Both boys are growing and changing so fast!
Scott likes to suck on his thumb and his toes now. He loves to take his socks off so he can play with his toes. There's a good reason that pose in yoga is called the Happy Baby Pose! Scott is such a happy kid, and I love his huge baby grins with tons of drool and no teeth!
Scott can also stay sitting up if you put him up. He can also stand and lean against the couch and hold himself up for a long time (at least 5 minutes.) He usually falls over when he gets distracted by Jared racing around the house.
Scott can also roll over from his belly onto his back.
Scott really likes the exersaucer. He doesn't really play with the toys very much, but he likes to hang out and watch Jared run around.
Scott loves watching Jared, and laughs when Jared stares at him. It warms a parent's heart to see them interacting so well.
Scott wants to eat so badly - he stares longingly at you while you are eating. We'll probably have him try some rice cereal soon.
Jared is becoming Mr. Independent. He can climb up into and out of his car seat, so I only have to strap him in. This is nice for Jared, since it was difficult to get him into the car without hitting his head on the car.
Jared now can put on his socks and sweatpants by himself. I put his shirt over his head, and he can put his arms through the sleeves by himself.
Jared peed in the potty for the first time, but since then has shown little interest. We'll just keep encouraging him, and hopefully he'll try to sit on the potty more soon. He has taken to setting up his diaper changing items on the floor for me to change him when he needs it, so that is helpful. He also is fascinated watching me change Scott's diaper - he finally gets to see what goes on during the diaper change!
Jared is very talkative, and most of the time is able to express his feelings. Not always in the most polite way, but we're working on that.
Jared is getting more imaginative. He is now more interactive with his books (pretending to eat if they are eating) and TV characters. He especially likes the Little Einsteins on TV, so he is learning about French Horns! I'm looking for my French Horn mouthpiece, which got misplaced in the move, so I can play for him.
Steve and I are doing well. I'm going back to the gym, so I'm having fun getting out of the house and working out. And I always look forward to my Mom's group monthly meetings and Mom's Night Out events. Steve is still going to physical therapy twice a week, he'll probably go down to once a week soon. The doctor thinks that he may even begin to start running again soon. He walks well now, and only limps when he's extra tired or overdoes it.
The Baltimore Aquarium runs specials during the winter on Friday evenings, so we decided to take the kids. Jared loved looking at the boats in the Inner Harbor, even before we got inside the Aquarium.
He loved to see all of the fish, and said "Excuse me, please!" to the people waiting in front of us to see a particular exhibit. He kept saying it over and over, each time getting more and more frantic, until we finally got to the front to see the fish. He thought that if he was polite, everyone in front of us would just move out of the way for him.
Underneath the dolphin tank they use for the shows, they have a big window to see the dolphins underneath the water. (the freebie show) Jared and another 2 year old boy went completely nuts watching the dolphins swimming around. We also saw lots of "pointy-nose fish" (sharks), stingrays, jellyfish, and "BIG fish." Jared had a great time, and Scott liked to look around at all of the people and lights. We carried Scott in our hiking backpack, since they don't allow strollers at the Aquarium. He did really well, and even took a nap while we were walking around.
When we arrived home, both kids were asleep, so Steve and I unloaded the car. When we got back to the car, Scott was awake and screaming and Jared was still passed out. (Jared had no nap, and had done a lot of walking around the Inner Harbor and the Aquarium, but never lost his cool, which was awesome.) Steve carried Jared upstairs and put him into bed. Jared stirred briefly when we changed his diaper in bed and put on his sweatpants, but he was so out of it, I think he barely noticed.
We're so happy to welcome Baby Samantha into the world! Our friends Chris and Kristy are just at the beginning of the 24/7 party that is parenthood, but I'm sure they'll do great!
