Can I write a post in 9 minutes?

We'll see.

That is how much time I have before I should wake Lucas up from his nap. I fear we will be venturing into 'no nap' territory sometime soon. The other day I tried (unsuccessfully) to put Lucas to bed for a nap for almost 2 hours. Sometimes I have to remember to step back from the situation and really think about how important what I am trying to do is. (I'm pretty sure that last sentence broke all kinds of grammar rules). No one died because Lucas didn't have a nap. In fact he was perfectly well behaved the rest of the day. This is what made me scared that soon he will not be having naps. Which isn't entirely bad because I won't be confined to my house for the afternoon all the time.

Time is up. Turns out one paragraph takes me 9 minutes. And now it is two days later....when I have finally had time to sit at the computer again.

When you have more than one child you learn fast that not everyone is going to get their needs taken care of immediately. The ability to multitask is a required skill, and if you don't know how to do it already, you will learn to in order to survive. You have to plan about 5 steps ahead, knowing that you only have a limited amount of time before Sesame Street is over or before a soother will no longer do the trick. All of this multitasking causes my brain to go into overdrive and sometimes I need to remember to slow down and just be in the moment. The other day I put in a movie for Lucas to watch while I fed Eli, grabbed my house phone to talk to my sister while I fed him and my cell phone to check my email. When I finally sat down to feed Eli I realized the insanity of all this running around and just sat and enjoyed. I listened to Lucas tell me all about the characters in his movie and what was going to happen next, and stared at Eli in amazement that I have this wonderful baby in my arms that will grow way too fast.

If I don't leave the house at least once I day I start to go stir crazy. So far this winter I have managed to still leave the house once a day, but we are running out of stuff to do!! I have no problems finding things to do on the days when Lucas is at daycare, but finding a fun activity for a 2 year old to do while I cart a newborn around is becoming a challenge. So far we have been hitting up the library and the play areas at both Lawson and Market Mall. I love those play areas. I can sit and watch from a close distance while Lucas runs around and burns off some energy. Any other great ideas to keep us entertained??? Preferably ones that are free/cheap??

New Year's Grinch

Day 4 of not being projectile vomited on....let's hope the streak continues.

I don't believe in New Year's resolutions. In fact, I am a New Year's grinch. Going out for New Year's Eve is always more trouble than it is worth and expensive to boot. Terry and I happily spent New Year's Eve at home and toasted with champagne at midnight. Terry asked me what I want to do this year - what I want to accomplish. I guess resolutions are just things you want to accomplish in the coming year, so maybe I'm not completely against them.

This year I would like to sell our house and get one that is more suitable for our family. These boys are going to need space to run or they are going to drive their mom crazy. There is nothing wrong with our house, it's just that we were not thinking of kids when we bought it. At the time, the market was just starting to get crazy and there was not much to choose from. So from the houses we looked at, this one was cream of the crop and we were lucky to get it. No regrets there, it's just that we have outgrown this space and need one that is more suitable for us. So in order to accomplish this one, we have a bit of work to do to get our house ready to sell. Not sure where we are going to find the time, but we have to!!

The other thing I would like to happen this year is a change in my career path. This isn't something I have a whole lot of control over. This past year at work was really a struggle but I have put it behind me and now I'm looking ahead. I don't want to think about going back to work anytime soon, but I will have to at some point this year. No matter what happens I know (or have high hopes!) it will be an improvement over my prior situation so that is something to look forward to.

Losing weight is everyone's resolution. It just happens to be that I had a baby in December and now in the New Year I am ready to get back into working out. I love to exercise. I love pushing myself and feeling good after a hard run or soccer game. I know I am going to struggle to find time to exercise. It's not an excuse, it's just an adjustment I am going to have to make. I am going back to soccer this weekend and starting Bellies and Buns with Baby at the Field House next week as well. I am really looking forward to both!! I loved that class at the Field House on my first mat leave with Lucas, and soccer is just an excuse to get out and hang out with the girls. Hopefully Eli will take a bottle so I can get to as many games as possible.

Christmas was fantastic. My sister came home from Vancouver and stayed with us for 10 days and was a tremendous help. Lucas misses his buddy Auntie Amy. When I win the lottery I think I'm going to hire her as our live-in nanny!! Don't worry Ames I will get you your own guest house. We were back and forth between here and my parent's house all week and it was so nice to get together with our family. I think I was a bit stressed out just trying to leave the house with everything in order and trying to keep Eli happy and fed. I'm sure I was a bit snappy or short-tempered at times, and for this I apologize (Amy and Mom this is mostly directed at you!). I have to try and not let the little things bother me or I'll go crazy before the year is over. So Amy, thank you so much for all of your help. And to Mom and Dad for hosting us so many times over the holidays. In fact that thank you should be an ongoing one for the tremendous amount of help with both Eli and Lucas all the time.

Eli is doing great. His eyes just melt my heart and I forgot what it was like to have a baby fall asleep in my arms and cuddle in to my chest. I am so incredibly fortunate to have two healthy, wonderful boys. I just might need to be reminded of that during the trying moments that are sure to come this year.