Back and better than ever (?!)

So for those astute reader(s) out there, I've changed my name. It kinda reflects the change in my life. I hope that I will post more often if I'm a mommy blog than a work blog, especially since I'm still on mat leave.
Ian, aka the Boss, is actually asleep. I've been trying this new thing with him (how many times have I said that?) where I start putting him to bed before 9 pm and he has a meltdown. I've started a bedtime routine with that Bedtime Bath stuff and it seems to be working. I totally thought it was a marketing ploy by Johnson & Johnson, but the last two evenings I've actually had some time to myself. I'm still watching all my prime time TV at 5pm (gotta love digital TV), but maybe by the time there's a new "Grey's Anatomy" I'll be able to watch it at 9pm like a grown-up (without kids).
I have to give some props out to Rebecca Eckler, a Canadian author and mommy blogger for inspiring me to change my focus. She's written a couple of books (that I know of) and there's a link to her blog on this page. I admire her honesty and appreciate the laugh-out-loud moments she's written about. Even though my experience as a mommy so far has been different in many ways, I can relate to a lot of what's she's written about. Like calling her daughter The Dictator. I prefer to call Ian the Boss, not because he resembles Bruce Springstein but because it's gentler than a dictator. He seems to request, rather than demand; of course that may be because he's not talking yet. In any case the Boss he is.
I took the Boss out Christmas shopping today. Completely different experience than going it alone. Everywhere I looked I saw something to buy him. Like he'll really care if I get him every Fisher-Price age-appropriate toy on the shelf. Last week, I bought him a set of plastic blocks and a bin with a lid that has the same shape as the blocks, so he can learn shapes. I swear, he spent more time playing with the box it came in. Hmm, maybe I'll put the blocks back in the box and re-wrap it for Christmas. He won't remember them by then...
I even looked forward to when I would be able to actually get the older toys. For example, I never in my life owned Candyland, but I thought about the day I would get to play it with the Boss. I don't even know the rules for Candyland. And don't get me started about how much fun it'll be when he finally has the manual dexterity for video games. If I had my way, his first word would be "Mama" of course, followed by "Mario" or "Link."
All in all, I showed considerable restraint. I only bought him one toy. But there's still 24 more days to go. I'm not making any promises that I won't go overboard.