Finding Friends

We have been soooo busy! Pretty much my favorite thing to do right now is watch my little guy play and learn. We've been having playdates left and right, and always wanting more. His buddies right now are:

• Jett. Born September 14, 2011. My former co-worker Tami's son. Whether it's going on walks, swimming or biking, we always have a good time! Tami and I love to talk mom-talk and Royce and Benny got along really well the few times we've all gotten together. 

One of our first playdates, way back in November. Cool dudes in their cool dude rocker shirts, picking up chicks at the mall.



• Oaklee. Born February 26(?), 2012. Our friends Chris and Lacey's daughter. She's a bit young yet, but Hudson is learning about sharing with her and how to be gentle with the baby. Ya know, Royce and I grew up together, maybe this is another romance in the making??

Such a big boy sitting up in April! Look at him standing in June!


• Alysha. Birthdate unknown, December 2011. My mom's friend Liz's granddaughter. They haven't had a playdate since March!



• Jax. Birthdate unknown, but I think he's 18 months? Our neighbor's (Rachel and John) son. My mind goes crazy thinking how much fun these boys can have living so close!! Our backyards are back-to-back and there's even a gate we could open up if they become super close. So far we've had just one swimming playdate at our house, but it went so well and Rachel and John seem very nice. She is a nurse and I've had good luck with nurse friends. I am a little hesitant because they are LDS, but we'll play it out and see how it goes.
• Sophia. Birthday unknown, but I know she is 2 years old. Our car-club friend, Roxanne's granddaughter. She came over to watch the fireworks with us last weekend and they played so nice inside before we went outside. 

• Karson. Birthdate unknown, but he's about 18 months? Friends from swim class. 

• Paegan. Born September 9(?), 2011. My cousin's baby girl. I think she was a big part of Hudson's learning to crawl. He watched her and decided that he could do that too. 

• George. Born September 9, 2011. Our car-show buddy, Chantel's son. We've been meaning to get together but finally got a chance last night at BurgerStop. Those boys had a blast! I let them test-drive Hudson's birthday present (it's only 8 weeks away!) and they loved it. They also love Teddy Grahams and Chantel, the giver of said Teddy Grahams. 

The busy-ness that is our life

A quick rundown of things going in our life that are anything but quick:

• Mom's been in the hospital and recovering from a major infection in her teeth/jaw/neck area. She was completely sedated for 2 days- 2 days I couldn't talk with my mommy. :( She's basically lost 4 days of memory with the whole thing. Now that she is home and healing and I know that all is well, I can't help but be a bit selfish...
• I've (temporarily?) lost the best babysitter I could ever ask for as she is weak and weeping of infection. I am hoping she regains her strength soon and is up for chasing Hudson around, but really have no idea when this might be. It is so hard and stressful to find someone to watch him. People have really stepped up and been super about helping, but it's one person one day and another the next. I need something more routine if this is long term. Plus, it's hard leaving my baby with new/different people!
• My grandpa has stopped all cancer treatment and is quickly being consumed by the tumor and will likely pass away very soon. His doctor convinced him that the medication is only prolonging the inevitable and doing so in an ugly way (by taking his memory). I know this is going to be extremely hard on my daddy, but in a way, I think it will be a relief for everyone. NOT that we want him gone- AT ALL. But that we want him happy and back to himself. The only way he is going to find that is by being in control of himself and eventually returning to his soul mate.
• Car show season is in full gear and we are busy, busy, busy, whether it be attending, helping or planning, we are head first in this. This weekend, Royce helped out at 25th St while I tooled around, then we both helped at MWSN Picnic, plus simply walked through another. I am in the midst of planning the show for work and worried about attendance because the flier I have to hand out is lame and barely mentions the car show. I may break some rules and add my own flier- hope I don't get caught!! And, of course, we are always looking for raffle prizes and whatnot for our show next month. And Under the Stars in August. Busy, busy, busy, I tells ya!!
• I've always laughed at the ridiculous sitcom plots around friendships- the newly married couple looking for "couple friends" to double-date with, the crazy new parent couple stalking anyone else they see dragging around a diaper bag, eager to plan playdates. And now I am that couple and realize how true these plots are. I'm not looking to "replace" old friendships, they are very needed still, and we still have lots in common and lots to do together, but we also need friends who are experiencing the situations specific to parenthood. When I think this, I am afraid that I am acting like the Pregnant Women are Smug lyrics about thinking that everything else is "trivial" but that's not at all what I'm actually thinking, I just have a hard time relating to other life-goings-on and sometimes become jealous or curious about those accomplishments because at this moment, my baby is all that really matters to me, because I'm a mom. Luckily, I've been able to find other friends like this and really enjoy spending time with them, swapping silly anecdotes and comparing accomplishments. I am busy trying to maintain old friendships while building new ones, all while trying to balance everything else and it has been interesting. Moments of jealousy, moments of pride, moments of wishful thinking, moments of excitement, moments of loneliness, and moments of overwhelming happiness. (Kind of like pregnancy all over again, come to think of it...)

Anyways, that's a good summary of my life right now. Hoping things start looking more balanced and relaxed soon, though I have my doubts...