me and my boy

I really, really need to be grading some papers right now--I have twenty of them just hanging about, making me feel guilty that I haven't started on them at all--but I just don't really want to do them and I'm procrastinating with everything else I can think of doing. I've worked on my visiting teaching report, organize playgroup for tomorrow, scoured Facebook for anything interesting (still nothing) . . . and now I'm blogging.

I'll work on those papers tonight. I swear I'll be productive later. (This is the worst part about teaching.)

Can I just tell you that I love my little guy? Dane has turned some corner and become, on the whole, such an easy-going, mellow little friend to be around. Can I just tell you--HE PLAYS BY HIMSELF NOW. For twenty or thirty minutes at a time. Sure, sometimes it means that I find things like this when I come find him, but I don't care. It's soooo worth it. (At least for now, since he's staying out of the fridge and pantry. . .)

Also, this--he loves playing and "hiding" in our hamper and crawling around in the dirty clothes. Lovely.

Part of this might be that we've just gotten him some better toys that he loves (like his bday presents), but part of it is just that he is older and wiser and happier all around, and doesn't lie at my feet crying while I try to make dinner any more. He does drag a stool over and insist on helping to make dinner, but that is soooo much easier to deal with. He loves helping me make cookies--maybe we should make some more today.

We spend our mornings going to one of several places: 1) the park, 2) the library/storytime, 3) church Institute class (with a nursery that Dane loves), or 4) playgroup. We spend our afternoons with him napping and me working or reading. I no longer stress about him taking short naps or feel like the world has ended when he wakes up early. I just get him up and we play trains or even (gasp!) watch a show together.

It is a good little life we've got here together. It can be boring at times--we need to spice things up this month and do something exciting one of these weekends--but we are happy together and finally, after two years, we have got a serious easy groove going. (Knock on wood.)

Also, I don't know about you, but I am soooo excited about Halloween, now that I've bought Dane a costume. He was minimally interested in the Winnie the Pooh costume, but LOVED the Elmo costume and was so happy to be wearing it, so that's the one we got. But I'm sorry, HOW cute is he in both of these?

(And also, I only paid $4.50 for the costume from Kid 2 Kid, so it was the perfect Halloween costume shopping experience.)