Success!

Yesterday and today, Benjamin was very much looking forward to the daycare. As a matter of the fact, once we stepped into Sarah's house, he zoomed to the playroom! I was surprised but pleased. Sarah has been very open to learning some sign language, such as "play", "eat", "milk", "sleep", "diaper" related to what Ben is already familiar with. We are really pleased with Sarah. She used to be a teacher for several years ago, and seems to be quite educated which we really like. Even though we have to pay for the daycare, we definitely think it is much better for Ben to be around kids than having my mom watch him at our house daily.

And other success! Luis finally found the camera battery charger.

O Where Are Thou, Camera Charger?

For days we are not able to find the charger to our camera, which means no new pictures lately. Grrrr. It looks like we will have to get a new charger. Oh well. Remote controls, small stuff, or whatever always get lost around here. Ahh, the life with a toddler.

Speaking of our toddler Benjamin, his sleeping habits are getting better. He does not cry that much when I put him down in the crib. Just a minute or two, that's it, he goes to sleep. Yay! Success = happy parents and babysitter

Sleep Challenged

Past this week at the daycare, Benjamin has been having a strong aversion to sleep. Poor Ben and poor babysitter! She remarked how he has the stamina to cry and scream continually. We have been e-mailing constantly to think of a better way to help him sleep, but I was running out of suggestions fast. Finally, yesterday I decided to throw in the towel and try to get Benjamin to sleep on his own in the crib. Naturally, he immediately started protesting and crying. I signed to him, it is time to sleep and that I love him. After hugging and kissing him, I left his bedroom promptly but watched him from the baby video monitor in the living room. I can see how he was crying and screaming. Every inch of my body was tempted to run to his crib to soothe him, but I knew I have to endure for at least ten minutes. It felt like eternity! After a while, I can see he was starting to calm down a bit. Crying continually sure can wear you out. Finally, he decided to fall asleep. He did wake up in the middle of the night, but I definitely think we are on the road to success. As a matter of the fact, he is sleeping in his crib right now.

Today he did not even take a nap at the daycare. What? Both the babysitter Sarah and we decided that we will work on setting up specific nap time and bed time for Benjamin. I believe that the kids do better with a daily routine, of course, with some flexibility especially during the weekends. Past this summer we were wayyyyy flexible because Luis did not have to work (he's a teacher). Now school starts for yet other new school year, we are once again trying to settle into a daily routine. Of course, I am certain that happens to practically all parents though.

Oh hey, I just saw Michael Phelps winning 100m butterfly....just barely! AMAZING. Way to go!

On the way to work

This morning on my way to work, I spotted the mother cow playfully chasing her baby calf. Sooooo cute. Be still, my heart. There are some days I wonder why did I decide to move back to Missouri from Washington DC? Seeing the cows and driving peacefully in the country reminds me once again why I do not want to live in a HUGE city again. I know Luis will tell me, "I told you so!" ;-)

Wide Awake

at 3:30 am. This is what happens when you go to sleep early. I was exhausted and went to sleep at around 7 pm. I did not even stay awake to watch Michael Phelps winning his first gold in Individual Medley swimming event. I woke up when I had to go to the bathroom. Then, when I came back to bed, Luis was worried about our cat Tito. Poor cat, he had to go to the vet recently. However, fortunately, he seems to be doing better with new cat food and antibiotics. His blood work and urinalysis results came back normal. Thank goodness. Right now, Tito is sleeping near me on the couch.

Even though it is very early today, I want to wish my sister-in-law Dawn a very happy 30th birthday!

Hello August

Next week Luis will be back at school preparing for the upcoming school year. One of the classes he will teach this semester is Pre-Calculus. I know he will do fine, but me, forget it. I nearly failed Calculus I in college. I knew if I need help with math, I can rely on him. And other thing next week, Benjamin will start daycare on Monday. It will be bittersweet but at the same time we think it will be good for Ben to interact with other kids especially in a licensed daycare setting. Originally, we thought of having my mom to continue to watch him, but we know she really needs to find a job very soon. And yet other thing, Luis starts online class on Monday as part of fulfilling teacher certification requirements. I have skimmed through his textbook, "Educational Psychology," it seems interesting.

I am somewhat sad that the summer is soon over because it gave me an impression that it is okay to be "lazy." Not that LAZY, but more laid back and mellow. However, at the same time, I absolutely can't wait to have cooler weather. The summer heat has been absolutely suffocating. The minute I step out of the door every morning, the humidity feels like I am sticking my head in the oven. I welcome every opportunity to dive into the swimming pool, and thank goodness Benjamin loves going to the pool. That's my boy :-)

Finally, I wanted to say happy anniversary to Luis and his family because on this day today, they moved to South Florida from Puerto Rico 26 years ago. My sister in law Nino wrote a brief post about this over on her blog.