Baptized

Last Sunday, we had Simon baptized. Much of it was the same as Harmon’s baptism, with the exception of a) Simon was awake (and very smiley) and b) he crapped his baptism outfit. We had a private ceremony with the same wonderful priest – Father Bob – who baptized me and my sisters. We all went to Mass at noon and then thought we would have some time before the ceremony, which was scheduled for 2 p.m. But, Father Bob was ready to rock and roll so we had to feed Simon quickly and forego the diaper change. Under normal circumstances, this would have been fine but I think he got a touch of the stomach bug that has brought Annie’s Children’s Center to its knees. SO, just as Father Bob began the ceremony, Simon began filling his diaper. And, every time there was a pause in the ceremony, there was a fart to go with it. Luckily, everything went really fast and we were able to get him cleaned and changed in no time.

Kevin’s parents were in town, along with his brother, Steve, sister-in-law, Kim, and nieces, Kourtney and Katelyn. My sister, Stacey, and her fiancé, Marc, also were in from Chicago and they joined my parents and sister, Erin. And, speaking of our families, because of so many issues related to fair representation from both sides, we decided that Simon would have the same godparents – Steve and Stacey – as Harmon did. It’s worked out well for Harmon so we thought it would be fine for Simon too!

After all the serious stuff, we headed to Buddy’s Pizza for an awesome lunch and yummy cake (thanks, Mom and Dad)! While this party was for Simon, he basically slept through all of it. Harmon, on the other hand, was a total ham and he had a great time with everyone.

Later that night, we opened all of Simon’s gifts and he amassed quite a stash! Even though I’m working on the OFFICIAL thank you notes, I would like to thank everyone not just for the gifts but, more importantly, for taking the time to be there for Simon for his first sacrament!

A shout-out to my oldest

During my maternity leave with Harmon, Kevin would come home at the end of each day and I would pepper him with questions about his meetings, phone calls, conversations with co-workers, etc. Basically, I was STARVING for conversation and any kind of link to the outside world. Thinking about it now, that was probably the most difficult part of my time off – being alone all day with a baby that really couldn’t interact with me. Frankly, it was lonely.

I was expecting that again during my time off with Simon but it didn’t happen because of Harmon! While certain times were indeed challenging, Harmon made all the difference in the world. He kept me company, he was my partner and helper in caring for Simon, he would give me a much-needed hug or kiss at totally random times, he kept me stimulated and on my toes and, most of all, he made me laugh so much every single day. He is such a great kid (and a great big brother) and so funny and so smart (sometimes a little TOO smart). I know I could not have done it without him.

I had a great 12 weeks with both of my boys and this made it so hard to return to work. When I look back on my leave THIS TIME, I’ll have the best memories of taking care of and being with my precious boys. It’s a shame it only lasted three months – Moms and Dads should definitely get MORE time!

Harmon @ 39 months

I totally suck at monthly updates for the boys. I hope I get better since this blog is my official record of events for Harmon and Simon. I’m not the scrapbooking type – I write … and take way too many pictures.

ANYWAY, Harmon at 3 ¼ is a pretty good time. He can be a sassy cat indeed but sometimes I think that’s our own fault. I mean, he loves the “Pigeon” books (not to mention Naked Mole Rat too) and the pigeon and the mole rat are some sassy little creatures. At this point, his two downfalls are a) that he doesn’t listen all the time and 2) he can be a bit sassy. For his crimes, he spends some time on the stool in his bedroom. This location has replaced the corner of the dining room as the designated time-out spot. He’s become Mr. Independent, wanting to do everything on his own, and one of his biggest thrills in life is getting to help make his PBJ (he is OBSESSED with PBJ)!

He’s doing great at school! He loves telling us about lunch and about running (and running and running) on the playground AND all about Show and Tell Thursdays. He loves his classmates and, as we witnessed last week while picking up Simon, his classmates’ parents. The kid was having full conversations with various classmate Dads as we were TRYING to leave. This chatty side of him is showing up more and more lately too. He’ll talk your ear off if you’re not careful – ask the women at Baby Gap in Briarwood Mall (or ANYONE at Ann Arbor Kroger stores)!

Since Simon’s arrival, Harmon has been way more emotional and affectionate, which is mostly good but sometimes bad. He gives a lot more hugs and kisses and he sure does tell us he loves us an awful lot. But, when something goes wrong, there is extra emotion involved there too. It usually passes quickly but sometimes it’s like, DUDE! He has this new cry (that’s mostly fake) and it is truly awful! Kevin says it rivals the most annoying sound in the world from Dumb and Dumber!