*Mother's Day 2011*
Josh and Lulu are trying to be quiet in the kitchen, but it's so close to our bedroom, there's really not much chance that they wouldn't wake me. And honestly, there isn't much I like more than laying in bed listening to the two of them conspiring.
From what I can tell, breakfast in bed is on the way. Ideally, I'd wait them out and pretend to be asleep. Itut I really have to go to the bathroom. Baby Button is laying right on top of my bladder!
I try to be stealthy and sneak to the bathroom without alerting my family that I'm awake, but I'm not at all successful. Just as I sit down on the toilet, Lulu pushes the bathroom door open.
"Mama! You're awake!" She informs me exuberantly.
This is the quintessential Mom experience, I've discovered. But when someone is this excited just to see that you're awake, it's hard to be upset.
"Good morning sweetie."
"You going potty?" Lulu asks. She's been potty trained long enough that we've stopped making a big deal about it. These days we at least attempt to have a modicum of private time for personal business. I was looking forward to a few years of solitude in the bathroom before we had to do it again. Oh well. This is life.
"Lulu!" Josh calls out as he comes into the bedroom and then joins us in the bathroom. It makes me chuckle.
Josh realizes what's going on and makes a joke out of it. "You know, if we're going to keep having meetings in here, we're going to need a bigger bathroom."
He's been ready to move for a while. I'm the one who has pushed back against the idea. But the thing is, he's not wrong. A bigger bathroom would be nice.
"Come on, pumpkin. Let's give Mama a few minutes. And we have to finish our surprise."
"We're making breakfast!" Lulu immediately tells me, as she takes Josh's hand.
"So much for the surprise." Josh mutters as he leads her away. "It'll be ready in about 15 minutes," he calls back over his shoulder.
That's enough time for me to wrap things up and brush my teeth. Once I'm done I contemplate joining them in the kitchen, but I don't want to spoil their plans. Even if it's not a surprise, there's just something so sweet about watching them walk into the bedroom with a tray for me.
So I fluff the pillows and climb back into bed to wait for them. While I'm waiting I use the few minutes to flip through the baby name book.
Jacob, Jeremiah, Jonah, and Josiah are still the only names on the list on the fridge. Nothing else in the Js sticks out to me. I'm not surprised. But I always seem to start with those even though it feels like I practically have this list memorized.. There are some names that I like that don't start with J. But none of those appeal to Josh.
I kind of wish that Josh already had a nickname picked out, like he did with Lulu. There was something so sweet about him calling her that throughout the pregnancy and it becoming her name. By the time she arrive Leonora just felt completely right even though it wasn't something I would have expected to love.
I don't know, maybe that's why picking baby boy's name doesn't feel so urgent. With Lulu. it felt like the most important decision we'd ever make. I was so worried about getting it wrong. Now I know that there are a hundred million little tiny decisions that are really important that we are going to be making for the rest of our lives. And the name one can wait until the baby gets here because it just seems to work out.
"HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!" Josh and Lulu shout as they come into the room. Josh is carrying the tray but Lulu has a bouquet of flowers.
"THESE ARE FOR YOU, MAMA!" she shouts as she practically tosses the flowers at me and climbs up on the bed.
"Careful of the baby." Josh admonishes her softly and she immediately stills and then crawls over to me slowly. Then she lays her hands on my bump and puts her mouth at my belly button.
"Good morning baby. I love you." Her sweetness chokes me up a little. She's going to be a fantastic big sister.
Josh sets the tray on the end of the bed and pulls out his phone to snap a couple of pictures, grinning the whole time.
The moment is just perfect. God I love our life.
"Ahkay." Josh announces, putting his phone away. "Who wants coffee?"
"Me! Me!" Lulu chants, sitting up on her knees.
"I don't think so, little miss." Josh tells her laughing. But I notice there are 3 coffee cups on the tray.
Lulu's lower lip pops out for a second, but Josh just smiles at her. "Coffee for Mama. Hot Chocolate for Lulu."
"Yay!" Lulu cheers,easily assuaged.
I move the flowers over to the nightstand as Josh hands me my cup of life-giving goodness. I'd never really considered myself a coffee addict until this pregnancy. Suddenly, I crave it now that I'm trying to limit my intake. I don't remember it being so bad last time.
I can't help but sigh and wrap my hands around the cup after taking a large drink. It's just so good.
"You're the absolute best!" I inform Josh.
"It's a pretty small thing compared to what you're doing." Josh insists, giving me a quick kiss while he rubs my belly.
The tray only has one plate of pancakes on it. But the stack is so high, I'm sure it's meant to be shared.
Lulu definitely eats her share, and Josh even has a few bites and before long the plate is empty.
"So what's the plan for the day?" I ask Josh.
"Well, it's your day, it's up to you."
"Um, a walk? Maybe to the park?"
"Yay! The park!" Lulu quickly agrees.
"Then maybe a nap?"
Lulu's brow furrows at that. Little miss is starting to think she doesn't really need naps anymore, but I know that if we play in the park for a while she'll probably fall asleep this afternoon.
"Well, that sounds perfect." Josh agrees. "But first, how 'bout some presents?"
"Yay!" Lulu cheers again. He helps Lulu off the bed and they scamper off together. I really don't need anything but there is no point telling Josh that. It turns out he really likes to buy me stuff. And he tends to do really well.
They come back into the room with three packages and identical smiles.
"Here, Mama!" Lulu thrusts a small purple box tied with a hot pink ribbon at me. As I take it I can see that it's a plain white box that has been painted with poster paint. In addition to the purple paint there are splotches of yellow, pink, red, blue and green.
"This box is very pretty, Lulu."
"I painted it." She tells me proudly, watching as I untie the ribbon. I'm pretty excited to see what's inside. I know it'll be something that Lulu made herself, but Nicole is pretty good at coming up with crafts that we'll actually want to keep when it comes to the holidays.
Lulu beams at me when I open the lid and pull out a small terracotta pot that is decorated with little flowers. The center of each flower is a finger print. Then it looks like Nicole drew the petals on with a sharpie and Lulu painted them. It's abstractly perfect. And the pot has a beautiful succulent plant in it.
"I love this! You did a great job." I tell Lulu, who nods earnestly. "I'm going to keep this in my office at work okay?"
"Ahkay." She quickly agrees. Then Josh hands her another bag to hand me.
The white bag emblazoned with "Pandora" pretty much gives the surprise away, but it's not really a surprise anyway. Josh really likes to give me jewelry and I really don't need a ton of it. The charm bracelet really is a perfect compromise. And I think he and Lulu have a really good time picking the beads out together.
"Ooooh, pretty!" I exclaim with only a little exaggeration when I flip open the box and see a dangling heart covered in little pink stones. Josh and Lulu both look pleased at my reaction. That's the important thing. And it really is pretty.
Josh hands me the last box himself. This one really is a mystery. Josh is surprisingly good at picking thoughtful gifts. Inside is a whole foot spa package. Fuzzy slippers, my favorite peppermint foot lotion, and a massage roller. Plus a note in Josh's handwriting promising to rub my feet whenever I want. It's very sweet.
I thank him with a quick kiss.
"Me too, Mama!" Lulu demands. So Josh and I pull her in and plant smooches all over her face as she giggles wildly. When we stop she sighs happily and snuggles into our arms. She's still for a moment then squirms to get down.
"We got to park now?" She asks, pulling on Josh's arm. He looks at me.
"Yep. Let's get dressed."
. . . .
It takes almost an hour before we actually get out of the house. It's Sunday and there's just no reason to hurry. I love days like this. I especially love to see Josh in blue jeans and a henley with the sleeves pushed up. It always feels like a special occasion to see Josh dressed down. We have an unusual life.
It doesn't take long to walk over to Rock Creek Trail pushing Lulu in the stroller. Once we are on the trail, Josh unbuckles her so that she can walk too. This is good exercise for all of us. And at 28 weeks pregnant, I'm not actually that much faster than Lu.
We meander our way down towards the Tot Lot taking our sweet time. Lulu stops frequently to add dandelions to the bouquet that she's gathering.
Once we get to the park, she drops the flowers into the seat of the stroller and hustles off to the swings with Josh hot on her heels. She loves to swing and Josh is happy to push her and I'm content to watch them. Almost a half hour goes by before she's ready for something else.
Josh and I tag team the slide with him making sure she gets safely to the top and me catching her at the bottom, but I know he's glad when after a few trips down she agrees to walk to the Farmer's Market. Given that it's Mother's day, I'm not sure if there will be any booths open but maybe we'll get lucky.
A couple booths are open, and Lulu happily helps me pick out some cucumbers and tomatoes for a salad. Then we pick up some ice tea and lemonade. She's content to be pushed in the stroller since she has a cup and straw, so we decide to walk back through the neighborhoods. I love looking at the colorful row townhouses and Josh makes a game out of it with Lulu, counting all the different colored doors.
A few houses have for sale signs and I can't help but wonder how many bedrooms they have. I'm starting to get a little itch.
When we get back to the Brownstone two hours later, Lulu's asleep in the stroller and I'm exhausted but feeling really good. Josh even manages to transfer her from the stroller to her bed without waking her up.
"Go take a nap." Josh insists when he comes back into the living room and catches me yawning again.
"Yeah, I think I will. Just don't let me sleep for more than an hour, okay?"
"Ahkay."
"Promise."
"I promise. And when you wake up we can decide what to order for dinner."
All in all, a perfect day.
. . . .
*5 days later*
"Whatcha looking at?" Josh asks as he enters the bedroom, looking rumpled and exhausted. I feel my cheeks go red at being caught, even though I'm not doing anything wrong. Of course Josh immediately notices.
"Are you looking at porn?" He crows, perking up.
"No!"
He smirks and quirks an eyebrow up, like he doesn't believe me, even though he knows good and well that I'm not really into that.
"Well you can put it away, because I'm here now. I'll take care of all your needs." He boasts in a cocky voice.
But then he flops down in the chair and his head falls back and his eyes close. He looks too tired to get undressed, let alone meet my sexual appetite, which, due to this pregnancy, is currently pretty high.
"Josh?" I call to him softly. His eyes flutter but don't actually open. Poor man. It's been absolutely crazy at work, between the budget resolution and the push they've been making on health care reform, I know he's worn out. And while the senior staff didn't go through a huge upheaval, there's a fresh crop of underlyings still learning the ropes.
Setting the laptop aside, I slide out of bed and pad over to him. While I definitely feel bigger than I did with Lulu, my baby bump isn't big enough to make bending over impossible especially since I'm keeping up with yoga, but it's still easier to just sink to the floor in order to take off his shoes.
"What?" He startles awake as soon as I lift his leg. "Donna! What are you doing down there?" His brow furrows in confusion and his mouth turns down.
"Just helping you get your shoes off. You're about to pass out from exhaustion."
"I really am tired." He sighs.
"I know." I slip his other shoe off and hold my hand up. "Help me?" I suggest.
That gets a little smirk. "I don't know," he teases. "There's something to be said about having you down there. What were you looking at on the computer? Learning some new technique?"
Of course, a thirty second cat nap and he's back to his suggestive banter. I can't help but roll my eyes. He's good, but not when he's this tired. Neither of us will really end up satisfied, and it's not like we've gone without recently. I'd rather have quality over quantity.
"Josh!" I admonish him, waving my hand a little more.
"Yeah, yeah." Josh teases, "hold yer horses. I'm going to have to stand up to be able to hoist you up."
He does indeed stand, and with very little effort helps me to my feet, but not without suffering my glare the entire time. I know he's kidding, but he's treading on dangerous ground. Good thing I'm in the third trimester and most of the hormones have smoothed out for a while.
Once I'm fully upright, he wraps his arms around me and pulls me tight to him. My body still tingles at the contact. He buries his face into my neck.
"Missed you." He murmurs.
"You saw me this morning."
"Yeah, but I had to work through dinner. And I missed bath time and storytime. I don't like to be away."
"I know. We missed you too. I'm glad you're home." I give him a couple seconds to snuggle, but I don't want him to fall asleep on his feet, which I thought was just hyperbole until I met Joshua Lyman. Then I drag him to the bathroom where we bump into each other trying to get ready at the same time.
That reminds me. I really want a bigger en suite. With a waterfall shower and double vanity. I'll have to add that to my Zillow search.