Traditions

 If you know me at all, you know that my family is a little crazy (in a sitcom kind of way, I think). I'm the oldest of six,* which is enough crazy in and of itself; the other eccentricities are just the cherry on top. But despite the crazy, my mom (a.k.a. the glue that holds us all together) has managed to maintain some semblance of tradition throughout the years.

 And what better time for traditions than Christmas?

We always decorated the tree together and listened to Boney James' Funky Christmas. It always looked atrocious, and mom always fixed it after we went to bed. 

We weren't allowed to come downstairs until everyone was awake, but that rule was later revised to specify "not before 7AM" (apparently dragging your younger siblings out of bed at 6 in the morning is unacceptable). 

Once I was older and had a TV in my room, my brothers would camp out with me and watch the A Christmas Story marathon until Santa finished wrapping presents in the wee hours of the morning (procrastinator). Then, we'd sneak down the steps to size up the goods. 

We always woke up to cinnamon rolls in the oven, and Mom videotaped us** as we opened our presents. We'd stash away our loot, and head to Grandma's house for Christmas dinner.

And then my parents divorced.

And then I moved out.

And then I got married.

And then my dad moved to Florida to become a scuba diver. You can't make this stuff up.

But through divorces and the economy and all of the crazy, one thing remains: tradition. No matter what happens from one year to the next, I want Landon to know that he can count on a few small things: 

We'll always hang red, glitter-glued stockings and blast Christmas jams while we decorate the tree. It will probably look atrocious, and I'll probably fix it after you go to bed.

We'll always eat bagel bites while we watch National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Someday you'll wonder how bagel bites have anything to do with Christmas, and I'll direct you to your father because I'd like to know the answer to that one myself.

 And the newest Kozlowski family tradition-- we'll always read How the Grinch Stole Christmas on Christmas Eve. Good choice, little man. Merry first Christmas.

----

*Seven, including my step-brother, because "the only steps in this house are the ones that take you upstairs." [Scuba Dad, circa 1996]

**The year one of my brothers (who was seven, at the time) asked for a real banjo and received a plastic one instead was probably the best Christmas meltdown video of all time.

Friday Facts

Fact #1 Being trapped in a small room with twenty kids as they open-mouth eat cookies and milk is the kind of torture surpassed only by having bamboo chutes shoved under your fingernails. Mouth noises of any kind make me want to run screaming to the closest padded room. Love you, little nuggets, but please oh please figure out how to chew with your mouths shut.

Fact #2 Secrets, secrets are no fun, I WANT TO SHARE WITH EVERYONE. Seriously, is it Christmas yet? My blabbermouth can't handle this.

Fact #3 Otis Redding recorded possibly some of the best Christmas songs ever. And I'm just discovering this now? With only four days to go? Hi, world, I just crawled out from under my rock.

Fact #4 Being proposed to by one of your best girlfriends is almost as awesome as the real thing =] 

Fact #5 Kids need to hear that they're awesome. Even if they don't always act like it, they are. When I gave my kids their gifts today, I also gave them a little note-- not a generic, happyholidaysseeyalater, but something sincere and personal. And even though it took me several hours to write them all, and some of them ended up in the trash at the end of day, the small moment of time when I watched each kid read them was enough to know that it meant something. 

Fact #6 There's just one semester standing between me and graduation and it's pass/fail and I currently have a 4.0 soooo I only have three words for you:

SUMMA CUM LAUDE.

I can go ahead and make that assumption, right? Right. 

148 days.

Friday Facts [on Sunday]

Fact #1: Pinterest is better than any recipe book. Ever. SO MANY crock pot and quick-prep recipes that have made my life a million times easier. I only have five minutes a day to breathe as it is, so trying to make anything that requires more than five ingredients and twenty minutes of my life is not an option. Check out this board for all things yummy in the tummy! So far, I've made the pulled pork, mozzarella grilled cheese, and the pizza bake and they were all DELISH.

Fact #2: It's the most wonderful time of the year-- so act like it. Maybe I have a particularly poor vantage point for this as a server, but seriously, people-- this is the time to be cheerful and jolly. Smile, hold the door open, say kind words. And, for the love of God, use your manners! No one likes a Grinch.

Fact #3: Landon wins the overachiever award for the week. So many big things happening in his little baby world! Just this week, he's started babbling "baba," picking up puffs on his own, and desperately trying to be a creepy-crawler a.k.a. squirming around on the carpet like a boss. You go, little man!

Fact #4: Christmas movies never get old. I've probably watched Elf and Christmas Vacation a combined total of at least eight times already, and it's only December 16th. And the 24-hour marathon of A Christmas Story? Ohhhh the best is yet to come.

Fact #5: Be generous and kind, and not just because it's the holidays. Write a love letter. Donate to a good cause. Go out of your way to do something thoughtful. Even when it seems like you have the short end of the stick, believe me-- someone else is worse off. SO GO! Do nice things and spread good cheer and make the world just a tiny bit brighter.

[belated] six months old!

You're six months old!

Ok, you've been six months old for ten days now BUT this momma has been a super-slacker so here we are. You're a baby. You don't care.

You are a whopping 17lbs! We just started putting you in nine-month clothes, but the twelve-month clothes are on standby. I have a feeling this chunky monkey stuff will be a thing of the past as soon as you start crawling...

...which you are desperate to do! You're starting to notice // get into everything, and if it's out of your reach, your little world falls apart. You haven't figured out how to coordinate your arms into crawling, so you kind of just kick and roll at whatever it is you want. Sometimes you'll try to move your little chunky body forward, which usually results in a face-plant.

You've been sleeping in your big boy bed (the pack and play) for a while, and now you're officially eating at the table in your big boy booster seat! We used to feed you in the bouncer, but felt like it was time to take the next step and you're all about it. You're SO CLOSE to sitting up on your own! Hoping the support from the booster seat helps you reach this milestone.

You eat baby food and cereal three times a day, and we've started throwing in some puffs as well. You really like them, but prefer that momma or daddy feed them to you  because you haven't quite figured out the pincher grip. When you try to pick them up, you get a bunch in your fist and can't figure out how to get them out of your fist and into your mouth. They usually just end up all over the floor, but that's okay. Molly is your new BFF, and lurks around while you eat to lick up whatever you drop =]  We gave you a real banana for the first time, too, and you weren't sure what to think! It kept slipping out of your little hands, so it made you pretty angry after a while. I can't wait to give you more new foods!

We've had the jumperoo for a while now, but you had a breakthrough at the end of this month-- you can JUMP in the JUMPEROO! Until now, you kind of just sat in it and stared at all the toys. And then, out of nowhere, you discovered that you can jump and bounce and be a wild man in there! It's so awesome watching you grow and learn new things.

All dressed up for Thanksgiving!

This month marked your first Thanksgiving, but it didn't phase you in the least. You slept through the festivities at Aunt Nickkey's house, and played in your walker at Gigi's. It will be so awesome next year when you can sit at the table with us and slobber on all the yummy food! So thankful for you, my sweet little man!

Thanksgiving family picture

We're only ten days in, but your seventh month is already full of baby milestones! I can't believe how big you're getting. As much as I loved those first few days of your little life, there is nothing better than watching you grow. Love you, Stinky Cheese!

Friday Facts

Fact #1 I would not survive in the event of a zombie apocalypse. Mike and I just marathon-ed through the first season of The Walking Dead, and let's just say Darwin wasn't kidding. It all boils down to survival of the fittest, and I am not one of them. I don't know how to use a gun, I'm out of shape, and I'm too high-maintenance to live in a tent. There, I said it.

Fact #2 Little people are the best people. I stopped in to visit my kindergarten friends on Wednesday, and they swarmed me. I wish I could just love on those little nuggets forever. So lucky to have spent the semester with them!

Fact #3 I cry every time I see this commercial. I'm going to need a tranquilizer to get through Landon's first day of school.

Fact #4 I'm gonna have to get a second job so I can spoil all of my happily engaged friends! Five weddings in the next two years-- so exciting!

Fact #5 Graduation is in 169 DAYS. As much as I don't want to wish the next six months of Landon's life away, I CAN'T FREAKING WAIT. So close.

Back on the Map

Ok so I didn't die. I wasn't kidnapped or held hostage or living in a third world country without access to the Internet. I was just buried under a giant heap of schoolwork and this is the first time I've had a chance to write something that is not a) a lesson plan or b) a reflection about student teaching. 

igraduateinmayigraduateinmayigraduateinmayigraduateinmayIGRADUATEINMAY!

My first student teaching experience has come to a close, which means I only have one left (ONE!) before graduation. As reluctant as I was to work with kindergarten, I found myself not wanting to leave! Those little people are so awesome. Having a bad day? Hang out with a five-year-old for a few minutes and you'll feel better, guaranteed. Their excitement for learning is absolutely contagious! I wish I could bottle it up and keep it forever. I'm super-psyched to hang out with my second-graders this spring, but it's nice to know that my kindergarten people will be right down the hall =]

It's been kind of a tough month for our family in a lot of ways, so I'm extra glad that the holidays are in full swing! I love this time of year. Our tree is up and stockings are hung. It's so exciting to make Landon part of our holiday traditions! 

Speaking of that little booger, he's been doing some serious growing. He's weighing in at 16 pounds these days, and is plowing through baby food and cereal like a tank. Santa Clause is definitely going to be bringing him some nine-month clothes!

Hoping to be a little more diligent in keeping up with this blog now that I have about five minutes of my life back. But enough about me-- how are you?

five months old

You're five months old! Almost half of a year has passed since you were born. Crazy, right? Crazy.

This month saw the end of the boobs, and it kills me. You don't really seem to care. Your little eyes have been opened to the big wide world of baby food, and you're not looking back. I still feel tinges of mommy-guilt every time I fix you a bottle, and it just plain sucks! It probably sounds silly to most people, but I feel like I'm mourning the loss of a special bond with you that I will never get back. I guess four months of boobs is better than none at all, and you're happy and healthy and that's all that matters. 

We've made it to six month clothes! You were only 13 pounds at your last appointment, but I have a feeling you're pushing sixteen or so by now. Your appetite is practically insatiable, and you're finally sleeping through the night (woop woop!), which means my boy is doing some serious growing! Part of me is sad to pack away all of your too-small clothes, but it's exciting to look forward to all that the coming months will bring.

It's official-- you're sleeping in your own bed! Daddy usually puts you down around 9 or 10, and you sleep until about 4-- sometimes even 6:30! Now don't get me wrong, I'm still a sucker for some momma-baby snuggle time, but it's nice to get a good night's sleep once in a while, too.

We packed up the swing and replaced it with a jumperoo this month! You don't totally appreciate it yet (mostly because you haven't figured out how to jump in it), but I have a feeling it will be a new favorite in the coming weeks.

The only thing you really care about right now is chewing-- ON EVERYTHING. A couple of wittle teeth are trying to break through on the bottom, which means anything you can get your hands on goes straight to your mouth-- momma's hair, blankies, toys, your own fists... And apparently teething = fever = diaper rash, so it's been a really good time in the Kozlowski house. Not.

This month brought with it your first halloween! You went with Daddy to the Mummer's Day Parade, and we bundled you up in a super cute monster hat! You were too small for most of the halloween costumes we found, and this momma isn't crafty enough to make one soooo the hat will have to do.

You are a ROLY POLY and dyyyying to sit up! I have a feeling it won't be long! It's so exciting, watching you learn new things each day, coming into your own. I'm almost afraid to blink! I can't believe it's been five beautiful months already. Love you, sweet boy <3