Life Is Good!

So I thought it was time for an update... I know Christmas was ages ago (okay, only a month) but I figured I would start with that. We had a good time visiting with all of Gregg's family on Christmas Day and then mine the second weekend of January. Colton received several very LARGE and very LOUD presents that we had to rent another condo to fit them all in- just kidding! There is currently a train table taking up half of our living room, though, and his bedroom is busting with so many toys, I don't know where to put them all. I think next year I'm telling people to get him books and clothes... practical, quiet, and SMALL. I mean really, do people consider the size of our current living quarters before they purchase these gifts? Anyway, I am appreciative of our family's generosity and that this kid has want of nothing. My sister bought him his own V-tech laptop so he can sit at the table just like mom and dad, typing away and practicing his phonics.

I think it snowed 10 out of 14 days these past couple of weeks and I.am.sick.of.it. Not a big fan of winter to begin with, and this just all the more makes me want to move back down to Florida. It's not fun to be stuck in the house. :( Today, despite temperatures in the teens and low 20s, we bundled ourselves up to go to the mall and return a few Christmas gifts. After scoring some great store credit to be used in the future, we grabbed lunch and then splurged on Starbucks coffee, which Gregg & I drank while Colton played in the mall's Kid Zone. It was a nice family afternoon out that I desperately needed.

My little boy is going to be two and a half in only a few short weeks. 2 1/2! Where did the time go? I'm having (mostly) a blast watching him grow up. Colton can say about 140 words now, and his vocabulary has tripled in the past five months. The words are coming so fast these days that I hardly have time to write them down! He's also starting to put three and four words together in sentences and can identify a few letters, such as A, B, C, L, O, and P. Colton is obsessed with trains and Curious George. He asks to watch "mo-nee" every night before bed. He also LOVES to read. Well, have us read to him at least. I borrowed a Curious George book from the library last month that was 46 pages, and he sat there every day (sometimes twice a day) through the entire thing, paying close attention and pointing out pictures. I found that reading together at least once a day has really improved his vocabulary.

We broke down and bought a potty a few weeks ago, but the truth is he just isn't ready yet. And I'm okay with that. He's growing up so fast as it is. I dreaded the "terrible twos", but you know what, two is actually pretty terrific. Colton definitely has his bad days when he's cranky and nothing pleases him, but I've noticed that he seems to be much more socially and emotionally mature than most boys his age. He doesn't grab toys away from other kids, he rarely has meltdowns when he doesn't get his way, and he can adapt pretty easily to changes in routine. I joke that we shouldn't "mess with perfection" by having a second one, ha ha! But seriously, Colton is not perfect- he can be outright defiant at times, tries to run away from me in public places, and gets so worked up if the opposite parent puts him to bed that he pukes all over the place. Last Sunday I was at a baby shower, so Gregg had to put him down for a nap and Colton was anxious about me being gone so much he made himself sick. In the middle of December, Gregg needed to work late several days in a row and wasn't available to put Coltie to bed as he always does, so when I did it instead his anxiety got the best of him... and you guessed it, he blew chunks. I can't tell you how many times we've had to wash the crib bumper over the past 10 months! Thank goodness we've got a front loader.

Gregg and I celebrated our 8th anniversary on January 11. I really can't believe we've been married that long already. We're finding ourselves in a unique place in our marriage these days, in that we are the most financially stable we have ever been. Gregg has wholeheartedly adopted the Vertical Vision mantra (http://www.myverticalvision.com/), and it has radically changed the way we both view our finances and money in general. We have a good budget in place and have a month's worth of money in the bank before the month even starts. We also have savings and an emergency fund. We used to live paycheck to paycheck and were always afraid of running out of money before the month ended. Also, we stopped using credit cards!! The only debt we have now is a student loan and Gregg's car loan, which we hope to pay off within the next two years. I can't tell you how good it feels to be on our way towards financial freedom.

Anyway, I think that's it for now. I want to start posting more often... blogging has taken a backseat to Facebook, house cleaning, and taking care of a toddler, but I think I should make the effort to squeeze it in more!