I saw this and thought it was fun. Enter the last sentence of the first post from each month for the year 2006:

So, wish us luck that we actually get this all done by this weekend, when the men’s ministry at our church is moving her in!
I’ve posted for the first time in years!
May I take a moment to reflect?
I need a vacation!
I totally would have taken the $32 loss before I submitted a report that my “love doll” was stolen.
Enough of that!
That is all.
I think it goes something like this, “I’ll nap when I want to nap and there’s nothing you can do about it!”
Big hugs to you, Mate.
I am a Mom and I wouldn’t change a thing.
Wish me luck on that!
Gabey really liked the tennis ball.

So, I’m getting ready for work this morning. It was pretty much like any other morning until I had to make a work related call around 7:30 AM. I left the bathroom and went into the kitchen. A couple minutes later, I hear Gabe wailing. I run to find him in the bathroom, putting my curling iron back onto the bathroom counter. He was sobbing uncontrollably and holding his left hand against his chest. I knew right away what happened and my heart was in my throat. I grabbed him and tried to look but he wouldn’t let me see anything. I held him for about an hour while he cried the most horrible and heartbreaking cry I’ve ever heard.

It is horrible when your child gets hurt. It is 10 times more horrible when it is your fault. I sobbed while I held him. I always close the bathroom door or the nearby baby gate when my curling iron is on…always. Somehow, this morning, I must have forgot and I’ve got to tell you, I’m prepared to throw away the curling iron for good.

Gabe is OK, he’s got some nasty looking blisters, but they don’t seem to bother him anymore. He’s back to his normal, happy self and he doesn’t appear to be favoring his hand anymore. I guess that is all good…but I’m still really upset that it happened at all. I see the blisters and my heart breaks all over again. I’m typing this post and my eyes are full of tears as I remember his cries this morning. If I never hear that cry again, it will be too soon.

I started this while I was still pregnant…high time I finished it!

I don’t know if you’ve ever fallen asleep at your desk at work. It seems to me it would be too uncomfortable to actually fall asleep on, but I once attended a meeting where one of the participants had keyboard keys imprinted on his face. So it can happen. I witnessed it once again an hour ago…


Fortunately, Gabriel’s meeting schedule is clear this afternoon. So none of his professional associates will bear witness to his worktime snoozing. Just you folks.

Mike and I work opposite shifts so that one of us is always home with Gabey. I’m certain that we are doing the right thing. Day care is frightening. I think back to my childhood and recall how I was abused in my babysitter’s home…she was a good babysitter, and there would be no reason not to trust her. Perhaps it is paranoia, but the only way I think you can be certain your child is being cared for appropriately is to do it yourself.

The downside to this arrangement is that Mike and I don’t get a lot of time one on one. I often find myself staying up until 12:00/1:00/2:00/3:00 AM just so I can have more time with him. Getting up with Gabe at 6:00 AM can be a tad difficult but fortunately, I don’t require as much sleep as the average person. Every Saturday and Sunday morning I go through the same thing. I hang out with my son, sometimes I’m productive around the house, but I’m always watching that clock. Mike will wake up anytime between 10:00 AM and Noon. I can’t wait to hear that bedroom door open. I can’t wait to see him. It is all I can do not to go in there and wake him up. So here I sit at 9:30 AM waiting with baited breath to see my handsome husband.

A few weeks ago, my sister-in-law, Lea mentioned a place called Supper Thyme. Immediately I was intrigued, so about a week ago we decided to make an appointment.

It is the best idea EVER! They have these work stations set up, complete with counter top, cooler and all the ingredients to make a wonderful dish. They post a new menu of items each month. You pay for a certain amount of dishes and you go in and put everything together in freezable containers. Upon completion, each dish is labeled with it’s cooking instructions and voila! You have a prepared meal that typically just needs to go into the over about 45 minutes before dinner time.

In addition to taking care of 6+ main entrees for us without messing up my kitchen, they wait on you hand and foot. Upon entering, they offer you a beverage to drink. If you happen to drop a measuring spoon or utensil, someone is right there ready to offer you a replacement. About half way through, they came around and offered everyone a fresh baked cookie. After leaving one of the food stations, they took care of all the clean up. It was a blast and I got to make three dishes that we’ve never tried before.

I opted for the Herb Encrusted Pork Tenderloin, Baked Penne Florentine and Tuscan Chicken. I think each entree will provide at least two meals for us. I will cook vegetables at home to go with them, but that is typically just a matter of dumping some frozen veggies into my Pampered Chef Micro-cooker. My sister-in-law has three hungry men/boys at home to feed, so she made 12 dishes. When I finished my three dishes, I went on to help make some of hers. I saw so many different recipes that I’d love to try!

I will be going back, so if any local friends out there would like to join me, just let me know!

Now that my Mom has moved, we picked up a new web cam, so that Mom can see her grandsome. Mike set it up today, so Gabe and I decided to play with it tonight. It has some fun graphics you can add to the video. Gabey really liked the tennis ball.