Finding our groove

There's a lot going on in our lives these days. Most importantly, the *boys* are doing great (yes, we discovered we're having another little fellow in February). The good news is that he looks healthy and is measuring right on schedule (compared to Charlie's 20 week ultrasound in which he measured in the 95th percentile!) He's kicking consistently--albeit gently--and my tummy's growing, so I assume all is well.

Charlie's language has just exploded in the past month, and he can count to 5 (occasionally to 10!) and uses 4 word sentences. My favorite sentence was when we were in a purse store together and he walked around saying "Charlie happy, yellow bag!" with a Kate Spade handbag tucked under his little arm.

He has quite a sense of humor and loves making jokes with the words he knows. For example, last week he was climbing on a table and I said, "Charlie, don't scare mommy!" He promptly climbed off, walked up to me and said, "boo!" and laughed hysterically at his joke. Another joke he loves is when I tell him to put on his coat. Thinking it sounds a lot like the word "Coach", he says, "uh-oh, Mommy, where's Baba?" Charlie also loves to hide behind curtains and say, "Chaaaa-lie, where aaaaare you?" (I suspect he's trying to get the conversation going so others will look for him.) He often hides his feet under a blanket and lifts his palms and says, "where did they go?" with such earnest puzzlement that you almost believe he doesn't know...until he starts laughing and pulls them out. Such a little actor.

On Friday we're officially moving to Oxford after 10 weeks at Billy's parents' house in Cincinnati. Even though Charlie will see his grandparents plenty, it will be a big adjustment for all of us to not have them right here to rescue...I mean...help us on a daily basis.

We're still trying to sell our house in Madison. While the whole situation has been somewhat of a nightmare, it's comforting in a peculiar kind of way to know we survived this experience. I think I feel more confident in our family's ability to tackle tough times. How's that for a silver lining? It does look like the end of this ordeal is near (we're in negotiations with a buyer) and Billy and I are so looking forward to moving on with our lives in a new cozy apartment a mile from Miami's campus.

Billy's job is going great and we actually just got back from a British History conference in which Billy presented part of a paper he wrote. Pittsburgh was a neat city and we took a few pictures near the fountain on campus. After all those years in school, it's a relief that Billy seems to love being a professor.

While the first couple weeks as a stay at home mom were almost impossibly hard, Charlie and I have really found our groove and I'm starting to wonder how I'll ever go back to work. Our relationship is deeper and more comfortable than it's been in the past, and I'm getting to fulfill my guilty fantasy of "running" a household. I love maintaining our full schedule of library time, Lil' Lion's gymnastics, swim class, and play dates and surprising Charlie with trips to the zoo and Children's Museum. I also love being able to stay on top of literature on nutrition and ways to keep an environmentally-friendly house in addition to all the appointments and errands that feel so overwhelming when everyone in the household is working all day. While our budget is tight, I'll always cherish these days with Charlie (and soon his little brother) and that is worth so much right now.

Wish us luck on our move and next chapter and I'll try to post soon!