This may seem kind of strange, but today I’m thankful for the wonderful staff at Bethlehem Preschool and Daycare. These wonderful women cared for Eli for the first 18 months of his life (minus the first 2 when I was on maternity leave). I’m not sure if they know it, but I’ll be forever grateful for the love and care they showed.

I wish I had some photos of Eli’s time at daycare to share. I do have some prints, but unfortunately at the moment, I lack a scanner. So, let me just tell you about it.

They played games and made crafts. I have the flowers, spiders, bunnies, flower pots and miscellaneous items to prove it. Sure, Eli was too young to do much, but he sure loved to get his hands in the finger paint. They played outside with the endless toys, balls, sandboxes. Pretty much every day during the summer, Eli would come home covered in sand, dirt and other grim. And I mean covered. From head to toe. Caked in his hair and toe nails. So much so that even shampoo couldn’t get everything out.

But best of all, they loved him. Nicky from day one took on a motherly roll when I had to be at work. I think that she loved him most of all. And Jo, who had Eli in the infant room and then followed him to the 1 year old room. I reminder one time when I had to pick Eli up when he was sick, and he clung to her, not wanting to let go. Miss Deb, who let Eli call her Debbie, which is a high honor, taught him song after song and loved my little man to pieces. Kate, Courtney and…shot I know I’m forgetting someone, who just adored Eli. Why wouldn’t they, he is such a little flirt and well on his way to being a ladies man.

All of these women helped shape Eli’s young life. They provided care and love when I was off at work. They helped teach him and guide him. They helped make him who he is today. My adorable, although sassy, little man. And I’m pretty sure that one or two of them would have taken him home, if they were given the opportunity.

For anyone that I forgot, I’m truly sorry. It’s not that you aren’t important, or that you didn’t touch the kiddo’s life in an important way. It’s just that I have a terrible memory, especially when it comes to names. So please, leave me a comment with the name of the person I forgot, and I’ll add them to the list right away.

Today I wanted to take some time to give a huge shout out to Dad-oo. Not everyone is as lucky as I am to have such a wonderful, supportive and caring husband. So, just in case I don’t tell him often enough, here’s a list of everything wonderful about my hubby.

1. He loves me. And only me. And our son and pugs.
2. He keeps me grounded. And sane. And from spiraling out of control.
3. He supports me. Even when I make mistakes. Because everyone makes mistakes.
4. He helps out around the house. Even though he’s at work all day.
5. He puts up with the projects I give him for the house. And he does a great job at them, even when they take longer and are more involved than we originally thought.
6. He’s my friend. My best friend. We were friends long before we were anything else, and I think that it where our strength comes from.
7. He let me stay at home with our son, which is the best gift in the world. I’ll never even come close to repaying him for that.
8. Every once in a while he brings home a chocolate treat for me.

On a Side Note, here’s a quick Halloween recap.

ROAR! This year was Eli’s second Halloween, but it was the first one that he could actually participate in. Kind of. He’s still a little young to be going door to door, plus is was really freaking cold and windy on Saturday. So instead we made the rounds to the in-town grandparents homes. And came home with loads of candy, to add to our pile back at home. Doesn’t me look adorable in his lion costume?