Big

Although we don't use them primarily, I use cloth diapers predominantly when we are home. I really like using them--there are a ton of options these days, and they are just as user friendly as disposibles, with the only additional step of a load of laundry every couple days. It feels good to not be dumping as much as we could potentially be dumping into the landfills, although I know there is always more we could be doing.

The only thing with the diapers is a bit of additional bulk. Really, it is not a huge difference, but Timothy is a big baby. Aside from his bright blue eyes, that is hands down, the first thing people say when they discover how old he is. He is just big. Tall, heavy, solid. So, the diapers, while not overly bulky, add just a little extra to how big Timothy appears. The 12 month clothes that he has been wearing for the last month look like they are going to pop, and I look at the astonished faces of strangers as they observe our little Gargantua.

So, while I often keep our boy in his cloth diapers while we're out and about, I also often opt for the sleek comfort of disposible. It might be vanity, but I can also claim Timmy's ease of mobility.

The picture here is with cloth. It certainly hasn't prevented him from pulling each and every movie off the shelf and enjoying every minute of it!

It really is good, I promise!

This recipe for blueberry scones came in my Cook's Illustrated Magazine months ago and I've been wanting to make them ever since. Especially since my friend Robyn is always posting pictures of scones on her blog and they look so darn good! Every time I suggested I make them some weekend, Shawn would make a face and say, "you know, I just don't care for scones."

Now, whenever he says something like this to me, I know that just can't be the case. The problem is just that he has never had a GOOD one. So, this past weekend, I decided I was going to prove to Shawn that he did indeed love scones and soon would be asking me to make them on a regular basis.

So, Saturday morning, I pull out my trusty magazine and start the baking process. Timothy helped me for a little while--that is, he put his hand in the flour, tasted a bit of butter, rolled around the orange that provided its pungent and lovely zest--but he played with his daddy during the rolling and cutting process. When Shawn came to get Timothy, he looked over my shoulder and said, "Hmm, those look cool." Half-way there to convincing him!

I brush the tops with butter and sprinkle with a bit of sugar and in the oven they go. 10 minutes later I hear "Boy, those smell pretty good".

Finally, I pull them out of the oven while Shawn is cooking up some scrambled eggs and he immediately asks, "How soon until I can try one?"

And after that first bite, I think I hooked him. I knew he had just never had a good one. Isn't it strange how places like Starbucks can make such an absurd amount of money with their food when it really all tastes like sawdust? Why do people pay so much for something that is practically inedible?

I guess I'm glad I like to cook.

One Step Forward

Well, sleeping was a trend for a couple nights anyway. I know I'll be wishing he didn't sleep so much by the time he's 16, right?

Sometimes two steps back is a bit of a theme. The yarn above is really beautiful stuff--part silk, part mohair and the remainder is regular wool. I found a pattern I just love, knit about as much as you see here, and realized it was too big. I took it all out after first conferring with my yarn shop-owning friend who helped me determine how to modify the pattern and how many stitches to lose. Should work, right? I think it's too small now. How does that work? Same needles, same yarn. It must be me, somehow. I think I'll just keep going and stretch it like crazy when it's wet. The problem is, since the yarn is so beautiful and the pattern so great, I am looking for perfection. I'm just afraid when I re-knit it for the umteenth time, it'll still be a bit off. Perhaps I need to stop looking for perfection and just accept how things turn out. It is then, usually, when those same things work out quite well.

So, my son doesn't sleep much, but he will eventually. The sweater will fit, if not me, someone else. And both will make a pretty fine present when that time comes.

Blessed Sleep

After about a month of really, really bad nights, Timothy has rounded a corner. A few nights ago, he made it to 3:30 without waking. We were thrilled. The next night, it was 4:00. Then 5:00. Last night, he went to bed at 6:30, had a bit of a coughing fit around 2:00, and fell back to sleep on his own until 5:30, a mere 15 minutes before the alarm went off anyway. We couldn't believe it, and frankly, we don't want to get our hopes up. 8 months without good sleep has made us a little, well, delirious, but I don't how I'd deal with the disappointment if I started to count on sleep again only to have it yanked out from under my feet.

A second miracle from this new sleeping habit of Timothy's: he's napping better! I can count on closer to an hour a couple times a day rather than 25 minutes. I know this is somehow going to change my routine, but again, I am not prepared to count on it yet.

It's definitely a trend, though. I'll keep my fingers crossed!