My Sambo

Those eyes have saved his life on numerous occasions.

Sam's birthday is roday. He's be three. We're THIS CLOSE to being done with the whole terrible two's thing....not that I have ANY hope whatsoever that Sam will magically turn into a minding, well behaved little man...there would be no fun in that....it's just that I see a light at the end of the Terrible Two Tunnel (it is worth mentioning that, in Sam's case, the terrible two's started not when he was two years old, or even when he was one. No, no, no- he was a wee two days old when they started.) I think I'll share some of my favorite memories, what I was taught by them, and, in some cases, what I SHOULD have learned or done differently...



Such a sad little baby...

Let's start when he was a teeny tiny little one: My mom came out for a week when Sam was born. She was a saint and took care of him during the nights so I could get a little bit of sleep. The first night (maybe second), he. screamed. bloody. murder. until the wee hours of the night. In fact, I believe the sun was starting to creep up by the time the lad stopped. Long night for everyone in my condo building, I'm sure. What I learned: My mom is amazing. What I should have learned: Sam has his own idea of what he wants to do and when he wants to do it.

Check out the dimples. They're enough to melt you.

I MIGHT OVER SHARE HERE....SCROLL DOWN IF YOU'RE NOT INTO BREAST FEEDING HORROR STORIES!!

While in the hospital, I had a hard time feeding my boy. He was tongue tied to start with, but the nice people there took care of that for me. The worst part is he had a REALLY hard suck. He took skin off a place skin should never come off and I was never the same. Breastfeeding hurts every time I don't care what book you read. Lesson learned: Breastfeeding is not for the weak of spirit. I stopped when he was five months old. Lesson I was supposed to learn: Breastfeeding is not for the weak in spirit.



OK....YOU CAN READ AGAIN

It would have been so easy if he were always so stinkin' happy!

Aaron was making Lemon Bars for a treat one day. We went to the store and bought all the stuff we needed, this included a dozen eggs. We left one load of groceries on the counter and went outside for another. We came back in and Sam said, "I be helper" there were 3 or 4 eggs on the ground, and not in one piece, either! From this I learned that the words "I be helper" should always be responded to immediately.

Who knew that horns came in edible varieties....

One day we went to Cold Stone's for a treat. I don't think Sam was one yet, and if he was, he wasn't much past that. There we were, Aaron, Liv, Sam, and me sitting enjoying our ice cream. Enter 2 teen age girls, quite cute and dressed very much like it was summer time (tube top and shorts, tank top and mini). They chose the table next to us. Sam starred at them, well, mostly at their legs and chests. It was ridiculous. And quite embarrassing. Aaron laughed at him. To this day Sam has no problem charming the ladies. He smiles and shows off those dimples. Not too many women can resist his eyes and dimples. Lesson learned: In Sam's case the age when he can date will be no less than 21.

'nough said.

A few for fun:


Mr. Clean deserves some sort of reward for creating the Magic Eraser. It has saved the relationships of moms and their boys everywhere.


It doesn't matter who, or what, you are, you can still get in trouble in Sam's mind...."No sun, NO! You're in TROUBLE" when the sun shines in Sam's eyes in the car. "No, baby, NO! We be nice to books! Say 'sorry book'!"...when Emerson got a hold of his favorite book "Hymns".

One of Sam's many "artistic" moments. Weapon of choice? Clinique lipstick.

Patience is a virtue I used to think I had, but now I'm sure I don't. I decided to potty train him the week of Mother's Day and it WAS NOT A PRETTY THING!!! We went into underwear cold turkey. I decided he no longer wore diapers without consulting with him first. Note to all moms: I would suggest not potty training the week before you have been asked to give a talk on mothers....let's just say I wasn't feeling like a good or nice mom that week....

My sweet baby boy...where did he go??

The best thing I've learned from Sam, to date, came the day he came home from the hospital. Aaron ran an errand and my mom was across the street at Sam's Club. They left me alone with a sleeping Sam. I looked at him and asked him: "Do you know I'm your mommy?" He smiled. I asked him if he knew I loved him...another smile. OK, I'm sure you're all thinking "Oh how sweet...he had gas" but, no, it was my "Tender Mercies of the Lord" moment.

I've had fun with this boy. I've also wanted to kill this boy. He can be the biggest turkey ornery brat or the sweetest little man on earth. I've learned to take advantage of the sweet moments.

I LOVE THIS BOY!!