Jackson was really excited about Valentine's Day, which he calls Just Because I Love You Day, just as he's excited about most holidays. His preschool class had a Valentine's party last Thursday, so we prepared little cards for his class. I made his name traceable on the back of each card since it was such a small space to fit his name. He did such a great job tracing his name legibly on all 15 cards. I asked him if he wanted to take a break part way through and he said, "I don't need a break. I don't get tired."
When he got home from school he emptied his box of goodies and picked out a sucker. He was even willing to give Owen a sucker to show him that he loves him.
The next day Jackson told me that he wanted to make me a card. He told me he wanted to make one because he loves me. He said he loved me because I give him water as well as listing off a few other day-to-day things that I do for him. It was so sweet that he listed things that seem like mundane tasks but obviously mean something to him. The bear card is a card he made at school. The card with all the hearts is the one he made for me at home. It's a punching robot, another robot, and a bunch of "I love you hearts," in his words.
Mary and I left for Chicago Valentine's Day afternoon, but Jonathan and I made heart-shaped waffles for the boys that morning. They also each got a dry erase crayon board and mini M&Ms.
Valentine's Day afternoon the boys dropped Mary and me off at the airport for our trip to Chicago. Jonathan had Monday off of work, so we took advantage of a longer weekend. Mary was a very good travel buddy. She was easy to keep happy overall with only a few short crying episodes when she got tired. In the picture on the left we were hanging out in the airport waiting area, and she was happy playing with her teething ring and a make-shift mobile with a teething necklace. We had a row to ourselves, so on the right she is just laying in the empty seat next to me.
When we arrived in Chicago the temperature was 7 degrees with a windchill of -13 degrees.
I brought Mary to meet my Grandma in her assisted living home. My parents and sister came long on Sunday afternoon. On Monday morning Mary and I went back with my mom and brought my Grandma a chocolate shake :). My Grandma met the boys a little under 2 years ago, so I wanted to make sure she had the chance to meet Mary as well. Mary was full of smiles, coos and 'talking,' and grabbing her fingers. It was a really sweet time.
One of the funniest things about our visit was how much attention we received from all of the residents at the assisted living home. Mary was quite the popular little baby. I think we met nearly everyone who lived there, and they would come up to tell us they heard there was a baby around.
Talking to all the women and men in their 80s and 90s is always such a reminder of how special this time in life is. So many of them told stories of their children when they were babies, and I heard over and over what a blessing Mary is. My Grandma asked about a rocking chair from her house that my parents now have at their house, and she was talking about how she remembers nights rocking my dad in that chair when he was a baby. During this time of life that sometimes feels chaotic and definitely low on sleep, it is a nice reminder to slow down and soak it all in since time goes by so quickly.
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