly kid after Austin insisted on sitting on his lap, giving him a hug and then eating some of his cornbread.

Thankfully, he didn’t mind and thought Austin was pretty adorable.

Well, of course he's adorable!. Look at his Mom!

Wanna give me a raise now, Mr. V.P??? Since my kiddo was a great ambassador of “How Jessica Is a Great Person Who Is Raising Sweet Children, Therefore Worthy of More Money?”

Ha.

While I love this independent spirit, and how he makes so many people laugh and smile, I find myself apologizing for his behavior because not everyone is too keen on a baby clinging to their legs and burying his head between them, sharing his love and snot.

I don’t know how we are ever going to treat this kid about real Stranger Danger because to him, the world is full of people who want to play with him and feed him cornbread.

Its Inevitable..

...that the minute you start to your baby and both hands are engaged you will have the most wicked itch in your left ear. Then your scalp. Then your side.

....that your happily playing on the floor baby will start to fuss and cry the minute you decide to do something for yourself.. like eat or go to the bathroom.

....that the second you change your baby into his "nice" clothes for an outing he will have an epic puke.

....that the brand-new diaper you just put on him will be immediately filled with poop.

....that when you feel like you have finally figured out your baby and what he likes, his tastes will change.

....that the cool trick your baby has done for you dozens of times (like rolling over) will never happen in the presence of his Daddy or anyone else.

....that your baby will be described as an "angel", a "dream" and a "joy" by his daycare providers and you wonder who's kid they are actually talking about, because all you know is Fussy McFuss Pants.

...that you will turn into a "Mom" and plaster your desk with your baby's pictures and be able to talk endlessly about how cute he is.. even though you never thought you'd be that ooey-gooey.

Hey- Let Go Sometimes!

I was going to do a whole post about my Resolutions for 2012.

You know, the laundry list of:
-Exercise
-Save money
-Be a better at budgeting

But then, as Neal and I were having a heart-to-heart the other night, I realized there was just one major thing I needed to work on this year. And with Bambino arriving and becoming a family... this was the most important thing I could possibly do.

I need to learn to Let Go.

I use that phrase loosely, because I'm not speaking of letting go of anything in the physical sense, or even in the emotional sense.

It's more of a "learn to relax and just live in the moment" type of letting go.

Let me give you an example of the type of person I am:

It's Saturday. The house is pretty messy. I'm awake at 7am, if not earlier.... and while Neal snoozes and sleeps in, I'm up and about and downstairs because there is too much to do!

Coffee
Dishes
Unload dishwasher
Load dishwasher
Eat
Pick up glasses, dishes, etc from living room
Crap. The stove is a disaster! Take off burners. Spray down stove.
Haul stuff upstairs to be put away.
Laundry in.
Clothes picked up and re-hung in the closet...

Must I go on.. or do you get my point?

This kind of manic cleaning would be fine, if it was a designated "let's clean the house day!" But this is my reality every weekend day of every weekend... and most week nights too.

I find it impossible to sleep in and relax... and spend a day lounging in bed doing nothing? HEART ATTACK!!! I'd go berserk laying there and thinking about all the picking up and organizing I could be doing.

Here's the thing I finally realized though. I robotically clean and pick up every single day... yet what kind of satisfaction am I getting out of it? I get none.

Would there be any harm in just letting the crap sit around once and awhile? Would the world stop turning? Would the very foundation of my life crumble down? Would the winner of The Bachelor finally stay engaged to him?

I think not.

With a baby coming... life is going to be messy. There is going to be toys, laundry, dishes, bottles, spit-up and who knows what else scattered around the house.

But most importantly, there are going to be moments, and laughing, and cuddling, and kissing, and playing.

Do I really think I'm going to be on my death bed one day... wishing I had spent more time organizing and then re-organizing the linen closet? Or making sure every single item was always picked up and the house was continuously spotless?

Letting go for me is going to be hard. I am wired to feel safest and most calm in a clean, non-cluttered space... but more and more lately; I just obsess over the picking up and the organizing and the cleaning and I sacrifice time I could be *gasp!* enjoying myself or relaxing.

Neal has tried and tried to tell me to relax and put my swollen feet up... but no! Off and about I go- upstairs, downstairs, gutting the pantry to re-organize it better... or some other silly little task.

But not anymore.

Usher in the new Jessica.

Jessica version 2012.

The Mom.

The one who will always be up for playing and cuddling and quality time.

The dishes in the sink be damned.

Maybe we can build a fort with them....