Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Growing Up...

Luciana is 2 1/2 years old now... 2 1/2 years of stinkin' cuteness. She is a live wire, constantly talking, constantly moving, and constantly getting her cute little self into worlds of trouble! If she is not coloring on the walls and furniture, she is turning somersaults in the living room while singing The Itsy Bitsy Spider for all of our entertainment. She is such an affectionate little thing; hugging is a big deal around here! Potty training is the other big deal these days... involving many hours sitting, singing Blue's Clues, and clapping to encourage her new talent! Now that Lucy is talking (and talking, and talking, and talking), we take great joy in her adorable phrases and pronunciations. She has so many funny names for things that are so close to the real thing they just make you smile. I always say it, but I really do have to start to write some of them down. My favorite phrases currently all happen at bedtime...

L: Is it goodnight moon time, Mama?
B: Yes, it is goodnight moon time.
L: OK.
L: Goodnight moon. I love you, I do. Goodnight Mama. I love you, I do. Goodnight Daddy. I love you, I do. Goodnight Sammy. I love you, I do. (She goes on to include grandparents, friends, teachers, and stuffed animals!!! ACK! CUTE!!)

I remember when Lucy was a baby, people would always ask us if she was "that happy all the time"... and she was. Then she wasn't. We definitely went through a phase that was rather ugly with our little princess. She was a screamer... car screamer, bed screamer, dinner screamer, etc. I remember thinking how frustrated she must be to not have the words to tell us what she needed and wanted. It was so clear to us that she really understood us and the world around her, but she took awhile to be able to tell us her own thoughts. In time, the words came, and with it went the screaming... well, most of it. Sam could probably get a good shout out of her quickly! The Lucy we wake up to now is a much happier, spirited little girl, and has that same twinkle in her eye that we remember from our first moments together. She is also fiercely independent, fearless, and stubborn for sure, but more that anything, she is happy and sweet and full of an infectious love that melts our hearts daily.

Since Lucy started talking, life has been a waterfall of newness.... colors, counting, ABC's, songs, stories, pretend playing... and even the occasional "knock knock" joke she lifts from her brothers repertoire! She is a sponge and a siv all at once... absorbing everything just to turn around and share it with us. What fun! Other updates include her move to a toddler bed after too many jail breaks from the crib... our girl is a climber! She really loves her little bed, and we love our return to a full nights sleep... most nights!

Lucy provides us with daily stories of the adventures of a talking, running, giggling toddler. She has such a love of life, and we count our blessings for both of our wonderful children every day. Because blogging has taken such a back seat since returning to work (oh, and living with a 2 year old), I feel so inadequate in my attempt to summarize all the ways Lucy has grown up and all the tiny little facets that contribute to who she is in this one post. But, for now, I feel a little better that some of her flavor is recorded here... and how delicious she is!

Much love.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Sweet Faces




The Sammy-Man

Oh, what an old and familiar feeling. Laptop open, GMA in the background, coffee at my side... Sam and Lucy taking in the first lazy morning of school vacation watching Mickey Mouse... ahhhhh. The temptation is to recap a million tiny moments over that last several months that I have been unable to update, but I think I'd rather just begin with the present.

I have often imagined that I have enough material on "The Things Sam Says" to write a column for some cutesy parenting magazine, but I never get too far gone that I don't remember that I am his mother and may, possibly, just maybe be a tad partial... and I'd have to be a better writer! Even still, he does say just the most hysterical and lovely things, and I have got to start writing them down more often... I could never remember each one, and the day may come that he is done sharing his wonderful imagination so openly with me. (Please, no!)

As long as I can remember, and since he could first speak in full sentences, Sam has contemplated the age old questions, "What will I be when I grow up?" It is clear to him, as it should be at the wise age of 7, that the possibilities truly are endless. In the past several months, he has pondered a undiscriminating variety of career possibilities. Last week, after drudging through a local tree farm and helping Daddy cut down the family Christmas Tree, Sam asked, "Mom, do you think I could be a tree-cutting-man when I grow up?" What is a tree-cutting-man exactly? Well, the tree-cutting-man would be the person who helps families find the perfect Christmas tree for their family, of course. Yes, Sam. I think you could be a tree-cutting-man, and I think you would be the absolute best tree-cutting-man ever! You see, it is so easy to support his dreams because he is so sincere, so dreamy, and so passionate about making this important decision... and because they never last more than a day!

Sam drives with me to school every day. We have about a 30 minute commute, which provides ample time for a second grader to ponder his potential in life. I am often thankful that Sam sits behind me and can not see my face, which is almost always in a permanent and ridiculous grin. Last week, Sam began his familiar thought process:

Mom, do you think I could be a "Music-Man" like Daddy when I grow up?
Absolutely, Sam. I think you would be an amazing "Music-Man".
Well, do you think I should play the guitar like Daddy?
If you want to, buddy. What do you think?
Well, I think I'd really like to play the piano. Or the drums.
I mean, I could decide to play the guitar, I think Daddy would like that.
And probably James will play the piano because he is on Book 2, and I am only on Book 1.
And probably Nate will play the drums because he likes to bang on things.
So, I guess I will play the guitar after all,
but I better start practicing more.
(All said in about three breaths... )

The very next day, Sam told me that he would like to be a "Forest-Man". This one was a bit involved, but I have to at least summarize. A Forest-Man is one of Sam's many philanthropic personalities. As a Forest-Man, Sam would spend his days and nights walking through the forest looking for people who do not have homes of their own. (I have no idea how thoughts like this hatch in my child's wonderful day dreams, but oh how I love him for it!) So, there he would be, wandering the forests of the world in search of people who need a warm place to live. It would be his job to help them make a home from the trees in the forest and learn how to find food to survive. The details of his Forest-Man lifestyle were so well thought out, right down to what gear he would need in his pack, to the "why" of it all. Full heart, swelling lump in my throat, I smile and nod as he plots out the details of saving the world. As I said, it may only last a day... especially if there is a Patriots game on, because he will naturally have decided to be a Quarterback-Man by morning....

...until the next day's drive to school. Which could be... the "golf-man" day? Or a day he decides he'd like to be the president-man? It might be a day he'd dream of being a "hip-hop guy", or a "fisher-man", or a "numbers-guy" like Daddy?? His fantasies range from the bottom of the ocean studying sea animals to beyond the moon naming new constellations, often finding ways to help others along the way... and I am just thank my lucky stars (maybe the one's Sam will name in my honor!) that I can tag along for the ride.