Bathroom buddy

Recently Donovan is really into imitating what you do and exploring big people activities, many of which center around the bathroom. Almost every day he goes into our bathroom and declares "teeth" or "water" which means I need to plop him down on the bathroom counter and let the water run over his feet in the sink as he brushes his teeth with Tom and my toothbrushes simultaneously. Then I usually take my toothbrush away and brush my own teeth with it while Donovan uses his daddy's. When I am almost done brushing my teeth Donovan starts bending over and spitting in the sink, like I am about to do. He's got it down... he waits til I am almost done brushing (so he knows the spitting goes at the end) and he bends over and acts like he is aiming the spit in the sink (he only spits air so it doesn't really matter).

He also likes to pretend to clean out his ears with q-tips and he was watching Tom get dressed on Saturday after his shower and saw Tom put deodorant on. Well then guess who had to put deodorant on. Donovan. He insisted I help him take his shirt off for proper deodorant application, but his aim was a little off. Rest assured folks, on Saturday, Donovan was neither smelly nor sweaty on the lower right and left side of his back. I helped him reach where it really goes and for several hours until the smell wore off, Donovan smelled like Old Spice, which I like, so no complaints here. I snapped some shots from Saturday's playing in the bathroom for everyone's viewing pleasures.

"Ummmm, what kind of goodies do you have for me in here dada?". This was a post deodorant application picture, hence the shirt off and deodorant on the floor.

Just tall enough to be a menace.
Truly one of my favorite things in life. Little kids on their tippy toes. Donovan has been walking on his a lot lately per my request(s) so hopefully I will get some video of how cute it is and post it for anyone who shares my affection for tippy toes.
We have extra big people toothbrushes and Donovan found the pack and wanted one. So I said, "Which one do you want? The green one, the purple one or the pink one?" and he said "Pink", so that's what he got. He doesn't know colors yet so I think he was just repeating whatever I said last but I went with it.
Another favorite thing to do in the sink is fill up a cup and drink from it.

Checking himself out/hamming it up in front of the mirror. If you were this cute you would too.

Fingers crossed

Apparently Tom and my superstitions are rubbing off on Donovan... for the past couple months he has been crossing his fingers. Maybe he is really wishing for something, or maybe he is just practicing so when he tells us a fib later he can say it wasn't really a fib because his fingers were crossed. Either way I think it's pretty funny.

Feeling sad

Today I was talking to my mom in the afternoon and I just happened to mention that Tom and I had gone to a funeral of one of his co-worker's son this past friday. I told her that the boy who had died was 2 years old and had had some health issues his whole life but it was still so sad that he died. I had never even met him but Tom and I went in support of his co-worker. My mom mentioned that I sure had enough people that I knew have bad things happen to their young children or pregnancies and that it was so strange that it seemed like there were so many of them. I agreed and we both then said that I have been lucky (knock on wood) so far with the health of Donovan and this pregnancy.

Well unfortunately I got more bad news of this sort tonight regarding one of my best friends and her husband. Kate, the matron of honor at my wedding, and her wonderful husband Kurt are pregnant and due with their first child early June, which puts them about 3 weeks behind us. Since I found out about the pregnancy I have been so happy for them, they are wonderful people and are going to make amazing parents. We got together over christmas and had such a fun time talking with them about their baby and how things were going, talking about names and if they had a feeling about whether it would be a boy or girl. This was supposed to be such a fun time for them. I have been thinking about them a lot recently because I know they should have had their big ultrasound and I was wondering how everything went, not dreaming it would be anything but perfect. It turns out after several ultrasounds and follow up tests that they got the news no parent wants or expects to hear, that their baby has a genetic disorder called Trisomy 18 that is not compatible with life. I am so crushed for them. I can't imagine what they are going through right now. This should be the happiest time in their life, instead they are faced with so many sad uncertainties. I see many families at work that are going through this same thing, but never did I think that it would happen to two of the people in this world I care about the most. I just don't know what to do other than cry and feel a little guilty that I have one healthy baby and a healthy pregnancy so far. Why them? Why not these people I see at work that have no business being parents? I wish there was something I could do to make this better for them, or take away their pain, but unfortunately I don't think there is. I know that the only thing I can do is send prayers and love their way and to be thankful for what I have and try to never take my good fortune for granted. I never want anyone to think for a minute that I don't know how good I have it or how blessed I know I am.

To everyone reading this blog, please send lots of prayers for Kate and Kurt. And if you are a parent to a healthy child, be that much more thankful, patient and kind with them because you are so lucky for what you have.

Sweet brother

For the past few weeks I have been randomly working on helping Donovan understand that there is a baby that is going to join this family in a few months. I know he is probably too young to grasp even a tiny idea of what is going to happen, but still I have been trying so that he is not a million percent shocked when I am holding a baby full time. Donovan has been a big fan of belly buttons, and looking at people's belly buttons for a month or two now. So lately when he wants to see mine, I tell him there is a baby in mommy's belly after he is done playing with my belly button. And I usually point to my belly as I am telling him this. So several days ago I wanted to test him to see if any of this is sinking in. I pulled my shirt up and showed him my belly and waited til he pointed out my belly button and freckles. Then I asked him, "Donovan, where is mommy's baby?" and sure enough without hesitation he pointed right to my belly. I was shocked! So then two nights ago he was looking/playing with my belly again and I asked him the same thing, and he pointed to my belly again. I thought I would press my luck and asked. "Can you give the baby a kiss?", to which he bent down and kissed my belly. So sweet! As much as Donovan knees and elbows (unintentionally) this baby, I thought the kiss made up for it and more. Then last night Auntie Z(J)enna and her boyfriend Ryan were over and Donovan was going to sleep so I asked for him to give the baby a kiss, to which he did again...again so sweet and gentle. Then he said, "Bye bye baby" as he waved to my stomach and tried to cover it up with my shirt. Melts my little heart. So maybe he won't be so rough to this new baby after all. Here's hoping at least!

Choc-kit

Recently we have created a monster. Donovan demands pretty much everything Tom and I eat and we happen to like to eat some chocolate every once in a while. In fact, I got some kit-kat and twix bars in my stocking from Santa. Well anyways long story short, I shared some with Donovan, and now he requests "Choc-kit" several times a day. We usually give it to him once or twice a day and he doesn't get much from us so don't worry, he is not overdosing. They say as a parent you have to pick your battles and this is not one we want to pick. It is much easier to just give him a small square and move on with our lives then tell him no and have him throw an hour long fit and refuse to eat anything for the rest of the meal. Plus look how happy he is with Choc-kit all over his face :)

My love

It is 1:17am and I should be in bed but instead I am laying here on the couch, re-reading old blog entries about my first baby and feeling my second baby move all around in my belly. Life is great.

These past few days I have been pretty obsessed with Donovan. After a week plus of many two-year old like tantrums a day, he has seemed to calm down and I am loving him and his new found good attitude. Last night before bed, Tom, Donovan and I were just playing on the couch together, no tv, no radio, no computer, just us. And it was awesome. I never wanted it to end. It was just little things too. Tom and I talking about how we love when Donovan squints his eyes, points to one of them and says "Hurt" in his own accent when nothing is wrong with his eye. Or Donovan faking a big sneeze then taking turns looking to me, then tom, then me, then tom to enjoy watching us makes fools of ourselves with our obnoxious fake sneezes. Then there was the snuggling. It was everything family time is supposed to be. I was sad when I finally had to admit it was past his bedtime and put a stop to all the fun we were having.

Today I had to work and as I pulled away from dropping Donovan off with Tom's mom, I was fighting back tears. It's funny how sometimes it is harder to leave him now then it was when I first came back to work after maternity leave. He is just so much fun right now! There are two cute/funny things that Donovan has been doing for a little while now that I have been meaning to share so I will do it now before I head to bed.

1)Donovan plays peek-a-boo with you and has for probably the last month or so. He slaps his open hands over his eyes (or mostly over his eyes) and holds them there for an unspecified amount of time, them whips them off and holds them out with the biggest grin on his face so you can say "Peek-a-booo!". Occasionally he will say "Bo" but he usually leaves the sound effects up to you. He will do this with strangers and with you at the most random times. Like for instance sometimes when I hear him crying at night and I go to rub his back to help him get back to sleep, he rolls over, looks at me through his barely awake eyes and then slaps his hands over his eyes. It's all I can do not to giggle but instead tell him it's not peek-a-boo time but "night-night" time.

2) Another funny thing he does that I love we call "Pooh-looo". The first day he did it was on the way home from Tom picking us up from the airport on the trip home from Denver. Tom and I were talking but heard Donovan just having a conversation with himself, which is not his norm. Usually he spends his time in the car pointing things out and repeating them until you acknowledge that yes, you in fact see the very thing he is seeing too. This time was different and he was going on and on, just happy to talk to himself and really getting a kick out of what ever he was saying in his toddler speak. Well finally we paid enough attention and realized what he was doing/saying. He was imitating us when we pretend that we are grossed out by something of his that is stinky (ie his feet, his socks. I promise it is a game he loves, not something that is going to give him a complex). For as long as I can remember it has been one of our things when I change him for him to stick his feet in my face, then I put it right in my nose, pretend to be totally disgusted by the smell and shout "Peee yeeeewwww" as I throw his foot away. He belly laughs and throws his foot back in my face and I try out new reactions, but they always involve being grossed out and saying "Pee yeew". Well anyways, back to the car... Donovan was holding up his hand to his nose, smelling it and then saying "Poooh loooo", which is apparently his version of "pee yeew". It was so funny. He was also saying a lot more than that that night so I am sure he was telling himself just how stinky it was and what he was going to do about it but all we could understand was the "Poooh loo". The funny thing was, was that Tom's mom picked up on what he was doing right away the next day so she is much more perceptive than me and Tom. She was like "Did you notice he smells his hand and says "Pooh loo" now like it is yucky?". And since then he has continued to do that when he wants to make himself smile or get a laugh from you. And now, Tom and I say "Pooh loo" when things are smelly :)

Anyways, bottom line is I am obsessed with my little man right now. I know I might not always feel this way about him (especially when the tantrums rear their ugly heads again and increase in frequency) so I want to write about times when I do (which is 99.99% of the time). He is so much fun to be around and makes me laugh every day. Tom and I go to bed talking about him, and wake up talking about him. He is the subject of most of our texts and emails. Life without him would be so dull and I am so glad our lives have been blessed with his. I am so excited to add another little one to this mix and see how crazy this second one is going to be! If he/she is anything like Donovan, this life is going to be a blast!

How to eat an apple, Donovan style

Pick a random spot on said apple, and take a bite. Chew up the apple, then spit it out if there is any skin on it. Rotate apple. Find another random spot, repeat the pattern. Enjoy!