I hope you all managed to stay dry this weekend. Judging by this weeks weather forecast, we may need to build an ark – with heat.
It’s looking like parents will have to somehow incorporate an umbrella into their children’s Halloween costumes. The real challenge will be convincing them that umbrellas on Halloween are “cool”.
Mocha was the worlds best dog.
She passed away at home early this afternoon, with my mom by her side. She was due to be put down tomorrow morning, as she became very ill this past week, but she passed on her own, which is the way it should be.
Mocha joined our family in March of 2000, at 8 weeks old. She was a little black furball with mocha highlights (hence the name), and was the cutest little shih-poo I had ever lain eyes on. She fit right into our family and we forgot what life was like before her.
Loyal, is not a strong enough word to describe her. If you were upset, she was there. If you were feeling sick, she was there. If you were over the moon with happiness, she was there, jumping at your side. She was the perfect dog.
She loved to cuddle, and when she slept with you, you could count on only 5% of the bed, as she reserved the other 95%. She was always at your feet while you cooked, or ate, waiting for a crumb or large chunk of cheese to fall from the counter. She barked whenever the doorbell rang, or when an unfamiliar face came over – she was as cute as a teddy bear, but tried desperately to fill the role of “guard dog”. Whenever you came into the house (whether you were gone five minutes, or the whole day), she would bring something to you – her bone, her toy, a sock; her tail wagging, as she whined with excitement. I will miss that greeting, when I walk into my mom’s house.
When I moved out, she stayed with my mom and sisters, but I still considered her to be my dog. She was a member of the family, and always will be. It’s hard to imagine what Christmas morning will be like without her – circling our feet, waiting for us to open all the treats in her stocking. Maxton won’t remember her, he will only have the pictures I took of them together.
I’ll miss chasing her around the house, watching her forfeit the race under the dining room table. To this day, I think she believed we couldn’t see her while she hid there.
Mocha, you will always be my puppy, and will always hold a special place in my heart. I love you wuvvy and miss you so much already, rest in peace. xo
January 24, 2000 – October 24, 2012
I’m sure many of you have heard those famous sounds “goo goo ga ga”, the cliché baby talk if you will. Or is it?
Maxton loves to make the “g” sound – in his mind, all words have the letter “g” in them. Okay, I may be exaggerating a little, but he loves “g”. He will often say “gugg-gugg” which seems to be fairly universal at this point. He loves to say the word “again” (he understands the concept of the word) which he says quite well and often; if he likes what you’re doing, prepare to be on repeat-mode for the next 20 minutes.
He also says “truck” which he pronounces “uck”, and sometimes “uckg”, if he’s in the “g” mood. “Up” often sounds like “ugg” – which I hear the most while I am trying to prepare dinner.
Last week I asked him to say “ball” which he repeated back to me as “bogg”. Sure, why not?
Don’t get me wrong, he doesn’t add a “g” to every word he says, but I think if he had his way, a “g” sound would be part of every word.
So maybe “goo goo ga ga” isn’t so cliché, but I always figured it was a difficult sound to make for babies, because you have to use the back of your tongue – I guess not.
“G” is for grrrrr.
When I decided to start a blog, it took me a while to come up with a title for it. I wanted it to be something original and witty, but most importantly, to describe exactly how I was feeling. I was a new mom walking on unfamiliar territory – it was (and still is) about trial and error, blunders and triumphs; and so, Mamas-baby-steps was born.
Well, on Friday (October 19), my baby took his first steps. I always wondered what I would feel in that moment. Would I cry? Laugh? Scream? Would I even be in the room when it happened? The answer is all the above. Steve and I were both in the room, and we managed to capture his first five-six steps on video. How great is that? We played back the clip over 15 times that night, feeling a sense of accomplishment as parents.
We weren’t the only ones who were proud – our little monkey was beaming as he fell into my arms after having taken his very first (unassisted) steps.
Earlier that day I was chasing him around in one of his walkers (which he absolutely loves), wondering when he would have the courage and confidence to let go.
He was all smiles the rest of the evening, and so were we.
Another week is upon us, with Halloween fast approaching – I purchased some spooky decor this weekend for outside. I thought Maxton would have been scared of the three-foot skeleton I picked up, but he seemed intrigued by it.
Here’s a little recap of our weekend:
Monkeying around.
Delicious dessert.
Stacking rings with Grandpa.
Smiles and giggles.
One thing I didn’t share with you, was the major milestone Maxton reached this weekend – check back tomorrow to see what it was!
Mama's Baby Steps 