I knew it was too good to last… James slept through the night Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, but last night he barely slept at all! It is only 9 pm and I am so ready for bed tonight. I’m hoping that he sleeps tonight, but I don’t think he is feeling his best so we may be in for another sleepless night. Poor little man has had a runny nose all day… I so hate it when the kids don’t feel well.

Thursday
Here is a picture of him Thursday before I took Jemma to her swim lesson. He was just happy to roll around without clothes… he loves to be without any clothes, but he has such a range when he pees that I can’t let him go without a diaper in the house! James was being fussy this morning while I was getting ready to go out (we had to make a run to the Fresh Market for asparagus for a baby shower), and then I heard little giggles instead of whining. I looked in and Jemma was playing with James. She took the initiative to grab the pink dog and actually entertain her brother. It was so nice to see them both happy. I don’t think I can express how much James loves his big sister… he gets so excited to see her that he grins and giggles and moves to see her. Sometimes he jumps up and down in my arms like he just wants to get down and run after her. She loves him too… but it isn’t quite the adoration that he has for her. I sincerely hope that they develop a really close and strong relationship.

Jemma had her last swim lesson yesterday (except for the makeup that we are doing Sunday), so I hired a sitter for James. I decided that I would give my undivided attention to Jemma for her last class. Usually I sit away from the pool in the shade with James and I sometimes go inside to nurse… so I don’t always get to pay close attention to what Jemma is doing. Jemma still doesn’t want to get her face wet, but she is doing well with kicking and floating on her back. James stayed home with Taylor. (Taylor has watched Jemma for us and she is a very experienced and responsible 14 year old. I had no worries… class was only an hour, we were just down the street and had the cell phone.) When Jemma and I returned home, Taylor had put James down for a nap and she reported that he didn’t even cry. It was a very nice morning!

I went to a baby shower last night while Jim watched the kids. It was a great night… Trina had made a fabulous dinner (yummy chicken cordon blue with a salad and asparagus and rice on fancy china, real cloth napkins, and sparkling cider… I skipped the wine since I was driving and my tolerance is LOW) and there was a cake from this wonderful Italian bakery… it was so, so good. Christine opened her gifts and there were so many cute, cute little girl outfits… did I mention that I love baby showers?!? We had a wonderful 3 hours of hanging out and celebrating the upcoming arrival of a new baby girl. And when I got him, both kids were clean and in bed and Jim was cleaning the kitchen… oh, how I adore my wonderful husband!!!

Friday
Today I hosted a morning coffee for our neighborhood. Only 5 of the neighbors could make it but we had a really nice time. The kids played and we just chatted. I cheated though… I went to the Fresh Market yesterday and bought two loaves of cake. Last month Amy hosted and she made little quiches and a dip for fresh peaches and a special lemonade… I just didn’t have the energy to bake. I made a spaghetti sauce yesterday with the fresh tomatoes and green pepper that my mom brought last weekend… I just could not make myself make brunch for today. Afterwards, I took Jemma to MyGym. She has such fun! James napped for the first 30 minutes, so I was able to fully participate with Jemma. She loves it when I can give her all of my attention… we sang together during circle time, and jumped on the trampoline and ran around during free time. She was so good… she used the potty twice at MyGym! We haven’t used a pull-up all week and we have had no accidents.

We went to Mya’s house this afternoon. Merin let the girls fingerpaint and color with markers. Jemma got a tube of glitter when Merin and I were talking in the other room… there was glitter everywhere… on the table, floor, chair and all over Jemma’s hands and clothes. It was a sparkly mess! After dinner, our little family went for a walk. We try to go for a walk every night. It is nice to be out together and see the neighbors, too. Jemma petted several of the neighbor’s dogs, found every manhole and ran and jumped over them (I even jumped on/over several of them- hopefully none of the neighbors were watching), and “balanced” on the two speed bumps. Long gone are the days of speedy walks… we now meander at a snail pace, but it is always interesting! Both kids got a bath and now both are sleeping. James is sleeping on Jim in the living room at the moment. He has puked once this evening and we are reluctant to put him down… I really hope our little man is feeling better very soon.