Going Cold Pork

Cold turkey, cold pork... whatever. let me just begin by saying that leftover, 2-day old pulled pork BBQ never tasted as good as it did during lunch today. I was on Day 4 of soup lunch (more on the weekly menu later) and the Title 1 ladies downstairs announced that there was leftover BBQ from the Open House we had Tuesday night. The same Tuesday night that I didn't get home until after 8 and the same Tuesday night that I only got to see the baby briefly when he woke up to eat. The same Tuesday that I realized that I do miss him if I don't get to play with him at least a little everyday. So, thanks long day at school!

Now that I'm becoming an efficiency expert, I'm taking lunches for the whole week to school on Monday. The easiest way to do this is to make something durable on Sunday and take it in daily portions. This was going well until I had a few days last week that I was starving by 1:00 and needed something extra... like the next day's lunch. (For anyone working in a 'real job,' teaching is NOT the kind of career where you can just take a break, head to a break room -- we don't even have a lounge, get a vending maching treat - no vending here, and stroll on back to the desk when you please -- that's why it's an issue.) So, I figured that bringing a bigger container of soup would be great -- hot, cold, however -- it's fast & easy. I can essentially drink it in front of kids. Perfect!

Well, until you're on Day 4 of the same soup. This is where the deliciousness of pulled pork entered today's picture. Right. On. Time. I'll be a much better adjusted person for it, too.

On the home front, Little Man is quickly becoming just that: a fully functional small man. He's started doing some very man-type things. Ogling breasts. becoming very protective of his food. Laughing when he poops. Laughing at my disappointed face when he spits up. Moving himself backward on all fours.

Wait a minute...

Moving. Yes, at four-and-a-half months out little friend has decided to become mobile. He was sort of mobile before -- rolling here and there, pivoting on his tummy, ooching forward. But, when I picked him up from 'school' yesterday the aftercare teacher said, "Well, you know he's crawling backward." "No, I didn't know he was crawling backward." (Insert awkward I-don't-know-my-own-child look here.) "Oh, maybe he just started that today." Apparently he did. This weekend he managed to get up on all fours and rock / lunge forward and backward -- getting the tummy off the ground was the last thing keeping him more or less in one place -- so I knew that the end was near. I just didn't calculate HOW near.

So, last night I get him home, we get our evening things taken care of, and playtime begins. I put his favorite toy in front of him and lay him on his tummy in front of it. He looks at it with utter delight (which changes to a maniacal grin) as he draws himself up onto all fours -- he's going to come get it. Or not. This is where he starts to move legs and arms, but they propel him further backward with each motion. He starts to talk to the offending toy, to me, to the four walls... I'm sure that it was something that would translate loosely as, "Why are you moving away from me! I want to put you in my mouth and gum you to death!" Then I started laughing, then the talking changed to squawking. I moved the toy closer. He got excited again -- looked at it with renewed concentration, started moving again. Backward.

So, for the time being we're stuck in reverse. Some people spend their whole life 'bass ackwards', from what I can tell. However, I believe this to be temporary. For now, I'll add to the weekend efficiency plan some lunch variety and childproofing, and we'll see how long it takes this man to get turned around without stopping and asking for directions.