Working From Home

Jeanni was out of town most of last week so I was able to get permission to work from home (thank heavens for awesome bosses who are flexible). Justin was able to come home midday a couple of times so I could go in for important meetings or to get some things done, but I was mostly home and I have to say, working from home is not the easiest! Especially if you're trying to work a full day. A half day or just checking emails occasionally is probably not so bad, but it was really hard because 1. I wanted to actually be with Nolan and take advantage of the opportunity to spend more time with him, but since I was supposed to be working I felt like I had to always be in another room or distracting him with things (usually TV, ugh).  2. The house took a beating because I would only take breaks long enough to take him for a walk, get him some food, or maybe play for a few minutes, but the rest of the time I felt I needed to be working and couldn't clean up (ugh!). So even when he napped for several hours, it was my best time to get work done so the apartment was totally neglected which completely stressed me out. 3. Nolan definitely watched way more TV than I'd like, but what could I do? The first day or two was rough because he kept coming over to me wanting something or wanting me to play (break my heart why don't ya?), but the last several days he got really good at playing quietly on his own. I felt a little bad, but also think the ability to play independently and make your own fun is a great skill so I was proud of him. 

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Here are some highlights of our time together:

This boy discovered Play-doh in nursery and loves it! I found this cute little bucket with some cans of play-doh + toys on clearance at TJ Maxx so I got it for him and he's been having a blast with it! We're still working on it, but he's doing pretty well with our keep-it-on-the-table-or-we'll-take-it-away rule.

He's still doing a lot of things left-handed.

Playing with blocks was a great thing that he liked to do on his own.

This happened a lot. But hey, it was a pretty good view from my workspace, amiright? ☺

Playing with his new play-doh set at the park (this is what he did when I asked him to smile).

Of course he wanted to sit in the car and drive.

"Helping" mom with the dishes

One night Nolan and I went on a date to his favorite fancy restaurant (McDonald's). Sorry Justin, but this date is pretty hard to beat! ♥ Seriously though, I had so much fun being there with just Nolan. He's a surprisingly good conversationalist for a 21 month old and was such a good, fun boy. There was however an incident where he thought it was a good idea to taste test some ranch dressing that had spilled inside the play place, yuck! He started crying and spitting and spluttering everywhere until I could clean out his mouth, gag. I probably shouldn't have even told Justin about that one (he definitely has germophobic tendencies), but it was kind of funny. Mostly super gross, but a little bit funny haha so I had to.

Anyway, it was so fun being with him, talking to him, asking about things he likes, watching him point at cars, eat fries, drink apple juice, laugh and run to and from the play place, and give me silly smiles. As excited as I am for BB2, it's a little sad to know that our time with just Nolan is coming to an end soon. I'll miss our little family of 3, but I know even better things are coming!

This date made me want to make sure I take the time to have one on one interactions with my kids in the future as much as I can.

I love this boy! And even though I was trying to work at the same time, I was glad to have the chance to see him and interact with him during the day ♥