Tracking February

If I was to give the month of February one descriptive word it would be “perseverance”. It’s not that the month was difficult per se in the sense that anything very serious was taking place, nor tragic, nor overly impressive of a project. Simply, it was just a month challenging my ability to stay on track, to persevere when temptation tried to veer me to other projects, and to say, “I think I can, I think I can, well darn it – I sound like a little old train, but I KNOW I CAN!”

The determined (and slightly crazy) Napoleon Bonaparte said, “Victory belongs to the most persevering.” and I believe we did just that in February. We achieved victory by the skin of our teeth – or wait, drum roll please – by one freshly cut tooth by Ms. Aurora K. Mack!

I was recently given some new tasks and responsibilities at work. I welcomed the change because of who I was to work with and what I would creatively get to assist with. But like with any new task there is a learning curve. It requires new habits to be developed in order to be effective. What was even more challenging was that I had to do this with children at my feet most days or literally in my lap. Perseverance takes on a whole new approach when a ten month old is cutting teeth and a two year old keeps falling off the stool beside me because his awkward growth spurt does everything but make him seem taller.

Really, what is all that about?! I swear they forget they have muscles and sporadically give way to all known muscle memory; where impressive activities like, oh I don’t know, sitting without injury are absolutely hopeless! But I digress.

When life is a bit of a nut house we retreat to other activities such as the library. We roam the shelves, lick a book (me, not the kids…wait, the other way around),

and pretend we are in a gaming race with our cousin across the way.

Ultimately the key to perseverance is balance (which is a little ironic considering Ryder can’t even walk straight lately), but balance we … tried and tried and tried again.

The park is always a welcomed retreat.

I thought I’d bring some work along only to find myself catching giggles and jaunts, squabbles and grumbles.

And we leave said retreat with a little more tension in our muscles than we had hoped. Yet we stay just as determined to preserver and try, try, again.

Ryder has continued on his quest for learning and letters are always top of his list. Scrabble Jr. was broken out the other day which has sparked some spelling inspiration.

“R-y-d-e-r, that spells Ryder!” he says “and R-o-r-y spells Rory!” he adds.
And today he asked me how to spell Grandma, Grandma-Rita, and percussion. Are you kidding me?

So I said, “Per-cuss-i…or is it an “e”?…Per, p-e-r, c-u-s-s, i-o-n.”
To which he says, “Good job Mommy! You spelled percussion! I love you so much!”
Perseverance. (I just had to spell check that.)

Rory is continuing to show personality and an ever joyful spirit. She is seriously contemplating walking and stands with great determination that one foot WILL, in fact, move one after the other. The frustrations of “I know I can do this, but why isn’t it working” are prevalent, but she is persevering! And although a cold that has congested her more than D.C. traffic on a Tuesday, she is always willing to take the day on with gusto. But like most of us, the respite of bedtime is always a welcomed activity. I can’t blame her. We all need a big pink pig to cuddle with, pajamas to curl into, and the hopes of an even better day in the morning. One foot in front of the other…

P-e-r-s-e-v-e-r-a-n-c-e