boooo me

I'm too tired to write anything. So check out these pics from Florida and I'll get my act together next week for the pre-Ireland, pre-Cian's 3rd birthday update.

the paudie need sleep

We had a blast in Orlando. Paudie was on top of the world - it was as if each day was better than the past. He was going full-tilt. By the time we got back, he was crashing big time. On the flight down, he was hella wriggly and antsy. Luckily there were lots of kids on board and a super sweet flight attendant who was more than happy to help entertain him and walk him around. On the flight back, he was asleep by take off. He of course had pooped about one minute before he fell asleep and I didn't have the heart to wake him, mostly cos I knew he would be verrry unhappy and I figured it better to smell poop in peace and quiet than to smell nothing in the midst of tears and shrieking. John was disgusted by the time we landed. In retrospect, it was rather foul - but hey, no diaper rash so no harm done.

But back to the trip. We did make it to Epcot one day - I thought it might be a little over his head, but he was quite good on the rides - most are slow moving, bright colors etc. He enjoyed a mickey ice cream bar and fish and chips over in fake Britain. He also got to run around a fair amount. The house we stayed at had a pool so he got to go for a few dips. Dip 1 he was really unsure of the whole thing but by Dip 2, he was delighted. We also spent some time at a nearby playground - he was up and down the slides many times. We were taken aback by his skills on the slide - much more advanced than what we saw in October, last time we saw him in playground action. Paudie also had loads of fun playing with his cousins, specifically, torturing his 2 year old cousin Shane. He was playing the annoying little brother role quite nicely. Everything Shane had, Paudie needed and was not shy about taking it off of him. They mostly played really well together and it was super cute to see their rapport.

We have lots of great photos - I will post some. Hopefully relatively soon.

The highlight of the trip, for me, was Paudie's enthusiasm. It was the first time I 'got it.' This is what it feels like to see your child be uber-happy. To see your child be uber-unhappy, that we knew pretty well. But to see a perma-grin for 4 days straight was something I did not expect and that made it even sweeter. I am so glad we went - not to mention the weather was perfect. I liken the whole experience, for Paudie, to the type of trip you take with friends when you are single - after like 6 nights of drinking and clubbing, you know you cant' take anymore and just need to go home. That was Paudie on the toddler level.

So he is getting back into his routine... I feel like his vocabulary is really progressing as the result of spending time with his cousins. While he speaks his own language, I assume it will be translated into words we understand at some point soon. It's so fun to listen to though. Clearly he thinks we know what he is saying - brilliant!

giving my seasonal affective disorder a few days off

We are at t-minus two days for Florida. I am trying to be excited, but remain nervous about the plane ride. Paudie seems to be at full-health right now, so hopefully all will be fine. As you can see by the photo, we hit the zoo last Sunday. The weather was in the 40s so we decided it was a good day for some fresh air. Plus John heard on the news that the animals get lonely in the winter. Paudie had a good time - checked out the lion, tigers, zebras, sheep, gorillas and some random emu type birds amongst some interlopers. What cracked me up is how there were lots of people like us at the zoo that day - two parents, one kid. Bored singleton toddlers. What else cracked me up was how the other kids had on boots and snow pants. Not our one. I am so thick sometimes. It never occurred to me the zoo would have lots of puddles and slush and snow and sand. So there Paudie is in his suede sneaks and cords - he fell into mush and gunk many times. At one point as we were catching up mid-fall, his shirt went up to reveal lots of poop smushed all over his coin slot. And where was the diaper bag? Well back in the car of course. I really need to be more on top of the mommy thing. I figured that he had already pooped twice that day so weren't we good to go? Nope. So once we got back to the car he got a nice and breezy change in the trunk area. He was down with it.

Paudie took a nice long nap when we got home - I thought he'd be all over the Puppy Bowl, but not so much.

Not much else going on - it's all about the trip. What to pack - long sleeves and short sleeves, sandals and socks, hoodies and shorts. And making everything fit into two bags. One thing I have noticed about what happens when you have to travel with kids - you never pack decent stuff for yourself. I agonize over his outfits but when it comes to me, I basically pick up whatever is on the floor, semi-clean, and toss it into my bag. Long gone are the days of traveling with my girlfriends and being so strategic with the going-out outfits. I'm probably one step away from mom-jeans.