This past month, I have seen more and more of this little man’s personally blossom. He wants so desperately to communicate with his brother and parents. He has figured out how to kiss and will give anyone who asks a slobbery opened-mouth smooch.

He loves to blow raspberries back and forth with Daddy. He has discovered pointing and fans at the same time and will seek out, and proudly point at any fan he sees. He still only says “Dada” but will say it with meaning and gusto. if someone mentions “daddy” he will blurt out  a round of “Dada”s exuberantly. He is using his pincher grasp like a pro; delicately picking up peas (his favorite) at every meal. In fact, he’s officially on table foods and actually enjoys my cooking (yay!). He follows Caleb around everywhere and tried to do everything he does. They play in the sandbox, color, make lots of messes, explore the “kitchen table jungle” play the pots and pans drums, tear up old magazines,

If Nathan had an intensity meter, it would only stay at 2 or 10 permanently. The child knows what he wants and makes sure everyone knows it; especially if he’s tired, hungry, thirsty, bored, or in any way discontent. His volume meter acts the same…unfortunately. When you mix this disposition with any public place, especially church, it’s always very interesting.

Nathan is still above average for size. He weighs 20lbs 4 oz (62nd percentile) and is 29 inches tall (77th percentile). He is able to stand on his own and is becoming more confident with cruising. With his desire to keep up with his three year old brother, I’m predicting I will have two very busy walkers soon.

Month 7 was a busy time for our little guy. About a week after the last blog post, Nathan learned the benefits of crawling.

He was slow and steady at first but is now zooming around the house leaving scuff marks on his knees and toes. He is now mastering pulling up on furniture and “walking” while holding on to something. Even with all this physical activity, he is still maintaining his voluptuous figure, although I do see signs of his baby fat shrinking. I hope he keeps it around for a little longer. I can’t bear to part with his little rolls and fluff.

He has learned how to say “Mama” and will sometimes say “Bubba” and an occasional “Dada” along with other baby gibberish. He loves making faces at anyone looking his way and often befriends strangers with his charm and humor. Peek-a-boo is a favorite game as well as imitating funny noises. He has also learned how to clap and willingly does it on command.

Water is still his favorite medium for play. I will often find him crawling to the bathroom just to gaze into the bath tub. His fascination of water has led him to learn how to drink from a sippy cup and straw. Now I can’t take a drink without him grunting and grabbing for my cup. I wish he was as exuberant about food too, but he is slowly becoming my picky eater. He’s not really big into baby food anymore, but he will gobble down a bowl of chili. I’m starting to realize that this child hates bananas too. Too bad for him.

Nathan was a part of his first Easter Sunday a few days ago. He actually wore his brother’s second Easter outfit he wore when he was 16 months old. This just proves how big Nathan is.

The boys each got a home made stuffed bunny that you can see in the picture above. Caleb named his Mozy and Nathan’s Gozy. The new companions have already been thoroughly cuddled, loved, slobbered and affectionately chewed on.

I leave this post with two images that stir up much sentiment for me. The first one is from Nathan’s newborn shoot. He was 5 days old and just shy of nine pounds. Although still a big boy,  I could easily fit his little body comfortably in my arms. And that’s where he stayed for a good part of his first month. The second image is from yesterday. His body noticeably larger, longer, and chubbier. His limbs now too long and wiggly to fit into my arms. His muscles, strong from crawling and standing. His face alert and smiling; so different from the snuggly sleepy newborn so oblivious to the world around him. I intentionally cherished every one of those early days, yet I still feel like they all too quickly slipped through my fingers. I know, one day when my boys are grown so much that I have to reach up to hug them, I will look back at the days of their childhood and wonder where they went. So I’m putting these two pictures side by side as a reminder to show just how much life can happen in seven months.

For his whole short life, Nathan has been relatively placid and laid back for many things. But this past month, he has realized that he is an equal member of the family and wants to be heard. Don’t get me wrong, he’s still very content. But when Caleb removes a toy from his blanket, he doesn’t hesitate to make his disapproval known. When I’m holding him and he sees a  ball on the floor (his favorite toy bar none), he lunges forward, oblivious to the height, trying to get at the ball. He is days away from crawling and can transition from sitting to hands and knees and vice versa.

Last week, when he was with his daddy in the playroom while I was in the office, he was apparently looking around for me because he said “Mama” for the first time. But as soon as I bounded into the room he stopped saying it, obviously satisfied that I has responded to his summons. His observations of other people is growing. He is finally not so shy any more and will spend a considerable more time with people other than Mom. He loves singing and will get caught up in fits of giggles when we sings the Marching Ants song before bedtime. We have started giving the boys baths together since Nathan is now a solid sitter. A tub full of fun water and his big brother in one spot makes this event a huge highlight of his day. But poor Caleb has to deal with a squealing, splashing baby during his otherwise calm bath time. Caleb’s a good sport though and loves to help scrub him down. Althouh he’s still a big boy, I see him thinning out a bit as he becomes more active. But since Caleb was such a little guy, I predict Nathan catching up to him in no time.

I echo the Apostle Paul when he concludes “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

Plea of the Mortal Son

Ascending upward,
out of death,
buried body,
buried breath,
buried in the ground bereft,
the outer man still cries.

Ascending upward,
out of skin,
wretched body,
wretched sin,
wretched outer man descend,
fall away and die.

The other day, a friend of mine asked if Nathan really was as smiley and good natured as he looked in his pictures. I was happy to confirm that he was. Cracking a smile from him takes hardly any effort. And if you’re Caleb, all you’d have to do is look in his general direction and he starts giggling. This baby loves his older brother. I find myself all too often bribing Caleb to go entertain his little bro so I can squeeze in some extra cleaning or dinner prep. He’s simply Nathan’s favorite person - Bar none.

Nathan is now solidly sitting up, rolling over both ways, cutting his third tooth and perfecting the best times to blow raspberries (he saves the loudest for church prayer time). When we leave him alone on the floor for tummy time, he can somehow rotate in a circle. He also likes to scoot backwards and lift his bottom up in the air His favorite activity is “walking” around the house holding my hands. The entire time we do this, he has a big gummy smile plastered on his face. The boy loves to be mobile; crawling is on the horizon! Bathtimes have become splash zones as he’s learned that slapping the water creates amusing results

I love seeing him develop his own personality. I can see he wants so much to do what he sees his brother doing - and he tries very hard to do it. I’m excited to see what this next month holds.

ETA stats from his six month checkup: Weight = 18 lbs 13 ounces (76%) Height = 27 3/4 inches (90%) Head circumference = 44 inches (70%)

All of the commotion of the holidays has finally worn down. Christmas decorations are tucked away for next year and routines are back in full force. I had some trepidation on how the chaos of Christmas and New Years would affect out littlest one. But despite the late nights and impromptu family gatherings, He did wonderfully. He didn’t want to sleep during the more exciting times, but quickly made friends with new people and was an all around pleasant baby.

Right after he turned four months old, He started scooting short distances. It takes a lot of effort on his part to move his enormous baby-girth but he is determined:

We also started him on solids about a week later. As you can see from the video below, he really disliked cereal so I switched to mild fruits and veggies. He prefers bananas and avocados but will only eat a small amount before he starts blowing raspberries. since he’s not a big fan, he really only eats any kind of solids about once every few days.

At about four and a half months, he sat up on his own! He usually slumps over to the tripod stance but he can sit straight up for a few moments at a time. He reminds me of a tiny gorilla when he sits.

I really love this chunky guy. He’s sweet, cuddly, and oh so handsome. Everyone keeps saying he’s such a happy baby, and it’s true! He is hardly cranky and always has a bashful smile ready to go.

Love,

Andrew, Bri, Caleb & Nathan.

This past year has been a whirlwind for this whole family. I remember announcing our pregnancy with Nathan at Caleb’s second birthday party. Now, a year later, That little blonde hair boy who spoke a lot but could barely be understood is now a doting big brother who has the most infectious laugh. He loves any and all sports, especially when they are played with his daddy. He looks forward to curling up in the reading chair or snuggling in bed with a book of his choosing. He has recently discovered music. He now sings every new song he hears and often makes up his own:

He is very routine and thrives on the predictable. He has his favorite stores we go to on a weekly basis, and because of his charm, he has made friends of the employees at each of these places.

At his 3 year check, he was quite the character and entertained the pediatrician with a robust round of the ABC’s complete with dramatic high notes. As far as measurements, He weighs 30 pounds (34%) and is 37 3/4 inches tall (59%).

I am beginning to see so much of myself in him. He is artistic, but has trouble organizing his thoughts. He lives within his mind so much that I feel as if I’m constantly refocusing his attention. This was exactly how I was as a child; too caught up in my own imagination to really notice what was going on around me. He is also a very emotional creature like I am, but he has a difficult time verbalizing his feelings. They will often surface in other forms such as outbursts or unexplained moodiness. Because I’ve been there, at least I know how to both foster and temper these personality traits.

We celebrated his birthday last Saturday with our family. The festivities included Pin the Tail on the Donkey and the infamous piñata bashing:

I asked everyone to bring a book instead of gifting toys since he will be overrun with toys come Christmas, and also because 50% of his books are still board books for infants. So after he got this pile of books:

I moved the baby books to Nathan’s room and made room for these older story books. We read half of them that night and have been diving into a new one every day since. He loves stories, even silly made up ones, and those are often his favorites.

Since his actual birthday was a dreary rainy Tuesday, I took Caleb to Jump Street to jump around with his cousin Kaiden. The kids AND adults all had a blast on the trampolines and bounce houses.

I’m stealing an idea I got from someone else. Every year on his birthday, Caleb will be interviewed on the same questions. It will be interesting to see how some things change and some things stay the same. I can already see  his personality shining through this year’s interview:

1. What is your favorite color? I like blue and orange

2. What is your favorite toy? The vacuum

3. What is your favorite fruit? Apples

4. What is your favorite TV show? House Hunters

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Chick-fil-a

6. What is your favorite outfit? My pjs

7. What is your favorite game? Zelda

8. What is your favorite snack? Bunny crackers

9. What is your favorite animal? Rabbit

10. What is your favorite song? Daddy’s Jesus song (Jesus Loves Me)

11. What is your favorite book? The Pout Pout Fish

12. Who is your best friend? Mommy

13. What is your favorite cereal? Grape Nuts like Daddy

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Rake

15. What is your favorite drink? Apple juice

16. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My teddy bear and fuzzy blanket

18. What id your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Whipped cream and pancakes.

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Chick-fil-a

20 What do you want to be when you grow up? Married

Even though our family is larger, Caleb will always have a special place in my heart. He will always be my little sidekick. He is gentle, caring and timid but at the same time silly, fun-loving and dramatic. He is our parenting guinea pig and has come out pretty resilient against all odds. He may have inherited my eyes and his dad’s sense of humor, but he is a special little boy who is growing into his own unique person. We love this kid so much. Happy birthday Caleb!

This great big boy is 4 months old today. He is fitting into clothes his brother wore when he was nine months old. His reddish blonde hair is getting longer and starting to stick up into a fuzzy crown on his head. He has sprouted not one, but TWO teeth this past week. His first tooth (the lower left front one) came about three days ago and the one next to it followed a day later. He loves to “walk” around the house while being supported under his arms. He especially likes to stand beside Caleb while they play at the toy kitchen. He loves feeling like he’s doing big boy things and frequently looks up at his big bro and smiles proudly. He can sit up in his boppy or with a pillow behind him. Here are his measurements at 4 months: Weight: 16.15 pounds (61%) Height: 26 inches (83%).

His new language is what Andy likes to call the velociraptor screech:

Nathan’s favorite person is by far his mommy. I can’t really leave him with anyone for more than a few minutes, including Andy. I can’t really blame him though, we spend every waking (and sleeping) minute with eachother. He really doesn’t leave my side except for the few hours between his bedtime and mine. I’m not really objecting to it though. We both enjoy this close bond and I know all too well how fleeting it is.

I mentioned this briefly above, but he really does admire his older brother. Now, Caleb is now discovering that Nathan is becoming his own person. I often sit the baby in my lap during mealtimes and turn him where he can face Caleb. Much of the meal is spent making silly faces, which then turn into giggle fits from all of us. Caleb is so caring; he will often run over to Nathan when he is upset and mimic my soothing methods to calm him down. After Caleb’s nap, he will ask where Nathan is. If he’s awake, Caleb will give him a kiss on the head and say hello.  I love watching these two little lives become intertwined and look forward to their growing friendship.