coming up for air

If it appears that I have been MIA this week, it's because I have been. Physically, I'm still around -- in fact, I feel like I'm planted in the center of everything. But mentally (and, at times, emotionally) I've been someplace else. And while I can't quite pinpoint where exactly Someplace Else is, I can tell you that it's at the crossroads of Teething Infant and Potty Training Toddler. But I wouldn't go away without bringing something back to show for it, so here's what I got:

Garrett: has been spent the last three mornings wearing real big boy underwear and consuming fluids just about as fast as he can get them down. Consequently, he's spent about 80% of those mornings sitting on his potty. After breakfast we roll up the living room carpet, put old towels over the couch, turn on his favorite movies and wait for those liquids to work their way through his system. Each day has seen progress, and this morning he had zero accidents. On Day 2 we discovered that the most motivating reward for using his potty is a penny which he can use to get M&Ms from my old gumball machine. Apparently M&Ms dispensed less exotically are just not the same. By lunch time each day we're both (Garrett vocally and me secretly) relieved to put him back into a diaper. We still have a ways to go, but like my mom told me last night when I called her special Potty Training Hotline seeking advice, we're on the right path.

Caleb: Yesterday, about a week after he cut his first tooth, its neighbor moved in. And from the looks of things, the two units upstairs will soon be occupied as well. This had made Caleb mostly unpleasant to be around, except for when, after the dose of Tylenol kicks in, it makes him extra cuddly.

Somewhere in the middle of all of this, I took Garrett to the district office to get him evaluated for their Preschool Special Ed program so that he can continue speech therapy after he turns three. While Caleb made sure that everyone there knew his mouth hurt, Garrett did exactly what he was supposed to do (which was, of course, be utterly charming and linguistically unintelligible). I'm under the impression that this evaluation is more of a formality because they told me right then and there that he'd get services. They also hinted at the possibility of a free preschool education in an integrated classroom for the fall if he qualifies for that. So while they write up their reports and recommendations, I'll be taking Garrett to an audiologist for a comprehensive hearing exam to hopefully rule out the possibility of any potential hearing loss. I'm sure he'll love that.

So. All of this to say that I'm really glad the weekend is just about here. And Mother's Day weekend to boot. If there's one gift I'd really like my family to bestow upon me, it's a nap. A nice, long Sunday nap wherein I can momentarily pretend that potty training and teething and speech therapy will just take care of themselves.