Now, if I could just get this thing out of reverse...

Not-so-little Sparky is growing faster than I'd ever imagined possible. At 5 1/2 months, he is almost out of his 6-9 month size clothes. Here is a picture of the five bags of baby clothes I packed up to hand-down to his cousin, Ethan, who will be born in a few weeks. While five grocery bags of clothes might not look like a lot of clothing, you have to remember that baby clothes are little. This is probably the equivalent of 5 or 6 huge trash bags stuffed full of adult clothes.


We did choose a few things to keep: The first little onesies that Mike & Paula gave us when we found out we were pregnant, the sleeper he wore in the hospital, the Daddy's team baseball outfit he wore in his three-month photos and one or two others. It breaks my heart to give any of his clothes away... When I asked Dave if there was anything specific he wanted to keep, he said, "All of it." He's just growing up so fast!

Part of growing up is becoming mobile. The Sparkster is now pushing up on his hands and knees and rocking back and forth. While this is not the best video of his skills, you get the picture. I asked a few moms that I know about how long their babies took to get from rocking to crawling. They said only a few weeks! It is possible that Sparky will be crawling by Halloween! Yikes! Slow down, baby!

On the topic of growing up too fast, I found the sweetest book today titled Let Me Hold You Longer by Karen Kingsbury. Written in rhyme, it talks about how we sometimes focus on a child's "firsts" and miss the "lasts" - the last bottle we give a baby, the last time he falls asleep in your arms, the last hit in a Little League game. I teared up in the store while I was reading it and am tearing up again now. I love my little boy and want him to grow into an independent, intelligent, loyal young man... but, it is bittersweet, because I don't quite want my baby to grow up.

A coke, with a side of Midol, please!

Notice the label for this post: TMI!

But, for those moms out there, you'll understand... I haven't had cramps like this since June of '07! (Well, not counting labor pains, but you know what I mean.)

I've got the major lower back pain and the caffeine cravings and even had a slight bit of the typical irritability within the past couple of days. (Can you tell I was feeling a little fiesty with my most recent blog post?)

With all the pregnancy and breastmilk production, I've officially gone fifteen months without Aunt Flo visiting. I'll admit - It has been kinda nice.

I guess I've got a couple of potential solutions:

• Get pregnant again.
• Enter menopause.
• Stock up on Midol.
• Blog about it.

I guess I'm going with the last two options for now.

Oh, and just for Dave's sake: "Mucous plug!"

One year ago...

Last year at this time, I was sitting on a beach, sipping a Dirty Monkey, and enjoying the last full day of a week-long vacation in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

Two years ago, I was working at the pool, getting ready to start a new job in a new school district in the fall.

Three years ago, I was working on my application to meet the July 2 deadline for a job as an Aquatics Coordinator in Breckenridge, CO.

Five years ago, I was finishing my practicum for a master's degree in gifted education.

Ten years ago, I had just graduated from high school and was planning on leaving for the Air Force in September to be a crytologic linguist.

Today, I am sitting on the couch, watching Sparky snoozing in his swing. The closest thing to a vacation in the near future is a road trip in the new mini-van to my cousin's wedding in Connecticut this September. I am currently unemployed and working on yet another master's degree.

This is not a lament. Just an observation of the way that life meanders. I wonder where I'll end up in another ten years.

Surprise!

So, for the second time in two weeks, I've been to a surprise party. One for my friend Sarah's 30th birthday bash; today to Karen's 60th.

Both times, I've missed the "SURPRISE" part of the party.

Last time, I was "rolling the dice," when Sarah arrived at her party and was so shocked and happy that she started crying. ("Rolling the dice" is our euphemism for using one of these, if you care to know.) Today, I was inside dealing with a fussy Sparky, who seemed to be unhappy about being outside in the hot weather, when Karen realized the party was not for her granddaughter but actually for her.

Oh, well... All in the name of motherhood, right?