The Good, the Bad, the Ugly

The Good:

--Sam has mastered the ABC song. He was randomly belting it out yesterday – and today he logged about 50 laps in the hallway while he shouted it out at top volume.

--We've been singing a lot of Christmas carols around the house. I think Grandma and Grandpa got Sam started, and now he loves Rudolph and Santa Claus is Coming to Town. It's pretty much intstant happiness and makes me look forward to Christmas.

--My recovery is 100 percent easier than it was with Sam. I won’t go into details – wouldn’t want to scare off any would-be moms!

--I'm not pregnant anymore! No more leg cramps, no more heartburn! I can bend over, drink wine and sleep on my back. LOVE IT.

--Elliott is sweet as pie. He's still in the sleepy stage, so he just snoozes on and off all day long. He's a great little cuddler.

The Bad:
--I miss our routine. We're all over the place right now trying to keep Sam and Elliott happy, the refrigerator stocked and the house picked up. Add some Christmas shopping and a new nanny search to the list and it just feels like everything's been turned upside down. Not my favorite.

--Breastfeeding is a bigger time suck than I remember and with a baby who’s content to sleep on and off between slurps, it’s been stressful trying to figure out if he's eating enough, and carving out time to really engage with Sam in between feedings.

--I think Sam is definitely harboring some resentment towards me for having the baby. He's sweet as can be toward Elliott, but rejection is the name of the game with me. It's a bit heartbreaking to be honest, but I'm hopeful it will pass soon.

The Ugly:
--Steve and I are showering about once every other day. Gross.

--The high temp was 16 degrees yesterday. Brrr! Winter’s officially here and it’s going to be a long one.

--Sam is terribly two. If things don’t go exactly as planned, all hell breaks loose. Steve and I have been on the verge of poking our eyeballs out a few times. We finally resorted to the TV yesterday, plopping him down in front of Rudolph (see above). Thank God he's cute and lovable most of the time or we'd have a real problem on our hands! ;)