Dress-up

Most of Benjamin's close friends are girls and nearly all of them adore dressing up in princess attire. He gets so frustrated that they don't have anything for him to wear. So I gathered various Halloween costumes and holiday accessories and put them in a special "dress-up bag" for him. He loves them. I love seeing his imagination at work. My favorite is the policeman. I think he looks so cute ("I'm not cute, I'm handsome, mommy; boys are handsome!"). Of course, Bella always has to join in too. I guess I'd better get some dresses soon too or people are going to wonder why my daughter is always dressed like a playboy bunny. (Maybe I'm scrimping too much on air conditioning costs because I can't keep clothes on that girl! She's stripping all day long. This is about as dressed as you'll find her lately.)


Oh, and by the way, to those of you who've requested a belly shot - ain't gonna happen. I tried. I had Kelly take close to 20 pictures and hated every single one of them. Maybe I'm a bit too vain, but this is the WORLD WIDE web we're talking about. I have to really like a picture before I'll put it up here. Wolfgang (or Wolfie to his friends - aka Mary) will just have to remain hidden until he's born.


One more thing, am I the only mom who does this? Maybe it's the pregnancy hormones or whatnot, but lately I keep finding myself looking at my children and being so amazed that they're mine. I don't know how to explain it properly, but even after years of having them with me, it still shocks me on a daily basis that these amazing little people are mine. I remember having that after getting married - just looking at Kelly and saying, "Can you believe we're married?!? Crazy!" Yet, it's something more than that with my kids. They were inside me and call me mom and love and need me! How amazing that is! I find myself so in awe of their little bodies and personalities. They're so little and yet so perfectly complete and complex. It blows my mind again and again. These aren't just someone else's kids I'm watching for the afternoon, they're mine - my kids - forever! I'll look at Isabella talk and play and see all that's going on in that little mind and body of hers and just sit back in amazement that I was allowed a part in creating all that. I have a role in teaching her. What an amazing thing motherhood is. And I'm having another! Benjamin's favorite past-time is watching my belly move. He'll sit on my legs, facing me, and push on my stomach until the baby moves around and then he'll just stare in amazement and laugh and say, "did you see that?!" I love it. Someone to share in the joy all day long. What a fun time this is. It's so hard to put the feelings into words, but I'm just so amazingly grateful that these spirits are in my home and are my children. The whole thing is beyond my comprehension but even on the hard days, it makes me so happy. Yeah, must be the hormones. :)