the fever.

it's been a while, sorry! work has been keeping me busy and with the holiday shopping season upon us (don't deny it, you're already thinking about Christmas and it's only October!) things have been pretty hectic. even with a busy day, Audrey and me time in the evenings after dinner is quite possibly my favorite thing ever. we do fun things, like play dress up and parade around the house collecting more dress up items and things to hold and wave around.

Audrey has completely stopped crawling, so it's safe to say i have a for real deal toddler on my hands now. with her birthday less than a month away, it feels like everything is happening so fast. last night when i brought her dinner in the dining room, she starting clapping for me as if i had prepared a gourmet meal. she said, "oooooo yeah!" as i set it down in front of her, and, "yummm, ooooo yummm" as she shoved a hand full of peas in her mouth.

grilled chicken, brown rice, and peas for dinner.
witch hat bow for fun :)

she babbles ALL THE TIME but lately i've been catching some "real" words in there and her talking has been more responsive and conversation-like. she says, "uh-oh" when she drops something and checks Will's chair a few times a day saying, "Da-da?" as if to see if he's there or not. we've also entered into a phase i have coined, "the bow battle." Audrey has worn a bow in her hair since birth. at first it was to tame the fuzz, then it was to keep the hair out of her face, and at all times it was just adorable. well, she finally discovered that she can (and will) take her bow out. try to trick her and discreetly clip it back in? oh no. within seconds she will rip it out of her hair and run away. here is a picture to sum up our bow battle:

this is her, "oh no you did NOT!" face :)

Will and i celebrated two years of marriage yesterday and it's hard to believe all of the things we've accomplished together in our lives ever since we met in June of 2004. the past two years have been wonderful and i'm so thankful for our marriage :)

so, the best news -- my dad, his new main squeeze, Sheila, Michael, and Chelsea are all coming down visit in a couple weeks and celebrate Audrey's birthday!! to say i'm excited is an understatement :) then, hopefully a weekend or two after Audrey's birthday, i'll be back in North Carolina to see my best friend, Laura, and her new baby, Evan! He was born September 24th at 7:36 pm, weighing 8 lbs. 13 oz. and 22 inches long. i was in tears on the day before and the day of Evan's birth. i was so happy for my best friend and also sad that i couldn't be there with her like she was with me when Audrey was born. everything went smoothly and her and Evan are a home and happy happy. i cannot wait to see them! i passed along Audrey's old baby bed to her for my new "nephew" to use when he arrived. here is a picture of Audrey in her baby bed on her first day home, and Evan in the same baby bed on his first day home -- awwww :)

a lot of my friends have been getting "baby fever," here lately with most of our kids turning one in the next couple months, it's inevitable that it will happen. some of my friends are actually pregnant again and i'm so happy for them, a little jealous too. i was struck by "the fever" when Evan was born and reminisced about a time not so long ago when i had a newborn, too. as much as i loved that time (post-NICU), i honestly love having a toddler more. she's bright, funny, independent, sassy, loving, and curious.

let's be real, having a newborn is exhausting. when "the fever" sets in, all you think about is the sweet new baby smell, the tiny little baby staring up at your quietly, the endless hours of snuggling, the oohs and the ahhs as she starts to take in her new world and you are the center of it. what "the fever" omits from your memory is the 1am, 3 am, 5 am, and 7 am nursing sessions, the pain from recovery, the stress of breast feeding and/or pumping, the spit up, the constant second-guessing and trying to understand this new little person, the what-does-this-cry-mean panic, the dependency for EV-ER-Y-THING, the stress of trying to get into some type of groove (just to have said 'groove' change the next week), oh...and the utter exhaustion.

being a mom of a new toddler is also exhausting, but it's a different kind of exhaustion. it's being exhausted at the end of the day from chasing her around the house saying "mommy is going to get you!!!!!" while she screams and checks to see how close i am, dancing around the living room to the hotdog dance song over and over and over, more chasing around the house, cleaning up the explosion of toys and the dumping of the diaper bag at least three times a day, being used as a human jungle gym, refolding the laundry for the 5th time after she throws it all on the floor and laughs hysterically, vacuuming while holding her (she's scared), sprinting across the house when she tries to climb up the fireplace (she's not scared), and endless hours of teaching and playing.
"the fever" left almost as quickly as it set in, as i watched Will and Audrey play together and realized how satisfied and complete i feel as a family of three. we have such a good balance right now, why mess with a good thing? maybe "the fever" will come back in the future and get its way then, but for now, our hearts are so full...