Cold...



"bare" tracks



I am sitting here listening to my baby boy as he struggles to go to sleep.  Bless Nolan's beautiful heart, but he cannot seem to go to sleep on his own lately.  He was such a rock star a few months ago; I thought he had mastered it and we were in like Flynn.  I was completely wrong...have we created a monster?  He craves our cuddles and mommy's milk at bedtime, and if he doesn't have his routine 100% in place, we hear about it in a big way!!  We know we will need to have the "great cry-out" soon, and we're gearing up to prepare.  As with all little kiddo crises, we know that this will too pass.

I call Nolan my baby, but he is nearly 8 months old!!  Where has the time gone?  I thought time moved so much more slowly when Grayson was a baby...I attribute the racing of the clock to many factors now, though, including work, Russ's heavy schedule, and Grayson, who is constantly in motion.  I wouldn't trade it for the world, though I do long for the day when I have my own identity again...it will happen some day!

We are still fighting with various germs in the house, as Grayson was marooned at home Mon and Tues with a cold and fever.  We took our turns as stay-at-home parents, and I really enjoyed my day with Grayson, as it was the first day we've had alone since Nolan's birth.  I can say with certainty that he enjoyed it as well!  We've also been busy with projects here and there, and even took time to have 3 sets of friends and their kids over.  Absolute chaos, but totally worth every minute!!  We've also been gearing up for Christmas and the time off from school and daycare.  We've even been in contact with Santa to let him know that we will be in Lake City on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning.  He reminded us to pack our stockings!!  Grayson is estatic!

Working on a shelving project with Daddy...

 Our biggest contention lately (or, should I say, mine) has been the snow and cold.  I have been a visitor to Mayo two times lately to be officially diagnosed with cold-induced urticaria, and along with my doctor have built an action plan.  Let's just say this good-old MN winter is NOT helping - I had the worst hive outbreak that came on very quickly Monday morning, even when I prepared hard for it - and it was extreme enough for Russ and I to contemplate the possibility of moving south in the not-so-distant future.  I should buy stock in wool, long underwear, and turtlenecks for now - Heaven only knows what the future holds!



Crawling practice...