My Day With Alex

There are several topics to write about today. I could write about how aggravating it is to have two seconds to squeeze in some work – in between the time when dinner is ready and the potty-training “incident” – and having another computer problem. Or I could always talk about the fact that I woke up around 3:30am and could not get back to sleep, so ended up having a pretty useless day. I decided to stick to the positive, though, because it makes me happy to think about and, therefore, to write about it.

My youngest son, Alex, and I spent a rare day together this past week. It was rare because I work from home and have two different age groups to work with by having an 8-year-old and a 3-year-old. I do not usually have time to spend with my younger son the way I did with Nicholas. Nicholas was essentially an only child for 4 ½ years. I took him everywhere and did not even have the option of any sort of preschool until he was almost 4. He went grocery shopping with me, had several Mommy and Me-type of activities, and I enjoyed hanging out with him. He was also more attentive and patient when it came to crafts and tangible activities such as cooking. His brother, on the other hand, is a very different child. I occasionally take him out on short outings to the grocery store or on other errands, but he always wants to be wherever his brother is. I think that is a good thing overall, but I regret not having time to spend with him alone.

So when he had a day off while his brother was at school, I hung out with him and did absolutely no work at all. (Don’t tell my editors!) We grabbed a donut at Dunkin’, went to the store and visited Nonni at work. I even helped him make a pillow fort and then climbed into it at his request! It was a tight squeeze, but totally worth the back pain when he said, “I like hanging out with you, Mommy,” his face beaming with his smile.

When it snowed later in the day, and my choir rehearsal was cancelled, he was in Heaven. He got to romp in the snow with his brother after dinner. This was a good call on my part since it poured rain overnight and the snow was gone by morning. We made snow angels, built a little fort for his dump truck, and drank hot tea with honey after we came in for the night.

Time is passing and Alex will grow up all too soon. His brother is already eight! He will be busy with school and friends, and there will be no time for his old mom. My work will always (hopefully!) be there, so I think I’ll have to schedule a few of these days off from now on. I do not think his college boards will be affected if he misses a day of preschool, do you?