Snow

Yes, that is the Christmas tree.

Sam's first time in snow!

This boy won't take a morning nap in his crib, but he'll sleep 

just fine being pulled around the yard in 25 degree weather.

Ben wasn't very interested in sledding or snow angels,

but he loved pelting Daddy with snow balls!

That cooler will never be the same again

Some terrible storms have been crossing Missouri lately. On Wednesday we had the worst one so far to hit St. Louis. Not too long after Ben woke up from his nap the tornado sirens started blaring. So we grabbed some snacks, the cats and my laptop (for radar monitoring and possible show watching if Ben got bored) and headed downstairs.

Ben almost never gets to go in the basement, so he's always excited when he does. He was having a good time exploring and stalking the cats in a closed environment. After checking the radar and assuring myself we still had a little time before we were all blown away, my mind wandered to other things, mainly what was I going to do if Ben needed the bathroom. My eyes darted around the basement and first landed on the kitty litter box. It would be an appropriate place, but then I imagined him falling in and decided against it. Then I saw the coolers. Specifically the little cooler without wheels that would be a little taller than he's used to, but still an acceptable height. And it was decided.

Eventually he did have to pee, so I explained that we couldn't go upstairs and he had to use the cooler. It worked out great and thanks to our Sam's membership, we had a plethora of Kleenex and toilet paper downstairs. Perfect. We were in the basement for 1.5 hours, so he peed a few times.

Eventually the storm started picking up, so I was paying more attention to the radar than to Ben. And just when it was getting really bad outside (rain, wind, hail), Ben pooped in his pants. The boy has timing, I'll give him that. So I sprinted upstairs to the diaper bag and grabbed an extra pair of underwear. And as the storm raged outside, I was in the basement hoping I wouldn't die with a pair of poopy underwear in my hands.

To make matters worse, when I finally finished that unpleasant task I went to check the radar again and knocked my laptop off its perch. The battery popped out and a piece broke off, so we were left in the dark. Except for my smartphone and my iPod Touch. It was like the 1800's down there!

In the end everything was fine. None of our tree branches even fell down and usually they fall at the slightest breeze. Since I couldn't face the trauma again, Heath cleaned out the cooler. He said it was one of the worst things he'd ever smelled. Yeah, just imagine being there, buddy.

It's raining, it's pouring...

It's been raining a lot in St. Louis lately, which means a lot of time spent indoors. With a very active toddler. In a way it's been okay, because the first trimester of pregnancy wipes you out, so I don't think I would've had the energy to run to the playground all the time, anyway. And though the low physical impact of playing trains is good, the low mental impact is DRIVING ME CRAZY. Ben's been watching a wee bit more TV than usual lately. And the rumors of me falling asleep during an episode of Dinosaur Train are greatly exaggerated. (No they're not.)

There's some hope on the horizon, though. I'm nearing the 12 week mark of my pregnancy, which means hopefully sometime in the next few weeks my energy level will start to creep back up and we can dive into summer fun. And only four of the next ten days show rain on weather.com!

Fun in the snow

We've had an unusual amount of snow here in St. Louis this winter, so Ben's had plenty of chances to play outside.

He didn't like sledding...

or snow angels.

But he did like eating snow,

playing with Uncle Chad,

and throwing snowballs!

Here we go again...

Remember a couple weeks ago when I said Ben started waking up in the middle of the night? Well, we discovered that he had an ear infection. It was mild so hopefully the antibiotics took care of it in one round. We'll go back to the doctor later this week to find out.

However, now he seems to be working on some type of cold, complete with runny nose, which makes it more likely he'll develop another ear infection soon. He's continued waking up in the night (not every night, but enough), with the added bonus of 5:30am wake up calls. Because he doesn't sleep enough at night he'll often take 3+ hour naps, but I'd gladly cut back on naps if it meant he'd sleep from 8:30pm-7am. Even 6:30. I'd accept 6:30am.

And the extra kick in the pants is that it's supposed to be 90 fucking degrees tomorrow. So not only do we have to deal with a sick kid and less sleep, I don't even get to wear jeans and sweaters.

Winter Ben

I know it's becoming spring, but I'm very lazy when it comes to loading photos off my camera. So here are some shots of Winter Ben:

Ben's first Mardi Gras beads at the pet parade.

He's gotta earn his keep somehow!

Not thrilled to be out in the snow.

Screw Jack Frost

Though I enjoyed snow as a child, I've long since accepted that as an adult, snow sucks. It just makes life harder. My newest lesson is that as a parent, winter sucks! Save a few blessed weeks, Ben's had a runny nose since October. That was also the last time he slept through the night with any regularity. We still get a few nights here and there, but once he hits three in a row then he gets a cold or an ear infection or he just feels like inflicting some torture. He's going to graduate to water boarding soon.

This will all get better once spring hits, right? Right?

RIGHT?!

Ben of the North!

Somewhere there's a groundhog with a price on his head

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow.

I've never minded winter. I've always been an "indoor" type of girl. But being stuck inside the house with an infant for months on end is driving me nuts. Getting out of the house is crucial to feeling like a real person and not just a Baby Butler. But when it's so cold and the weather's bad, sometimes it doesn't feel worth the effort of bundling him up and lugging the car seat around. So for the last few weeks Ben and I have spent many a day hanging around the house. I think even he gets bored with our living room sometimes.

I am very eagerly awaiting spring. Then we can go to the zoo or the Botanical Gardens or one of the many nearby parks. Even a walk around the neighborhood is sometimes good enough to stave off boredom. I suppose I could go to museums and walk around when it's cold, but museums are usually so quiet. Nobody needs their quiet contemplation of great art interrupted by the screech of a baby objecting to an artist's interpretation of a seascape. I've opted for the mall on occasions when I just needed to get out of the house, but even that gets boring after a while, and can be dangerous for the wallet.

So the proclamation of 6 more weeks of winter did not sit well with me. Someone go hold an umbrella over that rodent so his shadow disappears.