The End of Another Week

It's about 6:30 a.m. and I've snuck downstairs to the computer, as Camden is still asleep, and Griffin is quiet, but not yet screaming to get out of bed. It was a long night - - I'm guessing (or hoping) that Griffin is having a growth spurt, because he was up every 2-2.5 hours to eat last night. He had been sleeping for 3.5-4 hour stretches, so going back to getting up 3 times per night is wearing me out. You may be wondering what I am doing up, if I didn't sleep much...I don't really know - - I think I just wanted a few minutes to myself before I start the day. Ooops, must run upstairs and check on Griffin - - this may be the end of this post. I'm back, Griffin is still asleep, but Camden is now up. He's having a glass of milk and watching Thomas the Tank Engine, so that I can finish this post.

I can't believe that Christmas is in 10 days! I have a huge box to mail to Maine, but still have a few items to track down, before I can mail it. Christmas shopping has proven to be a bit more difficult this year, for sure. Tomorrow morning I'll head out by myself in hopes of finishing up our shopping.

Yesterday, I checked out a local MOPS meeting (MOPS stands for Mothers of Preschoolers). Okay, it wasn't exactly local - - it was about a 20-minute drive from our house. Unfortunately, the town we live in has absolutely NOTHING for stay-at-home moms or children, except for a music class one day per week. I can't believe the library doesn't even offer a story time for little ones. Anyway, the meeting was great. There are about 30 members, and I found everyone to be very nice, and welcoming. Basically, when I got there I dropped Camden off at the "3 & 4 Year Old Room" where he got to play with a ton of other kids - - they had gym time where they got to run around, play time, and then they decorated cookies (just had to run BACK upstairs again - - Griffin is stirring). During that time, I attended the meeting (with Griffin sleeping in his carseat). We were supposed to watch a DVD about parenting but the player was broken, so instead we all just visited, which was nice, too. There was lots of food, and we did a craft (right up my alley). I think I will join the group - - it was really good. Camden loved playing with all of the kids, so it was great for him, too. Lately I've been trying really hard to find some set activities for us to do. Camden is needing so badly to interact with other kids, and I need out of the house (Griffin is now in my lap, so we'll see how much more I can type). It has been terribly dark and rainy here the past few days, which I think has contributed to my blue mood. Hopefully there is some sunshine on the way in the near future!

Camden started gymnastics this week - - he'll go every Monday from now on. This is the same outfit that provided the "Magic Tumble Bus" at his old preschool, so he was familiar with how things were run. We had a great surprise when we arrived for class in that one of his classmates from his preschool was in his class. This is a little girl that he had been in "school" with since he was 13 weeks old, so he was thrilled to see her, and they had a great time together. Another big development for Camden this week is that he is now a "meat-eater". Believe it or not, he's never eaten meat (aside from hot dogs - - if that qualifies as meat, and an occasional dinosaur-shaped chicken nugget). I'm embarrassed to say that he is an extremely picky eater, but we are working on it. Anyway, this week he's had chicken twice (an actual chicken breast), a pork chop, and yes, even an elk burger. So, I feel like we are finally making strides in the right direction. The Christmas tree continues to taunt and frustrated the boy - - he asks at least 10 zillion times per day if he can open a present. Yesterday, he even asked me if I would call Santa on the phone and ask if it would be okay to open the presents. The boy is getting desperate. I hope we both survive until December 25th.

Griffin, as I mentioned earlier, isn't sleeping so well at night. He still isn't napping well either, unless we are out running errands, in which case he sleeps the whole time. It would be great to get him on a napping schedule, and I'm just hoping that it will happen sometime soon. He's full of smiles these days, and loves to "talk", too. He's beginning to put weight on his legs when held upright, and has started grasping for things, too. I just can't believe how quickly he is growing and changing.

Steve is as busy as ever, between work and command. He's excited to start skiing, and will be going with his friend Chuck this weekend. He has a couple of ski trips in the works over the next couple of months, too.

I'd like to post some pictures, but that will have to wait for the weekend, when I am not trying to complete a post with a crying baby in my lap.