Keeping Up With the Kocubinskis: August 2012

Monday, August 27, 2012

20 More Lessons I've Learned Since Becoming a Mom

Another Mother's Day has come and gone, and I've had another fun year filled with plenty more lessons. So without further ado, here are 20 MORE things I've learned since becoming a mom:

1) It is surprisingly easy to get crayon off of hard wood floors.
2) It is surprisingly hard to get crayon off of a TV screen.
3) Occasional time away from the kids is necessary to keep one's sanity, and,
4) The kids do just fine while I'm away.
5) Toddlers have minds like sponges. They remember everything you say and repeat the most embarrassing things at the most inopportune times.
6) There is no such thing as privacy when you have small children.
7) There is no toy more desirable to a child than the one their sibling is playing with.
8) Little boys love bugs and dirt. It's just hardwired into the male chromosomes.
9) You can never start teaching manners too early.
10) It is way more fun for little boys to drop their pants and pee outside than it is for them to come and and use the toilet.
11) When my fiercely independent little girl says "No, I do it", I had better let her do it.
12) My definition of a clean house has changed a bit over the years. Now, if the dishes are washed and I can see most of the floor, the house is clean.
13) If you ever dare leave the house without the diaper bag, your child will poop just to teach you a lesson.
14) I've had a lot of heroes in my life, but some days my biggest hero is the person who invented washable markers.
15) I have a love/hate relationship with play-doh.
16) I will never stop worrying about my kids. I worry about pretty much everything. But I've learned that I'm not going to do them any favors by being a helicopter mom, so I have to take a breath, step back and sometimes let them navigate this world on their own.
17) In the words of one of their Gymboree teachers, "If they're not covered in bumps and bruises, then they're not having a childhood."
18) These early years really do go by too fast. I've learned to savor all the sweet moments, no matter how small.
19) Girls are NOT easier than boys, no matter what anyone says. Every child comes with their own unique set of challenges.
20) No matter how frustrated you get, no matter how many times in a day your kids push your buttons, those are not the moments that you'll remember the most. It's all the amazing things your kids do that stick with you. The adorable things they say, the snuggles, the way they say "I love you Mommy", and the magic of watching them become incredible human beings that puts a smile on your face many times a day, every day.

The two people that teach me lessons every day

Monday, August 20, 2012

Our Little Chatterbox

Just before Max's third birthday, he was re-evaluated by his speech therapist, Margo. He has come so far over the last year. He passed the tests with flying colors and Margo said that had he been tested for the first time now, he wouldn't have qualified for speech services. However, there are a few minor things that he could still use help with, so we had the option of continuing speech therapy or ending it. After giving it quite a bit of thought, we decided to continue with the speech therapy. We decided that we wanted him to be as prepared as possible when he started school, so more speech therapy certainly wouldn't hurt. Sadly though, we had to say goodbye to Margo. Max is at an age now where he has to attend speech in a class setting instead of having a therapist come to our home as Margo had been doing. I am so incredibly grateful to Margo for all she has done to help our little Max. It was hard to see her go. Fortunately though, Max loves his new teacher, Jenny, and loves going to "school" every week. I'm very happy we chose to have the therapy and amazed at how much Max has learned in the last year. In that short time he went from only having a handful of words to having a vocabulary that is advanced for his age. He rarely stops talking and I love it. I have so much respect for the speech therapists and the work they do.

The kids with Margo. Her hard work and patience played a big part in Max's speech evolution.

Back to NYC

Well, Matt has been setting the bar pretty high when it comes to Valentine's Day presents. That's actually kind of funny since it's his least favorite holiday. But last year he gave me my beloved HE washer/dryer set, which still makes me happy today. This year, he got me a plane ticket to go back to New York to spend some quality (and child-free) time with Anna! I was SO excited, but very nervous at the same time. I had never been away from the kids for more than a few hours. I didn't know how they would handle me being gone. But I knew my sanity depended on me going on this little vacation. Of course my kids are the most important things to me in the world, but 3 years is a long time to go without a break. So, at the end of April, Matt's mom came out to visit and help out with the kids and I took off for my very first trip without them. I cried on the plane on the way over, but did ok for the rest of the trip. I was able to skype with the kids on the computer and use face time on our phones. They had a great time with their daddy and grandma and I had a great time with Anna. It was so nice to be able to relax and have girl time for the first time in ages. It was kind of like having a 4 day sleep over. We shopped, explored, ate some good food, drank some yummy drinks, and chilled out at her apartment. As Anna pointed out, we hadn't hung out just the two of us in almost 10 years. We have always been together as a group or with my kids. So I think it made us appreciate the chance to reconnect even more.

Outside the public library

Empire State Building

An old rail line that was converted to a park

Beautiful Anna

At Central Park


Love this lady!

Many thanks to Anna for showing me the town and for all the great conversations! And many thanks as well to Sue for helping Matt out and keeping my little ones happy in my absence. Maybe I'll just have to do this again next year. ;)

Looks Who's 3!!!!

My baby boy is already 3. Where has the time gone?! It has been such a joy to watch Max turn from a helpless, tiny baby into a full-fledged kid. I love the baby he was and the kid he has become. He's as smart, charming, funny and happy as he has always been. We had some very special celebrations for our very special little boy. Sue was here on his actual birthday and we made the day as memorable as possible by starting out with breakfast at Slappy Cakes, a trip to Gymboree, then off to the zoo! And when we got home, cupcakes and presents were waiting.

At the zoo with the kids

Obviously this is a favorite of Max's.

There's a bird on my head!

Evelyn wasn't so sure about those birds

The birds loved Grandma

"Can we eat these now?"

Presents!

We just had to have a little something for Evelyn too.

We had a party for Max the weekend after his birthday at Papa's pizza. My mom came to town, so he got to celebrate with both grandmas. All of his little friends made it to the party as well as Skip and our sitter Brittany. He had so much fun!

A fire truck cake

Brady, Blake and Ryder

Me and Brittany

More presents!

One happy birthday boy

Spring Fun

While it seems as though there's never a dull moment around here, things did slow down a bit after we got back from our delightful Hawaii trip. Spring '12 was filled with Easter surprises, play dates, grandmother visits, gardening and fun at the beach. Not to mention one very special little boy's birthday, which I will devote my next blog to.

Once again we spent Easter with my aunt Sue, uncle Bill and my cousins and their kids. And once again we had a blast! Easter was even more fun this year since the kids were able to be a bit more involved with coloring the eggs and were so excited that the Easter Bunny came by and hid them at night AND left a few surprises in Easter baskets for them. So much fun!