Why I'm glad my house isn't spotless...

Because I would have missed out on this:

Look at those cute little finger marks in the dust! I love it!

And this: one day when George was crawling up the stairs, he kept pausing to pick up little pieces of who-knows-what from the stairs and putting them in his mouth. I began taking them out of his fingers en route to his mouth, and soon he was offering me the things he was picking up. And after a little of that, he was picking up imaginary bits and offering them to me. Marty says that everyday George offers Marty the imaginary bits that he finds around the house. How cute is that?

Love

When George was just a few days old, I remember having a moment of distress because I couldn't remember if I'd said "I love you" to George that day. He was 3 days old, and I was already counting myself a failure--what sort of trend was I starting? How would George know I love him if I wasn't sure to tell him every day?

Today that moment from a year ago came to mind as I realized that there are times when saying "I love you, George" is almost a reflexive response to just looking at him--seeing him smile at me, or flap his arms at me, or whatever. I can hardly pick him up without kissing his head. I love that boy so much! More than I ever could have imagined.

Cabbage Patch Kids

I brought home from our Christmas week at the beach, 2 Cabbage Patch Kids from my childhood--one a "preemie" from the mid-'80s; one a "newborn" from several years later. I put them on the window seat area in George's room with the other stuffed animals, but a few weeks ago George pulled down one of them and began playing with it. We talk about the baby's eyes, ears, mouth, nose, fingers, etc.

One of the babies is missing its clothes, so yesterday I got on eBay to try to find some clothes for it. Preferably boy clothes. I also decided to work on cleaning them because they have nearly 30 years of dirt on them. Magic eraser on their heads, and sink baths with OxyClean and laundry detergent, and they were looking much better, if a little wet.

Marty commented that I was really doing a lot with the dolls. I said, "Yeah, I cleaned them. George likes them."

He gave me a sideways look and said, "And you like them too."

"Yes, mostly because George does."

An hour or so later Marty saw them by the washing machine where I'd left them to dry. He looked at them and said, "Wow, you did a good job cleaning them. They look great!" He asked how I did it, and said, "I thought you were just playing with them all that time."