No Longer a Baby.... (But Always "MY" Baby!)

Ramsey's "baby days" are gone and he's now a toddler.  His growth epitomizes the definition of "bittersweet".

Our little Doodlebug is a healthy young child, learning new things everyday and evolving both mentally and physically.  He's inquisitive and smart, mobile and active, loving and sweet, playful and joyous.   He's a little gentleman.  Those are just a few (among the myriad) of the wonderful aspects of his toddlerhood.

But, the days of burping him, nursing him, and seeing all of his "baby firsts" are gone.  Those are now memories - moments that I will never have again, but will cherish deeply, forever.   Each day now is still another new adventure as we watch him grow and flourish.  What's to come next?!?  :-)

I recently saw this poem as a post on a friend's Facebook page.  It's too bad we can't ever "rewind" or "stop time", if only for a few minutes.

The Last Time

From the moment you hold your baby in your arms,
you will never be the same.
You might long for the person you were before,
When you have freedom and time,
And nothing in particular to worry about.

You will know tiredness like you never knew it before,
And days will run into days that are exactly the same,
Full of feedings and burping,
Nappy changes and crying,
Whining and fighting,
Naps or a lack of naps,
It might seem like a never-ending cycle.
But don’t forget …

There is a last time for everything.
There will come a time when you will feed
your baby for the very last time.
They will fall asleep on you after a long day
And it will be the last time you ever hold your sleeping child.
One day you will carry them on your hip then set them down,
And never pick them up that way again.

You will scrub their hair in the bath one night
And from that day on they will want to bathe alone.
They will hold your hand to cross the road,
Then never reach for it again.
They will creep into your room at midnight for cuddles,
And it will be the last night you ever wake to this.
One afternoon you will sing “the wheels on the bus”
and do all the actions,
Then never sing them that song again.

They will kiss you goodbye at the school gate,
The next day they will ask to walk to the gate alone.
You will read a final bedtime story and wipe your last dirty face.
They will run to you with arms raised for the very last time.

The thing is, you won’t even know it’s the last time
Until there are no more times.
And even then, it will take you a while to realize.
So while you are living in these times,
remember there are only so many of them
and when they are gone, you will yearn for just one more day of them.
For one last time.
-Author Unknown-

This post wasn't meant to be sad and weepy.  I do miss the true "baby days" (I had no idea having a little teeny tiny baby would be THAT awesome!), but I look forward to his continued development.  And, I look forward to him blossoming into a truly fantastic kid... teenager... and young man... just like his Big Brubby Connor.

Boys... you're the greatest!  You've completed my life in so many ways.  When you're fathers (I hope to be a grandmother someday!), you'll understand and know the true beauty and joy.

LOVE AND HUGS

Mommy

February Student of the Month

Connor was one of a handful of 7th graders featured in the Holgate newsletter for being a Student of the Month for February.    Great job Connor!!  Whoo Hooo!

Happy National Puppy Day

To Riggsy, Happy National Puppy Day!    We love you, you little stinker!!!   :-)

I didn't know until this year that March 23rd is a holiday!

The Luck of the Norwegian on St. Patty's Day

St. Patrick's Day was on a Tuesday this year.  Eric had decided that since it was a beautiful day, he'd use some of his flex time from work to go fishing at a local river bridge, about twenty miles away.

He caught his limit of walleye within minutes and returned to us with some beautiful keepers, which we decided definitely needed to be fried up for supper!

In addition to the walleye, he caught a nice-sized Northern also.  The Northern must have had a voracious appetite that day to bite Eric's jig, because when he reeled him in, there was a walleye tail fin still hanging out of its mouth!

When Eric cleaned the Northern, the walleye it had eaten was almost the size of the keepers he'd caught and brought home (which were about 15"-16" each).
NOTE: The following video is graphic!  Do not watch it if you have a queasy stomach when it comes to fish-cleaning!!  :-)  

Ramsey enjoyed seeing the fish that Daddy brought in the house on the stringer, but isn't quite ready to eat it.... yet!!

Winter Fun for Ramsey - a Few Firsts!

Last weekend's weather was TOO WONDERFUL not to take advantage of.   Until last Friday, Ramsey hadn't had the opportunity to wear his never-worn snow pants or be outside to play; it had just always been too darn cold or windy.

Friday night, we ventured out with Daddy to ice fish.  On the way down, I gave Ramsey his first sled ride.  He laughed the whole way down the hill.  Eric said he could hear him giggling the entire time from his ice house, half way across the lake!

We fished for a while, but didn't have a lot of luck; no keepers.  But, Ramsey sat really well and we had a fun evening in the warm cozy ice house.

Saturday, we took Riggs out to play and fetch.  By the afternoon, the weather had warmed up so much that most of the snow in the yard was gone, so no chance of a second sledding day.  We all got a little muddy too (ok, a lot muddy)!

C'Mon, That's Precious!

Of course I am biased, but I have a pretty sweet crew around here.  :-)

Nap time.  

Every day, Riggsy bowls his way into the room to snooze next to Ramsey. Yes, he has his own pillows too.  (Spoiled!)

Family time, opening presents.

Connor, you're not too old to be precious too!  You're a great Big Brubby!

One of our "barricades" in the living room (our antique fainting bench - which needs to be recovered and refinished).  Riggs and Ramsey were both resting their chins, after playing (i.e. trading toys back and forth - and Riggs running off with them half the time!).

Big mohawk during bath time.

A bang trim by Auntie Shana at her salon.  He did so well!!  No tears.  

We couldn't bear to cut anything but his bangs!

Ramsey's hugs are precious too; they make us melt.  His new thing is hugging....all of his loved ones and his beloved toys (Hug-Me Elmo is finally getting hugs too).  He has quite a grip!

The Building Blocks of Brotherhood

I suppose the title denotes a serious topic, but on the contrary, the boys were just having fun one day playing with the building blocks that Ramsey received for Valentine's Day.

Connor was having just as much fun as Ramsey was.  He was stacking away to see if he could use every single block.  Ramsey was enjoying knocking them down (mostly) and then helping Connor rebuild the tower.

We had to migrate the blocks to the downstairs family/play room; Riggsy kept snagging the blocks and trying to eat them.  I can only imagine the splinters he must have had in his gut afterwards!  Oye.