Mourning the loss of chub

Not mine, because well I am still holding on to my chub. Or, it's holding on to me. Darn stubborn chub.

No, I am mourning the loss of chub on my baby. Who doesn't look anywhere close to a baby anymore. Or act like one. Oh, he wants snuggles every now and then, but he mostly wants to be independent. The other day, getting him ready for bath, I realized, there are no more fat rolls! NO MORE FAT ROLLS!!! Do you know what that means? My baby is lean and long, no longer a little chubster :( Not that he was ever a chubster but he had nice chubby legs and arms. Look at this now:

Look at that serious face!

Look at all those teeth

No more chubby arms

No more chubby legs

He has to do everything by himself

All I can think of is these lines from Trace Adkins' song, You're Gonna Miss This:

You're gonna miss this
You're gonna want this back
You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
These are some good times
So take a good look around
You may not know it now
But you're gonna miss this

He's talking about a girl wanting to be 18 and then getting married, but these words hold true for any parent. I miss his baby days. I miss his first wobbly crawl, his baby toothless giggles, I miss when he would fit on my chest and fall asleep ... I can only imagine what I'll be missing in another couple years. They learn and grow so fast, how do you hold on to each moment? He's barely 2 and I feel like time's flown by in an instant, how will I feel when he starts school? Graduates college? Brings home "the one?" Puts me in a nursing home?

Nothing like having a baby to make you appreciate your parents and everything they did and every sacrifice they made to make sure all your dreams came true.

Thank you papu, for never treating me like a girl in India. Thank you mumma for being a strong woman and giving me such a positive role model.

Thank you Oli for making me stop and appreciate the important things in life. I know I am gonna miss this. But, even as I mourn the moments that have passed by so fast, I am looking forward to the many moments of joy and wonder that your growing up will bring into our lives. We all love you so very much. Always laugh like this, my bubs.

Houses

When we went to look at the model for our current condo some years ago, we knew as soon as we walked into the foyer that it was what we wanted. The open kitchen, the dining-living area, the study, the double sinks in the master bathroom, the walk in closet ... it all called to us. And, it was perfect. Perfect for a couple with a dog. Not so perfect for a couple with a dog and a toddler. We have no yard. We have sidewalks that step down in front of every condo building so there would be no bike riding down the sidewalks. Kids in our community ride their bikes down the parking lot. So, 6 months ago, we started looking for houses. With yards.

It's hard! Once you get used to something, you don't want to let go. I want my gas cook top. I want my pantry space. I want the double sinks. I want a walk in closet. But, if we look at old houses that have yards, their bathrooms are tiny. They have electric stoves. If we look at new developments with gas appliances and his and her closets, they are built on top of each other.

I guess we decide on the things we absolutely refuse to live without and go from there. And for now, that list is:

• neighborhood
• yard space
• big kitchen
• storage

The things we can reconcile on are:

• double sinks in master bathroom
• gas stove top ... maybe

Some things are churning around in our heads and in the real estate market, some new houses, some lots with options of having our own builder build upon them. I am just scared of making this decision because this will be THE house Oli goes off to college from. That's the idea. What if we buy the wrong house?What if at the beginning it seems fine and then slowly issues pop up? What if the area is great when we move there and in 10 years, it all goes downhill?

See? I am freaking out just putting it down on "paper!"