I'm off to Chicago!

Tomorrow that is. And I should add it is my first trip away from Mizz ever. With that said, I know both of us are going to do just fine. I am already looking forward to the four hours on the plane where I can read, listen to music, sleep, or simply stare at nothing. Mizz will get to have a bunch of time with his Daddy. And his Daddy will get to experience the joys and travails of feeding the Mizz five times a day and keeping him otherwise occupied. Not that he should have any trouble.

And then when I get to Chicago, I get to visit with Alma and her family and celebrate the Hebrew naming of her two beautiful daughters.

Grandparent request

At snack time today, Mizz said "I want to see Gran and Tutu and Grandpapa and Grandpapa". Oh how I wish I could zap them into Portland instantly. Fortunately, Gran and Grandpapa have a trip out here in two weeks and we will be travelling up to Whidbey Island shortly to see his newly relocated Grandpapa and Tutu. I can't wait for both occasions.

Go figure.

Why is it that I can't get Mizz to stop spitting on everything but all on his own (no prompting I swear!) he learned to say "Bless You Mama!" every time I sneeze or cough?

He is such a sweetie though.

Tonight after legos, dinner, playdough, bath, pottying, toothbrushing, and storytime he simply climbed into bed and said "I need a kiss" and "I want a blanket ON me". I personally wanted a medal or at least a strong drink. Two weeks of that on top of days filled with "Mama do it. No Mizz do it" both statements coming from him, while he gets increasingly frustrated no matter which option I choose.

But despite all of that, what continues to astound me is that he is changing daily and...I'm not teaching him all of it. I think I heard somewhere that kids his age double their knowlege every two weeks and while I have no idea how you would measure that, I wouldn't be surprised if it was in that ballpark. After roughly eighteen months of having very little idea what he was thinking about (besides the basics), I finally get the privilege of hearing it all as it happens. And while much of is is still really repetitive, when he demonstrates that he knows a new concept or uses a word I had no idea he knew, I get really excited.

The Latest PDX Uproar

Here is the latest media item to ignite a fury in Portland (Bill Maher's tirade on breastfeeding). I haven't been able to watch the clip yet to determine his tone when he made the comments. I certainly agree with one of his points that we are all quite provincial and tend to only focus on the "issues" that affect us. I'm not sure that problem is ever going to go away though especially with the state of our educational system. Awareness, a sense of connection, and empathy are not high on most teacher's lesson plans I am imagining. I also sort of resonate with his point about mothers' glorifying motherhood and wanting a medal for it. Motherhood is glorious and rewarding and incredibly important because you are raising a small person who is going to grow up and be part of the future. And it is really hard because of the work involved, the sometimes isolation that it causes, and the expectations that we and others place on ourselves. However, it has been been done for a really long time and perhaps if we stopped taking it all SO seriously we might enjoy ourselves a little bit--and still manage to raise healthy, resilient, loving children. But, if he is seriously grossed out by breastfeeding, he needs to get a serious grip. I won't bother to take the time to dissect his comparison of it to masturbation--hello? If he really is against women breastfeeding when it is convenient to them and the babies, that position is ridiculous and a sad commentary on our compartmentalized society.

New Job Eve

Strangely it is the night before I reenter the social work world and not a single jitter. It seems that the decision was WAY more agonizing than the actual looming prospect of it is. Interesting. Mizz is tucked into bed and is packed for his first day of new school tomorrow. He is such an easy going, happy guy that I know he is going to do well. As for me, I have to decided to not freak out unless he starts to cry when I leave. In which case, I will cry too in the privacy of my own vehicle. But having worked in childcare I have witnessed it countless times, kids cry and then they get over it--usually pretty darn quickly. I have to admit I am sad that he might not call me "Teacher Mama" anymore. I did love that and of course the opportunity to peek in on him every so often.

Mizz is a jigsaw master and is so proud of himself, "I DID IT, with momm-mee!". I have to videotape him more because his intonation right now is so breathtakingly cute.

Costume?

I asked Mizz what kind of Halloween costume he wanted to be and he said "Green". I am sorta torn between a Spider Man get up a dragon suit. The spider man is definitely cooler but I kinda want to keep the Mizz cute for as long as possible. I actually loved the Old Navy lion costume so much that I briefly considered buying it again in a bigger size. I suppose one can never have too many lion suits.

New pics!

I was inspired by the fall weather today and I suppose the upcoming Halloween. The way I figure it, I gotta take advantage of dressing Mizz up all silly before he won't let me anymore.

Toddler Heaven

We started out our day at the white library (the color of the building, not a reference to the people who go there), where Mizz attended his first toddler story time. To my huge disbelief, he actually stayed rooted in the vicinity of my lap the entire half an hour. It was really fun and I am sure we will make our way back there. After too short of a nap (curses!) we made the trek out to Beaverton to drop off paperwork and funds for his new daycare. Mizz is really into the Oldies right now especially the Splish Splash (I was taking a bath) and Lollipop songs. He asks for them again before they have ended. Then instead of getting back into the car, I decided to combine my two goals of procuring a new pair of boots and wearing Mizz out, with a trip to the west side mall. Now I see how the other half live. It is a very nice mall as far as malls go but nothing caught my eye. Mizz had a great time and charmed the socks off of people. He enjoyed running around like a lunatic at the playground. The highlight for me was his mantra of "I need more space!" which he quickly appropriated after I suggested it to him as an alternative to yelling at encroaching children. I got to hear it the whole way home too, despite him having the entire back seat to himself.

The reward for all of this fun? While I was busy securing the cords for the blinds, Mizz climbed up on the couch and attempted to knock one of my very beautiful and very glass pictures off the wall. He is unflappable, but hopefully my tone (ie yelling) conveyed the seriousness of the crime.

Obligatory anniversary posting

Because I want this blog to be a record for me and Mizz (and anyone else that cares to look back at it), I feel compelled to acknowledge that Dave and I happily celebrated our 8th anniversary this year. And it was might have been the most meaningful one for me to date because there were no presents exchanged but we simply spent time with each other--first at a friend's wedding where we were both moved remembering our own day and later, spending the actual date talking about what we want for the next year and acknowledging what is really important to both of us. Not so surprisingly but still exhilarating to realize, after 8 years, our visions are still very similar. Love you, Dave and miss you a lot.

Happy Rosh Hashanah!

Mizz and I got back from a glorious morning at the zoo to find a care package from Gran and Grandpapa on the porch. Since Mizz was asleep and Dave is in Idaho, I got to eat the cookies in peace. Reast assured though, I will share some with Mizz. Dave, I think you are out of luck since no cookie has ever survived two weeks in this house, except for the science project Newman O's, which I recently pitched.

Mizz and I celebrated the Jewish New Year by attending a pre-Rosh Hashanah Jewish Mama's bash complete with kosher foods and Shofar crafts. Mizz outdid himself by upping the ante and spitting out mouthfuls of food instead of his usual water. Needless to say, I was thrilled and had a super relaxing time.

In fact, things here have been the complete opposite of relaxing and have been downright stressful as I contemplate what reentering the social work world will be like complete with a toddler and commute that sucks (although according to Dave, it could be worse--easy to say for a guy that lives in a van most of the week). It's been interesting to talk to friends and family and get their perspective but ultimately I know that the decision to work away from Mizz comes down to what I am comfortable with. Which is funny because comfortable is the last adjective that I would use to describe myself right now. I have to keep reminding myself that this may be a fantastic opportunity and I can always change course if that turns out to not be true. And recognize that it is completely reasonable to have these apprehensions. I just hope they resolve themselves quickly after I begin work next week.

Numbers

Mizz drew an 8 yesterday and then said, "I drew an 8!" Then he drew a nine and said, "I drew a nine!". Um, whoa. I didn't even know he could draw a circle. Then he drew a scribble and said it was a seven so he is not going to be preparing proofs anytime but he is pretty amazing. He continues to pretend water the house and all the animals in it and he continues to get more creative with his legos with are out all the time.

Oy, the weekend is over

This morning Mizz and I are going to check out a new daycare option. I am trying to keep an open mind because recently I have been having a horrendous time making any kind of decision.

Bonus Saturday Morning

I was all dressed and ready to head out to my class this morning when it occurred to me that I didn't know which group I was teaching. When I checked the schedule, it was surprised to find that there was no class scheduled for this week. Labor Day of course! So I got to accompany Dave and Mizz on their regular Saturday morning hike. We went to Forest Park and the arboretum and saw some cool trees (duh). The sun, fresh air, and rhythymic walking lulled Mizz to sleep after 45 min although it was only 10 am. We decided to cut the trek short and returned to the car, hoping that he would still catch a good nap and be in good spirits for his babysitter tonight. He rallied in the car and so we stopped at Kettleman's Bagels and Bakery (a new and outstanding, much needed addition to Portland) and then Trader Joe's to stock up on essentials like cookies and veggie chips.

Mizz is down for the count now and Dave and I are going to attempt to organize the pit otherwise known as our garage.

This afternoon the plan is to make cupcakes (Mizz is pretty excited by them) and to get ready for Lisa D's wedding. Dave and I get to socialize with other adults tonight--yeah!