Happy Mother's Day!

Tomorrow will be my very first Mother's Day! This time last year, I was truly ready to pop. I was miserable; couldn't rest due to my overly active child and was eagerly counting down my last days of the school year. Not much has changed, except the miserable part. Being Ethan's Mom is the best job I have. No matter how frustrated or tired I am, all it takes is one smile or ornery giggle and I forget all about it. As of now, AJ and I are up in the air about having another child; we've agreed not to truly discuss it until E is two. One argument for not having another baby is the fact that E is pretty much perfect. How could we possibly match or top that? :-)

We started our celebration after school on Friday. AJ had the day off, so I came home to a clean house and gifts. I got flowers, a mommy/boy Willow Tree figurine, and a copy of "Benjamin Button." I also got sweet cards from both Ethan and Bailey... on that front, we have decided to try to work things out with her with help from our vet, under the assumption that if she shows any slight signs of aggression, she's gone. So far, so good. She has been a bit better with Ethan. She is always excited to see him after school, and has been letting him pet her (while we hold her and guide him to be gentle) and hasn't run away or shook with fear. Baby steps. 

Today, we had another swim lesson in the morning. Ethan is getting more and more brave each time. There are a few babies in the class that have really taken to the water so naturally; E is just not one of those kids. He doesn't cry, but he's not really enjoying it too much. Oh, well.

When we got home, we got ready for a big day - Grandma, Papa, and Grammy came over for a special Mother's Day picnic. We cooked for a change. Luckily, we had beautiful weather and were able to use the grill and play outside. 

It was a great time - Ethan loved all of the extra attention and I think it's safe to say that the adults enjoyed themselves, too! We were also celebrating my mom's birthday - she turns 39 on Wednesday...

We were really excited to have our moms here because we planned special gifts for them since this is Ethan's first Mother's Day. Last week, we took him to a paint-your-own pottery place in Cranberry. It was AWESOME! We had Ethan paint mugs for his grandmothers and a plate for me. 

He really loved getting his hands painted! 

The final products turned out great!

To our moms, thank you so much for everything. You both have been wonderful, especially this year as we entered parenthood. It makes us forget how much we are scarred for life by our childhoods :-)

To Grammy and Nanny, we love you both so much. You are such inspirations to us. Nanny is the most thoughtful, down-to-earth person I've ever met. She was the first person to talk to me when I met AJ's family at an extremely crowded surprise party 10 years ago. Since then, she has always been someone who has made me feel welcome and loved. And, Grammy is one-of-a-kind. In 10 years, I don't think I've ever heard her say a bad word about anyone. It has been awesome for me to be a part of such a close-knit family, and Grammy is definitely at the center of it. Ethan is SO lucky to have two amazing women as his Great Grandmothers!

Tomorrow, the boys are taking me to the zoo. I cannot wait to see Ethan watch the animals - he is so interested in everything and loves all of the animals he sees in the neighborhood (so, basically, dogs, cats, a few birds, and the random bunny or squirrel). 

To all the moms out there, have a wonderful day tomorrow!