This Will NEVER Get Old

Tonight you read a bedtime story to me again.

The first book you ever read to me was There is a Bird on Your Head.  The second book you read to me was Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? (a classic).  You've read several books to me since then too... but tonight's took the cake:

Guess How Much I Love You?

This sweet wonderful little story was given to you as a gift at our very first baby shower from Aunt Melissa's mommy (your friend Georgie's grandma).  It made me cry the very first time I read it to you, when you were still in my tummy.  (Of course, I was a little emotional then...)  Since then, we've read this book to you hundreds of times.  Your poor little board book copy is pretty worn, and it even had a bottle ring/stain on the cover from a late night feeding/reading.

So when you picked this up and began reading it to me... well, it simply filled my heart.

I love you, Peanut, to the moon... and back.

All my love,
Mommy

Molly Paige First: Reading to Mom

Originally happened:  March 22, 2010

This was a first that never really spend much time thinking about or dreaming of... but when it happened, I was overwhelmed and pretty emotional about the experience.

You read your first book to me.

Your teacher told us you're reading well, and you'd read a few pages to us every so often.  But you so love for us to read to you every night that when I'd ask you to read, or if you encountered too many words you didn't know, you'd reply, "Oh, Mom - you just read it."

I don't know what sparked it that night, but you picked out There is a Bird On Your Head by Mo Willems.  (I mean, he is your FAVORITE author and you have seen him in person... but why Piggie and Gerald on that particular night?  I don't know...)

Anyway, you settled in on my lap, read the title out loud... and didn't stop until you reached the end.  I was so proud of you.  It was a special moment that I'll always remember.  And Piggie and Gerald books were pretty high on my list of favorites before -- but now they are truly a part of our family and your history.

Tooth #2 - HISTORY!

Originally happened - May 4, 2010

Tooth #2 was a toughie.  It did NOT want to come out.  It was the most wiggliest tooth EVER... but it wasn't letting go... even though your big permanent shark tooth was trying to shove it out of the way.  Finally, it was at the point that we HAD to get it out so you wouldn't swallow it while you slept.

You wouldn't let us pull it, so we had you rock it back and forth, back and forth, and back and forth... and finally...

POP!  There it is!

There was a little blood and quite a few tears... but after about 10 minutes, you were fine and so proud.  Then you called Grandma and Grandpa, Papa and Grandma, and Aunt Lois and Uncle Jim to announce the big news.

And on the tooth count, the bottom tooth next to missing teeth #1 and 2 is loose, and your top right tooth is loose too.  The race is on to see which will fall out first.

Molly Paige First: Visit to the Arch!

A few months ago, you decided that you REALLY wanted to not only visit the Arch, but go up to the top of it.  Since you started mentioning wanting to go to the Arch pretty frequently, I decided that you weren't joking.  So, I figured there's no time like the present.

You had a random Monday in late April off of school, so Daddy kept you home in the morning, then brought you to my work for lunch.  You and I had lunch with my friend Courtney... then you and I took off for the Arch.

It turned out to be a beautiful day -- the rain finally stopped and it was overcast but not too chilly.  And you were EXCITED to see all that the Arch had to offer.

(Who knew that the National Park Service has its own special safety cones?!?!?  We just HAD to take a picture with these...)

Luckily, on a random Monday afternoon in April (outside of the Spring Break window), the Arch isn't crowded at 1:30 in the afternoon.  So we bought our tickets and headed straight for the dryer pods elevators.

One new thing they do at the Arch is take your picture before you ride to the top, a la Disney.  "Nice," I thought.  "They'll want to charge me a ton for this at the bottom."

I thought you might get a tiny bit freaked out when you saw how small the panty hose eggs elevators were... but you didn't hesitate.

(You only hesitate a little bit when I didn't follow you in so I could take your picture.  You cried, "No, Mommy!  You have to come in here with me!  You can't send your kid in alone!")

You giggled all the way to the top - especially when the shoebox elevator would adjust back and forth.  Then the tiny doors of our pod slide open... and there we were at the top.

The funniest part -- we had just gotten to the top, and were taking photos and looking out the windows, when my phone rang.  It was Grandma and Grandpa Wells -- they happened to be driving to Kansas City to visit Aunt Lois and Uncle Jim that day and told me they'd call me when they were passing through St. Louis.  When I saw it was them calling, I handed the phone to you.  "Grandma!" you cried.  "We're at the top of the Arch!"  When Grandma replied that she was driving through town, you said, "Oh!  I can see you from here!"  That made the park ranger laugh.

Humphrey enjoying the view of Busch Stadium from the top of the Arch...

Getting ready for our descent.  It takes four minutes to ride to the top... but only three minutes to get to the bottom.  Wait a minute...

Once we landed at the bottom, we bid farewell to our alien escape pods elevator and headed for the museum.  After about 10 minutes, you had seen all you wanted to, so we headed for the gift shop.  We walked right by the photo booth, where our package of photos was waiting for us.  It was a good picture of the both of us, so I asked the cashier how much.  "You get the 5 x 7, four wallets, and the commemorative frame (a.k.a. a cardboard sleeve with a picture of the Arch on it) for $20."  I started to walk away when you tugged on my sleeve and asked, "Mommy - aren't you going to get the photos of our special day together?"

And here's my $20...

On our walk back to the car, you held my hand and skipped.  It was ridiculously sweet.  "Mommy, can you thank your boss for letting you take the afternoon off so you could come to the Arch with me?  I really enjoyed our special afternoon together."  Then you gave me the best hug EVER.

I didn't want that special, special hug -- or that special, SPECIAL afternoon -- to ever end.

April was a crazy month for me -- I had a giant project at work happening that had me on the road a lot during the month.  I was so very thankful for a quiet afternoon with you, taking in a special first.  It reminded me of our special Mommy and Molly Fridays -- and how very much I miss them.  And it made me realize how much I need to always carve time out for these special times.

I love you, Peanut.

Time Flies...

Wow - has it really been since February since I posted anything?  I'm so sorry, Peanut - work has been crazy for the past few months.   But I'm hoping to get back on track.  There's so much to catch up on -- reading, losing more teeth, visiting the Arch for the first time... You're growing like a weed every day.

I'll start catching up this weekend.  Love you, Peanut :)