Loulou's views

Sleepless nights... a common reality for most moms. My son is usually a very good sleeper, going to bed around 10 p.m. and waking up between 7 and 8 a.m. He has a great routine. I don't mind that he goes to bed at 10, because since I get off work at 4, I get to spend 6 hours with him! So it's amazing. But last night, he woke up at midnight, crying, and very hot. I was immediately concerned, of course. He was very sad and did not know what he wanted and me and my hubby tried to comfort him and eventually he fell back asleep again, but you could tell it wasn't the most peaceful sleep. I was worried right away, thinking he might be coming down with something, or maybe he has a fever, or what if it is another UTI? I panicked, and seriously did not close my eyes until 3 a.m. I worry way more then I should. I would not take his temperature for fear that he might have had a fever. I slept beside him the whole night. Eventually, he fell into a deep sleep and as of this a.m. he is A...

I guess the word of the day for me is: amazing. My son is simply amazing. He amazes me every single day. I guess after 18 months, they just take off and become these little people, with such amazing personalities. My baby boy is growing up so fast! Climbing on chairs, looking out of the window, saying bye-bye to the moon, reading his books (and I'm not kidding when I say he had a huge interest in books at the young age of 3 months old, when he was in CHEO) feeding himself - or trying to, anyway! It's so precious to see him take his little spoon or fork and bring it up to his mouth, looking at me with such happyness, like, "Look, mommy!" The way he runs up to me for hugs and kisses. The way he says 'shhh' and puts his finger to his lips... and the way he says 'hmmmmm' and taps his finger under his chin like I do, when I'm thinking of something. Oh, the joy and the amazement he brings me every second of every day! He loves to dance... and I love to w...

My little sister turns 24 this Sunday! Wow! So young... anyway I just wanted to wish GG the best birthday ever and many, many more! She's the world's best aunt, coming over every night to play with Christos. He loves her too, big 'mwah' from Christos G! Here's a picture of my lovely sister with her lovely lady posse. Ah, to be 24 again... we'll celebrate lots on Saturday night! P.S. My sister is currently at work with CONDI RICE! On the same floor... she says there are snipers everywhere and it's craziness at DFAIT right now!

As a mom, you experience a lot of 'scary moments'. Moments that you can't stop thinking about after, thinking 'what if?' You're always told: never leave your baby unattended on the change table, never leave your baby alone on your bed, and always stay near your baby when they are in the bath. Well, I have done all of that. I've never left Christos alone on his change table, except to step to the side to grab a pair of pj's, but my hands are always on him. And as soon as he was able to roll onto his tummy or move around, he was never alone on our bed. And in the bath, I'm always, always, always there beside him, practically in the tub myself. The other day Christos wanted to take out the rubber mat that is in the bathtub so he could slide around easier. "Okay", I thought, "I'm right here, he won't slip." Well, 2 seconds later, he slips and goes under the water... completely covered in water, since the tub was filled to the ...

Wow... already? I wonder if I broke some blogger record?

- the most exciting email you get in a day is the one from your mom telling you that your baby pooed! Yay! - even when your baby is no longer in the room, the TV is still on Treehouse. - you sing really loud and act really silly in public i.e. Loblaws, Chapters, Starbucks because it makes your baby laugh. - you no longer go to the movies every week. - you don't really care that you don't go to the movies anymore. - your old jeans still don't fit you... 18 months later. - you only talk about your child. - every 'non-parent' issue seems boring and like, soooo not an issue anymore! - you wonder why you're working and not at home with you child (until you remember how expensive diapers and formula are). - your magazine subsriptions are no longer to US Weekly and Glamour, but to Parents and Today's Parent. - you don't mind sticking a bibila (Greek for soother/binky) in your mouth after it falls on the floor before giving it back to your child. - you understan...

My little darling!

Good to know... and thank goodness! New Poll Says Harper Best Man For The Job Tuesday, February 20, 2007 Prime Minister Stephen Harper scores high marks with Canadians for his leadership. A new Globe and Mail/CTV poll found 36% of voters think Harper is the best federal leader for the job. Liberal Leader Stephen Dion is far back of Harper at just 18%, while N.D.P Leader Jack Layton was third with 16%. Harper also was tops with voters when asked which leader is the most decisive. Harper garnered 53% of the vote, compared with 20 for Layton and 19 for Dion.

I couldn't go to WW to get weighed... sigh... which means I couldn't have my cheat night... double sigh... I had no one to watch Christos and I wasn't going to take him out in the sub-human freezing temperatures just so I could see how many pounds I lost this week. Hopefully I'll go tonight... and if not, Friday for sure. When I got home yesterday I was so happily surprised to see a dozen red roses in a beautiful vase waiting for me, along with a beautiful card from my hubby, and a card from my son... and a card for my son from my hubby... it was all very sweet and made my night that much more special. Baby and I played, cuddled, read, and by 10 p.m., when he fell asleep, I was ready to call it a night too... but I had to stay up to watch AI since I couldn't really watch it when baby was awake. I guess they did a good job picking the 24 finalists... will be fun to watch next week!

My husband has to work until 11 p.m. for the next two months...and let me just say... it's tough without the extra help around the house! I am more then excited to be spending so much quality time with my little guy, but at around 5:30 when I was trying to get dinner ready last night and Christos was clinging to my legs, asking to be picked up, I realized... 'wow, it's way harder doing this alone!' First off.... I'm a lost cause in the kitchen. I was only trying to peel and cut up a sweet potatoe to make my son his dinner (along with veggies, of course, and some homemade soup my mother-in-law made earlier in the day) and it was nearly impossible! Is it just me, or are sweet potatoes just really, really hard to cut? And I was using a really expensive Henkels knife, too. Anyway. So I was cooking the sweet potatoe fries with my little guy in my arms. Not very safe, but I had no choice. After dinner and bath time, my mom and sister came over. Thank goodness - they are s...

Okay, so I found out this is something most people with blogs do - a list of 101 things about themselves. (Thanks Dani! Your list is great!) So... here is my attempt: I'm 30 I still can't believe I am 30 I am a mother to a beautiful baby boy Being a mom is my greatest achievement There is no joy like the joy of being a mom I'm Greek and Canadian - have duel citizenship I lived in Greece for a year when I was 2 I have visisted Greece 8 times I think it's breathtaking there Wouldn't want to live there, though I appreciate our health care system But wish there were such things at private rooms in CHEO I drive a VW Passat I love VW and all German made cars My dad owns a European used-car dealership My husband works for Dell My mom is a successful artist My sister works for Foreign Affairs My baby and I won the Place D'Orleans photo contest I completed an internship with CBS in Washington D.C. Left my Entertainment Tonight (Hollywood, CA) internship early to come bac...

Today I took my little guy for his 18 month appointment. My poor sweetheart cried his eyes out the entire time we were there... we couldn't even get him on the scale to weigh him! Instead, I had to go on the scale with him, then I went on the scale alone and she subtracted the weight that way. My boy is 30 pounds! Yay! Good boy. I guess he is eating, and I should stop worrying. There are some days, though, when he pushes away the spoon and I want to cry! But lately he's been a big eater. He got his 2 shots too, of course, through lots of tears. But he's okay now. Phew... I even rewarded him with some chocolate. :)

Here is my darling Christos with his first little love, Katherine. Suzanne, Eamon and Katherine came up from Toronto to spend the weekend with us a few weeks ago, and we had a great time! Su and I hadn't seen eachother since we were pregnant and our kids are almost two years old! It was a much needed visit, where we finally got to talk in person about everything we had been talking about in emails and over the phone since the birth of our children. It was great... Christos and Kat really liked eachother and played so nicely together! (And Gus and Eamon had fun catching up, going to the Casino, and playing wii and PS3!) Christos and Kat were just adorable together! We miss you guys!

Just because I find this man way too funny! My favourites are in bold. Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things. One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor. Atheism is a non-prophet organization. If man evolved from monkeys and apes. . . why do we still have monkeys and apes? The main reason Santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad girls live. I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, "Where's the self-help section? " She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose. What if there were no hypothetical questions? If a man is standing in the middle of the forest speaking and there is no woman around to hear him. . . is he still wrong? (yes) If someone with multiple personalities threatens to kill himself, is it considered a hostage situation? Is there another word for synonym? Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice"? Where do forest rangers go to "get away from it all? ...

I decided to create my very own blog! I think most of my dearert friends will be more then excited about this news since this means I won't be emailing them a hundred times a day with updates on what purse Jessica Simpson is carrying today, what colour Britneys' hair is, and how cute my baby is... not to mention all the political emails that cause more then a few heated debates! I usually have so many things to say but now can't think of anything... well, okay, here's something: I miss my baby so much when I am at work! Luckily, it is Friday so that means two wonderful days with my little guy who, by the way, just turned 18 months old yesterday. He is the most amazing little guy ever. He amazes us every single day, with the new words he learns to speak, and his funny little ways. I love his little laugh attacks, and when he says my name... 'mama'... how many times does he melt my heart in a day? Too many to count! We will be venturing outside tomorrow to take...

Your comments and emails make me very happy. Very happy, indeed! I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to email me at: loukiazigoumis@gmail.com You can also become a fan of Loulou's Views on Facebook! Just click here! And of course, I like to talk nonsense all day long on Twitter, too. Follow me!

These are a few of my favourite posts... enjoy! Top TEN things blogging has taught me Before I became a mom Tips for a new mom Facing your fears How to keep sane when traveling with children When doing it solo makes more sense A lesson learned I'm one very Scary Mommy Loulou's Anatomy: My take on health care Undomestic me My petty complaint Don't say I didn't warn you... 5 reasons I love being a mom! Cause for celebration For the love of food Complete Mistakes moms make Changes Regression Excitement. Panic. Realization. Calmness. Reflections The good stuff

Loulou's Views is about my life as a mom to my two children. I'm 'that mom' - no, not the mom who has it all together (I don't even know how to use an iron, and wouldn't be able to pick out a slow cooker if you paid me) rather, I'm the mom who allows my children to sometimes eat chocolate for breakfast, the mom who lets my baby walk around an airplane with nothing more than a onesie on, the mom who can never say no, and the mom whose life is ruled by my children. And I loves every (sleepless) minute! I'm a consummate shopper, and I used to give my Louis Vuitton its own seat in restaurants. Now, my LV doubles as a diaper bag. I'm also a constant worrier and self-diagnosed hypochondriac, and I worry about everything, all the time . I graduated from University with a degree in Communications, and graduated from college with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. I spent several years working in the fast-paced world of television and radio, both on-air and ...