One Month Home and New Gotcha Day Video!

December 26 to January 26, wow.  Hard to believe it’s been a month.  Don’t we all say that? :-)

Some things I’ve learned:

- Going from one child to two is WAY easier than going from zero to one for me.  The physical aspects are harder as I now have more laundry to do, more food to prepare, more messes to pick up, and most importantly, more juggling to do.  But mentally and emotionally, it’s a piece of cake.  When we arrived home with Gigi, I went from a lifestyle centered on ME to a lifestyle centered on a child.  I struggled big time with that.  This time my life already revolves around painting, playdough, Thomas the Train, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  Add one kid or five (heaven forbid) and that doesn’t change.  Who I am and what I do hasn’t changed- only the load has increased a bit.

- How much I adore changing crib bedding.  (This is more of a “remember.”)  Is it too early to switch Gabi to a toddler bed?  (Thanks for the spelling of Gabi, Steph K!)

- The second kid is more likely to die by accidental death than the first.  Why is it that all of Gigi’s toys can choke or run over a small toddler?

- Gav is basically a happy child.  He only fusses when he gets hungry or tired.

- Boys may do boy things, and girls may do girl things, but they both do things completely outside their gender.

- Gav tolerates his own bath, but loves Gigi’s bath.  He’ll stand at the tub for an hour splashing away much to her chagrin.  Except for the one time he reached too far, and flipped right in!  They were both quite surprised, but I think Gigi was more scared than Gav was!

- A picky eater does not make me want to make homemade stuff for him.  Buy the jars and if I throw out the contents after 2 bites, at least I’m only throwing away money rather than time, effort, love, and money.

- I now see why people spoon-feed their children up to and past 2 years of age.  Whereas Gigi did a remarkable job of actually eating her food, Gav just likes to throw it. 

- Boys really don’t “fountain” as much as I’ve been led to believe.

- In caring for hair and skin of African descent:
    - I totally get the pillow lint in the hair now.  Hello do-rag.  (“The do-rag was popular throughout many different eras. A popular misconception is that the do-rag is a recent African-American trend, but, in actuality, for centuries, men and women of African descent from around the world have used various fabrics and scarves to cover their hair. The custom is known also from ancient China, where wrapping the hair (often held in a topknot) was common during physical labour and military service.”  Wikipedia)
     - Lotion, lotion, lotion.  Dry skin on white skin blends together for the most part.  Not so for Mr. Gavriel.  If I don’t moisturize him, his dry skin stands out loud and clear and is a neon sign that says, “BAD MOM alert!  Over here!  Arrest her!”
     - An afro is hard to maintain.  Gav’s hair is about 2-3 inches long, so I thought I’d brush it out so see it all poufy.  It poufed for about 30 minutes, and then went back to its nice, chunky curls again.  Without using product in his hair (which I’d never do in a child this young), I’d have to continually brush his hair to maintain a ‘fro.
     - When we leave the house, I simply brush Gigi’s hair.  With Gav’s hair, I spritz it with water, add a little leave-in conditioner, and comb it with a big, wide tooth comb so it doesn’t look all frizzy.

This video was taken by our friend Jenn, and graciously sent on to us.  As the video starts, all the parents are standing back where the camera is, and the nannies are bringing all the children in through the gates of the Guest House.  I cried big ol’ fat rolling tears when I watched it, but that’s just me. :-)