Times, They Are A Changin’
Our first week here in Arizona is drawing to a close, and I think it’s safe to say that we are settling in. The weather is cooler than we expected (30’s in the morning, high 60’s in the afternoon), but we’re loving every minute of life out here so far. Kenny is the constant rascal, as is Dudley (as I write, Casey is practing a little Dog Whisperer on him…). I have had some internet connection challenges, but Casey managed to get me up and running again tonight, so please forgive the long delay in posting.
It’s funny to think that last time we came out here, Kenny was seven months old with no teeth, nursing and refusing any form of solid food, and barely rolling over one way. During the three months we lived here, in a posh golf course condo on the fourth hole, he got six teeth, started distinguishing “Mama” and “Dada,” started to eat a little (though he didn’t turn into a gourmand until after his first birthday), learned to sit in a highchair and the cart at the grocery store, and learned to crawl. I wonder what milestones we’ll cross this time… So far, he has taken a nap every single day for a whole hour.
Yes, that’s right. No Nap Joe has taken a one hour nap five days in a row. We’ve been taking a walk at noon everyday, Kenny falls asleep sometime towards the end, and I come home, park the stroller in his room and tiptoe to another part of the house. It’s like a whole new world has opened up for me. So this is what it’s like to have a kid who naps!! I can take a shower without singing distractions to keep him from flushing his legos down the toilet! I can fold laundry without him waiting until the pile is nearly done to pull it down! I can *gasp* check my email or read a blog or two without worrying about him braiding the computer cords around my feet! I can eat lunch without sharing and worrying whether whatever I want to eat may be a potential choking hazard or allergen!
I’m afraid to write any more or I’ll jinxs this precious balance we’ve found.
Ok, I’m ok. It’s just cementing in my head what I always figured it would be like to have an hour (or two, but I’m not getting my hopes up) to myself just to turn off and be quiet. So this is how all my stay-at-home girlfriends have hobbies and clean houses…
New words this week: “Shpicy!” (“spicy,” after eating half a bowl of salsa), “shocks” (for “shoes and socks”), “Ditar!” (“guitar,” is in “Dada? Om? Ditar?” translated, “When is Daddy coming home so he can play his guitar for me?” because he loves listening to Casey play), “Hi-change” (“hiney change,” which is what I call a diaper change), and “Tu-tee?” (“cookie”). And those are only the ones he’s said spontaneously in the right context; he will attempt to repeat most everything I say, from “bee-to!” (burritto), to an accidental four-letter-word that I said when I dropped a glass mixing bowl on the glass Viking stove top, shattering both. (Yes, I really did. That’s another story. And it was only the one that starts with “s” – not, thank goodness, the other ones I was thinking of.)
So life here is great so far ~ a gorgeous neighborhood, friendly people, great shopping, endless parks and walking paths and lovely weather. And a kid who is finally taking a nap.
Glad you are enjoying it there. I can remember the first time I said something that I shouldn’t have and one of the girls repeated it….
It is cold, snowing and lonely here….
January 28th, 2007 | #