Surgery, Attachment Disorder, Post Placement Visit, Summer and Too many Dishes

You can tell by the title that we have a lot going on these days. Let me start with...

1. The Sugery. Zac had a surgery. You can guess what elective surgery that was. He is doing very well post operatively all things considered. He was a trooper at the hospital and didn't even complain that he was hungry after going all day until 2:30 with only some clear liquids in the morning. That leads to...

2. The Attachment Disorder. Not to mock anyone that is dealing with a real attachment disorder at all, but we are thrilled that Zac's Attachment Disorder is being too attached. Before the surgery and even more so since then he shows SO MUCH attachment to Ryan and I as his parents. He loves to kiss (on the lips) and hug with his whole body. He loves to be carried and rocked and is constantly saying, "Mama, Mama, look. Mama, Mama up please, no whining. Mama, Mama, ummmm I want __________. Mama Mama, I love you." It really is great! That leads to..

3. The Post Placement Visit. We our first PP visit today and it was so much fun to talk about Zac and how well he is doing. He was great to begin with, but each day we are more and more impressed with his language development (he has over 100 understandable English words), attachment to us (see #2) and physical development. We are beginning to see his humorous side more and more (he likes to copy his brothers antics) and even though we can still get a big tantrum from this kid his affection toward us is more than we thought possible. So, since he is doing so well, we have had lots of opportunities to try fun , new and creative things this...

4. Summer. With help from Family Fun magazine (all moms should get this magazine) and a little ingenuity we have come up with some fun activities this summer. Our latest was using a $3 white full size sheet, hanging it on the fence with duct tape and using sidewalk paint to make a messy mural. This kids were so messy when they were done but it didn't matter because we just got out the slip 'n slide to wash off. Jacob was sneaky and got me in the back with a water shooter and that's when the real fun began. All the kids ganged up on me and I was a soggy mess by the time Ryan got home. The kids would have nothing to do with a dry parent and proceeded to drench their dad too. We used the $.94 spray bottles and $2.48 water pumpers to have a fun outdoor water party! Well, after that we were hungry and headed inside for baths and dinner. Ryan and I instituted a new after dinner routine because there always seems to be...

5. Too many dishes. We all picked our favorite color of kid plate (yes, Ryan and I are now using children's plates at our family meals) and after dinner each person is responsible for dumping the excess in the trash and cleaning the dish in the sink, then putting it away. It is the ONLY plate they ever use. It has cut down on dishwasher loads tremendously and so far the kids think its fun (that probably won't last forever). Just an idea for those of you who hate doing load after load of dishes.

Well, that's about enough for now. More random thoughts on another day! I'll leave you with a fun video...