Time Flies, as they say

Owen is five months old.  Five.  Actually, older than that now since he was officially 5 months old a week ago today.  It's crazy to me how quickly he's changing.  We were traveling these past three weeks, visiting with family on the east coast, and there is something about being out of your everyday environment and routine that really highlights the advancements that he's making.  When you're home, time just blends together but when you're out of your routine, there are more distinctive markers of time.  Like Owen's crawling journey.  From Baltimore to Florida to home, there were definite moves forward that he made in each location.

When we started our trip, Owen was pushing up on his knees but hadn't figured out yet that he needed to pick up the top half of his body in order to move forward.  He would just lay on his playmat with his bottom in the air and scootch his head along the ground.  Then topple over to his side.

About halfway through our trip, he started getting up on his forearms, making a little more progress. Here he is two weeks ago:

As of this weekend, he gets onto his hands and knees and then leaps forward.  If he wants something, he will catapult himself forward until he gets it.  Which makes it really dangerous while holding him!  Here he is this morning:

I predict that by his six month, he'll have the crawling thing down.

Which makes my task over the next week or so:  BABY PROOFING!

Thinking about how much he's changed makes me wish that I had done something like this dad did for his son.  He videoed one second of everyday of his first year and made it into an awesome video that made me cry.

A Second a Day from Birth. from Sam Christopher Cornwell on Vimeo.

I guess I can still do something like it, at least for the second half of his first year.  We've been doing weekly photos of Owen, inspired by Young House Love.  I'm excited to reveal them at his first birthday!  I'll definitely be making a little book of them all. I've seen so many cute ways to document your child's first year and nearly all of them have me saying, "I wish I had done that!"  One of my faves is the monthly picture of your baby in the same chair throughout the year.  Have you seen that?

How have you documented the first year?  I'd love to hear and/or see more fun ideas!!

Nap "Schedules" and a June Recap

One thing I haven't quite figured out how to juggle yet is finding the time to write open my computer these days!  Yes, we are starting to have more of a regular routine but we've also been pretty busy.  Owen loves getting out and about and I love getting out of the house myself!  He's started napping on a bit of a schedule (hallelujah!) so we try to plan around it.  A typical sleep schedule is:

6AM:  He wakes up and eats breakfast.  Then, 1st nap! He falls immediately back to sleep until 8 or 9.  Well, we both do.  This is our morning snuggle time.  He falls asleep as I burp him so I lay down in the extra bed we have in his nursery and he sleeps on my chest.  It's probably my favorite time of the day.

11AM:  His 2nd nap, which is generally the shortest of the day.  He sleeps anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour.

3PM:  3rd nap!  He usually sleeps for at least an hour.  He's gone as long as two hours, though those have been few and far between.

8 or 9PM: Bed time!  I wish I could say that he sleeps soundly through the night but starting around midnight he starts to wake up nearly every hour.  He cries until I go in and he gets his pacifier back.  He never opens his eyes.  And he does repeated reverse crunches, slamming his legs on the mattress...hard.   But he doesn't fall back asleep until he has his paci...even if he went to bed without it initially.  This is a mystery I can't seem to solve. But it's also why God invented coffee.

Full disclosure:  I haven't read any of the sleep books or forums or advice guides.  This schedule is based solely on his natural patterns.  And it can vary.  Sometimes he'll be sleepy at 10AM and nap then instead of at 11.  Then everything gets jostled around.  But!  If he hasn't fallen asleep on his own by 11 or by 3, I try to lay him down.  If he won't lay down, I at least make sure we have quiet time (no playing/very quiet singing/rubbing his back) and he'll usually fall asleep around those hours.  There have been a few times when he "wins" and misses nap time because he just won't be put down.  But we're just trying to figure it out as we go!

With all that in mind, here are a few things that have been keeping us busy!

A June Recap:

Movie Mondays!

Movie Mamas

Our local theater has Mommy and Me Mondays where they dedicate one new release each week for moms (and dads and caretakers) of babies.  There's a stroller parking lot outside of the theater, a changing table inside and a theater full of crying babies...and we're all ok with it!  We get to go to the movies with our fellow new mama friends.  We've seen Now You See Me, The Internship, Man of Steel and Monsters University.  It's the highlight of my week.

Captivated

And Owen loves it too!  He tends to nap after the previews...if I'm lucky!  Otherwise I get a major arm workout because he loves to jump while watching.

Hike to Griffith Observatory!

Owen went on his second hike earlier this month and seemed to love it. His dad carries him in our Infantino carrier.  O napped on the way back down...which is how I'd love to "hike" if I could!

Father's Day!

 

Owen had a big surprise for his dad for his first Father's Day:  We went to LACMA and he painted his first painting!  And then I framed it and his dad pretty much loved it.  Owen seemed equally excited to present his present.  

Waffle Pajama Party!

This past Saturday was my birthday, which started off with the sweetest snuggles.

Then we had a great group of friends over for a waffle/pajama party! 

Picture missing some late arrivers!

I LOVE waffles and have a heavy duty waffle maker plus I love any excuse to stay in my PJs all day (especially on the weekends) so we combined these passions.

Owen even got to hang out with his bestie!

4 Months Old!

The next day we celebrated Owen's 4 month birthday.  Craziness!  Today we go for his 4 month check up.  I'm anxious to find out his official height and weight.  He's getting so big!  And is full of personality.

Hi. I'm 4 months old now.

Thumb...

He's also found his thumb.  Wah wah.  But he seems to chew on it more than suck on it.  Teething, perhaps?  I'm still trying to replace his thumb with his pacifier whenever I see him doing it.  But he's onto me.  He'll just quietly take out the paci and put his thumb back in.  Why won't he do this in the middle of the night instead of waking up every hour and crying hysterically??

**Posted while he naps...earlier than scheduled.  We had a rough night.  I should not operate heavy machinery today.  If I didn't just jack myself up with a large Americano from the local cafe, I'd be napping too.  Instead, time to get some cleaning done!

One Year Ago...

I've been keeping this fun journal for nearly two years (it will be two years exactly on my birthday next week):

And it's great because you literally write a line a day and each year you can see what you were doing the year before on that same day.  Sometimes the symmetry is uncanny.  Sometimes days are complete opposite days.  And sometimes days are just, well, monumental.

Like yesterday.

On June 13, 2012 I found out, officially, that I was pregnant with Owen!  I was so stinkin' excited.  And tired!  That was something I noted...how exhausted I felt.  Funny how much can happen in a year.  And how things can stay the same.  I was pretty exhausted yesterday too...because now I've got Baby Boy keeping me up at night!  Here's a sweet picture of him yesterday to commemorate "knowing" him for a year:

With a face like that, he gets forgiven for keeping me up all night.  Kind of ;)

And for a fun walk down memory lane, here's the video we put together to announce to our family and friends that Owen was on the way!  Man, I looked young.  And he was such a tiny bump!

Happy Friday, Everybody!  Enjoy this Father's Day weekend!  Any big plans for your husbands or dads??

A Tale of Lunch with an Infant

Yesterday was my friend Corinne's birthday and the three of us went out to lunch.

Owen started fussing about halfway through our meal so I took him out of his stroller and attempted to eat my salad.  Corinne had finished eating her lunch so she offered to hold him.  As I handed him over, I noticed that the back of his outfit was soaked.  Houdini-Pee had struck again!  No wonder he was fussing. I said, "Hold up.  Let me go change him," and took him back so that the Birthday Girl didn't get pee all over herself.

I navigated through the crowded restaurant with a baby and a diaper bag to the back hallway where the restroom is shared with Starbucks.  It has a coded lock.  Of course it does.  So I navigate my way into Starbucks (which was less crowded, believe it or not) and asked for the code.  Got it.  Headed back into the hallway.  Unlocked the door, looked around and, yep, there was no changing table.  Deep sigh.  So what did I do?  I headed to the back entrance, where I knew there was a bench.  Deal with it, people-walking-by.  I've got a squirmy, wet infant and nowhere else to turn.  So I laid down my changing mat and we made a quick change of the sopping wet diaper for a dry one and the long-sleeved onesie for a short-sleeved one, with O smiling the whole time, quite proud of himself.

Made our way back through the crowded restaurant, back to our table.  Handed him over to Corinne so I could finally finish my salad.

And he promptly spit up all over her.

Happy Birthday, Corinne.  Owen was too excited to hold back.

At least it wasn't poo!

Never Too Early to Start Loving Reading

Being an actor has its perks.  Through the SAG Foundation, for the past few years, I've volunteered as a BookPAL and a PencilPAL.  These programs promote literacy at needy schools and it is one of the most rewarding things I do.  As a BookPAL, I had two third-grade classes that I read to weekly and as a PencilPAL, I'm paired with a fifth-grader as a penpal for the school year.  This year, I was only able to be a BookPAL until the winter break since I was super pregnant with Owen by then.  But being a PencilPAL is a little more flexible, since it's writing letters, and I was able to keep up with it through the end of the school year.  And yesterday I finally got to meet my PencilPAL! 

She's a great kid who loves to ballroom dance, specializing in the quickstep, which is awesome.  We share an appreciation for "So You Think You Can Dance" and we both are dying to visit Hawaii one day.  The school and PencilPALs had a reception for us all to meet and hang out with our pals and Owen got to come along. There was pizza and cookies and sing-alongs and, yes, ballroom dancing.  Turns out the entire fifth grade class has learned ballroom dancing and they taught us all a few moves!  I feel so fortunate to be able to be a part of this program.  This year is its 20th anniversary and I can only imagine all the lives that have been influenced - both the volunteers' lives AND the students' - during that time.

When Owen was born, the BookPALs coordinator sent him a gift of Dr. Seuss's "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish" and, I kid you not, he loves it. He'll sit and listen to the rhythm of the words and look at the brightly colored drawings.  Because he liked it so much, we gave a copy of it to our friends who have a daughter two weeks younger than Owen.  They came over for a "baby date" this week and told me that she loves listening to the book.  That she giggles along and sits through the entire thing.  Dr. Seuss is powerful stuff, people.  

Owen is about a month old here. We started literacy-appreciation early!
Also this picture really makes me laugh.  He looks like such a little old man.

And, because it's adorable, here's a picture of Owen with his fellow Dr. Seuss-lover.  Happy Friday, everyone!

One Baby Two Baby Pink Baby Blue Baby

An 8-year-old's Tip to Making Friends

At the wedding last weekend, there were two little boys, about eight years old.  They were meeting each other for the first time. Their dads were like, "Hey, have you guys met?  This is Jack*."  And, "This is Charlie*."  The boys shouted their "Hi's"and then one asked the other, "Do you like trucks??"  "Yeah!"  "Do you like monster trucks??"  "Yeah!"  And that was it.  They were friends.  Later seen boogying on the dance floor.

Don't you miss that simplicity??  I think from now on when I meet new people I'll start with, "Do you like wine?  Me too!"  And that will be it.  New friends, destined to tear up a dance floor.

(*not their real names. Because I can't remember them.)

Happy Friday, Everyone!  Enjoy the long weekend!  Any fun plans??  We're headed for a hike later this afternoon to kick things off.  There's talk about going to the beach and maybe even hitting up the museum.  And, of course, throwing some things on the grill.  Hope you all have a great one...and maybe even make a new friend or two!

Three Months Old yesterday!  Time is flying!

Tips for Flying with an Infant: Owen's First Flight!

I've been radio silent this past week - on the blog and in the social media world - because I was afraid I might slip and tip off my nieces on a surprise...

Surprise!

We were coming for a visit!  They weren't expecting to see us - or the real delight - meet Owen until we came for a vacation in July and they've been counting the days.  So when a friend's wedding invite came in the mail for a May wedding, we thought it'd be the perfect chance to sneak into town for a quick weekend and surprise the girls.  There were screams and squeals and all around happy faces when the girls came over for the big reveal.

Getting to know each other

Of course, making all this happen meant Owen's first plane ride!

I was a nervous wreck leading up to the flight.  Would we remember everything?  Would we have enough diapers/clothes/wipes/bottles/formula for the five hour flight?  Would we be able to transport everything easily?  Would his little ears hurt??

All smiles when we landed

Turns out, my baby boy is a flying champ.  Maybe he'll be a pilot.  Although I hear flying with him now, at almost three months old, is the ideal time to do so.  It's a whole different experience when he can crawl/talk/need to be entertained.  So we'll cross that bridge (or sky - har har) when we get there.

In the meantime, here are a few things that helped make flying with an infant manageable!

1.  "Flying With Baby" eBook by Meg Collins
Best three bucks I've spent in a long time.  Meg Collins is the brains behind LuciesList.com, which has the best email subscription ever for expecting and new moms.  I love the info she gives and the way she gives it so when I saw that she wrote an eBook about the ins and outs of flying with baby, I knew it'd be worth a gander.  I felt so much more at ease and prepared after reading her book (which I did in about 20 minutes while the bean napped) and can't recommend it enough if you're flying with a baby anytime soon.

2.  Travel Boppy
This thing is ingeniously made.  The way it zips up and is able to be thrown over your shoulder is awesome.  And the velcro flap that allows you to either wear the boppy on your lap or make a little bed for your baby is especially clutch.  We ended up being able to make a little bed for Owen and he napped soundly until the little girl behind us let out an ear-piercing scream.

3.  Extra Seat
Ok, fine.  This is a luxury.  But if you get lucky enough to be on flight that isn't full, you can ask the flight attendant at the counter if some rearranging can be done. We wouldn't have been able to make a bed for him unless we had an extra seat.  And on the way there, we did.  Some poor couple missed their flight and we reaped the rewards.  A kind fellow passenger switched rows with us when her seatmates didn't show up and we were able to spread out.  On the way back, no such luck.  The flight was overbooked.  But we did luck out and had a very nice and understanding seatmate which made things a little easier.  She volunteered to hold the boppy so I could get up easier and didn't mind when we had to change his diaper (more on that soon).  Also, Owen had a crush on her and would not stop smiling and flirting when he was awake.  Mini-Casanova, this one.

4.  Pre-Portioned Formula
They say to try to feed your baby at take off and landing to help alleviate the pain from their ears popping with the pressure change.  I wanted to make sure that we were prepared so instead of needing to measure out the formula mid-flight, I went ahead and made up baggies of formula and labeled them.  He's doing about a 5 oz bottle every time now but occasionally just wants a snack so I made both 5 oz baggies and 2 oz baggies.  I even color-coded them with the marker I used to label them.  One adjustment I would make next time is to bring a small pair of scissors .  You are allowed to bring scissors with blades shorter than 4 inches in your carry-on, according to the TSA website.  This way I could have cut off the tip of the bottom of the baggie and been able to pour the formula into the bottles more effectively.  Pouring through the ziploc part was more difficult than expected!  I tried it at home with snipping off the edge and it worked like a charm.

5.  Changing Mat
Ugh.  Our planes did not have changing tables in their lavatories.  And Owen made a mess on the flight there.  Baby Boy's poos are not for the faint-hearted and I worried that the fumes would make people want to parachute out if I changed his poopy diaper in the cabin.  So to the bathroom I went.  The flight attendant gave me a large plastic bag to place over the closed toilet seat lid.  I had my changing mat with us to lay on top of that.  It still was one of the more harrowing experiences I've had yet with baby.  He was slipping and sliding in there and I was scared to death he was going to fall on the ground.  He could tell I was stressed and started crying.  But we got it done.  Luckily on the way back he pooed right before we boarded and I was able to change him at the airport!  Pee diapers though?  Watch out fellow passengers, I'm laying this changing pad on the seat and I don't care what you think.  I'm not reliving the plastic-on-toilet-seat-slip-and-slide experience again if I can help it.

6.  Extra Outfits
Houdini-Pee struck again and we had to do a costume change mid-flight.  But even if he didn't pee through his sleeper, you never know when a massive spit-up attack or poo-explosion could happen.  So I had an extra sleeper, an extra onesie, pants and socks packed in our diaper bag...just in case.  And it's a good thing I did!  I also had an extra shirt for myself in case any of the aforementioned bodily fluids got on me.

7.  Snap & Go Stroller
This was a last minute purchase.  I read Meg Collins' eBook and she mentioned that her stroller got broken twice due to gate checks and there is nothing you can do about it.  The airline isn't responsible.  She recommended leaving your fancy/jogger/bulky/expensive stroller at home.  I'm glad I listened!  Having a lighter-weight, simple stroller made a huge difference.  It's definitely going to get its use and then some, on subsequent trips and even on trips to Target, I'm sure!

8.  Baby Carrier
Owen slept through security strapped onto me.  I was able to walk through, hands-free, and they just do a hand swipe to check for explosive residue.  Plus, while he was awake, he loved looking around and checking out all of the new sights.








And those were the key things!  Big thanks to my friends Michaela and Jes, who have both flown with their infants recently and gave advice that eased my mind.  They both agreed that flying with baby was relatively easy and now I agree with them too!  Now, we'll see how it goes in July when Baby Boy may be mobile.  He started turning over on this trip - both from back to belly and belly to back.  And when I told my mom this news, she sent me a page from MY baby book.  Turns out I mastered crawling at five months old...looks like Owen might take after his mama!  Should make for an interesting flight in two months...

Happy Mother's Day!

The mail came yesterday and there was a card for me from my husband's aunt.  My first thought was, "Fun!" Who doesn't like getting a card in the mail?  Then I thought, "But why?" It's addressed only to me and my birthday isn't until next month.  My friend was visiting so this wasn't going on just in my head.  I'm saying all this aloud.  And she's looking at me like I'm crazy.  Because when I opened it, it was a Mother's Day card.  My first one ever.  And I burst into tears.  It didn't even cross my mind that it was a MD card!  My friend, of course, realized what it was immediately.  Oh, Meagan.  Duh!  Later in the afternoon I got a package from my cousin with a little present and Mother's Day cards for me, my mom and my grandma...because they are all here for a visit this weekend!

Owen meeting is great-grandma!

Very excited to be spending my first Mother's Day with my parents and grandmother.  My dad and my hubby are going to make us a big breakfast on Sunday morning and I'm already hungry for it.  But tomorrow is my big gift from my husband.  The grandparents are going to babysit while he and I go to get massages at my favorite spa.  Needless to say, I'm a wee bit excited.

Hope you all have wonderful weekends celebrating the moms in your life.  And if you're a first-time mom, don't be like me and be confused as to why you're receiving a little extra attention this weekend.  Even the FedEx guy spent an extra moment today when he delivered a package.  He asked, "Are you a mom?"  I said, "Yes?" (again confused) and he smiled big, "Well then, Happy Mother's Day!"  Delivering packages AND smiles, that guy.

One last thing before I sign off.  Wanted to share with you a post that has been going around on Facebook. It really touched me and even though I've only been a mom for 11 weeks, I identified with the sentiment.  So for all of you moms out there - new, experienced and expecting - I hope you enjoy it too...

"We are sitting at lunch one day when my daughter casually mentions that she and her husband are thinking of "starting a family." "We're taking a survey," she says half-joking. "Do you think I should have a baby?"

"It will change your life," I say, carefully keeping my tone neutral.

"I know," she says, "no more sleeping in on weekends, no more spontaneous vacations."

But that is not what I meant at all. I look at my daughter, trying to decide what to tell her. I want her to know what she will never learn in childbirth classes.

I want to tell her that the physical wounds of child bearing will heal, but becoming a mother will leave her with an emotional wound so raw that she will forever be vulnerable.

I consider warning her that she will never again read a newspaper without asking, "What if that had been MY child?" That every plane crash, every house fire will haunt her.

That when she sees pictures of starving children, she will wonder if anything could be worse than watching your child die.

I look at her carefully manicured nails and stylish suit and think that no matter how sophisticated she is, becoming a mother will reduce her to the primitive level of a bear protecting her cub. That an urgent call of "Mom!" will cause her to drop a soufflé or her best crystal without a moments hesitation.

I feel that I should warn her that no matter how many years she has invested in her career, she will be professionally derailed by motherhood. She might arrange for childcare, but one day she will be going into an important business meeting and she will think of her
baby's sweet smell. She will have to use every ounce of discipline to keep from running home, just to make sure her baby is all right.

I want my daughter to know that every day decisions will no longer be routine. That a five year old boy's desire to go to the men's room rather than the women's at McDonald's will become a major dilemma. That right there, in the midst of clattering trays and screaming
children, issues of independence and gender identity will be weighed against the prospect that a child molester may be lurking in that restroom.

However decisive she may be at the office, she will second-guess herself constantly as a mother.

Looking at my attractive daughter, I want to assure her that eventually she will shed the pounds of pregnancy, but she will never feel the same about herself.

That her life, now so important, will be of less value to her once she has a child. That she would give herself up in a moment to save her offspring, but will also begin to hope for more years, not to accomplish her own dreams, but to watch her child accomplish theirs.

I want her to know that a cesarean scar or shiny stretch marks will become badges of honor.

My daughter's relationship with her husband will change, but not in the way she thinks.

I wish she could understand how much more you can love a man who is careful to powder the baby or who never hesitates to play with his child.

I think she should know that she will fall in love with him again for reasons she would now find very unromantic.

I wish my daughter could sense the bond she will feel with women throughout history who have tried to stop war, prejudice and drunk driving.

I want to describe to my daughter the exhilaration of seeing your child learn to ride a bike.

I want to capture for her the belly laugh of a baby who is touching the soft fur of a dog or cat for the first time.

I want her to taste the joy that is so real it actually hurts.

My daughter's quizzical look makes me realize that tears have formed in my eyes. "You'll never regret it," I finally say. Then I reached across the table, squeezed my daughter's hand and offered a silent prayer for her, and for me, and for all the mere mortal women who stumble their way into this most wonderful of callings.
Please share this with a Mom that you know or all of your girlfriends who may someday be Moms. May you always have in your arms the one who is in your heart."

~Author unknown

Happy Mother's Day!

A Few Highlights: FREE Museum Pass, Family Visits and Date Night

Long time, no blog!  This past week my computer was having some technical difficulties (it wouldn't connect to the internet) so I had a little vacation from technology.  Which actually worked out well because it coincided with my brother and sister-in-law's visit to LA!  It was their first trip out here and it was a great one.

Proud Aunt and Uncle

Owen is the first nephew for both of them and they reveled in the role.  In addition to hanging out and watching Owen do his baby thing, we went to the Santa Monica Pier, several museums, out to eat, shopping and did a lot of walking.  Whoever said no one walks in LA never met us.  

One of the highlights was going to LACMA (The Los Angeles County Museum of Art).  We had plans to go and check out the art work anyway and we found out an additional perk:

Cultured Baby

The  NexGen Program!  LACMA is the only museum in the country to offer a FREE youth membership to it's young members.  Which means for the next 18 years, Owen gets to go to the museum for FREE and the adult accompanying him also gets in FREE.  Which means both of us get a FREE trip to the museum, any time we go together. I keep capitalizing the word FREE because it was so exciting for me to find out.  This is a museum with works from Picasso, Dali, Matisse, Warhol and Van Gogh, to name a few.  They have an Egyptian exhibit and a pavilion for Japanese art.  It is world class and huge.  I've always said it would take much longer than a day visit to take it all in.  And now we have eighteen years to soak it up.  If you're in LA and you have children, you HAVE to take advantage of this program.   I'm so excited to expose Owen to some of the greatest art in the world.  I know it seems early to get this excited but he actually does love to look at art.  Bright colors and patterns capture his attention.  I'm not joking when I say I'm going to try to make a weekly trip there.  It's never too early to start art appreciation!  Any LA mamas want to join me??

Another exciting part of last week?  

Our first date night!  Uncle Greg and Aunt Steph offered to babysit so we could go out to dinner, just the two of us, for the first time since Owen was born.  We were nervous about going somewhere without him (typical first-time parents) but we got over it and went to one of our favorite spots nearby.  We pretty much talked about Owen and parenthood the whole time we were out (typical first-time parents) but we enjoyed reconnecting over some pasta and wine.

The enforced technology break was full of family and connection and I loved it.  But now that the visitors are gone and the rain falls outside and baby sleeps...I'm glad to be back posting!  Happy Seis de Mayo, everyone!

Celebrate the Good

It's been a heart heavy week.  It's unbelievable that Monday's bombing was just the first of several devastating tragedies to rock our country.  Then came the Senate's blatant refusal to represent the people who elected them as they struck down the gun bill.  Then came the explosion in West, TX, an entire town rocked.  Then came the massive manhunt for the bombers in Boston that started last night and continues as I type this.

Heart heavy.

In response to the entire city of Boston being on lockdown this morning, Kelly Oxford tweeted, "This week has been so shitty. Hearts out to those directly affected by everything. Can we all be on lockdown today? In our beds?"

I feel you.  I locked myself down Monday afternoon and all day Tuesday.  Lately, Owen has fallen into the habit of falling asleep on me immediately after eating. Early this week, instead of putting him down so I could get a few things done, I sat with him.  And just held him.  Sometimes dozing off myself but always feeling grateful that I could hold him close.

I was thinking of Martin Richard.  I couldn't stop thinking about that sweet boy and so I held my boy closer.  I was thinking about Krystle Campbell and Lingzi Lu.  I thought about how my parents would feel if my name took the place of one of theirs.  I never fully grasped how much my parents loved me until I became a parent myself.  My heart aches for all of their families and loved ones.  And for those injured, physically and emotionally by the day's events.

Nope.  I wasn't putting my boy down earlier this week. Everything else could wait.

Owen's at the stage in his life where he's starting to really notice things.  The Wonder Weeks describes it as going from seeing the world as a bowl of soup where everything blends together to noticing that things are separate.  For example, he notices that he has hands or that there is a toy dangling above his head as he lays on his play mat.  It's fascinating to watch him make new discoveries as he finally "sees" the world.

And the world is a scary place.  Especially this week.  I want to protect him from all of the sadness and I know that is impossible.  He's a part of the world now and all that entails.  But where there is darkness, there is also light.  In response to the way the news is reported in the media - all doom and gloom - my husband always says, "I've got 'news' for you:  The world is 95% good."  This week he decided to change the percentage.  Now he says, "The world is 99% good."  He upped the percentage. Because any time there's a tragedy like this week's bombing there is an immediate retaliation of hope.  People show us just how good they can be.  There were countless stories of the bravery of the first responders and the kindness of strangers, offering a place to stay or the coat off their back to cold runners or even just a hand to hold as they passed by.  So I agree with my husband.  The world is 99% good.  And that's what I'll remind Owen of as inevitable tough conversations arise in the future.

There was a quote from Mr. Rogers that made the rounds on social media after Monday that has a similar sentiment:

As we go into the weekend, uncertain of how all will play out, I celebrate the helpers.

And hold the ones I love tight.