Racy Webcam Images...

Front and side views of The Boopus

Last night at dinner Jude and I sat down to eat our toast and eggs. We weren't saying much, and after about ten seconds of silence he blurted, "Skype. Tyler."

He hadn't seen Tyler on Skype in months, so I don't know what possessed him in that moment to think of it. But of course I texted Ty and we were Skypin' within the hour. Highlight: Uncle Tyler got a couple of nice screen shots of Jude's round tummy ("The Boopus"). This will be gold to him for weeks. It is quite attractive.

The video is short, but worth the seven seconds I would say.

Somebody took a naughty pill...

I was convinced the terrible twos would be a myth for us. He was growing up to be such a gentle boy. Not a people-pleaser, per se, but careful and loving.

He still is, sometimes, and I'm sure he'll continue to be somewhere in the future. But for the moment, a lethal combination has taken place. He's two now. He's in full-time daycare. The results? Bad habits and sass. I'm being a little dramatic, but there are days.

The reason I'm partially blaming Donna's house is Carmine. Carmine's dad left his mom and he's a little angry. I don't mean to make light of that - it's just the way it is for him.

Carmine takes out some of his aggression on the younger kids by hitting them, and he is habitually disobedient and sassy with Donna. When Carmine lashes out, Jude sits there in part shock, part worship mode. Then he comes home, has a meltdown, kicks, swats and yells at his parents, mostly "no" and "mine". Mona gets bossed too, but it rolls right off her. She's a little sassy herself.

Donna claims he's almost perfect in her care, and that he's happy all the time. Perhaps she's suffering from relativism, although I do think Jude is a very good boy over there - sometimes he's better in groups. I'm grateful for that. But lately, when he gets home, something shifts. Maybe he's blowing off steam and stress from his day. Maybe it's his age, I don't know. He's extra naughty right now and I'm adjusting to the idea of my new sassy son.

The other day I put a new photo of him up by my desk at work with a classic, smirking look on his face (yep, that's the one, just above this post). It partly makes me miss him and partly makes me cringe. There's an undeniable naughty glint in his little eyeball. I guess we could call it "personality".

He does still have a hint of compassion in his heart, and I'm nurturing it like nobody's business. When he swats at me I'm either very firm or I pout a bit, depending on his mood. If I pretend to be sad about it, he'll say "Okay Mommy?" (i.e. are you okay?). Then he'll usually let me hug him. How is it possible to go from full-on frustration to having your heart melted in three seconds?

Oh, my dear boy. I love you. But seriously, cut the sass. Mama's tired.

TWO

We had a little birthday party for Jude this past weekend - just a gathering of our parents, two of our brothers, one sister-in-law and one set of (great)grandparents.

Jude liked his carrot cake, especially the cream-cheese frosting, which he gently poked with the tip of his finger and tenderly ate. He then destroyed four pieces. I was feeling fancy so I attempted to make it look like an elephant, which he liked once we told him what it was. He needed to use his imagination.

Click for pics. We love you Jude. So much.

TWO

Dutch Women Don't Get Depressed

I found this article fascinating. American Women, what do you think? Be brave.

High Violet

It's been a rough week. We won't go into it here. What I will share is what often helps me when I'm ready to jump on top of my desk at work and scream: music, music, music.

It lets me emote in a healthy, burn-no-bridges manner, as I'm sure it does for a lot of people. I have Pandora playing on my computer constantly, and hitting my 40-hours-a-month limit makes for a sad, sad day. Mock me if you will, but at work I like my U2 station - it plays The Police and stuff off the latest epic Coldplay album, the one that finally made me like that band when I used to make fun of them. That station also plays the occasional 80's anthem, which yesterday was "Don't Stop Believin'". 80's bands like that one generally suck, but on that particular day it was a mood-lifter.

One album in particular has been cathartic for me at home. The best record of the year, in my opinion, which I picked up a few months ago: THE NATIONAL: HIGH VIOLET. I highly recommend it, especially for bad weeks. It lets you be a little angry, sad and elated at the same time. Not to mention they have good taste in album art.

Oh, I could just kiss these guys, uni-brows and all. Thank you Cincinnati.

Anything in particular helping you survive lately?

Boys and Girls are Different.

Jude asked where my _________ (fill in the blank: boy part) was this morning as I was getting into the shower. I'm not in the best of moods at 6:30 am on a Tuesday. This snapped me right out of it.

He also asked me what another part of my anatomy was. I told him. He then pointed out that I have more than one of them. Again, bad mood gone completely. Thank you Jude.

How does he do that?

If you have any other good stories along these lines, please share. It's Tuesday and I need a good laugh.

(Image from pastryngifts.com)