Sunday Funday

I love my boys, and I love the days when I can be with both of them. Today was (mostly) one of those days. Coffee in Shell Beach at The Steaming Bean, playtime for Soren and Violet at the Dinosaur Caves Park, hanging out in downtown SLO in the afternoon. Super fun. Here is the evidence:

Saturday Morning

I usually complain a lot about Saturdays, since Karl is rarely home with us on that day. I always wish we could just all have a day together, like other families get to, and I get sad. Today was a different story though. Of course I wish we could have all been together, but I was determined to have a fun morning even if Karl couldn't be with us. We have had such a long and tumultuous week, that I was just happy to be home for a day with my little man.

There's something about cold, foggy mornings that invigorate me. I feel like the air is fresher and I feel lighter - I'm definitely a cold weather girl. Well, this morning I took one look outside and knew we needed a long walk. So after breakfast, we got dressed and headed out the door to run some errands and walk to the Farmer's Market that's about a mile from our house. Soren was such a good little traveler and fussed a very reasonable amount for a 15-month-old stuck in a stroller. When I let him out to walk around after Farmer's, he started saying and waving "Hi!" to everyone he saw. One of the guys that Soren said "hi" to stopped me as he was driving away to tell me that Soren just made his day. I love this new little social side of him. Anyway, here's some pictures from our morning.

Best smile ever

Perfect walking weather

Strollin'

Exploring

Pointing out every sprinkler we saw today

He's a bike guy

Exhausted

Today was Soren's second day at "school" - it did not go well. I guess after the initial curiosity wore off he was left feeling very uneasy about being left all day in a strange place. I don't blame him. We both cried a lot today.

One thing that makes this transition even more lovely is the fact that he will not sleep there. Before he started there, I told his teacher and the administrative staff that I could not imagine Soren falling asleep on a mat on the floor with 17 other children around. They assured me that they do this all the time, not to worry. Well, I'm officially worried. His teacher told me that he was one of two kids who refuses to sleep there. The other one screams and cries the whole time. Soren just lays there with his eyes wide open until they ask him if he's ready to get up.

When I picked him up today he looked like a zombie. We didn't even get 5 minutes down the road and he was completely asleep in his car seat (this never happens.) His world has been turned upside down and it's rough for all of us. It is the grossest feeling to leave your crying child in a room full of other crying children and have them run after you. I used to get so annoyed at parents who would say goodbye and then linger around and keep trying to comfort their child. I still get annoyed, but it makes a lot more sense to me now. You want to make sure that your child is going to be taken care of and that somehow they will see that they're safe and that you will be back. There's just no way to convey that to a 16-month-old, no matter how long you stick around. Goodbyes have never been hard with Soren. Now, they are the worst.

I have very negative feelings about having Soren in daycare, and despite what other people tell me (i.e. it will be good for him, he'll have so much fun, it will build his immune system, it's a good program, blah, blah, blah...) it doesn't make this Mama any more thrilled to have someone else raising her child. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and that's the only reason we're doing this. It still doesn't make me excited about it.

Uh-Ooooo

The newest word of Soren's is "uh-oooooooo" (supposed to be 'uh-oh') and it's a good thing, since we've been saying it a lot lately. He has discovered everything above his head and is trying to scale any object to get up there. For the most part, he's done a great job, but we've had some minor mishaps along the way.

Here's the injury report:

• 1 bloody nose from falling on a nightstand.
• 1 bloody upper lip from falling off of a stool
• 1 completely bitten-through lower lip from falling face-first on the sidewalk.

It's been a bloody month.

On top of all of that, he vomited all over his crib after he bit through his lip (most likely from ingesting the blood) while I was attempting to see the dentist. He's also had a pretty gnarly cold for the past 10 days. He's been a trooper.

Here's what's new with us in a nutshell (Soren is whining in his high chair as I type):

• Soren starts "school" next week at the ASI Children's Center at Cal Poly. It's a great program (as much as out of home care can be) and we think he'll enjoy his 2 days a week there.
• Karl starts a new year at Cal Poly's College of Architecture. As weird as it sounds, we're both excited to be heading into the 2nd from last year in school. After a long road in school, 20 months left doesn't sound all that bad.
• I am going back to working 4 days a week (out of the house) and possibly going back to school at Cuesta in the Spring. I'll keep you posted about this.
• Karl is moving his business to a new shop in Grover Beach. After several years working at the "chicken coops", all of the guys he's worked with over the past 5 years are dispersing. Karl and our friend Ben (who originally got Karl the job at the Barn) are setting up shop together, and we couldn't be happier about this arrangement.
• Soren has started to say "Papa"! Although, true to form, it's very intermittent right now. Karl is stoked nonetheless.

So that's all for this update. I've got to leave for another (attempted) dental appointment. I'm sure there'll be more to come with all of these new things happening in our lives. Stay tuned....

Cool Outfit

A picture Karl took of our bedroom ceiling with some "architectural implications"

He makes this face whenever he hugs Violet. It looks like he's in pain...as if to say, "I love her so much it hurts sometimes."

Bathtime with Arabella