Messy house = Happy kid?

Before J and I became Ivan's parents I thought that I would keep a beautiful and clean home, stay on top of laundry and other household chores since I would be "at home". One year later I can safely say that nothing could be further from the truth. I can also say that (at least for today) that's OK. I'm sure that by the time Monday rolls around I will want to delete this entry entirely though.

The reality of having a toddler at home is that very little gets done as it did prior to their entrance and it really doesn't matter anyway. It is so much more important that I spend time with Ivan and that we dance and sing together. Not to say that my household chores shouldn't ever get done, but I am learning to accept that they (at least for the time being) aren't going to get done as often as I would like for them to...and that is OK.

One year ago today...

One glorious year ago today the judge in Ust-Kamenogorsk declared that Ivan would be ours forever. Of course we already knew that months before we even traveled to Kazakhstan because we could feel God leading us to this child, but it certainly was nice to have everything all wrapped up and tidy.

Thank you Lord for one of the most wonderful gifts you ever blessed us with...our son.

I'm off...

Tomorrow morning I am leaving for a little getaway with my best girlfriend S, and I can't wait! We have lots of plans for our one night getaway: manicure, pedicure, eating out without kids, drinking cosmopolitans, reading stupid gossip magazines, and of course laughing until it hurts. I am so excited I can hardly stand it!

This week Ivan and I have been at odds a bit more often than normal. I think that there are many factors at play here and one of those is that I need some time away from being a Mom. I know that now that we have Ivan I will never not be a Mom again, but a little time for just me is in order. My loving husband could not be more supportive of my little adventure; which is great of course because it means I can go guilt free! This will be J and Ivan's first full night alone together and I know that it will be a great experience for both of them.

So, I am hoping that when I return Sunday afternoon I will feel refreshed and ready to be a full-time Mom once again!

The Mama's and the Dada's...

A week or so before Mother’s Day Ivan started to say “mama”. He did not use it a lot, mostly only when J would push him to do it while looking right at me. However, that has all changed within the past week. All of a sudden Ivan is calling me mama all the time. If he wants to know where I am he says it loud enough for me to hear him from anywhere in the house so that I can identify where I am at that particular moment. He sees me enter or exit a room and he says it. He wants my attention at the dinner table, in the tub, anywhere…he says it. I love it! Not only has he started to say mama he has really started to say dada too! J loves it and just about melts every time that Ivan yells out dada.

Of course with this wonderful new trick comes a down side as well. J always takes Ivan to the nursery for church because Ivan gets way too upset when I take him and it just breaks my heart to see him get that upset. I can’t concentrate on the service when I am upset so J has been kind enough to take him every Sunday. This Sunday I was just getting ready to sit down in the pew when Ivan looked back and saw that I was not right behind him and J. He yelled out a gut-wrenching MAMA right as the doors closed. I could hear him saying “mama, mama, mama” all the way through the hall. Oh boy did that hurt. I knew that he would be fine. He loves the nursery once he gets there and the ladies dote on him like he’s their own. But boy, was that tough to hear.

We met Ivan one year ago today. These two words are music to my ears and to my heart as well. It’s been the greatest year of my life and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the next twelve months.