We have a new development, folks. One that is pretty significant.

Henry has reached an age where I can set up my laptop in the same room with him, and he actually lets me write!!!

This is awesome! It’s also frustrating, because I have so many things I’ve been wanting to blog about recently.

• I had a relapse last month. It’s over. Nobody really needs to read about it.
• Writing for “free” for other publications, and whether or not monetizing this blog makes any sense at all. (Does it? I’ve been writing here for 10 years and never tried to actually make money.)
• The push-pull between accepting disability and struggling against it — because capitalism and parenting… (Kids are fucking pricey, yo.)
• Comparing and contrasting the latest diets for MS and weight loss
  • Standard Ketogenic Diet
  • Wahls Paleo Plus (which is a specific type of keto diet)
  • Code Red (which also looks like a kind of keto diet)
  • AIP – Auto Immune Paleo Protocol (which may be done as a keto diet)
  • Wahls Paleo
  • Standard Paleo
• How to meditate, and why it’s hard sometimes, especially when you’re upset.
• I also need to finish Barbara Applebaum’s new book and review it.

I removed FB from my phone, btw. So, my engagement with depressed and/or angry strangers is way down and engagement with Henry is way up. He turns 3 in 2 days.

I can’t believe that my little guy is now an avid gamer — good with both tablet and PC video games, and he’s getting better with following directions for card games and board games. Like, I remember freaking out, worrying he was never going to roll over. How we got from there to him demanding freedom to jump between Disney Junior games and PBSKids.org is beyond me. I’m sure it has nothing to do with the foam polyhedral dice we gave him at 6 months…

Anyway, Henry knows his shapes and colors and can count from 1-20 in English (and 1-10 in Spanish, French, and Japanese, thanks to my months-long daily repetition of this video. He also understands some basic phrases in all 3 languages, thanks to Little Pim.) He knows his ABCs and can identify letters individually. He can sometimes sound words out, but real understanding isn’t all the way there, in no small part because he’s an impatient toddler.

Still, he’s able to recognize who I’m texting with even without a picture… so he knows his daddy’s name and the names of his BFFs mommies on sight. 🙂 And let’s not forget that before I entirely cleared my phone’s ICE presets, he’d figured out how to call Busia, MeeMaw, Pa-Pa, and Daddy whenever he wanted to.  The kid is clever. Needless to say, I’m proud of him.

I’m also not sold on the idea that he needs to go to preschool. It can be crazy expensive.  I’m not convinced it’s either necessary or good for him, though I am determined to get him into some quality extra-curricular classes, because he deserves more social interaction.

Right now, I’m looking at gymnastics, music, art, and dance offerings near us. If we still lived on the north side, I’d be signing him up for a kajillion classes at Old Towne School of Folk Music, but we don’t.

I’m actually really bummed that our local Gymboree Play and Music doesn’t offer music classes, art classes, or really anything for kids who are older than 2, other than a single class for families — which means he’d need a sibling under the age of 2…

Tinkergarten might also be a good option, but it’s only 1 hour a week.

There’s always time with other kids at our gym… but we’d have to actually go, and every time we step in the doors, we leave with a new illness.

The cycle goes

1. Excited to work out!
2. Obviously sick but going to the gym anyway, because FITNESS!
3. Unable to get out of bed.
4. Better but afraid to go back to the gym and get sick again.
5. Sad about being chubby and determined to change my activity level.

(And repeat, ad nauseum.)

And then there’s always the park… which we’re going to right now, because if I waste a 60 degree, sunny day, shame on me.

Hope y’all are having a good day. ❤