Hello, Monday

hello, sleep deprivation. Not long ago I was celebrating Sam as our prize for surviving AJ's (still) terrible sleep habits. And then, we hit a growth spurt. Or teething. Or sleep regression. Or a full moon. Whatever it is, we're not sleeping. And it sucks. Nothing like having a 5 month old and getting less sleep than you did when said 5 month old was a preterm newborn and had to be woken every 3 hours around the clock to eat.

hello, snuggle bug. I'm thinking this whole "Mama has a job now and isn't always home for bedtime" business is sinking in for the bigger little dude. Suddenly he is all about the cuddle time. "Mama I nuggle wif lu?" is a constant refrain these days. My favorite was when he demanded to snuggle right after he walked out of his classroom. Asked me to sit down in the hallway and climbed into my lap.

hello, dragon drama. After AJ changed his mind about being "Ho Ho Santa" and "A Scarrrrry Monster" for Halloween he settled on "I be a draren, mama. And Sammy be a baby draren " So when it seemed he hadn't changed his mind on the costume for a few days, Mama went shopping and located both a "Draren" and a "baby draren" costume on Old Navy's website. Added a couple of items to my order to use a coupon code and get free shipping (see, I HAD to buy the cardigan for myself!) and checked "halloween costumes" off my to do list. That was on 10/13 in case anyone is keeping track. So imagine my surprise when today...NINE DAYS LATER...I received two emails from Old Navy. The first was a "yay your order shipped" email. The second was a much less enjoyable "Oops, we said we had that costume in stock when we let you purchase it NINE DAYS AGO but we lied and we don't have it." WHAAAAAAAAT? So now, I need to locate a "baby draren" STAT. Oh, but Old Navy was kind enough to offer me a coupon code for my inconvenience. Not even a good code either. Grumble grumble.

hello, family photo anticipation. Saturday marked our first official shoot as a family of four. Also the first time we've used a photographer I wasn't personally friends with before the shoot. So now, I'm just like every other client out there...waiting to see if the photographer was able to work magic in the midst of chaos that is 2 adults trying to keep the infant from crying/spitting up/drooling while also bribing the 3 year old to cooperate with fruit snacks. For the record: it is ten bazillion times easier for me to be behind the camera. No question.

hello, fall. We've had our pictures taken. We've been to the pumpkin patch. I'm getting shocked a million times a day because the air is dry. My skin is dry and my hair has permastatic. My little dude has a forever runny nose. It's getting dark early. I think it's safe to say fall is really here. Honestly? I'm kind of ready to hibernate. Bring on the long winters nap!