Monday Hath Come

We had a fairly low-key weekend that ended with a bang.

On Friday evening we had a little family outing to the mall. Jackson had suddenly outgrown almost all of his shoes and, propriety aside, the pavement is just too hot to run barefoot around town. We bought him some navy blue Crocs for the third summer in a row. They came with some special markers that he can decorate his shoes with. Maybe I will be a cool mom and let him do it. I mean, let's face it, it's not like you can wear Crocs and maintain your fashion sense anyway. Tennis shoes were also on the list but we didn't find any we loved. I may just buy him the same Vans from last year. I think they look great with all his clothes and they have Velcro, which I'm not ready to part with. When does a kid learn to tie his shoes, anyway? I'm still scarred from potty training and am really not ready to attempt that. According to the magical foot measuring fairy, Jackson's feet have gotten too wide for his current shoes, not too long. Stink.

That night we used our Joovy Caboose stroller for the first time. It has a place for Annabeth's infant carrier and a place for Jackson to either sit or stand. He hasn't ridden in a stroller since he threw a hundred and one fits about it last summer, but he was okay with this one. We'll see how long it takes for the novelty to wear off. We drew lots of stares. I don't know if it was because the stroller looked weird or because my children are just so lovely and well behaved!

I took these pictures on the day I assembled it. (Here's a hint for expectant moms. Put all your baby gear together yourself if you can. Then you'll be an expert on how to work all the contraptions.)





This is how the stroller looks with the infant carrier in it. I didn't know it could do that, otherwise I would have used it a lot sooner. Also, mom said I can't show any more pictures of Sir in his unders or he'll be mad at me later. This is the last time I guess.



I've had some questions about that t-shirt. Someone from Boone, NC, gave it to my mom for Jackson.





We had a lazy Saturday morning. Curtis worked on the guest room closet and I worked on a little art project. I've made such good use of my craft table lately! Later I tried to take Jackson to the neighborhood pool. When we got there at noon, the place was empty except for the lifeguards who seemed to be cleaning the pool. I didn't bother getting us out and asking; it was totally closed. Someone must have pooped in the water. I feel bad for that someones mom.

I hated to disappoint my kid and I'd already sacrificed our cleanliness to the sunscreen, so I called up my grandpa and asked if we could swim in his neighborhood pool. Pappaw was so generous to meet us there and get us in. He actually stayed with us the entire time and we loved getting to spend that time with him. Jackson was happy to have a new and exciting pool to swim in. This pool was actually in the neighborhood where I grew up. I think the last time I swam there I was in 8th grade. Of course my sentimental self relished being there again, even though the pool had seen better days. There were two teenage girls talking to the male lifeguard the whole time. Not only did I feel annoyed that they were distracting him from watching my kid (hello, old woman), but I felt embarrassed for them that they were probably annoying him to death and had no clue. That also made me feel nostalgic because my friend Erin and I spent untold hours annoying the lifeguards in our junior high glory days.

That night we went to see Travis Cottrell's concert at a local church. I don't think I need to tell you that we loved it. Annabeth wore the special blue dress that the Cottrells gave her so she'd be so pretty when she met Travis and the praise team. She was a little scared of Travis but she went right to Nate. So funny!

Yesterday was church and then lunch at my parents' house. Mom cooked a roast and it was the best meal since the last time she cooked it. She makes some mean gravy. While we were there I found a decorative box where I stashed a bunch of keepsakes from when I was 18 and 19. I found a handful of letters and cards from my mom, cards from all my friends for my 18th birthday, and tons of embarrassing pictures. When I was 19 I had an awful, horrible, no good, very bad haircut. Seriously. And braces! My word, the braces! In all the pictures I'm trying to smile without showing them and it just wasn't cute. Bless my heart. Maybe that was God's judgment against me for all the sins of my 18th year. The best thing I found in the box was a birthday card from my Nanny, who passed away less than a year later. By that point Nanny knew she was dying, so what she wrote was long and heartfelt. I'm tearing up right now. I'm so thankful I saved it. I feel like I had a little conversation with her after 11 years.

The rest of the day was uneventful until a big storm came through the area at about 7. The thunder and lightning was so crazy it made our windows shake. (This was our "ending with a bang.") Our electricity went out until 10. We were bored and Jackson couldn't sleep because of the silence. He has been trained since birth to sleep with a fan. I've purposely not used one in Annabeth's room yet for this very reason. Curtis and I had such a good conversation while the lights were out that it felt like date night. I'm thinking maybe we need to shut down the computers in the evenings again.

Holy cow, I almost forgot the craziest part of the weekend. I had to take a pregnancy test. It was negative. *Hallelujah chorus* My hormones are totally wacky right now, which may be why I was in a melancholy stupor for two weeks. I had to take a test at this exact point after having Jackson. I'd had nausea and everything! So had Janelle. I remember actually getting two tests in one box and taking one to her at the church. Ha ha! That is friendship! I've been wondering if I would freak out at five months again and sure enough I did.

One last thing. I'd like to announce that a row of very short baby bangs have begun to make an appearance on my noggin. Enjoy your Monday.