Wow. What a day! It was one of those you-know-it’s-going-to-be-“one of those days”kinds of day before the day even began. In some ways, I think I’m glad at how it all turned out. Sure, it had a rough start, but it had the sweetest ending that brought tears to my eyes. The day also helped me realize that I think Noah and I might need some special Just Mommy-and-Noah, one-on-one time. We haven’t had that, like a special date, in oh-so-long. I want to do something for him to make him feel special. I think he misses that. I know I do.
The morning was one of those crazy-chaos kind of mornings, but it was fine. I was just letting things roll off my shoulders, and was content with going with the flow. Noah was up early, so in trying to see the bright side of wanting to go back to bed but not being able to, I figured nap time would at least be early. On Sarah days it’s usually a safe bet, a very convenient and safe bet, for all kids to be asleep around 10. My goodness. How that backfired. But, after finally getting Noah down for his nap, and while having Sarah (the little artist who is now short on a nap thanks to Noah’s pre-nap anti-nap tantrum), I started thinking about the last time Noah had a special day. Which, really, it was the baseball game in July, but the last time it was just Noah and me. Before Westin was even born. I think we’re long overdue. I can tell he needs it, even if he can’t tell me that. Though I couldn’t call Sarah’s parents to come pick her up because this just dawned on me, I decided I still wanted to make him feel special. So, I wrote a book about Noah, and let him help decorate the pictures. Thank GOD he’s happy with stick figures. Seriously. The stick figure under “Once upon a time there was a boy named Noah” made his eyes light up. “That’s Noah?! That’s me?!” he asked excitedly. =) Then it went on to say how he has a Mommy, Daddy and little brother named Westin…..all illustrated in stick figures. Not just any stick figures….the kind that make him beam, so I’ll venture to say they’re some darn good stick figures. It also mentions how he’s a great big brother, a great Noah, and how his friends and family love him just the way he is. You know, your typical feel-good kind of book. Of course he wanted to read this book before bed, which made me feel good.
I asked Noah what he likes to do that makes him happy. Hitting baseballs…of course! So, we go out to the front yard, get a bat and ball, and what does he want to do? Pitch. Fine by me, because I love to bat! He’s a far better pitcher than I am, and sadly, I’m not kidding. So we had one of those short, fat, squatty plastic bats and a foam ball and we played for quite some time until I realized that banking even a foam ball off of the house might not be brilliant. So, out to the back we went. Naturally, by that time, I think the novelty had worn off, and he didn’t seem as enthused. Needless to say we went back to the front yard to play some basketball. Once Jeremy came home, we all went on a nature walk through the reservation down the street. About a mile away is a little playground, and boy does Noah love it there! On our way there, the fields were just FULL of wildflowers blooming largely and vividly. There was also a massive amount of beautiful monarch butterflies in one spot. So pretty! Anyway, on the path, Noah, completely unprompted this time, just picks a flower and comes up to me and says “This is for you Mommy”……..instant heart melter. Tears in my eyes, and just what I needed today. I love that little boy! We played on the playground for a bit, but the sun was setting, so we had to get going. Much to my surprise, no crying about having to leave! We topped off our evening with a trip to Dairy Grove. This kid just cracks me up with his mannerisms and expressions. It was really nice to just be present and in the moment with him and just be able to soak up him being a kid and share some ice cream. These days aren’t going to last. He’s going to be 2 and a half next week, after all. Soon he’ll be on one of the 3,000 busses that come through our neighborhood, which I’m sure he’d be excited about!!
This fall-like weather has been a nice break. It’s getting me excited about Halloween, decorating for fall and putting up the dried corn-stalk things, and it’s a nice little reminder before the real cold weather comes that Noah needs an entire wardrobe, down to the socks. Westin is shaping up to fit into Noah’s winter/fall clothes so that’s nice. As long as he doesn’t have a massive growth spurt, I think it’ll all work out. I just won’t remind myself that he ate 2 jars of carrots this evening… 😉
Happy weekend all =)
mommamer 