Happy Mother's Day and a belly pic

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, my mother-in-law, and every other mother and mother-to-be I hold dear in my heart. And even those I don't. It's a day for mothers to celebrate THEMSELVES! As another friend mentioned, mothers of young children don't really get to relax or get terribly pampered. At least I don't. My kids are still at young, demanding ages. Diapers still need to be changed (and washed, if you use cloth, as I do), dishes still need to be washed, and again, in my case, the husband cannot be disturbed as he hunkers down to finish marking a mountain of exams. His deadline is this Friday! (This is all separate from his actual teaching job, making it that much more stressful).

But it was still a nice day. As we do every Sunday, Colin made pancakes and bacon for breakfast. Ethan made me a card and I got many hugs and "I love you"s, which is priceless. And in the evening, we all went out for dinner. I ended the day with a 2 year old tantrum, The Amazing Race, and falling asleep in front of the TV. All very typical for me, actually. (Being pregnant, I don't think I've been able to keep my eyes open past 9 or 9:30 for months!).

This is the card Ethan made me. Note the "mum" and not "mom". I have taught him that he can spell it either way, as mom is common in Canada and mum is common here (although we've always pronounced it "mum"). And Ethan, if he has the choice between how "we" say things and how kiwis say things (or spell them), will always choose the kiwi way. He assimilates well into our new culture.


"Take picture me!!" Silas exclaimed as soon as he saw the camera.

And these two amazing boys are the reason I celebrate Mother's Day. And I have to add a little note to this picture also. Do you see Ethan looking slightly distressed and holding the kleenex? Well, he's developed a horrible habit of licking his lips, which has progressed to licking all around his lips and the skin around his mouth and chin are SOOO chapped and awful-looking. He had just scratched one part until it bled and then we were suddenly taking pictures and he was very upset that we were taking a picture of him holding a kleenex to his face. I just figure, it's realistic. We can look back at this picture someday and say, "This was Ethan's chapped-face phase." Oh, please God, let this be a phase. So far, his face has been chapped and red for about 3 months. *sigh* NOTHING we do or say (or don't say) has helped him stop.

And a 22-week (almost) belly pic. I've been a slacker this pregnancy and this is the first shot I've taken. Poor, neglected, 3rd child. He or she will be lucky if we ever remember to pull the camera out.