Lazy Saturday Morning Post

Let's talk random updates!

*This week, Colin has made the inevitable change that I was not looking forward to. Until a few days ago, he would call for us when he woke up. I still use the monitor in his room and would hear his quiet calls and go to him. This would frequently buy me at least 30 more minutes of rest in bed with Colin and sometimes he would even fall back asleep with me for as much as an hour. Out of the blue, he has begun climbing out of bed by himself and heading into the living room. I was really hoping that he would wait a bit longer. :-) Now he is wide awake and yelling for apple juice and breakfast in the hallway to our bedroom....at around 6:15am. I don't know why this new found independence means that he gets up even earlier than he used to. Such is life.

*I took Colin for a walk this morning in his push car at about 7:30am. He begs to get outside and this is the only time of day that I am going out there...the heat here is brutal right now! We walked about a mile and Colin spent the entire time asking me questions which are, but not limited to: Where is he going? Why is he working on his car? What is wrong with it? How is he going to fix it? Why is that guy running? Is it early? Are people asleep? What road is this? Are we turning on that street? How will we get home from here? Do I need gas in my blue car? Why didn't you stop at that stop sign? Can we walk in the street? Can we walk away from those sprinklers? Where is the sun? Why is it cloudy? I honestly can't decide if my mind or my body gets more of a workout when I try to walk with this kiddo. Whew!

*I don't know where it came from, but Colin has decided that the best thing in the universe is to "tell Colin stories". This is when I have to make up a story involving him and tell it out loud. Endlessly. He tells me what the story must be about, "Colin goes to Mimi and Duke's house, Jackson has to be there, Daddy and Enzo and Ferris are there, and I fly an airplane. And no scary animals are there. Okay, TELL IT!" Then I have to start the story with, "Once upon a time there was a little boy named Colin" and then tell some story that includes the facts he mentioned. When I start the story, he jumps up and down and claps his hands with glee. You have honestly never seen a child so excited about something. He requests "Colin stories" all day long. He says, "just one more!" after each telling. I find it adorable and exhausting. Just try to make up hundreds of stories all day. My "Storytelling Mommy" status is getting a true workout. :-)

*My diet is going amazingly well...so well, in fact, that I have been loathe to even write about it for fear of jinxing myself. I went to the doctor yesterday and found out that I have lost 21lbs so far AND shaved 60 points off my cholesterol. I am very proud of myself for actually sticking to this and making such a big change in my health. I feel like a new woman with a new lease on life. Everything is better; my allergies have gone away, my migraines are all but forgotten at the moment and I just feel good. In another 10 lbs, I will be at the goal weight that I thought to never see again. I have learned a lot about myself this summer and I am taking away a lot of information that will prove valuable for life. The biggest and most important thing is that the food I was eating before was fueling my constant hunger and craving. I have cut white starches and most sugar from my diet and that alone has changed everything. I eat lots of delicious things, but if I stay away from potatoes and white breads and pastas, I am just not hungry all the time. My doctor explained this to me and I really did not believe him to the extent I should have. I made Colin some mac and cheese the other day and had a small helping. All of a sudden, it was like a major switch was thrown and just a few minutes later, I was so hungry that my whole mind was consumed with it. I felt the insatiable need for food that had been missing for weeks. That was an eye opener for me and I won't soon forget it. Once I hit my goal weight, I will be able to eat more calories in a day, but I will certainly be shying away from lots of trigger foods except for the occasional treat. I don't like that starving feeling and I am glad that I am armed with information that will help me stay healthier in the future. Although I will certainly not stop eating all the things I love...just not for every meal, which was my habit before. It makes me laugh to think about how much butter I used to go through in a week...and now I have not had to purchase any in more than 9 weeks. THAT is incredible, if you know my usual cooking. :-)

*Colin's friend Jack got him a set of really awesome books for his birthday that he loves beyond measure. They are each about a different vehicle (submarines, tractors, diggers, fire trucks, etc) and each one is actually very informative while being super cute at the same time. At the end of each book, there is a page that labels the parts on each vehicle and tells what they do. That is actually his favorite part of the story and he shouts, "show me the parts!!" after the last line of the book. I think that is the main thing I love about this age...watching him learn and seeing what truly interests him is so much fun.

*One last funny side note. I already mentioned that at Colin's pedi visit, I found out that his doctor also battled sensory issues as a child. Well, at my doctor yesterday, Colin displayed some of his usual "quirks" and at one point melted to the ground in tears because a nurse made a loud sudden noise when she dropped something and Colin thought she was angry. She felt so bad about making him cry and was apologizing all over herself. I assured her that it was fine and Colin just deals with some sensory processing stuff and it was not at all her fault. At which point my doctor looks up from his paperwork and says, "Hey! I also had sensory problems as a child and was it was almost debilitating for a long while." I literally burst out laughing, surprising everyone in the room, and immediately told Colin, "That's it, son. You absolutely WILL BE a doctor. You clearly have no choice." LOL!!!!!!!!! (future Colin, you can be whatever you want to be...but you have to admit that I had no choice but to assume it was inevitable) ;-)