The Ever Observant Toddler

We were so excited for June Bug to start talking, which he was really slow to do. We had some baby signs around 14mos and a few words at 15mos. Somewhere around 21months  he exploded with such gems that include:

Don't like it, mama.
Don't want it, mama.
That's mine, mama.

As you can imagine the novelty is slowing wearing off and hit rock bottom today. He sauntered into our room and pointed to 2 sets of dumbbells that we store in one of the cat tree cubbies and loudly declared "that's kitties' toys mama."

Is June Bug is trying to tell me the cats use them more than I do? And here I was feeling pretty good about my postpartum body. Nothing like a toddler to put you in your place. ::sigh::

Maybe I should have hiked more before leaving L.A. Oh well, at least the Lady-Bug-Leftovers are hidden by Lady Bug herself in this photo.

Seven Weeks of Single Parenthood

Looks like this:


Three weeks after Lady Bug made her appearance, Daddy Bug made his disapparence, kind of...He accepted a job 2000 miles away but the transition required 7 weeks apart while he found us housing and I packed us up. This meant packing quicker than June Bug could unpack, an activity I did not always excel at with a colicky Lady Bug. Yep, 4 weeks and the colic came on strong and lasted, well, pretty much the duration of my single parenthood.

So what is this picture, other than a terrible self-photographed reflection in the dirty windows of a nearby business?  It's our weekly walk to the nearest grocery story, 1.4 miles round trip.  Why walk?  Because I had two choices:

A. Load two kids into the car, one whining for no good reason, the other crying b/c her carseat is the devil (or so it seems), drive through ridiculous traffic, unload and then repeat OR
B. Push June Bug in the best-$12-I've-ever-spent stroller, strap Lady Bug in the carrier where I know she'll sleep and I'll sweat off some baby weight.

What's in the bag? A gallon of milk and a bottle of wine of course. Props to actual single parents or those with traveling spouses. I raise my wine glass to all of you; you deserve a drink or two for that matter.

Oh and lest you think that milk was for June Bug, it was actually for my coffee.

Communication 101

Hmmm, so perhaps June Bug doesn't understand quite as much as I thought.

Post diaper change:


Mama  Bug:  Do you want to throw away your diaper?

June Bug:  Yes, mommy (with great excitement I might add. Throwing things away is fun)


Mama Bug: Do you know where the garbage can is?

June Bug:   Yes, mommy (scampers off)


Two hours later I find said diaper in my bed. What is he trying to tell me?