Hello, My Friend, It Sure Has Been Awhile

(For those of you playing along at home, YES.  I did just title this blog post with the first line of a legendary Nelson song. You are welcome to worship me.)

So, holy crap.  Having 2 kids is WAY more time consuming than having one.  It's exponential, not double.  Yes, all of you who have 2 children are saying, "Duh."  I do not know how parents of 3 or more children function.  Now that Henry is 4 months old, I thought it was time to get back in the swing of my blog. 

First, the First Grader. 
Ben.  Ben. Ben.  Ben who has already racked up 4 sick days this quarter and will have number 5 tomorrow.  We made it all the way through Kindergarten without a single illness.  This year?  Strep and a stomach virus.  I think he must be kissing more girls or something....

He likes learning his spelling words each week and is a wiz at math (clearly genetic from his father, not his mother).  This week, we found out that Ben needs reading glasses.  He looks very handsome but much older.  He's not thrilled with the idea, but I think he'll come around.  I hope.  There are few things more stubborn than Ben when he makes up his mind...

Then, the Benevolent Dictator known as "Henry". He is darling.  And, I'm starting to see a little bit of resemblance to his big brother.  His recent accomplishments include rolling over from back to front, playing in his exersaucer, and "eating"
 rice cereal.  Most of all, he kills time with me until Ben comes home from school each day.  He thinks Ben is the coolest, funniest, best thing ever.  The rest of us are just here for decoration. 

I have said to several people that it's a good thing Ben was first or there wouldn't have been a second.  Don't get me wrong, I love Henry, but whoooooooo doggies is he high strung.  He likes things how he likes them when he likes them.  I have absolutely NO IDEA where that comes from.  (Although my mom did say, "I think Hank is going to be more like you."  Ummmm...yeah.)

"But, Heather," you say, "What do you do with your days? I mean, you don't WORK..."  When I'm not enjoying sitting on the couch eating bon bons, I'm the room parent for Ben's classroom, heading up a couple of committees for the PTA (aren't you surprised?), attending Stroller Strides classes with Henry, and spending lots of time in the evenings wondering where the hell the day has gone.  I am also catching up on television programming from 1 to 4AM since Henry frequently wakes up to visit in the middle of the night.  I'm sure I do other things, but I honestly am thinking, "hmmm...  What DO I do all day?  Facebook? Well, not ALL day. I drive. A lot.  I yell at people in the school parking lot. Hmmmmmm..." 

First Grade

Yesterday was a day of "firsts".  Among the firsts we experienced yesterday:
* FIRST time we've been up and out of the house before 8AM in months
* FIRST time I've had to leave the house before 8AM ---and--- get myself presentable, Henry presentable, and Ben presentable in less than 3 hours.
* FIRST day at the new Highlands Elementary.
* FIRST day in FIRST grade
* FIRST time Ben has been asleep before 9pm in as long as I can remember

(Did you know if you type "first" a bunch of times it starts to look weird and you have to spellcheck it?)

Ben's teacher this year is Mrs. Bundy.  As is my tradition, as I walked him into his classroom, I offered to provide her with chocolate, ear plugs, and booze... her choice.  Ben had a great first day and is looking forward to the FIRST full day of school on Thursday.

Family of 4: Week 4

Today, Henry turned 4 weeks old. In honor of all of us surviving the first month, I thought I'd post a run down of what we've been up to the last 28 days.

* Ben has settled into his role of big brother and is doing a great job sharing the limelight.  Last week, he said, "Mom.  I'm really glad we have Hank."  I said, "That's so sweet.  I'm glad we have him, too."  "Yeah," Ben added, "Now you have something else to be busy with and I can play Wii all day." 

* Henry is a good baby (vs. those terrible, nasty babies that purposefully trip old ladies in crosswalks).  He seems pretty content to go with the flow.  As scheduled and high strung as his mama may be, he's a mellow little man.

* When we came home from the hospital, Henry weighed 6 pounds 14 oz. Yesterday, he was up to around 9 pounds, which means he's a good eater and isn't missing many meals. He prefers to follow the "eat many small meals a day" philosophy...about every 3 hours.

* If you want to be his best friend, hold him upright and let him sleep on you.  He also likes the sound of his big brother's voice (lucky for us).  Ben is the most successful Baby Whisperer in our house.  He has made up a lullaby/soothing song that he sings when Hank cries and it works almost every time. 

* If you want to see the Exorcist version of Henry (Zouel Soul from Ghostbusters), put lotion on him.  It truly is the only thing we've found that consistently flips him out.  Nudity? Fine.  Baths? Bring it on.  Put a little lotion on him? RAGE.

* In the last few days, Henry has become increasingly aware of his surroundings. He even spent 6 hours awake this week.  Wide awake. And looking.  It was great.  Even better because it was in the afternoon and not in the middle of the night. 

Highlights for the next month include Mommy getting to start running again (HOORAY!), more visits and play dates with family and friends, and (hopefully) a few more hours of sleep at night. 

Baby Bob? I mean, Henry? I mean, Hank? I'm Your Big Brother, Ben.

We are so excited to welcome Henry Collin Mayfield into our family.  He arrived on Friday, May 28th at 12:18pm.  He weighed 7 pounds and 5 ounces and was 18 inches long (just 4 ounces bigger than his big brother was at birth).  Ben was very excited to meet Henry, but was having a little trouble with Henry's name since we've called him so many names. 

Henry, in his little brother wisdom, had chosen 2 very cool Batman cars for Ben as a brother present.  Ben was very impressed with Henry's selection and said, "You are the best little brother ever!"  About 5 minutes later, my dad asked Ben if Henry could play with said Batman mobile.  A very quick, "NO!" followed by, "You know, he's just too little" came from Ben. 

Ben checked out Henry's finger, toes, and belly button (Mom? What's that about?) and deemed  Henry worth to be his little brother.  I said, "I think he's a keeper, what do you think, Ben?" Ben said, "Ummmm.... let's decide tomorrow." 

Here are a few photos from the meeting of the boys:

Kindergarten? That's SO last year.

On Monday, Ben had his last day of Kindergarten.  As we left school on Monday, he was very quick to tell me that he was not a Kindergartener anymore.  He is now a FIRST GRADER.  Capable of doing FIRST GRADER THINGS. So, stand back, world because FIRST GRADER things are happening.  So far, that's playing the Wii and staying up later than usual.  First grade is going to rock!  

Photos below are the obligatory front porch last-day-of-school-shot and a picture of Ben with Mrs. Bohon, his wonderful Kindergarten teacher.

Flattery will get you nowhere

This morning as he was getting dressed, Ben was checking out my belly.  He squinted his eyes, pursed his lips, and then said the following:

B: Mom?  Your belly is like a yo-yo.  You know, it's round and it's gone WAAAAAYYYY out, but it'll go back again.

H: Gee, thanks.  I think. 

B: (looks a little closer) Actually, Mom?  I think it's more like a boomerang because it's going to take a LONG, LONG time to come back. 

Photos: April

Easter morning
(I should mention that the jacket and tucked in shirt lasted about 8 minutes past this photo.)

The new (BLUE!) room complete with bunk beds.  The color is "Space Command Blue" but really, it's "Painter's Tape Blue."  They are exactly the same color. Ben LOVES it.

Nesting may be contagious

So, we've been home from Spring Break long enough for me to not remember how long we've been home. But, about 2 days after we got back, I made some comment about how "after spring break" we really needed to get serious about getting the baby's room ready.

As in, "We need to clean out 10+ years worth of accumulated crap in the office, take down the desk, haul anything we're keeping to storage, get the water damage/hole in the ceiling fixed, repair a couple of holes in the walls, paint the room, prime and paint the trim, paint the ceiling, install a new light fixture, make sure we have the hardware for the crib, get the crib from my parents' basement, order the bedding, and, and, and...." Then, I said, "If Ben is going to get bunk beds, maybe he'd like new sheets, a new comforter, and heck, we should probably paint his entire room, too. Oh, and those are being delivered in a little over a week, so we'd need to hurry."

Sure. Why not. Because I've never been in better physical shape and I can stay awake for hours and hours working on such things. I have a keen sense of balance and nothing will prevent me from bending over to paint and moving heavy objects. And, Don? He's home ALL THE TIME, so we should definitely take on a couple of house projects that we'd like done yesterday.

But, guess what? We're 99.9% finished with Ben's total room makeover (which included covering up "baby" yellow walls, trim, and ceiling). Only the trim is left to paint and that would have been done today if I could have gotten the darn paint can open. The holes in the wall in the baby's room have all been patched and primed. We've chosen the paint color, the bedding has arrived, the crib is ready, and we've HIRED a delightful human to fix the ceiling and paint the room.

This all comes with a minimal amount of crying, tantrums, emergency trips to the chiropractor, or sudden panic attacks. Ben is THRILLED with his new room (I'll post pictures soon). I feel all warm and fuzzy that the baby's room has been transformed from a disorganized, rarely used office into a space that will be perfect for a new baby.


All this activity has really kicked my nesting urge into high gear. Now, truth be told, I've always been a little OCD about certain things. I like the towels to be straight on the hook. I use a hand towel to wipe off the counters and sink and "tidy up" in a hotel before the maids come in each day. I have yelled at my child to get out of my fresh vacuum tracks.

Evidently, nesting isn't just for mommies. For the past two days, Ben has taken time each morning to painstakingly make his bed and then smooth his comforter so that all the stripes are perfectly straight. This morning, I watched him move a pillow three different times to make sure it was in just the right spot. I should be more than a little horrified, but I'm more than a little amused and proud. Maybe there's even hope for others in the family. The dog will start willingly wiping her paws when she comes in the house. The cat will begin only shedding over a trash can. And, maybe Don will catch a little nesting from me and finally understand why I'm so obsessed with wiping down the stainless steel sink in the kitchen anytime we run water so that it looks like it's never used. Maybe not.

February Music Program

On Thursday, the Kindergarten class had their "February Celebrations Program". They sang about Groundhog Day, Valentine's Day, President's Day, etc. As I watched, I kept thinking about how far Ben has progressed from his first preschool music program where he got mad that he couldn't stand by his friend and stormed off the risers. I also think his music teacher must have more patience than most humans and was amazed that she got 40ish Kindergartners to tap dance on risers without anyone falling off!

Here are a few highlights from the program. The first song is one of Ben's favorites about George and Abe. The second is about Shadows (and includes some FANCY dancing), and the third is Skinnamarink (cue sappy, sappy mommy tears). (Ben is in the second row, center.)

Second Child Syndrome (Already)

I can't believe I haven't posted any information about our sonogram last Friday until now. This poor second child... already missing out....

On Friday, Don, Ben, and I found out that a baby BOY will be joining our family sometime in late-May or early-June. And sunshine, and rainbows, and puppy dog tails...right? Well, kinda.

Since we told Ben about my pregnancy, he's been convinced he was having a "sister" (even though we called the baby "Bob"). When the ultrasound technician said, "What would you think about having a brother?" Ben said, "Nope. I'm having a sister." She smiled and told him that, actually, it was a brother. Ben asked her to check again. Still a brother. Hmmmm. Ben boycotted any further participation in the ultrasound. No amount of "Ben, look! There is your brother's face!" or "Awwww, look...he's waving at you." was going to convince Ben that he hadn't been completely screwed in the sibling department.

As we were leaving the visit, I heard him mumble, "Great. A brother will touch ALL my stuff." Ah, the truth comes out. It wasn't about some fantasy where he'd have an adorable little sister to nurture and protect. It was about preserving the sanctity of Transformers and Power Rangers. "Stuff touching" coupled with the sharp sting of being WRONG for a couple of months about his sibling had him in a funk.

Luckily, he has come around. A brother is going to be just fine. Not what he ordered, but he'll make do. The next hurdle will be finding a way to tell him that "Bob" won't really be named Bob. But, for now, we're going to enjoy knowing that we're a 2 boy family.

Cold

B: Can I have a Popsicle before lunch?
H: No. You may have one after lunch.
B: Come on. Is there no love in your heart? I thought there was some love in there, but I guess not.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Happy snow day! We're all settling in for some nasty winter weather. We got out today before the snow really hit and plan to spend tomorrow watching movies, playing Wii Fit, and making cookies....and snuggling on the couch with a furry friend.

Bob? Boberina?

We're 10 days away from knowing if the bins and bins of baby boy clothes I saved are staying or going. Ben is still convinced that my ever growing belly is full of a girl baby. We decided that Ben will join us at my ultrasound next Friday morning so that he can't "blame" us if it turns out to be a brother.

I'm starting to notice frequent kicks and jabs from Bob. After a rather forceful bump to the belly, I realized that it's just beginning to sink in that we're having another baby. I know that sounds crazy...hello....one look at my body and it should be obvious...but the first 12 weeks of this pregnancy were like a long, crummy flu. Now that I feel better, I'm ready to settle in and enjoy the next few months until we become a family of four.

Ben continues to ask hilarious questions and make funny observations. Having a 5-year-old share the experience has been such fun. Here are some highlights:

*Mom? I don't want Bob to touch my stuff. She'll bite the heads off all my "guys." (Because, in his head, evidently I am giving birth to a piranha or Cujo.)

* When Bob is born, will you still be the same tall as you are now because Daddy said you will shrink? (Just the belly and the boobs shrink, the height will stay the same...I hope)

* Woah, Mom. Your belly looks HUGE. What did you and Bob eat??

* I don't think I can go to school next year because you're going to need me to stay home and help with Bob.

* When Bob is born, I'm gonna teach her how to do karate. And Kung Fu. Oh, and to like pickles.

What a good big brother. And we think Ben is going to need therapy when he grows up. Are there therapists that begin working with children BEFORE they're born? Bob might need it.

Christmas/Remodeling

What's better than getting a new Rip Rider 360 from Santa? Having all the carpet ripped out of the family room for a sweet indoor bike path.

Bob

Now that my expanding belly is making it difficult to keep a secret from anyone who sees me (and now that it's the P.C. time to share), we are happy to announce that Mayfield Baby #2 will be making his/her arrival sometime in late-May or early-June. As excited as we were to find out about my pregnancy, we were equally excited to tell Ben so that he could begin sharing his ideas about having a brother or a sister.

Several weeks ago, I had my first ultrasound. I have to be honest, it didn't look like much. But, it was something tangible, so we showed Ben the pictures.

H: Ben. I want to show you something. See this? Right there (pointing to the ultrasound picture) is a baby. Our baby. We're going to have a new baby and you are going to be a big brother.
B: (staring skeptically at photo) Hmmmm. Where? Here? Soooooooooo, babies just start as dots?
H: Well, yeah.
B: Was I a dot in your belly?
H: Yep.
D: What do you think, buddy?
B: This is great! I really want a brother but I don't want him to eat my toys. Can we build him a new room? (gets very quiet and totally distracted by a Transformer)

A few minutes later....
B: Uh, guys? (looks at the ultrasound picture again)
H&D: What?
B: Our baby kinda looks like Bob. (from Monsters vs. Aliens: See below)
Thus, Poor Baby, you are "Bob". If you're a girl, you'll be "Bob the Girl".

Halloween Party

Here are a few pictures from Ben's Halloween party at school. The boys in his class are Star Wars obsessed, even though most of them haven't ever seen Star Wars. It's pretty funny. This year, Ben is Jango Fett (and that is about all I know about Jango Fett). His party included a parade, a craft (mummies), cupcakes, treats, and goodie bags. He had a great time!

Apples (but most importantly...doughnuts)

It has been busy month since I last posted to the blog! Kindergarten, a trip to Papa and Grandma's 60th wedding anniversary party, more Kindergarten, and a couple of days off.

Today was a teacher in-service day, so we headed to Louisburg to the cider mill. I remembered that you used to be able to pick apples there, but not anymore. The boys had a great time watching a semi-truck full of apples turn into cider. The also really enjoyed the cider doughnuts and playing on the huge bales of hay.


We came home with some cider, kettle corn, caramel apple candy corn, and cider doughnuts. Ben came home with hives all over his legs from playing on the hay. That is the gift that will keep on giving all week. Poor guy.




The funniest part of the day was listening to the two apple experts (Ben and Riley) explain to me just how many apples were in that truck and the process by which all those BILLIONS of HUNDREDS of apples was going to turn into cider. It was something about ninja swords and lots of chopping. Oh, and then crushing and squeezing (complete with physically squeezing demo) to get the cider. There was also quite the debate about the difference between cider and juice. Riley was sure that "juice" meant "full of lots of sugar." (Jill--- what kind of juice are you feeding that kid? You know, Hawaiian Punch is NOT a juice.)

A Real Kindergartener

Ben had his first official day of Kindergarten today. After waking up to an alarm clock all by himself, he was all business about getting to school this morning. He wouldn't let me take any pictures at home for fear that it would slow us down... maybe tomorrow. Here are a few highlights and the video I took of him walking into his classroom for the first time. At the end of the video, catch what the para in his classroom says when she sees him... it's exactly what a new-Kindergarten parent wants to hear!

About Kindergarten:

B: Mom? When I'm at school all day, I'm going to miss a lot of my shows.
H: That's true.
B: Can you DVR some for me before we leave?

* As we pulled into the parking lot, Ben asked if I was going to "go in." When I said that I was, he sighed and said, "Well. Only today, OK? I can really handle it, Mom."

* After school, Ben announced that Kindergarten ROCKS! (We've been reading a book that my mom bought him called "Kindergarten Rocks" and evidently, it really does!)

* From 3:15 until 5:30 Ben told me stories about school. In "science class" they made a play dough rainbow. They learned a song called "No More Pie" in Music. And, Mom-did-I-know-what? They have cookers that make lunches right at school. And, Mom-did-I-know-what-else? He earned 65-hundred-4-and 60, 70 stars today. He earned a line up and walk in a line star, and a playground star, and a follow directions star, and, and, and... you get the idea.

Here's the video of him heading into school on a rainy day (you may want to take your favorite motion-sickness drug before watching).

Kindergarten (but only a visit)

This morning was our "meet and greet" with Ben's Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Bohon. Lured by the promise of stopping for doughnuts before the visit, he got out of bed pretty easily and was ready to roll. When Mrs. Bohon came to meet us in the hall, he trotted off behind her, chit-chatting with her the whole way (SO not a surprise). I was about 50 feet behind because, clearly, he could handle it on his own and didn't want to be seen with his MOTHER. Ugh. But, I overheard him telling her that, "Kindergarten will be a blast. We're just going to have a ball." Ah, if she only knew.


Ben is very excited to have his own chair and a name tag. He's also very proud of his cubby for supplies and that they have a bathroom RIGHT IN THE CLASSROOM! Could life get any better? Wait until he's there on Wednesday and they have 2 snacks, lunch, and recess. Kindergarten rocks.

Almost 5

For the last few weeks, anytime someone asks Ben how old he is, he replies, "Almost 5. And, I'm going to Kindergarten." Ummm. Excuse me, but where did the last 5 years go?

I took Ben for his 5 year check up last week and visited with a new mommy and her 6 day old son. Was that really me "almost 5" years ago? I barely remember a time when Ben wasn't potty trained and getting his own snacks in the kitchen. On the other hand, was it really that long ago that we were just figuring out how to hold him so he'd fall asleep and just which funny face would make him laugh so his whole chubby little body shook?

When I taught, I never understood those weepy freakshow parents (ok, mostly MOMS) who tearfully dropped their child off for the first day of school. I think my comment was, "Dude. It's school. It's not like you're sending your child to war." I may have also said, "Never. Never ever will I be a 'cry mom'. I'm gonna be the mom with my foot on my kid's butt kicking him out of the car when he goes to school. I would NEVER cry. Whatever."

Ummmmmmmm.....yeah. As with so many other things, the kiss of death was saying, "I would never..". Because, guess what? I'm going to be that blubbering, ugly-crying, freakshow, train wreck of a mommy in two weeks when I take my boy to school. What I realize now is that it's not sadness that brings the tears. It's a realization that your baby is not a baby. There is nothing remotely baby left. It's intense pride in sending your little chick out of the nest and into the big, big world. It's all your hopes and wishes and dreams for the future.

Good grief. Will someone please hand me a Kleenex? Maybe a whole box?