Family of Three

It's been an incredible summer for the Rogowski fam. We've been processing and preparing for our new arrival in a couple weeks and we've been making sure to soak up the last of our time as a family of three. It's strange - while I am obviously SO excited to be a mother to a new little life, I am also battling a sadness about Gracie no longer being my only baby. I never was good with endings or change, so I guess it's no surprise! I've been coping with it by really trying to take her in as much as possible and relish this time that we have together. It's made me appreciate all of the small moments. The day to day things that often seemed monotonous or even boring have taken on a new special meaning. Of all of the lessons I am taking from mothering Gracie into mothering a second baby, the biggest one is learning to cherish all of the moments, big or small, good or bad. "This too shall pass" is a phrase often used when encouraging someone through a difficult time, but it's also a great reminder to savor the wonderful times that are so fleeting.

Speaking of cherishing moments with Gracie, in August I decided to rid myself of her for a few hours a week and start her in "preschool." HA! It's really more of a glorified daycare with just 6 kids in the class who play together, learn some things, do crafts, and go to chapel. I have to say, while I struggled at first with leaving my baby in the hands of others for 3 mornings a week (Mom guilt is a bitch!), I quickly grew to be more than okay with the change as I settled into my newfound freedom and found myself becoming a more sane human being. Having that 9 hours a week to get things done, alone, has been ESSENTIAL to my mental and physical health, especially as the exhaustion of late pregnancy has set in. Gracie has really thrived there as well! She loves her teacher Ms. Leslie, she has her little buddies that she plays with, she is using more words daily, and is blossoming into this real life little person! These days her favorite words are "TOOOAAASSSTTTTT!" "Mom Mom and Dad Dad" "Woof Woof and Yeow" (Dog and Cat) and she continues to practice her counting as "ONE, TWO, ONNNNEEEE!" She is also beginning to ask what/where things are. "Wha ah Dad Dad?" is a common question I get toward the end of the day. Often this question is accompanied by her throttle hand in motion as she anticipates riding the Grom with Bart when he gets home. Pointing out body parts is another favorite and lately it's all about eyes. Any excuse to point out an "EYYYYEEEEE!" and she takes it. This has led to watching a lot of "Monsters Inc." lately since she discovered that Mike Wazowski is a giant eyeball. She is also OBSESSED with Wheels on the Bus although, she calls it "beep beep" since the horn is her favorite part. So about a hundred times a day I hear, "Wha ah beep beep?" as she spins her hands in the Wheels on the Bus motion. And because we have no will power, Bart and I have officially heard every rendition ever made of this God awful song along with the horrendous YouTube videos that accompany them. Thankfully she has started to mix it up with "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Five Speckled Frogs." And of course, her weirdness wouldn't be complete without the intense delight she experiences sitting on the couch watching crazy "yeow" videos on YouTube (sorry Henry, I'm pretty sure our YouTube is STILL signed into your account). While her talking continues to be slower than average, she's definitely moving forward. I've let go of the worry and comparisons to other kids and in keeping with my current theme, I'm focusing on enjoying her gibberish and watching her giggle as she discovers new sounds and words. I know there will come a time when she's sassing me in full sentences that I will yearn for her baby babble. As it is, she still manages to throw me some 'tude when she hands me her empty sippy cup, looks at me like I'm a disappointment, and says, "umm..........Mahm!??!"

Hurricane Irma showed her ugly face in September and thankfully, we escaped relatively unscathed. Aside from a lot of debris, 2 days without power, and sewage free flowing into our front yard, we were very lucky. It was a scary night though - at least for me - as the wind shook the house and the noises from flying debris made it sound like the apocalypse outside. Erica, Bart, and Gracie all slept through it like a normal night. As much of a headache as it was, we had some fun moments together since there was nothing to do but sit at home and talk to each other in the dark! We also celebrated our third wedding anniversary on September 11, the day after Irma. We spent the day overheating in a house without power while Bart was outside cleaning up debris and sewage, but still it was a special day. We were all together and we were safe.

We had a chance to celebrate our wedding anniversary the following week with a dinner out at our new favorite restaurant, The Garlic, which is also where we went to celebrate Bart's 39th birthday on October 19. And for Halloween we kept with our tradition of trick or treating and hanging out with our friends, Lindsay and Paul. And it was especially fun having Erica there this year, too! Gracie was more into trick or treating this year but still wasn't totally sold on the idea. She always seems to be happier partying with the adults. :)

In about 2 weeks we will welcome our new little one and we can hardly contain our excitement/fear! We have no idea what awaits us but we do know a few things are certain: exhaustion, anxiety, and a whole lot of love.