What is parenting like?

We recently watched "The Backup Plan" with Jennifer Lopez. It was a TERRIBLE movie (and I can say that because I really like Jennifer Lopez and I tried really hard to like it... unsuccessfully) but there was a line in it that I really liked. A dad at a playground is being asked what parenting is like. His response is, "It's awful, awful, awful. Then a small moment happens, that's so magical that makes it all worthwhile." I couldn't agree more. This is what my week has been like.

The night before Paul started back to work Liam was up sick all night. And when I say all night I mean aaallll night. I got maybe a combined total of 3 hours. I would work hard getting him back to sleep and when I would move him into a reclined position he would wake up screaming because he couldn't breathe through his nose. Which, of course, means he couldn't nurse either. We suctioned his nose 3 times that night (which is always a good time). Who doesn't love pinning their toddler down while you suck slimy boogers out of their nose whith an aspirator while he screams and flails like you're murdering him? So I loaded up on coffee and prayer and started my day. Lucky for me I have an amazing husband who, from work, called in reinforcements in the form of his mom and brother. Thank God. They played and I slept. Night 2 was much better and my mom came up to help the day after that and he's now getting over the cold and I'm starting to get it.

My point is that as soon as his cold cleared up and I started to feel sane again he started to say the funniest things. He now tells me he's "stuck" all the time. He walks behind the couch and yells, "I stuck!" until I rescue him, he pulls on the feet of his footed pajamas crying, "I stuck!" until I change him out of them and he pulls at the straps in his carseat until I say "I know you're stuck. That's the point." It might not sound like it but it's pretty darn adorable. But my favorite thing he started saying the same day is, "Thank you." It melts my heart and makes me feel like I must be doing something right. I was handing him crackers in the car the other day and he kept saying, "Tant Tu, Mama." By far, the cutest thing yet! It was definitely the moment that was so magical that it made it all worthwhile.