Since it’s Thursday, it’s time for some random thoughts! Linking up with Amanda.

• 8 months??

I feel like I’m constantly talking about how fast time moves, but that doesn’t make it any less true. The last 8 months have flown by in a blink and my tiny baby has transformed into a surprisingly self-sufficient (almost) toddler, whose main goal in life besides eating CONSTANTLY seems to be becoming exactly like his brother.

This tiny little baby is completely gone, and he’s been replaced by a gigantic toddler that never stops moving and rarely has time for cuddles.

Being a mom has been the ultimate bi-polar experience for me — on one hand it makes me want to cry that my tiny little infant is growing up so fast, probably because it reminds me that the growing never stops and he’ll be married with kids sooner than I want to imagine. On the other hand I’m so proud of his milestones, and I want him to keep growing and learning. Every day he gets closer to really walking, pulling himself up on everything he can find and walking from chair to chair until he gets where he wanted to go. I wish I had more pictures of it, but I get so wrapped up in watching him try that sometimes I forget I’m holding a camera.

He’s also babbling a ton, but he says mama and num-num the most. Micah took forever to say mama, so it’s kind of nice to have one of my kids say my name more than the hubby’s. Of course now that I’ve gotten over the initial glow of that, I feel really bad that he never says dada, so the kids and I have been on a mission to get him saying it regularly.

• Mommy wars are ridiculous.

I made the horrible mistake of commenting on a post I read about mommy shaming and sleep training a few weeks ago, and I’m still regretting the fallout. I know sleep training is a sensitive subject, but this mom was being called abusive for following the directions of her pediatrician and sleep training her baby. It makes me so sad that as moms we forget all the pressure we’re under every day, and absolutely slam another mom for making choices we disagree with even though her kids are healthy, well cared for, and well-adjusted.

I sleep trained both of my boys, and even though we used a form of controlled crying (a technique involving checking on the baby every few minutes but comforting them without picking them up) there were very few tears and they both learned to fall asleep on their own very quickly. Kids need their sleep, and as parents we need to find a way to help them do that. Being a mom is really hard, can’t we stop belittling each other and give each other a support system instead? We could all use it.

• I’m really not a fan of Halloween.

I used to really love it, but now that I’m trying to stick to a healthier lifestyle, this holiday is just a torturous slap in the face with a bag full of candy. Also, Halloween costumes are really expensive, and it hurts to buy something that I know they’ll grow out of in a month.

• I really like having a pre-set training plan.

I didn’t realize how much more motivating it is to have a specific goal for each day of the week, rather than a generic “I want to workout 5 days this week.” This way I don’t wake up on Wednesday and realize I haven’t actually worked out yet anymore!

• Micah absolutely idolizes Kinsey, and imitates everything she does.

An adorable example — he saw her do a handstand, so he tried to imitate her…

…but he couldn’t get his legs off the ground. Kins realized what he was trying to do and decided to help.

She finally got him basically into a headstand, but he got a little bit freaked out once he was up there (which is funny because he’s a crazy daredevil)…

So he decided to grab onto Kinsey’s legs for dear life, and refused to let go.

Even after her grip started to slip and his pants started to come off, he wouldn’t let go…

…until finally he tucked his chin and she was able to roll him down.

They both thought it was hilarious, and proceeded to do the exact same thing a half-dozen times. Kinsey has grown into such a patient older sister, and she loves playing with the boys and teaching them new things. She even reads them bedtime stories now that she’s learning to read. My kids can be a handful, but I love every second of it and I wouldn’t trade it for the world! Funny how the littlest moments can make you feel so blessed.

• Blanket forts are awesome, especially when you’re working at 6am and the house is unexpected cold.

Because seriously, no one in Arizona owns a decent sweatshirt.

• This smile lights up my day…

Sure he’s a super crabby toddler going through the terrible twos, but when he smiles at me the tantrums are forgotten and all I want is a huge hug from him.

What are some of your random thoughts today? Anything exciting going on this weekend?