More Smiles

Smiles!

Fix It?

Last night we had the sort of an adventure we would rather do without:

Our little boy got sick to his stomach.

Around 11pm, just a few minutes after we went in to check on them for the night before we went to bed, Michael woke up screaming. I mean SCREAMING!

We rushed in there and saw that he had gotten sick all over his bed. *picture not included*

We took him out of there so Matthew could continue sleeping, while Michael continued rapid-fire screaming for several minutes.

Even though he had gotten sick, clearly, his stomach was bothering him. He had more in his system and he didn't know what to do with himself.

So Mommy, and Daddy and Michael sat in the hall just outside his room with a towel laid out for him to do his thing. We did everything we could to comfort him and clean him off, but in the end, this just needed to pass on its own.

Well, the absolutely most devastating part of it was, after about 5 minutes of coughing, sputtering, screaming, crying, and everything else that goes along with these sorts of episodes, little Michael finally works up the coherence of mind to talk to us.

He looks up at us, and with tears in his eyes, body quaking, and voice trembling he gasps desperately, "Fix it?"

Well, my heart just broke into about a million pieces right then and there.

The love and trust in those two words was both wonderful and devastating, since I knew there wasn't much we could do to fix his present condition without him going through a few more unpleasantries.

But, after distracting him with a little movie while we waited with him on more towels to finish...and getting his bed cleaned (while Matthew snoozed the night away), clean clothes, and after getting him a bath and a good tooth-brushing, our little boy was resting comfortably in his bed about an hour after the whole ordeal started.

Michael Sr leaned over his bed, touched his forehead and said to him, "See? We fixed it." With that, Michael Jr whispered his request for a story, which we of course obliged, and he drifted off to sleep.

The heartbreak of Michael's request...the thing that took all his effort to say, that he'd probably been thinking about since he first got sick, "I need to ask Mommy and Daddy to fix it!" was replaced by the end of it all, by a sense of satisfaction and gratitude to God that we brought comfort to our little boy, and when he went to sleep, he knew his faith and trust was not misplaced in his parents to take care of him.

As he grows up, there may be things that Mommy and Daddy may not be able to fix...sadness, suffering, heartbreak, loss, and the like, but hopefully, he'll know that we'll always do our best to fix it, be with him through his suffering, helping him clean up whatever messes he made, either physical, financial, emotional, or spiritual so he can always know that this is what we are here for, and we'll always do everything we can to see him through until he is comfortable and happy again.

Because This May Be the Last Time...

It has been a tradition in our family for many years to go on a vacation or trip of some sort. It started the year my sister left for college and we planned a big trip to take her there. We were so excited and cherished it greatly because it was going to be our "last ever family vacation." We knew that life gets hectic, and who knows if we would all be in a place where we would be able to take a vacation together again....college, jobs, we would go off and have families of our own, etc. We were all consciously sentimental about it all.

Of course, not too far in the future, even likely the next year, we had another vacation together, and called it the Second Annual Last Ever Family Vacation....of course because next year for sure we would be too busy to take this time off together, and then of course after that we would have still more school, jobs, we would go off and have families of our own, etc.

Well, the Second Annual turned into the Third Annual, into the Fourth Annual, and thankfully as you loyal readers know we just celebrated our 10th (or whatever, we lost count) Annual Last Ever Family Vacation and we are scheming for ideas for the next one, God willing.

I always liked that we called it what we did. It represented a certain sense of, "enjoy every minute...savor it, don't take it for granted because you may never do this again." Now, even though we do have our own families, we see more than ever the importance of making sure to plan these things together so our kids grow close to each other and, even if we have to hop on an airplane to do it, we take time out to stay connected.

This sense of savoring it has really been front and center in my mind lately. Michael is only two. Matthew is not even one. Our kids are hardly grown up, but already and on a daily basis, I have this overwhelming sense of, "enjoy every minute...savor it, don't take it for granted..."

Every night before we go to bed, I feed Matthew so he can last through the night. He is very tired...not even really awake. He falls asleep on my lap and I let him stay there for awhile after he is done eating because I know that in the not-t0o-distant, the last time I do that is coming.

The last time I can hold him while he is asleep in my arms, offering no more resistance than a sack of potatoes is coming. I know this because I can't remember the last time Michael fell asleep on my lap. That "last time" has passed and I am not sure I can even think up a scenario where Michael would do that again.

Michael Sr and I are constantly reminding ourselves to live up every moment because, even though these "lasts" give way to plenty of "firsts" (first steps, first words, first jokes, first baseball games, first slumber party with the cousins, etc), saying goodbye to these very precious moments brings a little heartache...and partly because you don't always know when it will be the last time.

When will Michael stop coming to me and his Daddy to "fix it" when he hurts himself? Or when will he stop making up hurts, just to steal a kiss without having to ask for a kiss, because, I can't imagine why on earth Michael's "hair hurts" and needs Daddy to "fix it" over and over again at the dinner table.

When will it actually be the last time Michael asks to "help Mommy" complete this or that task...which sometimes his help takes more time and clean up than if I do it myself, especially when I'm trying to get somewhere at a certain time....but, what if that is the last time he asks and I told him "no, not right now." I may have lost my last chance to see him beam with pride for helping and get excited that he got to pour his own water, or water the plants, or throw that piece of paper in the trash.

How many times do we have left of holding the boys during Mass before they get too old, or before they give way to other kids we hold while they grow big enough to stand on their own.

How many times will read that story about the tow truck or about Mickey before bed before they don't want stories before bed anymore?

Sometimes, the total dependency of little ones can be a bit draining. And while I'm in the thick of it, I "can't wait until..." they can do this on their own, or before they learn this. Even though that is understandable, I am nonetheless wishing the hastening of a few "last times" along the way. Those last times are necessary. Certain things must come to an end, but it would be sad to think some of those things came and went and were not savored and cherished along the way.

There is profound truth to our Lord's teaching that we "know not the day or the hour"....and while He was speaking of more important things than sleeping babies or kisses on the head, the wisdom certainly translates to the microcosm of parenting. I don't know how fast their own independence and growth will bring these "last times" to my doorstep before they are swooped off into colleges, jobs, and families of their own. I can't stop it, nor should I even want to...but I can fill each of these times with as much love as possible so that when that "last time" does come, each and every time was filled with love and gratitude.

So maybe getting all sentimental about the "last diaper" of theirs I'll change is a bit much, but an awareness of how fast this time will go does make some of the things that can wear you down not only bearable, but maybe even a little special.

I may not know the last time when it actually happens, but if I take enough mental snapshots, or consciously strive to cherish each moment, that last time will get caught up too and will not pass without the love that is due.

Just Sit Back...

...and enjoy them entertaining each other. I like this parenting style.

You can even see Michael saying the word "Hugs!"

Matthew just LOVES his brother

I think the feeling is mutual

We are so grateful for our boys!

Flight Lessons

Matthew Accomplishments last week:

This week has been a big one for little Matthew...

Matthew has learned to clap

and pick up his own food and feed himself this week.

I LOVE baby claps. Really, pretty much the cutest thing ever to watch a baby clap his/her chubby little hands together into a soft, silent little clap.

All of a sudden, he just did it, and got such an uproarious accolade from me and his brother, he immediately wanted to do it again and again.

A few days after that, Matthew finally learned to pick up his own food and eat it.

I have read this is a skill babies typically pick up in their 9th month, and as he is 9.5 months, I was a little anxious for him to get going, since me feeding him every mouthful of food is a little time consuming and sometimes challenging with a toddler who seems to want more of something every few minutes, causing me to get up and put Matthew's feeding on hold. Then, since we keep Michael at the table until his brother is done too (within reason...if Matthew is particularly hungry, I might spring Michael from the table a little early), Matthew gets behind and takes longer to eat and I have a toddler anxious to get down...a viscious circle indeed.

Now, I can just put food on Matthew's tray and let him dig in while I either get up and attend to other needs at the table or in the kitchen, or enjoy a meal of my own.

Matthew's skill developed fast. At lunch one day he couldn't do it, and then at dinner time, he suddenly "got it" and never looked back. By breakfast the next morning, he was shoveling food in his mouth very seriously, and with a very determined look on his face.

He greatly enjoyed all the praise he received for that one too and, being so eager to please as he is, kept smiling after each bite knowing he learned something he couldn't do before.

Congratulations, Matthew! We're proud of you, little one!