A day in the life of...

Dear Aidan,

We missed church yet again. Sigh. Mommy couldn't get up because she was so sore and tired from going snowboarding yesterday. Of course, daddy never wakes up for church... If I don't get up then we don't end up going to church...

Anyways, besides missing church we actually did quite a bit today. Unlike most weekends...

I fed you pasta this morning and just gave you free reign to feed yourself.

It was pasta with sausage. You weren't a fan of the sausage. You kept spitting it out and throwing it on the floor. I was not happy about that.

The beginning of a very messy meal...

You might be wondering what you were watching so intently on the side...

...it was Toot and Puddle on Treehouse!

Look at that face! Daddy commented how you had a piece of mushroom on your cheek. You were so content being so dirty.

Because mommy and daddy are both so neat it hurt to watch you throw food on the floor and wipe your dirty hands all over the high chair.

After breakfast you and I went upstairs to play with your toys. You are in love with the toy laptop that Auntie Jess and Uncle Wayne gave you for Christmas. Even though you just press all the buttons randomly you always want to play with it.

The reason I'm saying 'tktktktktktk' in the video is because you say that a lot. When you got this laptop I pressed the 'A' button which was an 'A for Ant' the sound it makes is the sound of ants marching. I guess it sounds a lot like 'tktktktktk' so when you first heard it you smiled and repeated 'tktktktktk' back. I didn't realize it right away, but then I noticed you only said 'tktktktktkt' when I pressed that button. Unfortunately, I couldn't get you to say 'tktktktktkt' back in this video. Next time!

Daddy had a bit of work to do in the morning, but he wanted to take you swimming since both you and him stayed home all day yesterday (mommy went snowboarding). It was Parent & Tot swim time between 1pm-2pm at our local community centre so we decided to go.

Mommy watched you guys through the glass, but you looked like you were having a blast. You were smiling and splashing the water the whole time.

You saw mommy! Look at that Toy Story bathing suit you have on! You look so muscular! Keke.

Afterwards you passed out instantly in the car. You were even snoring!

We were planning to have an early dinner at a restaurant, but since you passed out in the car we didn't want to wake you. We ended up getting Chinese takeout and driving back home. You were able to get a good hour sleep.

Time for dinner! This time you had bread with nutella. Unfortunately you aren't feeling 100%. You were pretending to eat your food and you spit most of it out. Afterwards you puked all over the high chair and your clothes.

You end your antibiotics for your ear infection tomorrow and already I think it's helping. You were talking a lot this weekend and you have started saying 'uh oh'. You say it when you drop stuff or do something that you weren't supposed to do. How come you say that instead of 'um-ma'???

Tomorrow is your official first day in the toddler room. I dropped you off on Friday and I met all your new teachers in the toddler room. I was so sad because the toddler room was so different from the infant room. It was bigger and not as pretty. Even the teachers looked a bit rougher and not as maternal. I saw a few kids get scolded by the teachers. I hope they aren't that rough on you... You were the smallest kid in that class. Plus, the toddler room had stackable cots that you slept in during nap time instead of a room with cribs. You are really starting to grow up... You're no longer a baby anymore...

And this is why I created this blog

Dear Aidan,

I have quite a long commute home from work so I tend to surf online a lot. Today I happened to be reading up on my news when I came across this one article titled, "In dying, cancer patient showed others art of living." It was an emotional story of a young family that recently went through tragedy when the mother passed away with breast cancer. I hear about cancer all the time, but I was always someone who experienced it from afar. I could never really relate to their stories. However, when I read this certain passage from this story it hit home. I could literally put myself in this family's shoes. By the end I was in tears and could not stop the tears from overflowing. People in my bus must have thought I was a crazy woman...

Anyways, I'm going to share the snippet of the article with you that really hit it home with me:

One in 7 women in Canada will be diagnosed with breast cancer or gynecological cancer in their lifetime. It is a staggering statistic.

Adam [the husband] will keep raising money and awareness for breast cancer. It’s a way to keep Clare’s memory blazing and a chance to help conquer the disease that took her life.

Clare [the wife] was, at first, terrified that her death would leave a gaping hole in her 4-year-old’s life.
“She wanted to live long enough to know he would be able to feel her for all his life,” says Adam, adding that new hormone treatments she received gave her an extra 16 months.

This September, she walked Nathan to his very first day of school, a marker the couple had been working toward.

When he is ready, there are “pages and pages” of journals written to her son. About life, love and the infinite joys of being his mom. She ordered “Mommy and Me” books off the Internet, with pictures of them both.

“He misses his mommy’s snuggles. Daddy’s snuggles don’t really cut it,” says Adam, adding that Clare always told Nathan, when she died, she would become a star, so that she could look over him with pride.

“He always wanted to be a paleontologist but now he wants to be an astronaut. Because he wants to go to Mommy’s star,” says Adam.

I'm not saying I'm going to die right now, but you never know in life what's going to happen. I want you to know what you mean to me and our time together while I'm still here on this earth so that it's never a memory that will fade over time.

On another note, daddy and I have been trying to get pregnant for a little while now. Unfortunately we are still negative. We really want to have a brother/sister for you before the end of this year, but I guess we will have to wait a little bit more...

Grandparents' church + Auntie Sara's birthday party

Dear Aidan,

We visited your Toronto grandparents' church today because we thought it was a good time to go since we had to go to Auntie Sara's birthday party right after. Your Toronto grandparents have been begging us to come to their church because I think they wanted to 'show you off' to their friends at church. Let me just say that you were a star there. People kept saying how good looking you were and all the little girls at church kept crowding around you. You were quite the ladies man. Haha.

Afterwards we went to your Toronto grandparents' house where we were celebrating Auntie Sara's birthday party. It was so good seeing everyone in one place- my sisters, my sisters' husbands, and my cousins. BTW, I waited until now to say this because I didn't want to be announcing it when it wasn't officially announced, but Auntie Jess is pregnant! She told me a couple of weeks ago, but I didn't want to say anything until she got the confirmation from the doctors and she was announcing it to everyone. I'm so excited for her. You will be having a cousin soon! We ate good food and talked. I always have a good time when we all get together. Now it's becoming quite the party because the families are all expanding now.

Ready to swim, but not really...

Dear Aidan,

My, don't you look like a beefed-up super hero here...

You are wearing your Toy Story swim suit that you got as a gift from Helen and Pastor Jason last year for your birthday. I wanted to see if it still fit you. Unfortunately, we weren't able to take you swimming today because you came down with another cold (how many times is it now???). However, you looked so cute wearing it that I couldn't resist taking some pictures.

Shot of you from the backside. Look how big your top half looks in context to your lower half. Keke.

Aidan: You talkin' to me?

Since we didn't go out again because you were sick daddy was able to finish some stuff in his to-do list like putting a nail on the wall to put up our 2011 calendar. It's now hanging in my office and I love it!

Mr. January

Ear infection

Dear Aidan,

Today was your 18-month check-up. Daddy had a day off and mommy decided to miss a bit of work in the morning so that we could both take you to the doctors. It was a rough morning because you had woken up in the middle of the night screaming. Daddy went to check-up on you and he brought you back to our bed for a sleep over. However, you have a bad habit of tossing and turning so none of us got really much sleep. Plus, you came down with another cold where you have a bad cough. You were coughing all night long.

This is a photo of you on our way to the doctors. You were exhausted as you can probably tell from this photo. The appointment was very stressful because you started panicking once the doctor started examining you. I think you were traumatized from the time you went to ER so you were screaming/crying the whole time. Mommy wasn't even able to jot down your weight and head circumference. It was that intense.

When it was time for the doctor to check your ears daddy said that your ears were probably fine because I had cleaned it. However, that wasn't the case. Apparently you were just starting to get an ear infection! The doctor seemed to think that that may have caused your speech impediment. You should be saying a lot more words than you are speaking now. Great. So in the end, you weren't able to get your 18-month shot because you were too sick and cranky. I have to go back in 2 weeks. Another great. Hopefully you will be in a better mood then. I doubt it.

After the appointment daddy and I separated. I went to the pharmacy to pick up your antibiotics (for your ear infection) and some more hydrocortisone cream. It cost me a small fortune- over $60! Sigh. The good news is now we may now know why you weren't talking all that much. The bad news is that it might not be because of the ear infection. We will see. Also, now you have a fever- 80 degrees to be exact. I'm so stressed because I'm reminded of the last time you had a fever. It was a very stressful time. I don't want to go through that again. I'm constantly monitoring you now. I'm hoping you will break your fever by morning. I guess no swimming for you tomorrow...

BTW, Happy Birthday to Auntie Sara who turned 26 today. We are going to her birthday party on Sunday.

Mirror, mirror on the wall who is the fairest one of all?

Dear Aidan,

That would be Aidan!

I just can't wait until it's the weekend. I feel so burnt out from working so late and coming home so late. Today, I got out at a reasonable time- 6:15pm to be exact so I rushed to catch my 6:55pm bus. However, my bus was delayed for 30 minutes because I guess the route he was going there was a car accident. I was so annoyed. I ended coming home past 8:00pm. Luckily you were still awake so I was able to play with you for a little while. I gave you a hand-held mirror that I got that has Hello Kitty's face on it because I knew you enjoyed mirrors. You liked it, but then I think it was too heavy for you because you kept dropping it.

Hello Kitty's head is bigger than your head!

Well, hello there! Who's that good looking boy?

So vain.

I guess you were so tired because you fell over and just lay there. Mommy had to put you to bed right after. You slept pretty quickly.

Sleep tight my little son. Sending you love and kisses.

Beautiful art

Dear Aidan,

Mommy came home late (again) so I wasn't able to see you before you went to bed. This is like the millionth time this has happened. I came home to see 3 art projects that daddy brought home from daycare that you did. I'm sure you got help from your teachers, but I find it fascinating how artistic your projects are. They may look like amateur stuff, but to me they are works of art. One of my favourite graphic designer is Paul Rand. You have one of his books as well. It's called Sparkle and Spin. I love his simplistic, almost childish style and I'm reminded of this when I see your artwork. I'm saving all of these to make a scrapbook. I just need time to work on it.

I have big plans this weekend for you. I want to take you to the community centre to go swimming. It's time we enjoyed the winter. All this stuck indoors is driving me crazy!

Um-ma! Daddy!

Dear Aidan,

You know what drives me crazy? The fact that you scream out daddy when I try to get you to say 'um-ma'. I don't know if you are doing it on purpose, but I hate it!

Daddy gets such pleasure when you do that. Today while we were coming home from Costco you were talking jibberish in the back seat. I called out to you, "Um-ma', because at this stage it's helpful repeating words to teach you words. You yelled back, "Da-ddy!" I recorded you doing this in the car. I was pretty disappointed.

Nom nom nom

Dear Aidan,

Mommy had to rush over to Michaels when I got home because I had to pick up something for a shoot on Wednesday. However, daddy was able to send me a couple of pics of you eating yogurt. I'm convinced that you are left-handed, but daddy thinks you are right-handed. When I'm watching you eat you grab the spoon with your left hand, but when you're with daddy you pick it up with your right hand. Maybe you are ambidextrous?

A day in the life of...

Dear Aidan,

This post is going to be photo heavy.

We checked out our local community centre today before we went to run errands. It was finished last summer and we had heard from friends that it was a really nice community centre. They had signed up for swimming lessons for their son who is a couple of months older than you.

I quickly ran in to get the programs that it offered and the class schedules and I was amazed how nice it was in there. The swimming pool was beautiful. It was huge, first of all, and it had a great wading pool for small kids. I'm definitely going to check that out. The gym was also top-of-the-line. It was better than some gyms I've seen. I get a bit of a subsidy from work for signing up to a gym so I really want to try this out. I've been feeling so blah these days and I think I've put on a bit of weight.

They also had a daycare and a basketball court. I didn't check out the whole facility, but I'm really impressed.

I was only able to take one picture of the community centre from the outside, but it's a really nice building.

Here you are sleeping in the car.

I just want to bite your cheeks!

We had sushi for lunch. You were playing with the chopsticks here.

Smile for the camera, Aidan!

Time for bbong twi gui (rice rusks).

------

Daddy and I really want you to learn how to start eating by yourself so we will try to give you more chances to eat on your own. It's messy, but it has to be done. I made a big batch of pasta and I gave it to you for dinner.

At first you were not having it. You were more interested in the spoon.

But as you started using the spoon to put it in your mouth you started spooning up some noodles.

Sometimes you got frustrated because the spoon wasn't picking up so you grabbed the noodles in your right hand, dumped it on the spoon in your left hand and stuffed the spoon in your mouth. What a guy!

I had long pieces of onion in the pasta and you didn't like the texture so you spit it out and threw it at me!

Again, always grabbing the camera. You got spaghetti sauce on my lens.

Yummy yummy in my tummy.

Wow. That's going to be some clean-up job...

Luckily you almost finished your bowl. We will try again tomorrow.