I write on November 12, 2008. 8 months ago today, Andrew became our reality. As crazy as that feels, it is probably harder to believe that 6 years ago today Miss Sarah Katherine was born:) Happy Birthday, Sarah!
The last two months have been filled with new things that only a parent can truly be mesmerized by day in and day out - baby yoga! About 2 months ago, Andrew starting doing planks ALL the time! These planks are exactly what our instructors in gym class have us do to work our abs. Bluey perfected the plank the first time I saw it. From his tummy, he raised himself onto his palms and his feet - more accurately, onto just his big toes. His back was flat, tail tucked - truly the perfect plank! He stared at the ground in total concentration until his weight became too much for his wrists. Then he'd come down into what I have learned is the yoga term "boat". In our household, boat is affectionately called "superman". With legs fluttering behind him like freestyle, Andrew raises his arms off the floor, too, elbows at a 90 degree angle. He had been doing superman for a while---and push ups, too---so once he added planks, he had a great 3 position routine. I kid you not, Andrew would rotate between the three positions for hours! He wanted no toys to rattle, no books to eat, no arms to hold him. He merely wanted to do his yoga routine, seemingly curious about his own abilities.
What would be next? The baby rock. Eventually, the planks gave way to knees on the floor. Once the knees dropped, oh the rocking that began! Just like his mother (or so she's told), Andrew will rock on his knees with quite some force. When he's in his pack n play (a favorite past time for independent play time, usually leading to nap time), he can literally move the whole thing with one of two moves: the rocking on the knees will get so energetic that the whole pack n play will inch across the wood floor. The other move is the leg banging. Apparently it's enormous fun to lay on one's back, exercising the voice quite loudly, passing Woodstock from hand to hand to mouth, while tossing the legs up in the air just to thrust them into the pack n play as hard as possible. I realized how loud this particular routine was when I went to the mailbox one evening. While I wasn't surprised to be able to hear the constant commentary, I could do nothing but smile when I realized some of our neighbors could probably hear the leg banging as well. Little boys start early - what could possibly be more fun than making noise?!?!
When sharing joys and concerns recently with our young parents fellowship group, I said that Andrew being so close to crawling is both my current joy and concern! I look forward to it with the wonder of a child at their first amusement park, but it "scares" me a bit, too. It feels like my little baby is no longer a baby. Long gone are our infant days. We have a little man on our hands.
Now that he has turned 8 months old, he has an entire yoga routine down - planks, boats, downward dog, cobra, etc. I never thought I'd learn yoga from a baby, but sometimes the most innocent among us are our best teachers. In many respects, we really should take after our young more. Does life really have to be as complicated as we let it become?
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Month 5-6
Having mastered rolling over, it's now on to sitting up! We found that Andrew wasn't a big fan of the bumbo chair, so he didn't learn to sit up in that and then have those "training wheels" removed. In fact, he would joyfully stand with assistance until his legs gave out, but he wasn't a big fan of the bumbo. So we just worked on sitting for seconds here and there, hit our head on the floor a few times, and before you know it, there it was! Sitting, although a bit wobbly at times, for minutes at a time. Many had told me what a fun stage this is - sitting up so that you can interact with them easily, but not mobile yet.
Sitting up brought a whole new world of excitement to Andrew. His most important discovery by far? Daisy and Molly! It was as if he woke up one morning and noticed they were there! More accurately, I should say that he noticed Daisy. Molly has been trying to lick up Andrew since we brought him home from the hospital - she shares my sentiment that he couldn't smell any sweeter:) I refrain from licking him constantly, but Molly shows no such restraint. But I suppose that while Andrew was busy soaking in the concept of Daisy, he also learned that there is more to Molly than her tongue.
Andrew's eyes would follow the girls around the room until they'd do something as boring as lay on their bed for a nap. By month 6, they were funnier than they ever knew they could be! If one of the girls would so much as walk by when he sitting in the middle of the room, he would cackle like he just learned to laugh for the first time. Now, whenever they are around, life is a bit more entertaining:) Molly and Andrew will be great friends before too long. Daisy remains patient and a bit uninterested, but Molly truly has a friend in the making. So far, so good with the grabbing and holding on it! Molly just tries to take him for a while (which goes over fine until head hit hardwood, but such is life!).
Sitting up brought a whole new world of excitement to Andrew. His most important discovery by far? Daisy and Molly! It was as if he woke up one morning and noticed they were there! More accurately, I should say that he noticed Daisy. Molly has been trying to lick up Andrew since we brought him home from the hospital - she shares my sentiment that he couldn't smell any sweeter:) I refrain from licking him constantly, but Molly shows no such restraint. But I suppose that while Andrew was busy soaking in the concept of Daisy, he also learned that there is more to Molly than her tongue.
Andrew's eyes would follow the girls around the room until they'd do something as boring as lay on their bed for a nap. By month 6, they were funnier than they ever knew they could be! If one of the girls would so much as walk by when he sitting in the middle of the room, he would cackle like he just learned to laugh for the first time. Now, whenever they are around, life is a bit more entertaining:) Molly and Andrew will be great friends before too long. Daisy remains patient and a bit uninterested, but Molly truly has a friend in the making. So far, so good with the grabbing and holding on it! Molly just tries to take him for a while (which goes over fine until head hit hardwood, but such is life!).
Month 4
Everyone tells you that it all just keeps getting better and better. I guess they know what they are talking about:) At 4 months, Andrew starting rolling over. It was fascinating to watch this process. He'd get half way over with relative ease, and then get stuck on his poor little right arm long enough to turn the whole thing purple. As a first time Mom, it was hard not to run to the rescue and push him onto his stomach, but then how would he learn to achieve his objective on his own? Once he mastered the technique, tummy time was all he wanted. He discovered that he could soak up more of the world from his belly than on his back where straight up was his only view.
Bluey, as we still affectionately refer to him, found his favorite sleeping position on his tummy. From the time he could consistently roll over, he has found comfort in sleeping on his tummy. We put him on his back and he giggles and smiles, having finally learned that bedtime is the greatest part of the day!. He puts "Skip It" in his left hand, rolls right, stuffs that right thumb in the mouth, and makes the funniest little contented noises while he begins his journey. The journey remains a bit of mystery to Mom and Dad. Within a few minutes, this child---who is not quite crawling---intentionally gets himself from the middle of the crib to the top, back corner. Every night, without fail, he manages to wiggle himself into that same corner. He presses his head so tightly into the corner that the Pooh bumper is finally worth the purchase for more than aesthetics. Once comfortably smashed into the corner, he raises his little bum into the air, crosses his ankles, and slides his hands underneath his hips. There is not a thing about the position that looks comfortable, but it works for him, so Lord knows it works for us!
Bluey, as we still affectionately refer to him, found his favorite sleeping position on his tummy. From the time he could consistently roll over, he has found comfort in sleeping on his tummy. We put him on his back and he giggles and smiles, having finally learned that bedtime is the greatest part of the day!. He puts "Skip It" in his left hand, rolls right, stuffs that right thumb in the mouth, and makes the funniest little contented noises while he begins his journey. The journey remains a bit of mystery to Mom and Dad. Within a few minutes, this child---who is not quite crawling---intentionally gets himself from the middle of the crib to the top, back corner. Every night, without fail, he manages to wiggle himself into that same corner. He presses his head so tightly into the corner that the Pooh bumper is finally worth the purchase for more than aesthetics. Once comfortably smashed into the corner, he raises his little bum into the air, crosses his ankles, and slides his hands underneath his hips. There is not a thing about the position that looks comfortable, but it works for him, so Lord knows it works for us!
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
My Mommy Loves Me
I'm the cutest Killian boy West of the Mississippi. My mommy loves me soooo much
I love her too...but while she is busy staring into my beautiful eyes, I just want to bounce!
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