Peter is now just shy of 3.5 years and things for him are not changing at the same rate as they used to. Those first few years of life are so full of changes and growth and learning, it would be kind of crazy if we continued to develop at the same rate over the course of our lifetime, or even over just a few years. Imagine what people would be like! It's been a pretty healthy winter for him - I don't think he's been much sicker than a runny nose and some coughing over the season. Perhaps he's already developed some more immunity than his brothers, or perhaps he's just been fortunate, who knows. We certainly don't mind though! He does still wake up in the night frequently, wanting cuddles or who knows what. Maybe he's having scary dreams, it's kind of hard to tell. He often talks about "scary things" during the day, so maybe these thoughts are affecting him at night. Scary monsters hiding under his bed, scary lions eating people, scary chickens eating people, scary ____ eating people. I'm not really sure why he is so afraid of being eaten but this thought seems to consume him (haha). He continues to enjoy playing with soy beans or split peas, the newest thing. He can be occupied with them for a looooong time, scooping them from here to there, putting them in wagons, dumping them, plowing them, putting them in the garbage truck, spilling them all over the floor. It's a little bit messy but nice to see him so absorbed in play. He continues to be a serious little boy, doing a lot of thinking, and often coming up with interesting and amusing comments, and we are reminded of how much kids pick up from what we say and do, how they can sense if we are trying to do something behind their back (like sneak a cookie, lol - "What are you eating, Mom? What are you eating? Can I have some too??"), and how much they can remember when we are sure they have forgotten. The mind is an incredible thing! So we try to fill it with all kinds of important lessons and fun memories.
Aaron is going to be TWO next week Thursday. Two? Already? He's never been a small kid, but it still feels like he's gotten BIG so quickly. He's always been at the top of the growth charts, but his height and weight are slowing down while his awareness and mental accuity are blossoming. This is so much fun! He understands so much of what goes on around him, and he is piecing together sentences that keep us amused. I don't remember if Peter was stringing words together like this at 2 years old, but it is enjoyable to be able to communicate with him more and more effectively. He knows his alphabet fairly well - not as well as Peter did at this age, but he can sing along. He loves praying the Lord's Prayer with us after dinner, and he can count to ten. Counting to ten was definitely learned playing Hide and Seek, a favorite game of Peter and Aaron's, although they aren't too good at staying quiet while you "try" to find them, haha. This age does come with the famous "Terrible Twos" behaviour sometimes - temper tantrums and days full of crying - and I have to continually remind myself to be patient with him as we teach him to balance his growing sense of independence with an also-growing need to learn godly obedience to his parents. He is a humorous child and we continue to enjoy his mischievous antics and heart-warming laughter - we could see in him a long time ago that he is going to have a great sense of humor. We get the feeling that we are in for some interesting parent-teacher conferences in the future! He is on the mend now from a bout with tonsillitis - not very fun. Over the course of four or five days, every time the ibuprofen or acetaminophen wore off, his fever would shoot back up to over 103 degrees. I'm sure glad the antibiotics have kicked in and he is feeling better. Still a little clingy but I don't mind cuddling with my kids. Too soon, they will be too old and "cool" to cuddle with their Mom and give her kisses when she asks, so I will enjoy snuggling with them now while I'm still able to, and while my kisses still maintain their magical healing properties for "owies".
And last but not least, our little Nathaniel. He's getting close to seven months old now - wow, time goes by quickly! He weighed in at 18 lbs 4 oz, and measured 28.5" at his well-baby visit last week. He isn't growing at the same rate as his brothers did, which has me a little worried, but we're keeping an eye on it to make sure he doesn't drop too many percentile points on the growth charts. The saying "double their weight in 6 months, triple in a year" doesn't apply to every baby I suppose, but I don't want him to fall behind developmentally. To compare, at the same age Peter was 18 lbs 12 oz and 27.75", and Aaron was 21 lbs 8 oz and 29.5". I've been trying without much success to get him to take a bottle of breastmilk now and then, and he finally took two ounces today for the first time. Maybe I don't have to take him along to the Ladies' Conference next weekend? It would be nice to have a little bit of a break! That wasn't the only "first" this week - he popped his first tooth a few days go (the other boys had their first one at around 5 months), and he rolled for the first time from his back to his tummy. He rolled the other way for the first time at about five months, and still only rolls sporadically. I'm not too worried - Peter didn't roll until after he learned to crawl - every baby at his own pace - and Aaron was rolling at 6 weeks. So, very different babies. Nathaniel usually wakes up at least once a night still to eat, although over the past few weeks he has slept through till 7:00 two or three times. Bedtime is between 7 and 7:30, at the same time the older boys go to bed, and he usually doesn't give me any trouble going to sleep. He naps in the morning around 10, and then again after lunch for about 1.5-2 hours usually. I'm not too picky about the timing of the schedule, but things definitely go smoother with a well-rested baby. He's eating meals with us three times a day, and taking a variety of baby foods, all still well-pureed with the exception of the apple bits that Peter was feeding him this morning (see the earlier post). I've got a few of those Mum Mum crackers in the house that he'll be able to start trying in a month or so once he starts sitting up a little better on his own. He's still tippy with sitting on his own, but he's getting stronger all the time - I'm noticing that more and more when he sits in his bouncy chair and squirms around in there, trying to sit up and twist himself around so that he can see what's happening behind him. He absolutely loves the attention he gets from his older brothers, and they can make him smile and laugh in a very special and precious way. I love watching the three of them together and seeing the bond that exists so naturally between them. It definitely warms my heart, fills me with joy, and reminds me that we are so very richly blessed beyond our deserving!!
We went for a quick walk around the corner the other day
to watch a backhoe working. How exciting!
Driving their home-made cars/fire engines/garbage trucks/
backhoes around in the living room. They are most popularly
known as fire engines, yet look suspiciously like diaper boxes.
Always full of smiles!
Triking around the neighborhood on the way to the park
Climbing on the "rock wall". This is a very blue picture.
They love the slide!
Gotta stick that tongue out when you're working hard
digging in the split peas!!
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