Babymoon over?

We had a great January!  I had been dreading Ransom’s return to work, but in the end I decided that his paternity leave did what a good paternity leave is supposed to do – it gave us a good foundation.  We didn’t want him to go back to work, but we were ready, well-adjusted, calm … we could handle it.  There were many sweet moments between Sadie and Frederick (as documented in Sadie’s blog updates), and Sadie and I got some private quality time while Frederick slept.  Having two kids was proving better than I imagined – I love them both like crazy andthey love each other, too!  This is how great my peace-of-mind was: During the inevitable moments when they were both, for example, crying in the car, I would take a deep breath and note how truly luckyI was, thinking, “This is all part of the package of having two kids.  And aren’t I so gosh-darn glad to have them!”  No sarcasm, just true gratitude.

Enter February and the worst cold (turned possible sinus infection) I’ve had all season.  Our equilibrium has shifted.  My patience is gone by 9:15 am (Is it too much to expect for an almost-4-year-old to help put some energy into getting herself out the door?!?!).  The house is a disaster!  Will we get our heads back above water or is the babymoon just plain over?  Will my antibiotic prescription save us?  Will the weekend offer a helpful break?  Stay tuned to find out …. 

Who to listen to

Frederick can call attention to himself with a variety of sounds – “Oh, oooh, eye -la.”  Sadie loves to give Frederick attention, but can sometimes overdue it – her nose on his, her hair tickling his face, her pinches a little too hard.  In a moment of desperation to “save” my baby from his sister, I offer, “Do you want to play a game?  How about if we read a book?”  Imagine how the resulting rejection warmed my heart, “No, I don’t want to listen to you, I want to listen to him.”

In hopes of channelling Sadie’s affection for Frederick towards some interactions that he might enjoy, we got out our book, “Games Babies Play.”  We found a rhyme with corresponding movements that we practiced twice: Knock, knock (knock on baby’s forehead), peek in (look in eyes), open the latch (pretend to turn key on nose) and walk right in (walk fingers into mouth), how do you do mr. chinny-chin-chin? (grab chin)  I soon forgot it – in one ear & out the other.  The next morning, Sadie woke up, then Frederick woke up.  Right away Sadie started in with the knock, knock game.  Ransom looked impressed.  I felt like mother-of-the-year for having helped her learn to interact with him that way.  Now Sadie teaches the rhyme to anyone she sees interacting with Frederick – Julia, the grandparents, etc.