So I’m going to make a conscientious effort to blog more often. Because I really, really like it, and I miss it, and I haven’t filled out any of the baby books I got at my shower, so this is the only place I’ll be able to look in when Luki is eighteen and he asks me why he’s got random spots of discolored skin on his chest and back. (No, it has NOT gone away yet. I think I may have stained my kid for permanent!)

Anyway, I guess you’re wondering why I stopped blogging so much. And to be honest, I really don’t know, but if I had to guess, I’d say it’s a bunch of laziness sprinkled with a dash of my-toddler-sucks-up-all-of-my-time and a squirt of Ton-and-I-have-become-obsessed-with-watching-House-Hunters-every-night.

The thing is, though, that blogging is good for me. For my mental health. And this whole time that I haven’t been writing, well, it’s been on the back of my mind, stressing me out. So, last night I set the alarm on my phone for half an hour earlier and put the phone in our bathroom so that, when it rang, I had to get out of bed to turn it off and, since I was already up and in the bathroom, I jumped in the shower with my eyes closed.

I’m using that extra half hour to blog. We’ll see if it works. I won’t make any promises because, well, sleep, particularly my sleep, is a very powerful thing. And I may end up taking naps on the toilet.

For now, let me get you caught up on what’s been going on here:

1. I guess I never really finished telling you about our trip to Venezuela. I’m not going to go into detail because I don’t really remember the details anymore, but know that it was fun, and exhausting, and that, at one point, Ton Ton had to bribe a machine gun toting police officer. We weren’t doing anything illegal. Ton Ton was just driving his mom’s car without a Venezuelan driver’s licence and we got stopped at a checkpoint. Then the officer mentioned that he was “really, really thirsty” and asked us if we had any ideas on how we could resolve the situation. I had some ideas of my own, i.e.: a long and colorful lecture on ethics and the DISASTER that is Chavez’ government, but Ton Ton quickly handed the extortionist a bill and we drove away.

2. Big E is on a trip for three months. I will tell you more about it as things develop, but she is doing great so far. We talk on Skype every day so that she can see Luki. It’s all she really cares about. Luki loves it and has started referring to my computer as “abu.” (That’s short for abuela, the Spanish word for grandma.)

3. Luki is 15 months old. We took him to the doctor for his regular check-up yesterday and our physician actually used the words “extremely stubborn” in reference to our child. He wrestled the nurse when she tried to weigh him, smacked the doctor when he looked in his ears, and kicked the technician who administered his shots. I’d say “extremely stubborn” is too mild of a description.

4. But that seems to be a re-occurring theme with my son. Words always seem to fall short. Words like incredibly sweet and outrageously smart and completely hilarious. Because when he’s not kicking medical professionals, he is blowing kisses to everyone he encounters. Or picking out the duck and the bear and the horse and the goldfish in his favorite book.

5. Or making this face: