Human Again

After two and a half months of constant nausea and fatigue I'm starting to feel human again. Slowly, but surely I'm making my way out of the first trimester (plus some) of traumatizing, mind-numbing morning sickness. Add to that having to deal with the busy season at work and then come home to an intensely energetic toddler and you have a recipe for complete and utter misery.

Seriously, part of me wonders how I made it through the last three months. It's been torturous and in so many ways so much worse than the first time around. The only saving grace was that I knew that there was light at the end of the tunnel and this pain would not last forever. That being said, when you're about to collapse from exhaustion after work, your stomach is in shambles, your little one is begging you to go to the park, and you somehow have to get dinner ready, you have to wonder, for a brief second, if it's worth it.

So, yes, as you can tell, I'm still pregnant and so far things have been going fairly smoothly. It's so different this time around and part of me feels a little guilty already to #2. I definitely don't have the same amount of time to think about him (we're 90% sure it's a boy from the NT scan) and rest the way I did with J. Last time around I would count the days until my next OB appointment, but this time I have to look on the calendar to make sure I don't miss it.

At 16 months, J is a handful. He has so much energy and never sits still. It's actually a running joke that everybody in the neighborhood knows him because we're always out. We're either at the park or the school or storytime or kindergym. As soon as we say the word "outside," he'll run to get his jacket and his shoes and he'll wait by the door.

It's amazing how much he's absorbing on a day-to-day basis. He can say about a dozen words from umma (mom in korean) to shoes and his nanny's name. But, he knows/understands body parts and can point to them: head, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, toes, fingers, foot in both English and Spanish (his nanny speaks to him 100% in Spanish). He knows "vamonos" and says "a-do" for adios and knows that when  you pick up the phone you say "hello" but when he sees people he says "hi." He also knows about half a dozen animals from monkey to goldfish and mimics their sounds.

I just can't believe how much he's grown and to see his personality shining through. J is so incredibly independent...Other moms actually comment on it at the park. He wants to do everything on his own and only asks for help when he knows he needs it (i.e., climbing big stairs).

It's been wonderful so far, but we've had our challenges, too. We're starting to hit some tantrums and pickiness with food. Also, he's been transitioning to one nap and that's been a bit difficult. He's only been sleeping for 1.5 hours in the afternoon and he definitely needs more than that. So, not all rainbows and unicorns, but we're getting through it.

Last but not least, a very happy pic of J during dinner.