Dial M for Minky: Day 366 and winning the Gold.

Training for the Baby Olympics

My Elmo Cake! Whoohoo! Stinker Loved it.

Curling is an Olympic Sport it takes skill and practice, but recently I think I've found an activity that really ought to be included. Diapering a one year old. Bonus points for poopy diapers. The skill with which I can get said diaper off and get him cleaned up before he gets up and takes off is, if I say so myself, impressive. I give myself extra difficulty points for the re-diapering procedure that is executed while chasing after crawling baby. Yes, diapering on the go. Sometimes I catch a break, like a nice breeze in sailing, and he decides to just stand and shake his groove thing to a little Rhianna Please Don't Stop the Music and a dancing baby is easier than a crawling one to wrap up in Pampers. So maybe that's a lower difficulty score, but it's still up there. I wonder how many signatures we would need to get that on the docket.The competition would be fierce. And we can complete the event in hotels, hidden in booths at restaurants, in the back seat of a small car, the playground, in NYC my husband and I both crowded in a teeny bathroom at Palma and changed him while all three of us were standing up. So, no need to build us a stadium or anything, we could just use anywhere...toss in an obstacle course portion! We can handle it! Think of the corporate sponsorship, the possibilities are endless. Ah, the skills I never knew I had! Or should I say skillz. Cause I gots game where this is concerned.

Here we are on the first day of the second year of Baby Max's life and I'm thinking: How long can I keep calling him Baby Max? I mean someday he'll be like 15 and I'll be saying "Baby Max come give mommy a hug" and he'll be all "Moooooooooooooooooooooom, get away!" Now when I say it he crawls as fast as he can hands and knees slapping the floor haphazardly as he races to get to me and get a snuggle and a zerbert. I can't resist a good zerbert. Can you? Admit, there's something about baby skin that just says zerbert me!I'm also thinking where to keep all these wonderful toys? As you know we are living the American Dream currently and crashing in my in-laws posh and fabulous basement apartment. I say that with no sarcasm. Seriously, the place we are in in wonderful has more room that my first apartment it has a full bath, a big back yard, room for us the baby, the Prozac Puppy, almost all our furniture and now about half of the Toys R Us catalog. (and the added bonus of Grandparents who love to babysit. Awesome.) Baby Max (I've just now decided I can still get away with it till he's two, right?) has more toys than a large preschool now. We've got a climber, a kitchen, cars, trucks, garage, Elmo, Elmo, Elmo. I thinking of taking my mother's advice and rotating the toys

through. Even though we may be displaced from our home and struggling to get back on our feet we are blessed beyond measure. A roof over our heads, food in our bellies, surrounded by love on all fronts and most importantly our health. Doubly most important is Max's health. On this day when I'm turning my thoughts to a Mom I've never met and a baby I've only read about and ask God to care for him and heal him I also take a moment to be extra grateful that Baby Max is healthy. Babies shouldn't be sick. It's not right. So please God, I know you're listening, send blessings to Baby Stellan. We've got plenty to share over here, please send him some of ours along with our love.