Talk to anyone; having a child is a ton of work. Before I had Luc I knew it was work, but I don't think I really could appreciate how much work it was until I had him and brought him home and suddenly realized that I was the true authority. No one was coming in at the last minute and saying, "oh okay.. I'll take over now." I sat in my livingroom with my newborn son on my lap and all around me was chaos. Laundry (albeit clean) piled all over the couch waiting for someone to come by and fold it. Dishes were everywhere and pots of boiling bottles and accessories on the stove. I cannot believe that a 9 lb person barely 2 feet long can cause so much work. Time goes on and there are many moments that you shouldn't forget. (if you are the forgetful type, write it down so you can appreciate those moments again someday.) I remember the first smile. I lay on the couch and was holding Luc and I talked and talked to him saying, "smile sweetie, smile at Mommy!" My cheeks beginning to ache from the enormous forced smile of mine and suddenly, for a split second he smiled and flashed those gorgeous gums at me. It was quick: I'm sure it could have been longer if he wanted.. but as time as gone by I've learned that Luc does WHAT he wants WHEN he wants. There are so many "moments" that have occured in his short little life of almost 3 years. Most recently I learned that even though he sometimes appears to not be listening to me, not understanding what I'm saying, or not interested, he MIGHT be listening to me and that's why I need to be sure to really mean whatever I say. Last week I had to go out just before his bedtime. He wasn't too happy about it and let me know. I hugged him and said, "Luc, when I come home, I'll come in and kiss you goodnight. Okay? I promise." This seemed to work for him for some reason and I was allowed out. When I got home I asked my husband, "is he sleeping?" He said, "I'm not sure.. it's been pretty quiet for the last 15 minutes or so." I started to move towards Luc's room and my husband nervously asked, "whre are you going?" I said, "I told him I'd kiss him goodnight when I got home." I went into Luc's room and sure enough he lay still and quiet. His arm drapped over his very worn grey bunny, a little truck was under his foot and his pillow was under his belly instead of his head. I grinned when I saw the familiar scene and after removing the truck and adjusting his bed a bit I put my head very close to his and whispered in his ear, "Hi Luc, Mommy's home now. I love you." and kissed him on the cheek. His eyes opened large and he searched my face. I said again, "Mommy's home now, okay?" He looked at me intently reached his hand up to touch my cheek, sighed and said, "yea." His hand fell back down to his bunny, his eyes gently closed and he fell back asleep. I will never make a promise that I don't intend to keep.