As I stood staring into my fridge this Saturday morning, I couldn’t help but laugh at how much Brian and I had accomplished before 9 am on a weekend. Furthermore, I was emptying out plastic tubs of leftovers into a breakfast scramble. Before Alexander, Saturday and Sunday were both two meal days, with breakfast usually just consisting of enough coffee to get us jittery. We’d sit around and figure out our plans, and if we were feeling ambitious, we’d be showered and on our route of errands by noon at the earliest.

I’m certain all you parents out there are laughing hysterically. With Alexander in our life, weekends take on a completely different meaning.  Now, with our little man’s 5 meals a day, the moment we rouse Alexander from his snarly slumber, the countdown clock starts until his next meal.  I have to say though, that I love having Brian home on the weekends to help with feeding Alexander and general kid control (aka saying “No, no!” a lot to a curious little boy).  We multi-task and have our game plan, and hopefully, if we can get one thing on our to-do list crossed off, it’s a victory.  Our little man has definitely made me slow down my normal frantic pace of life in order to read “Moo Baa La La La” over and over (and over and over) again.  Our coffee for breakfast and lunch at 2 pm just doesn’t cut it anymore. Laundry and dishes have taken a more prominent role in my life, and evening gatherings out rage on only as late as is reasonable for your average 18 month old.  Life has changed, that is certain.

Even with all the significant changes to our daily routines, some of our favorite traditions have remained. We still enjoy making dinner and having our occasional wine and cheese night (now with free additional toddler whine!) We enjoy going out for sushi and hunting down new great beer spots. Just this Friday, we hustled out the door with the kid as soon as Brian came home in search of a rather elusive seasonal pumpkin beer at one of our favorite taverns.  We owe our flexibility in frequenting restaurants much to our easy-going son, but we also are committed to not locking ourselves in our home.  I’m sure we get some looks as we’re enjoying a beer with our son in tow, but he’s always well-behaved and seems to enjoy all the attention from the waitstaff.

Errands are still plentiful. Thank goodness, Alexander loves shopping carts– I think it has something to do with the motion of the cart, but he’s usually all smiles and waves as we’re pushing him through our local warehouse club.  This Saturday, our morning adventure was to try and find in two hours or less…. wait for it…. less dusty cat litter. I know, I know, we Kellys know how to have a good weekend! In any case, Alexander seems thrilled to be a part of our weekend errands as long as we get back in time for his lunch… and teatime… and dinner… and dessert.  He even attended his second wine tasting this Saturday at a friend’s home- no wine for him, of course, but plenty of attention from our friends in addition to successfully trying guacamole for the first time.

Let’s get this show on the road! We’ve got errands to run!

Alexander testing out his friend Mr. Razka’s new truck at our monthly wine tasting

So yes, parenthood has definitely had its share of new challenges and lifestyle changes. Lots more laundry. Lots more sniffing of clothing to see if it’s “cleanish.” Everyone eating breakfast regularly.  Fewer lunches out.  But it’s also included so many new joys– brightly colored shopping carts, functional toddler swings at playgrounds, getting tiny enthusiastic waves and applause when you enter a room, and watching our child experience enough firsts to make your head explode.

I’m sure all of the highs and lows will eventually mellow out, and we’ll be left with your standard angsty teenager someday. But for now, we’ll enjoy all the crazy pre- and post-nap running around with a perpetually happy toddler. And hey, at least my fridge leftovers get cleaned out with these breakfast scrambles!