Girls Night

Tonight I am going on my first real "girls night" since Samuel has been born. We are going to a hotel downtown for the evening and are going to enjoy happy hour, dinner, and great girl bonding! I will also get a full nights sleep (also a first)!

Although I am very excited about going, there is fear and sadness in the event. It will be the first night that I spend away from Samuel. The first night that daddy is fully in charge! A realization that Samuel doesn't need me all the time. I wonder how many times I will wake up thinking I hear him moving and crying. I am sure we will all survive.

Update...

Not much going on here right now. We are actually enjoying moving at a slower pace for awhile. Soon enough we will be back at 'em again. Samuel and I leave for Michigan in 15 days (not that we are counting) for a nice long 2 1/2 week break there. I am looking forward to spending lots of time with family and friends. I am in the process of planning lots of 1st birthday parties for the little dude. I can't believe he is going to be a year old!

Mike is in his summer trimester at school. The nice thing is that he only has two classes that meet weekly this term. His other two are what they call intensives. They meet all evening Friday and all day Saturday twice during the summer. He has already finished one and has one more at the end of June. We are planning some camping trips for the summer and time to get away and enjoy the beautiful state we live in.

Right now, life just seems to be going along pretty well!

Zoo Trip

Since the weather has been so beautiful here we are taking advantage of it. Jocie got to spend the day with us today because her dad was in class, so we went to the zoo. A new exhibit was opening, actually it is an indoor hands on place. It was cool, but very crowded. Both kids seem to enjoy it though. They were able to crawl around, bang on drums, climb, go through tunnels and play in dirt. Samuel decided that he was hungry and much to mom's constant reminder that dirt doesn't taste good, he had to learn himself!

Walking?

Well, Samuel has officially taken intentional steps. About a week ago, Samuel discovered that his legs could take him places. He was very interested in standing up and walking around holding mom and dad's hands. Occasionally, we would let go and he would "take" a step as he fell into something. Last Saturday night, Samuel did take three intentional steps before he landed on the ottoman. It was very exciting. Sunday we were at the park and he took seven consecutive steps. That one we did get on video. Then today when Mike got home he took 17 steps across the room to him! We hurried for the camera, but after that he would only do about 8. He is very excited about this new skill. When we stand him up he gets so excited he generally falls before he even starts. He also cheers for himself when he does fall! I did put two videos on the website for you to check out. Since he still prefers crawling over walking, I guess he is not an official walker, but well on his way!

http://homepage.mac.com/clarkm34/Menu20.html

Mother's Day

We had a great day yesterday. Mike took Samuel in the morning so I could sleep in! It is amazing what a little uninterrupted sleep can do. At noon we met my Mosaic group at Greenlake Bar and Grill for brunch. They were giving all mothers a free meal! We then had a Starbucks treat for desert and went to play in the park. The weather was beautiful and the kids had a great time. We got home about 3:00 and both Samuel and I took a much needed rest! The evening ended with the Survivor Finale! What a great day! Oh, Samuel and Mike are also treating me to a day at the spa!

Just In Time for Mother's Day!

Samuel has finally decided to say mama. Ok, so the situation was not the best, but it was heard clear as day!

I finally was able to get back to the YMCA this morning and dropped him off in the kids area. He has been having some separation anxiety so I wasn't sure how it would go. When I left, he was content playing with an Elmo toy. About half hour later I heard "Jenn Clark could you please report to the Kid's Corner" When I was about half way down the hall, I heard him. By the time I got there he was pretty desperate. He was sitting on a girls lap, tears and snot flowing. I quickly went in and on my way over to him, we made eye contact. He took a break in the screaming and said "mama" as he reached for me! I was so excited I didn't care that he wiped his nose on my shoulder as he snuggled in. Just in time for Mother's Day!

Hopefully next time we hear it we wouldn't have such a traumatic experience. It is nice to know that they do know who you are though!

Golden Gardens

Today we tried out a new park on the Puget Sound called Golden Gardens. We had a beautiful view of the Olympics. We decided to pack a picnic lunch and spend some time playing. As always, Samuel loved the swings. There was also a beach with great sand that we were able to play in. By the end of it, Samuel had sand everywhere! Definalty a park we will be back to this summer.