Happy Monday Super Mommy!

June gloom has passed and summer is in full swing. Seems appropriate that I took Max on a shopping spree today. A few hot ticket items on his "fun in the sun" list were a kiddie pool, extra large gardening tools, and a bjorn potty seat.

That list pretty well sums up what's going on around here. It's gorgeous outside and Max is ecstatic about being in the water, so we are putting a little pool on the rooftop deck. I can't think of a better way for Max and his friends to spend some time together.

The gardening tools are all the rage because they are as big as his body. I've had to take all heavy toys away from him because this kid has an arm. "Ow!" He'll knock you out with a wooden spoon or a pepper shaker, and the new toys I just got him are light and won't damage me OR the house. Since Max banged a dent into the bamboo wood floor, I'm on toy patrol.

And then the potty chair is something I'm convinced he's ready for. I've heard that babies who wear cloth diapers are easier to potty train because they can feel the wetness when they tinkle. Also, Max jumps in the shower with me and laughs and laughs as he pees. It makes me think he might know what he's doing. I can't wait to see his reaction when I sit him on his new potty chair the next time I catch him making his number-two-potty-face.

Usually I'm bragging about how proud I am of my baby, but today I feel like giving myself a big pat on the back.

First of all, Max slept TERRIBLY last week. He cut his top two fang teeth and was up all the time at all hours of night like clockwork. Poor baby....I hate teeth! And lucky us, he cuts them two and three at a time.

At one point, I got out of bed to pat him on the back or rub his belly, and I was just too darn tired to stand there leaning over the side of his bed rail. So I repeated something that I had only done once before, and I crawled into the crib to snuggle with him.

Now, I know that most moms would have just brought their baby in the bed with them. But I was too tired to think of something so clever or intelligent.

At some point between midnight and the middle of the night, we fell asleep spooning in his miniature manger. Who knows how long I was passed out in there for, because when I woke up in the morning, there was a beautiful baby in my arms and a gnarly crick in my neck. We'll see if I can stick with my big girl bed this week....ahahaaa!

Last Monday, I took Max to a friend's house to babysit her 19-month-old son, Jackson for about 6 hours. We had so much fun and I think that's what really made me feel like supermom. Those boys were running around going crazy, and I whisked them off to the park in the nick of time before they destroyed the house. It was absolutely delightful to see the way they were feeding off each other's endless energy. It was also an enormous challenge to keep up with the both of them!

Of course I adored every minute of it. Now that I'm a mom, it's my mission in life to give love to babies, toddlers, children, adult children, and anyone that was ever a baby once in their life. Since I'm oozing all this love and compassion for kids, it is perfect for me to be able to share that with another munchkin. Babysitting is the perfect opportunity for me to gush all over the babies and help out some other mommies.

The only thing that I find to be extremely difficult about being out in public with two kids, is how the heck you are supposed to go to the bathroom while "taking care" of the bunchkins??? It always amazes me that moms are able to go to relieve themselves in the toilet when they need to. I mean, forget privacy. Those days are long gone, but to use the restroom is an obstacle that confuses me to pieces.

See, I didn't want to bring the boys into the bathroom because it was just gross in there. Nasty park potty. Ugh, I don't even want their cute little shoes to touch a public bathroom. Maybe I'll get over this at some point, but what if they decide to touch something, or for goodness' sake sit down in there. Gross! And you can't really ask a stranger to watch them for a minute when you're babysitting for someone else. Maybe if it's a park you go to on a regular basis, but I was in a different park in Studio City where I didn't know anyone.

And then there's me (remember her?) and the fact that I don't have a minute to spare or I will pee in my pants. So you wanna' know what I do?... (Normal? I think not.) I sprint into the bathroom. I prop the door open (you know, the main entrance to the bathroom so that you can see everyone and they can all see you), run into the stall, and pop a squat over the toilet with that door open. That method worked brilliantly and I can't imagine anything better. (Maybe? That's not public indecency is it?) Hey, when you gotta go, you gotta go!

Every Wednesday I teach my family yoga class. I loooove my new job. It is EXACTLY what I want to do with my time on hump day. It is my pleasure and an honor to work with parents and children together. Max and the other kiddos wear themselves out playing with the yoga blocks while the parents are literally "in" happy baby. This is my idea of a win, win situation!

The past two weeks, Max has blessed me with the sweetest gifts a mother could possibly receive. When I'm teaching and demonstrating poses in the middle of yoga class, he will come over and randomly give me kisses. He'll be on the other side of the room playing, and run over to give me a reassuring smooch while I'm in updog. It's as if he's saying, "Mom, you're doing a great job. Keep up the good work!"

This is the most challenging and draining job I've ever had...In a good way! Multitasking as a mommy and a yoga teacher is a blast! My main concern is making sure Max is finished napping before we leave the house at 3pm, which means we can't run behind in the mornings. We have to be en pointe with waking up, breakfast, lunch, and nap, so we have a happy and upbeat toddler at 4pm. It is a huge blessing to be able to take my baby to work with me, and so far the feedback has been fabulous.

At this point, I think we have a nice, solid schedule down that works for all of us. He is only napping once a day, and as long as he goes down for that nap by 1pm, we are set. Fortunately, I am always able to get him down for a nap, even if he is not rubbing his eyes and yawning by 1pm. All I have to do is breast feed him in a dark, silent room until he falls asleep. Things like that may sound easy, but it does take honest effort....especially after a bout of teething that knocks you off your schedule.

And then on the weekends I have been working for Kitchenaid. I feel so resourceful, because I have found a way to make the amount I pay the babysitter a little cheaper. I just have her meet us at the mall instead of meeting at my house. That way she can play with Max at the indoor playground next to Macy's, and I don't have to pay her for my travel time driving to/from work. And then if Max gets sleepy and needs milk I can easily step out and tend to him.

We've also made time to do tons of other social activities. We had a great time at Giselle's princess birthday party on Saturday! It was Max's first time to play in a bounce house and he thought it was the greatest thing that had ever happened in the whole entire world.


I don't know how moms do it. Life becomes a perfectly synchronized orchestra of sorts. And it works! I'm taking a moment to pat myself on the back for making mommy magic happen every single day of my life! Woohoo!

Selflessness and strengh are only a couple qualities of the life of a mother.....Tapping into those now!

Happy Monday you Super Mommy You!!!

Splish Splash Max was takin' a bath....

Baby Max had the best day ever with his girlfriend Natalie. She is only a little older than him and they play together so well. We were two tired mommies today, but with our bouncing babies and some mommy mojo we made it happen. Kelly is such a wonderful mother and I love being with them!

Blessed days like these are what dreams are made of. And it is my dream for Max to have a clean baby bootie all the time. Sounds like a win, win to have happy, clean babies, huh! Love that.....Heck, I just loved this day!

Sweet little Maximilian's updates include:

He slides down the baby slide at the park all by himself. He dives face first like superman....yikes!

He knows how to put the lid back on a water bottle. I was very surprised to see him turn the lid around to screw it on correctly.

He gives french kisses to boys and girls with his mouth open. He also helps himself to food out of his friends' mouths....even if they were planning on swallowing and keeping it for themselves.

He sits in his own little chair that has his name monogrammed on it. It's a fun game him and Marc play. "Go get in your chair!" And Max runs back and forth from his chair to his toys.

He says a lot more words. A few that I heard this week include up, blueberries, i love you, and kitchen.

If your cocktail needs a little stir, he does that with his entire fist. Then he will proceed to feed you ice cubes--even if you are wearing a beautiful dry clean only suit and you don't want your cranberry drink to spill on your front.

He climbs three flights of steps in less than a minute. This has become a daily ritual because he loves it so much and it wears him out.

He has 11 or 12 teeth, 3 of which are molars.

When he wants milk he rips off my shirt--regardless of where we are.

He cleans his air jordan basketball shoes in the toilet.

He falls about 3000 times a day and manages to get away with only about ten bruises on his knees and shins.

He growls when I take his pacifier away.

He gives lots of hugs and wraps his arms tight around my neck. He is the center of our world......xoxo

I'm so touched!

If you've ever read my blog, I'm sure it comes as a surprise when I talk about anything other than baby Max. And in typical new-mother-fashion, I will definitely talk about my little elf on most every post. But sometimes, like today, I am touched for a different reason.

I didn't know I could view the statistics of how many people read my blog until a few hours ago. I thought I was just writing this mostly for myself, and my family members might take an occasional gander to see an updated photo I have attached. But today I was stunned to learn that I have readers from 10 different countries including Norway, Malaysia, and Hong Kong to name a few. I'm shocked that people around the world are taking interest in what I have to say!

I only started writing a blog in the first place for two reasons. The main reason is that I wanted a journal to chronologicalize my pregnancy and baby Max's entrance into the world. I know myself well enough to know that I will forget all of the important moments if I do not record them. If you look at Max's completely empty baby book that I have continuously been meaning to "get to", I have proven my point. I'm not the scrapbooker type of gal and need to utilize modern technology to be more efficient. So I didn't begin writing here for anyone else to read besides myself, and hopefully Max would enjoy reading it one day in the future.

The second reason I began blogging as opposed to writing in a traditional journal is quite simple. My speedy typing skills trump the tedious and tiring art of writing by hand by a long shot. There is no way I could crank out a quick blog entry if I had to guide a pen over paper to write every single word. So typing on my mac has made it more realistic for me to tell Max's story and record random thoughts about what's going on around us.

Speaking of Max's story, he got his 6th tooth yesterday! I told him that's enough. Surely six teeth are all he needs to get through life. But this tooth was different from the rest. He slept like a rockstar after too much partying and I barely noticed the little edges cutting through the gums. Maybe he had so much fun with grandmom and granddad in Dallas that he was too exhausted to notice that his mouth ached. If only all the teeth could be so simple....yeah, right!

Another huge development is blowing me away. Not only is Max pulling up onto his feet on every piece of furniture he comes across, but he is taking steps by himself while holding onto the coffee table, couch, and of course my pant legs. He's about to take mobile to the next level and I'm still not encouraging it. He's not even 10 months old yet and I'd really like him to be over a year old before he is walking all over the place.

I'm learning really quick that the busier baby is, the busier mommy is. I'm loving every single minute of it and I'm touched that people around the world are enjoying our story!