6:00 am - Wake up! I had set my alarm for 5:30 in an effort to get a jump on the day (or drink my cup of tea) before Marshall woke up, but you know how it goes. Instead, I wake up to Terry getting ready and Marshall starting to babble in his crib. It's nice that he wakes up happy a lot of times now and doesn't mind hanging out on his own for a little while (although, of course, about a third of the time things go the opposite way). After getting myself up, I say goodbye to Terry and head in to greet Marshall, who points eagerly at his fire hat and apparently wants to wear it before the day really began.
Okay, kid.
6:45 am - After a diaper change and some play around the house, Marshall and I sit down to breakfast--yogurt with various toppings, a little pita bread for Marshall, and a banana. Marshall eats everything (breakfast tends to be his biggest meal of the day) and then some, and I send him back on his way to play while I clean up and get dressed.
7:45 am - Out the door! We head down to the South Bay to meet my friend and her son, whom we met at My Gym several months ago. We're not in the same toddler class, so we've been trying to get together on Wednesday mornings. We have a great time together, and the boys are about a month apart, so we're hoping they can be friends too!
8:30 am - Arrive at the park, watch the boys play, catch up on our weekends, make more plans for future get togethers. Marshall gets sand all over his hands and then rubs his eyes (of course), but we have a great time overall.
9:50 am - Clean up and head to My Gym! Class is pretty full today, and Marshall is tired (he has been going down for naps around 11:15 or so lately, but today he's tired by 10:45), so his energy is hit-and-miss throughout class. Of course, I have a great time watching him and the other kids play!
11:20 am - Class ends, and Marshall and I enjoy our usual post-class car picnic (peanut butter sandwiches on pita bread, raisins, and peas). I e-mail Terry to tell him I wonder if people think it's weird that I do this each week, but he responds, "Ah, people do far weirder stuff than eat lunch out of car in a parking lot. Though writing that does sound weird." True.
11:35 am - Back in the car, we head home, and I spend the thirty minute drive trying to make sure Marshall doesn't fall asleep. I used to have no problem letting him nap in the car, because I would just pull over and read or something until he woke up. But now that he's on one nap I try to make sure he's sleeping in his crib so that the nap has the best chance of being a good one. Wednesdays are the challenge because of the My Gym class timing, but we're 2/2 these last two weeks!
12:15 pm - Marshall is asleep! Aaaannnnd I'm on the couch drinking water with zero motivation to get up, so I tell myself I should just take care of laundry and then I can sit down to work on my blog post. Eventually, I get around to other chores and prepping a snack for Marshall, along with eating half a nectarine.
And lots of iced tea.
2:30 pm (!!!!) - Marshall is awake! He's suuuuper grumpy, so we cuddle a bit and keep things mellow. Then he just wants to play, so I leave him to it, and he hangs out in his room quite a while stacking blocks and digging through his toy box.
3:15 pm - Snack time! Marshall has a small lunch usually before nap and then a snack afterward. Today his snack was peaches and milk (he rejected the cheese I offered...weirdo). I join him for a bowl of cereal (I love making granola, but it never lasts more than three days in our house), then tidy up a tiny bit before he continues playing.
3:45 pm - I know we should go to the grocery store, but he's happy hanging out and reading with me, and I'm feeling less than excited about going out into the heat, even if an air conditioned store awaits. I read books with him and get a few more odds and ends done around the house before Terry calls to say he's on his way home (yay!). Marshall knocks his head on the table multiple times and laughs it off each time, so I call that a good mood and gladly take it as a sign that staying home was perfectly fine this afternoon.
4:50 pm - Terry comes home! We quickly head out for a walk. I had given Terry a few suggestions for dinner, but ultimately we decided to grab something to go while out on our walk. We tried a semi-new place, Garlo's, which Terry liked but I didn't care for much.
5:55 pm - Come home, enjoy dinner together, and get the bedtime process started. Terry gives Marshall his bath while I clean up a bit, and then I read Marshall his bedtime story.
6:50 pm - I chill on the couch for a few minutes while Terry gets Marshall to sleep, which actually takes a few tries, and then we settle in for a few episodes of Once Upon a Time. We also throw in 100 push ups throughout the show to feel like we did a mini workout.
7:55 pm - The Internet goes out, so we work on a crossword and then get showered and do dishes.
9:25 pm - The Internet is back on by the time we're done, so we turn on one more episode, and I work on this post. Soon as we're done, we'll head to bed!
And now, some notes about our 15-month-old (Marshall officially turned 15 months old on Sunday, but Terry and I both didn't realize the date, so that's a good sign for Marshall's future) :
- Weight: 24 pounds; height unknown until tomorrow's doctor appointment
- This month Marshall seemed slightly less interested in books and MUCH more interested in things that move, like trucks and cars. He has also become more physical, testing his strength with really bulky items like his toy box or his step stool. He loves to try to pick up really heavy, awkward items and try to carry them, which, as you might imagine, isn't always a success.
- We are excited to see that Marshall is showing a lot more understanding about basic commands, requests, and suggestions. He definitely knows no (whether he will listen and obey is another story!), but he also understands phrases like, "Sit down," "Knock on the door!," "Put this in the box please," or, "Where is your bib?"
- Marshall is adding more words to his vocabulary, but he is more consistent in responding to questions by pointing or doing. His most consistent words are dada, mama, cat ("dat"), dog ("dog-dog"), truck ("ja-jra"), shoes (shz), that, and probably a few more I'm forgetting.
- Sleep has been incredible, and we could not be more grateful. (Here's more about that, if you're curious.) He sleeps 6:45 pm to 6:00 or 6:30 am almost every night, with very few exceptions. Naps vary--60 minutes to 3 hours--but we'll take weird naps if it means we get this great sleep at night! It's been such a relief and a huge weight off our shoulders.
- Breastfeeding is officially done! I was a little sad in the moment, but now it feels totally right and normal. We had a bunch of milk stored in the freezer, so I've been adding a little to his milk each night, just so it doesn't go bad before he reaps the benefits. Otherwise, his eating is pretty much the same as always--he eats 95% of what we eat (except lettuce, whole nuts, anything that's a choking hazard). He doesn't care for fried eggs or hardboiled eggs, and he doesn't seem to like chicken on its own. Favorite foods: anything bread-like (pancakes, pita, toast, etc.), all fruit, yogurt, and the crunchy peas we get at Trader Joe's.
- Favorite activities: playing at the park, reading, climbing onto the couch, trying to pet Scout, eating, looking at trucks or dogs, going for walks, and stacking blocks/boxes. Dislikes: diaper changes, feeling tired, having something taken away, waiting for food.
- Things we're looking forward to: taking Marshall to a splash park this weekend, watching M learn how to run (although it may be a while...he doesn't seem to be in any rush to get anywhere!), seeing Marshall meet Aunt Jenny's baby (about a month away!), and a visit from JanJan next month!
- Toddler challenges: Ah, we've been warned! So we knew these challenges would be coming, but you never know how your own child will handle toddlerhood. Marshall is mostly mellow, and we haven't had any full-body meltdowns, but he's got a nice high-pitched scream when he wants us to know he's unhappy (like today at My Gym when he was informed he couldn't go on the train ride again). We try to acknowledge his feelings and then move into another activity, and for the most part it works fine. I'm sure we're only at the beginning, though! He also enjoys standing on the couch even though he knows he's not supposed to, wiping his food off the table, and whining when we won't let him in the kitchen. I'd say that's not too bad so far though!
Marshall, we're having so much fun with you! We hope you're enjoying your childhood as much as we're enjoying parenthood. Love you!
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