Megamind.

Usually my little trex is waaaay too busy for TV.  He likes the background noise (particularly music), but he'd much rather run around and climb and play than watch a screen.  However, we seem to have stumbled upon a movie that he will actually watch (for about 10-15 minutes, at least).  Thomas loves Megamind.  I must admit that I'm rather pleased seeing as how I picked it out for one of his Christmas presents.

Today Thomas climbed up on the couch and threw all of the pillows on the floor.  He then grabbed another pillow from a nearby chair and tossed it into the mix.  He also picked up his favorite stuffed animals (monkey and bear) and a sippy cup for good measure.

Once all of that was in place, he went for the finishing touch:  the blanket his mommy was snuggling with on the couch.  He started yanking and then grunting until I finally gave in--with one final yank, he ripped the blanket off of me and into the pallet he had made on the floor.

After snuggling into all the softness, he focused on his favorite movie, and I was able to snap this quick photo :)

As if that weren't cute enough, when he saw me taking pictures, he picked up his monkey and gave it kisses.  I love this kid!

Now is probably a good time for lessons on where kisses go...or maybe he's seen me kissing his sweet, baby feet a few too many times.

Talking.

Thomas is FINALLY starting to talk...just a little bit.  He's been saying "da-da" practically since he was born.  Sometimes he'll say "ma-ma," but usually he just grunts at everything.  "Unh-unh" is what I hear all day.  Until now!

Thomas says "ba" for ball, "ca" for car, "shhs" for shoes, "bu" for book, "Jsjs" for Jesus, and "ki-ka" for kitty cat.  All the important stuff, right?  Notice there are no food words...the kid still hates to eat.

I love to hear him talk, and I can tell that he loves to be understood.  18 months is a fun age :)

Also, I need some new pictures of my little trex.  He's gotten 4 new teeth and a haircut since these Christmas pictures--practically a brand new kid!

Busyness.

In the "old days," I loved to have nothing to do.  As a college student, I longed for those times when I had no assignments and tons of free time.  Once I became a teacher, I looked forward to summer vacation when I could do whatever it was that I wanted to do.  I would hunker down with a good book and sunbathe.  I would take trips to the beach and watch entire seasons of Lost or 24.  Those were good times.

Becoming a mother has changed me.  Mothering Thomas is a busy job, but there's a kind of monotonous down-time aspect to it.  I often find myself sitting on the floor, rolling cars up and down the hallway while Thomas does the same.  It's cute and sweet and he loves it, but we do it everyday and sometimes it's not particularly thrilling to me.

In contrast to my school days, I've found that I like to be busy now.  I like to have lots of things to do and to get them done.  I enjoy running errands.  I like to make meal plans and budget.  I like having playgroups and story time at the library.  I want to go to the park and to take walks around the neighborhood.  I am enamored with cooking and blogging.  I love to sew and read and work out at the gym.  I truly enjoy studying the scriptures and conference talks and planning my Young Women's lessons.

However, I've also found that it's difficult to work up the motivation to do all these things.  As much as I like them and as good as they make me feel, it's so easy to be lazy.  Maybe it's a habit formed from years of lazy summer breaks where I was trying to cram a year's worth of relaxing into 2 months.

Thomas isn't going to complain if we don't go to playgroup.  He's not going to fuss if I don't clean the bathrooms or vacuum the floors (after all, more cheerios for him if I leave it).  He doesn't mind if I don't get in my workout, and Jake won't complain either seeing as how it means he gets more sleep when my 5:30am alarm clock is not waking him up.

In conclusion, I'm trying to be motivated, because it makes me happy.  Doing things that make you happy should be simple--common sense, right?  But it's so hard.  I don't know why, but it just is.  Any advice?