Little Hughie...

I'm worried about you. I hope you are okay in there, in my womb. It is almost certain that you will be named after your dad. It's a great name and it seems very fitting for you to have it. You are our little Hughie and I am blessed to feel your little spirit around me each day. I am grateful for each of your tiny kicks that give me some tangible reassurance of your presence. Did you hear your dad tell you how much he loves you tonight? I hope so. Every once in awhile your sister Ruby puts her mouth on my belly, my only explaination is that she knows you are in there. We all love you. Be safe.

All Grown-Up

Apparently, Ruby thinks it is okay to grow-up quicker than I can keep up with her. Doesn't she know she needs to ask my permission to do this kind-of stuff. Although, it is nice to have a little helper to put the clothes into the dryer for me. This has become one of her favorite chores, unlike cleaning up her toys where she just sits and watches me as I put her toys away. She does, however, bob her head up and down as I sing the clean-up song. (just tightening the grip she has on my heart).




Because Ruby doesn't leave my side when I get ready in the mornings, we have started a routine where I sit on the floor to blow-dry my hair and put on some make-up. Well, Ruby thinks she needs to put on some make-up too, which consists of her pulling out any object from my make-up bag and rubbing it on her head (a little make-up/hair blow-drying combo I'm guessing? Too bad she doesn't have any hair to blow-dry). I have even caught her "putting on make-up" when she thinks no one is around. When will she learn that mom's have eyes on the back of their heads? I guess one thing at a time!
I am also realizing how quickly I can pass on bad habits to my daughter. I hope you learn more good than bad from me, Ruby. You may think I am perfect right now and can do no wrong :), but one day (all too soon) you will realize I am human and have just as many flaws as the next person. Just know, Ruby, I will always love you.

Meet the newest member of our family

Meet Mr. Monkey. This little green fellow joined our family this week in honor of little babe. It's a boy! We found out this week the fun news about our little guy, and Ruby and I knew we had to make a trip to get him his very own monkey. Ruby's monkey was given to her by my mom after we found out she was a girl, and now Ruby has taken a special liking to Monkey (pink monkey's official name). Throughout my pregnancy with Ruby, I kept Monkey in Ruby's cradle and somehow Monkey was a great substitute until our little girl arrived. Mr. Monkey is no different and even Ruby is aware that someone new has joined our fam. Mr. Monkey sits next to Monkey on Ruby's rocking chair and every time we go into her room she points to the chair and starts to jabber. All this monkey business may seem silly, but in my crazy mind this green knitted fellow symbolizes the sweet spirit I already feel from my little babe.

We also found out that our little man seems to be having some complications with his development that the doctors are concerned about. On Monday, we met with a maternal-fetal doctor and genetic counselor to do some more testing. We will have some more answers next weekend. As Hugh and I sat in the doctor's office on Monday, we both felt a strong sense of peace and comfort. I am anxious to find out more information, but I love this little babe and for the past couple of days I have really felt his special spirit surrounding me and our family. I can't change what may be going on with our little man, but I know the thoughts, prayers, and fasting from all our loved-ones has helped me get to a place where I do feel some peace about the situation. I am surrounded by such goodness. Thank you. Mal, we all loved the beautiful flowers...they brought a special spirit all their own :).

Sweetness

Last Saturday, Hugh and I were fortunate to go on a date...just the two of us. We planned our date on Friday and called my mom to babysit the Roo. I was giddy and excited all Saturday to get dressed up and go out on the town with one especially good looking fella (he even got dressed up for the occasion). We went to dinner and a movie. We have not gone to a movie since Ruby's birth, almost a year ago. Dinner was great mostly because I got to spend some much needed one-on-one time with Hugh. I love him. After dinner we headed to the theatre to watch "Where the Wild Things Are". The movie was great and I did shed a few tears at the end. Max was absolutely adorable and the wild things were amazing...identical to the illustrations in the book. My favorite line of the movie came when one of the wild things is talking to Max and Max says her, "But your family" and the wild thing replies, "Sometimes being a family is hard". The biggest impression the movie left on me is that children are not young forever. I came home to my sweet little Ruby (thanks for watching her mom, she loves playing with her grandma) and wanted to rewind time and do a better job of soaking her in. All too often I am waiting for the next stage that I don't appreciate what is right in front of me. Yesterday morning I got Ruby her morning bottle and instead of feeding her and planning my day, I laid her next to me in my bed and I just watched her drink her milk in the silent morning darkness. It was absolute sweetness (much like this picture Hugh took of her on a family fall hike).

Where is the chicken in my chicken chow mein?

When I was little I did a dance to a funny little song Where is the Chicken in My Chicken Chow Mein? The song went something like this..."Where is the chicken in my chicken chow mein, my chicken chow mein, my chicken chow mein...I looked high, I looked low, can't be found, no..no..no...can't find my chicken anywhere!" My costume for the dance was a traditional magenta Chinese dress (at least traditional to me at age 6) and a pointed hat....guess it had something to do with the chow mein in the song? Well, after all these years, I finally found my chicken...little Roo made the cutest darn chicken I've ever seen! She was worth the wait :) She also looked darling sitting next to one of the great witches at Gardner Village...not scared one bit!

(Can you believe she holds her bottle all by herself, my baby

is slipping away)

(Monster Ruby will be back next Halloween to get you all...ha ha ha)