Hello, Monday! - July 9, 2012

It's been a while since I last had a chance to take stock of the things that I am thankful for. In between managing a household that's adjusting to having new members, going back to work so soon after giving birth and making time for my two adorable little ones, finding the time to blog has been a real challenge. But when I do have a few minutes of free time, it's nice to sit down and reflect, to look over what has transpired in the past week (or weeks, in my case) and express thanks for all the good in my life.

• Little C is turning 2 months old in a few days (how time flies!) and he's smiling more each day.
• My efforts as an EP-ing (exclusively pumping) mom are paying off! On our most challenging days, Little C gets 8 oz. of formula to supplement my milk, but on our good days (although they're far and few in between) he only gets 2 oz. At the average, he gets around 4 oz. a day to supplement. While this is still far from my ideal of having him on nothing but my milk, I'm grateful that he's gotten so much from me already and I'm hoping to eventually produce more and get rid of the formula.
• J has added new words to his baby vocabulary. He has learned to say "key" (for car keys, naturally), "B" (for USB - my son is a techie baby, through and through), "da-day" (for our new helper), "wee" (for whale), "mi" (for Mickey) and "co-cob" (referring to himself). He's also learned the different parts of the whale, which he can point to in one of his picture book (the whale's eye, teeth, tail and spout). In terms of his picture words (or pictures that he can point to when you say the word), he's added cake, crayon, cherry, and fish.
• I finally found the Cars bandages that J likes. I bought some a few months ago, but I haven't been able to find any more. Yesterday, I chanced upon them in True Value so I got one box of Cars bandages and another box of Nemo bandages. They're waterproof bandages that have the characters from Cars printed on them. Given his increasing levels of curiosity and activity, J has gotten his fair share of scrapes. His latest ouchie? Getting his fingers jammed in the screen door. And with his tendency to pick at his wounds or scabs (which makes them worse), I've had to bandage them. The regular boring bandages don't cut it. He peels them right off. The Cars bandages? He refuses to have them removed and asks me to put bandages, even without ouchies. :|
• The simple pleasure of watching my son help his daddy fix a doorknob. J acted as Big C's assistant handyman yesterday and I was amazed at how quickly he picked up the task. He knew which parts go where, although I don't know how he knew. I still remember the look of intense concentration on his face and the sight of him picking up screws and handing it to Big C and refusing to give his daddy the screwdriver, insisting on doing it himself.
• Being able to jump back into work. Every day, despite the challenges that my work presents, I am happy because each project means that I can contribute to saving for my sons' futures, instead of simply depending on my husband to provide for us.
• A box of free doughnuts! (Burp!)
• A meal shared with old friends, which of course was full of laughter. Nothing makes a meal better than good company and great laughs.
• A husband who indulges me in my post-natal cravings. Yes, there's such a thing as post-natal cravings. 

And now, there's work to be done and mommy errands to be run. Have a great Monday and a great week!