Grateful tonight....

I have been in some what of a reflective mood.

Today was an amazing day. With it being my birthday weekend, my parents and siblings watched our little boy so that my husband and I could enjoy a day out. We went to the World of Nations celebration downtown. It was a warm day but we got good parking and enjoyed walking around and seeing what all the different countries had to offer. But most importantly we enjoyed just being together without having to carry a cranky two year old or try to restrain him from running where he wanted to go. So often it is about the little one...every now and then it is nice to make it about us, probably just as important as it is pleasant to connect as a couple. We got our name written in Chinese, had our 'passport' stamped at every country we visited, ate pineapple on a stick, found some unique bird calling whistles, ate chicken on a stick, experienced fresh sugar cane. We really enjoyed our time together...outdoors...in the warm sun...

While feeling completely relaxed I was thinking about the past few weeks. With my father-in-law having had neck surgery and the stressful time waiting for him to get out of the intensive care unit...the experience could very well be life saving. My in-laws are drinkers...everyday like clock work....when my father-in-law was going in for surgery he was told not to eat or drink anything after midnight the night before. While they both want to drink, the have practiced great restraint - granted the medication they are on wouldn't lend well to alcohol....either way it has been 10 days since they had a drink. I guess there is a bit of silver lining even in the darkest of skies.

This week Seth decided to start drinking milk. He is still nursing too....hard to believe that he will be two in June and is still nursing. When I offered cows milk to him before he didn't want any part of it. Now he drinks it with every meal...usually between 4-6 ounces and with snack he drinks his juice. It's the little milestones that are great.

Speaking of little milestones...he used his potty chair for the first time tonight! I never thought that would be cause for excitement...lol...motherhood changes you! Every night before his bath, I undress him and have been telling him, "OK lets go pee pee in the froggy, (he has that cute frog potty chair by fisher price)" He usually sits down on it, looks around, says 'pssss'...and then jumps up to go running off. He gets his bath, gets dressed and goes to bed. Tonight he kept saying, "potty! potty!" so we took off his clothes, sat him on the potty chair he did the same thing only this time he went to run off then came back sat down and actually went potty on the potty chair. We were very happy. I never thought I would be celebrating something so simple as going potty on the potty chair.

It is truly amazing how life and the events we experience change us. It is also pretty incredible how little milestones can be pretty big. When I was in high school I didn't even want children...now I celebrate because our little one is going potty on his own potty chair. I never thought drinking milk would be a big deal...but yet when he started drinking milk it was exciting. I never thought anything would stop my in-laws from drinking, and now as we are going on day number eleven, I see how they are less edgy and more pleasant to be around. And of course I have been reminded how even after four years and the ups and downs of marriage...the simple pleasure of holding my husbands hand is still exciting...I still get butterflies in my stomach when he looks at me 'that special way'....I have been reminded that it is important to spend time with just him....keeps us both on the same page!

So now as it nears midnight, err has passed midnight by almost ten minutes...the long and the short of it is --- LIFE IS GOOD!.....Thank God!

Good night and God Bless....
Rach