Tired, but Determined

This week Little Guy has yet another ear infection and therefore he has been sleeping poorly.

He never has been much of a sleeper anyway. He was fourteen months old before he slept more than five hours in a row. He’s never slept past 6am, and only that late on a handful of occasions. Yesterday we were up at 3, and that was after a long night of ups and downs. He wanted to be rocked. He wanted his back rubbed. He wanted me to not touch him, but also not to leave his room. I was a zombie, but I obliged him because let’s face it - we Mommies have a hard time saying no to our sick little ones.

This Zombie Mommy then struggled through a typical day at the office. If it weren’t for caffeine I don’t know that I would have made it. But I did – make it, that is. Last night miraculously Little Guy slept from 7 till 5. That meant that Mommy and Daddy did too, and oh what a difference a good night of sleep can make!

I don’t want to jinx it, but I think he’s feeling better. And just in time too. We are having a 2nd birthday party for him on Saturday. It will be at our house, so there is much to do.

I’m a bit of a control freak (if you know me well, you are wiping the tears from your laughing eyes at this understatement). That means that I’m making the cake (three actually, but more on that in a future post), a lot of the decorations, the invitations and of course attempting to scour our home so that it is ready for an onslaught of family, friends and neighbors. Dan’s been putting in a lot of extra hours outside as well, and I think we’re going to be ready when Saturday rolls around.

Birthdays are a really big deal to me. They always have been. My folks are not rich or fancy and never were, but they always made us feel really special on our birthdays. Mom would bake the cake of our choosing. Many years they were in fun shapes or featured favorite characters. They were always delicious. We were served our favorite meal and there would usually be a few little presents. For years we made each other greeting cards. I think it started as a way to save money, but became a fun tradition.

They threw me a few parties, but the one I remember most was for my 8th birthday. Oh, what fun that was. Dad made a piñata, and Mom made a wonderful birthday cake. All of my little friends from church and school were invited and we had a treasure hunt and a sleepover. It still brings back waves of fond memories all these years later.

It’s that feeling that inspired last year’s 1st birthday party for Willie (baseball theme) and this years’ Sesame Street party. The house will be full of friends and family. There will be yummy cake and ice cream. There will be presents and fun times. Most of all there will be lots and lots of love for the Birthday Boy.

I know we could save ourselves a lot of time if we purchased a cake or rented out a local pizza joint. I know it won’t be perfect, no matter how much effort we put in. But I also know that it will be fun, and Will is going to love having his house full of folks he loves and cake to eat and a few gifts to unwrap. He’s too young to really remember the party for long, but someday we can show him the pictures and he’ll see how much fun he had and know how much this day meant to us.

And so what if we’re tired? It’s worth it. He’s worth it. He fills our every day with joy and laughter and surprise and excitement. The least we can do is give him some back.

I may be exhausted these days, but I’ve truly never been happier.