Number two

I had been meaning to write a birthday post for my boy last Monday but we all came down with a terrible awful cold and have been barely subsisting for the past week. I'm still unable to breathe and have no sense of smell (not to mention residual aches etc) but feel a little more human today. I'm also feeling a little more on the point of giving birth so maybe that's prompting my need to write this now while I still have two free hands.

It's hard to believe that two years have passed since our boy was born. Although it is not hard to believe that he is two years old. He is getting so independent and it's great to see. He's also going through some fairly large transitions these days and I hope they don't overwhelm him.

The first is that we have finally moved him into his own room. He loves it but the last two nights has woken up in the middle of the night and been disoriented (or possibly lonely) in the room by himself so I've found him by the front door crying to have the lights turned on. He has settled back to bed (first time he had to come into our room but the second night he was fine back in his own bed) and I'm hoping that it passes quickly. During the day he loves to bring books onto his bed and set up his little shelf and side-table and there has been no problem getting him to bed at night so I think he's taking it quite well over all.

The second is that he's become amenable to wearing underwear these past few days and has done quite well with it. He was quite good at using the potty during the summer but during and after my kidney stone I haven't worried about dealing with that issue so we've been lazy and stuck mostly to diapers. He's progressed a little at various times but then one day last week when his daddy asked if he wanted to wear underwear he was thrilled to try and fine with keeping it up.

The third, and by far largest, transition is in the works at the moment. I don't think it'll be many days before his little brother makes an appearance. I think he's as prepared as he can be but it will be a major change in his life and I hope will be mostly positive. I do wonder how this change will affect how he deals with the other changes and I only hope that these other milestones will not be affected negatively by having a new baby and a new position in the family.

But whatever happens, I know that he is growing up and is a boy I am thrilled to call mine (mostly through who he is as a person, not stemming much from what I have to do with it...). I've been blessed to be able to spend most of my time these past two years with my sunny son as my companion and I look forward to seeing more of his character as he develops and grows and matures.

virginia creeper berries

Christmas children

Although this boy is due in early December (and I'm ready to have him out any time now), thoughts of Christmas seem to be tied to his birth in my mind. Everything from the fact that Christmas is about birth and new life; to hopes that I will still be able to make and keep meaningful traditions with my family despite the inevitable busyness and exhaustion that come with a newborn; to the reading material I am bringing to the hospital. Logan was born only two weeks earlier than this one's due date but doesn't seem like a Christmas baby to me. We had a small Christmas at home that year. It was larger with the extended family and the last one to take place at Grandma's.

Maybe the difference is that this year with Logan understanding more I feel more urge to make sure our Christmas at home is special for everyone. Maybe, too, seeing all those ideas flooding pinterest has re-inspired me on the varying levels and facets of the beauty of Christmas. Either way, I love Christmas and having my favourite holiday season tied to my second son's birth is okay by me.

Nesting

Now that the due date is less than a month away I have been working more than ever to get things organized and ready around here for our baby's arrival. I've been wondering if it's evidence of the nesting instinct that often is said to be linked to the last little while before a baby is born. I also tried looking back to think if I felt anything of it with my last baby. Perhaps I am not in touch with my inner self but I don't really feel as I think it would feel to be motivated by a nesting instinct. I also think it's more commonly linked to the day/s immediately before giving birth, rather than several weeks before so maybe that has something to do with it. The only thing that changed the day before giving birth last time was that I ate my entire supper that evening (something the baby had been preventing by taking up all the extra room in there). Thinking about my motivation these days I believe it has more to do with desperation and deadlines than any internal instinct. Either way it is good that I have been able to finish a lot of what needs to be done. Now is not the time to let my procrastinationatory tendencies take over because babies can't really be postponed...