And this is when I'd like to find the slow down button

Jasper is going to be one in 12 days. I know. What?

He is my angel baby. I get lost in his sky blue eyes. Don't get me wrong, he has his moments. He can be very demanding. He doesn't sit in his high chair for more than 2 min. He wants to stand up. He wants to climb every thing. He wants my fork. I eat every meal with my fingers. He takes the utensils and throws them on the ground. He wants another one.

Jasper is close to walking but I think another month or so before he does it. He crawls like a mad man and he's much more interested in climbing than walking. He just wants to get the highest point of the tallest thing in the room.

Things in general are still hard but they are getting easier. I mean the day to day, there's a struggle at the center of it. It's always a struggle but there's a method most of the time, to the madness. I feel like we're heading into that sweet spot. That place where both kids are still kids but they aren't babies. We aren't there yet by any means but I'm feeling less like, "let's hurry up and get there." and more like, "let's slow it down. This is going too fast."

We got sick for the first time this cold and flu season. Yes it started. Cold and Flu season is here already. Davey got his famous cough and we've started taking him to an allergist who prescribed breathing treatments with a nebulizer. This is a little machine that turns medicine into vapor that he inhales through a face mask. It was hard to get him to do it in the beginning and now it's still hard but he's getting used to it. It's pretty sad sitting next to him while he breathes on this thing but not as sad as him coughing uncontrolably for weeks on end. The allergist tells us that he is having an asthmatic reaction to the viruses he's getting. The asthma takes the form of a cough. The good news is that he doesn't have full blown asthma and she feels it will clear up in 2-3 years. I've spoken to a few parents now whose children had a similar situation when they were Davey's age and now they don't have any problems with asthma so I'm hopeful that she's right. For now he's off the treatments because his lungs are 100% clear but if he gets even so much as a sniffle, we hit him with the treatments and this is supposed to stave off the virus from going down into his lungs and settling in. In other words he'll just get sick like a normal kid would get sick for a few days. I'm hopeful that this winter will be easier than last because of this new diagnosis and treatment plan! Fingers way crossed.

I went to a back to school night for Davey's pre-school last night. It really hit me as I was going through the paperwork, "wow this is real school. I mean he's started his acedemic career." He will be in school now FOREVER. A long time. And that means that in a way, Deron and I are in school too. We have to engage! It's good stuff. I really like his school.

They offered babysitting during the open house and I had dropped Davey and Jasper off there while I went to the meeting. They did it at the toddler center next door where Davey used to go to day care last year. When I went to get them I could hear music pouring out the windows as I walked up to the building, "my Sharona" BLASTING. There were about 30 toddlers in there all dressed in costumes dancing to My Sharona. Jasper was sitting in his stroller taking it all in. It was so fucking hilarious. Davey had a cowboy hat on and chaps. I said, "Are you a cowboy?" duh. and his little buddy who was dressed in a full on dinosaur costume screamed, "I'M A DINOSAUR!!!!" Davey didn't want to go home. I had to drag him out.

Slow down button please.

Tonight Dup is taking Davey to his second Karate class. Our neighbor Nicholas takes Karate at a Dojo near by and Davey has shown interest. Also in the last 6 months he's just really gotten into "fighting." Everything turns into a sword: as straw, a bat, a spoon, a stick; all equal swords. So I thought this might be a good way to let him channel that energy. A place where we could say "yes" to it. Well he loved the class. It's a lot like herding cats but the teacher is very very good. I was amazed at his patience and balance of kindness and discipline. They did stretches, jumping jacks and then they practiced a series of kicks. They kick bags not people but on Fridays they put these little kids in pads and let them pummel each other. On the way home Davey told me that Karate is his favorite thing to do and he doesn't like basketball. Then he told his imaginary friend who is a dog, "Sorry, you can't go to karate. No dogs allowed. Sorry. Teacher says. That against rules." I was dying. So Dup is going tonight to see what all the fuss is about and then we can decide if we'll go all in. It's $75 a month but then you have to buy the outfit, bite guard, cup (do they make cups that small? omg) It adds up. I'm for it but as Dup is fond of saying, "where is the money gonna come from?" And so it begins. It's always something with these little guys. They say kids are expensive and they're not kidding.

Dup if you're reading this, don't forget the camera today when you take him. We need photos of our little Karate kid.