First, my wife cannot wait to spend extra time with the Tornado.  The Tornado was spending about 30 hours a week with a babysitter.  Though our babysitter was wonderful, nobody beats mom.  Second, we save quite a bit of money from day care and my wife has a driver bring her home at night as she doesn’t drive and I work nights.  So the money we save is going to be substantial.

Now for the major negative.  I am the primary bread winner now and let me tell you this is where the anxiety comes into play.  Though, daycare and my wife’s travel expenses were high we still had some extra money left from her check.

The good news is that my wife will be working a couple days a week at her school maintaining the web site she designed.  Unfortunately, when dealing with NYC Department of Education nothing is guaranteed.  Also, my wife is trying to get her web design business off the ground and I am very confident that she will be making money very soon as she is talented.  Checkout Mom on the Rise (shameless plug) for a sample of her work and Designs by Kristina Brooke to view her portfolio and inquire about her services.

For the next year we will be doing our best to stick to a budget and I will be trying for all the overtime I can possibly get.  Also, since my wife will be taking the year off anyway, we may be working on baby number two.  Though, we are only having preliminary discussions and are not doing anything drastic just yet.

Earlier this week we moved to a new apartment. After almost two years of living in an apartment that was without heat when the temperature dipped below 30 degrees, we moved the the most beautiful apartment in which we have ever lived. To boot, we put SWHS in a toddler bed and that opened a can of worms. I am also having flashbacks to when we put her into the crib. I’m secretly wishing that she would pitch a fit so badly that we have to get her crib back.

Is it wrong that I have to lovk her in her room in order to get some sleep? I don’t really lock her in, but I did put a child-proofing contraption on her door because she kept opening it and running through the house. I sort of feel like I locked the Princess away in the dark tower. Please don’t call ACS.

Did I mention that SWHS is TWO? It came and went so quickly and I think in total, I saw her for about 2 hours on her birthday. That’s right, we celebrated her entry into the Terrible Twos by dropping her off at Nanny and Poppy’s. We had a party planned with a beautiful invitation made by yours truly, but we had to postpone it because we were moving the next day. The party will be rescheduled for no other reason than I want to use the invitations.

So what’s the new energy? Well, I have decided to take my personal blog in a whole new direction. I am cutting ties to some organization and I am going to write what I actually feel instead of what will earn me a buck or two. I have a lot to say and I’m tired of being fluffy.

Well the holidays were amazing as well.  The tornado was 20 months old for Christmas and she was great.  She loved openning presents.  Every gift she unwrapped was greeted with an “OHHHHHHHH.” Adorable is not a strong enough word for how cute she was.  Her favorite gift has to be a baby doll and stroller she received from her sitter.  The doll cries to be feed and snores when she sleeps.  The first few times she would play with the doll, the doll would cry and the tornado would run the doll to mommy or daddy as fast as she could because she did not know what to do.  Now she is an expert.  It still amazes me how fast she learns everything.

Well this entry needs to be short, but I will be posting agaion real soon.

I hope the holidays were joyous for all.

Now to the point of my post.  In the morning I tend to bring the tornado in and mom picks her up in the late afternoon.  So she gets the gushing excited greeting.  I get the tornado chasing me grabbing my legs and whining (used to be crying, but she’s a big girl now).  It breaks my heart to leave her, especially since when I get home at night she is generally sleeping so I see here in the morning for only 30 mins, 45 if I am lucky, as we are rushing out the door.  Luckily, I have 3 days off a week so I try to make up for the lost time on the other days.  Still it is real hard to leave her in the morning especially when that bottom lip pokes out and quivers and she gives me the sad eyes.  I wish my wife would take her up in the morning, but she is usually eating as she is rushing to work.  And in all fairness she asks every morning, but I feel bad since she is eating and all and usually aviods lunch.  The funny thing is that it seems worse than it is as by the time a make it back to the car she has already forgotten about me.

Oh well, could be worse.  She could be excited that I am leaving.

I start work again on Monday, August 20 (also my Mom birthday). I’m looking forward to it because I think working makes me a better Mom. I get bored so fast so I end up being lazy. And, when you have a lively strong-willed 15.5 month old, it is hard to not get frustrated. When I work I find that I enjoy Mommyhood more. Am I alone in that?

BTW- have you seen Star Jones’ new promo for her CourtTV show? She look horrible.

At last posting, I had graduated from Fordham University with a Master’s in Education. Well, after completing that pesky foreign language requirements this summer, I am happy to announce that I am OFFICIALLY GRADUATED. Please, cue the confetti and the celebratory martinis. I have decided to go back to work in the Bronx mainly because I want more experience, but also because we have been thinking about leaving NYS. It doesn’t make sense to start a new job and then leave next summer.  If you haven’t heard, Andrew was promoted a few months ago. He still works for the same company but he is now a Flight Follower. You have to ask him about that because I have no clue how to explain it.

Big news. I am learning to drive. Look out world! It may not be safe to drive the streets of NY any longer. I, hopefully, will have my license by October. I can’t wait!

Let’s see, Mya. Well, Mya is getting so big. She is now 15 months going on 40. She is sassy and determined and full of spunk and curiosity. It’s amazing to see her grow into this individual. She tries so hard to exert her independence yet she still wants to be a baby. And, that’s OK. We love her to death. Be sure to check out her milestones on the right side, and make sure that you check out the photo page.