all by myself

there are certain things i didn't dare do by myself a year ago with the boys. i remember when the boys were a few months shy of 2, it was a big deal for me to take them out to lunch by myself (turned out to be no big deal, after all). the thought of taking them to the doctor alone sent shivers of terror down my spine. would i have done it in a pinch - of course! but it never came to that. i always managed to find a partner - either jordan or my mother-in-law, etc. heck, even putting the boys to bed by myself at that age wasn't a pleasant experience. sure, i did it (as did my husband) when necessary, but i didn't like it. and taking a shower if alone with the boys? sure, during nap time. i think i only tried it once while they were awake. craziness!

it's amazing to me how in a mere year, even less in some cases, we have entered a whole new world. taking the boys out for any meal by myself is just pure pleasure now. it's a treat for all of us, especially our saturday burger lunch at mighty fine! this morning they watched dinosaur train and i didn't think twice about going upstairs, showering and getting ready for work. both jordan and i have weekly evening commitments where there is just one of us putting the boys to bed and it is such a joy. for some bizarre reason, bedtime seems to go smoother when there is only one of us manning the fort. and when i scheduled a last minute doctors appointment for abel this afternoon, it didn't even cross my mind that i'd be on my own. doctors appointments can quickly turn disastrous, but i swear, they both sat on my lap and let the doc poke and prod, opened and said "aahhhh," and even answered the doctor's questions directly! i know it won't always be like that, but even the doctor was stunned at what great little patients she had. (abel is fine, btw, but has the beginnings of a sinus infection) and the practice i got by taking them to get their H1N1 vaccines a few weeks ago by myself - well - a doctor's visit with no shots just seemed like cake walk.

amidst some of the gunk that comes with almost 3 year olds, it's nice for me to have such a clear reminder of how far we've come!