Lucy at 6 months

We always say that Lucy is such a good baby. If we are really being honest with ourselves, it's more like Lucy is such a happy baby.  She is likely my worst sleeper, especially during the day (this girl does not like to nap). But Lucy will wake up from a 20 minute catnap, cry in her bed, and the second you open the door, she's happy as a clam. Really the only time she's upset is when you try to put her to bed before she's exhausted. And if she's exhausted, it doesn't take her long to doze off, at least until you try to put her down. 

Lucy is also easy distracted during feedings, and always has been. Justin has never really enjoyed feeding her bottles, and even grandma, who spends my working days with her, will attest to the fact that she's difficult to feed. Heck, even I don't like giving her a bottle. I had hoped it would get easier when she started eating solids, which began just a couple weeks ago, but it hasn't.  If she's really hungry (usually because she was too distracted during her previous feeding), you can't get the spoon in her mouth quickly enough.  But all it takes is one little boy to come up and start talking to her and she too busy laughing at them to notice the food.  All that said, and she is by no means starving. In fact it is the opposite. Jack's new name for her is "squishy baby". I think it was her dad who lovingly called her that first, but it stuck.

I'm sure a lot of this is the result of birth order. She's distracted because there are more people running around, literally. She's an awful napper because we are always out and about, and car seat napping isn't easy when you're crammed in the car between 2 loud, crazy boys that fight for your attention. Finally, I think we consider her a "good baby" because our gauge has changed significantly. With previous kids it was all about the sleep. With her, it's all about the temperament.  If she's happy, she is definitely a good baby. We really lucked out!

Now for a squishy baby photo!

Elijah sweetness

Last night was tough.  I did not get 2 consecutive hours of sleep at any point. That's sometimes what it means to be a mother of little loves, I suppose. And to everyone's surprise, it's not Lucy that keeps me awake at nights.  She did get up once, but she ate and went right back to sleep.  She's such a good nighttime baby.

On the contrary, it is Elijah that keeps me awake at night. And not every night. Some nights he doesn't wake at all, while other nights he's up 3 times. Honestly I go to bed not knowing what it will look like. And while I won't miss the sleepiness that accompanies these nights, I want to treasure forever something that occurred in the middle of the night.

Elijah got up the first time, and came to cuddle in momma's bed.  I think I let him lay there for a little while, and I think I fell asleep (sometimes it's hard to remember exactly what went on in the middle of the night).  I don't sleep well with him in bed with me, so I carried him back to his bed. This woke him up a bit, but I told him to cuddle with monkey (his snuggle buddy), and I was going back to my bed because I was so tired.  About 15 minutes later, he returned to my bedside and informed me he needed to go potty. I was proud of him, and took him to the bathroom. I then went to tuck him back into bed, and this time he asked me, in the nicest of voices, to snuggle with him.  I agreed, telling him I would snuggle with him for a couple minutes, then go back to my bed.

As I laid down, Elijah scooted close to me so his sweet little face was next to mine. He whispered "I wanted to snuggle with you because I love you." I adore those words, especially when said without being provoked in any way to say them. I said, "I love you too sweetheart." Then he said something I hope to never forget. He said, "Mommy, will you be my best friend?" My response was "Of course, Eli. Of course I will be your best friend." He smiled from ear to ear, and I could see that glowing smile in the darkness of his room. I wouldn't trade that moment, or any similar moment, for a little more sleep, EVER!

Lucy's First Tooth

After 6 weeks, convinced she was actively teething, that first tooth broke through today. I felt the sharp edges of it as she chewed on my finger, then prayed her little mouth open to catch a glance. She doesn't like showing it off, but I'll see if I can capture it in the coming days, or at least when its neighbor shows up. For my tooth friend, it appears to be tooth 'P'. That is, middle lower right tooth. :)

Perplexis Part II

So I thought I'd posted the previous post a couple weeks ago, but it didn't work, and I didn't notice. Anyway, we now have 2 boys who love this thing, and they are known to argue over who's turn it is. Here's Elijah studying the ball in order to conquer it. He's won a couple times too:

This thing amazes me how it captivated us all. I will admit, we have now discovered a couple shortcuts that, with one or even two minor track jumps makes it a ton easier. Jack actually did one jump while I was watching, and we both realized what he'd discovered. Awesome!

Perplexis

For Jack's birthday, he received a puzzle ball from Justin's parents. I'll admit, I was very excited to give this game a try for myself, and Justin and I wondered which of us would complete it first. Jack initially showed little interest, at least compared to his parents. I also thought it would be difficult for Jack to do. Then, just over a week ago, he really started working with it, and guess who completed the little maze first? Jack!! He was so proud, but quickly dumped it out and started over. Then, in the same evening, he did it again. 

I was home at the time with the boys and my parents had come over so I could meet Justin for a dinner with his co-workers. I asked Jack if I could tell daddy he'd completed it, and he told me I could, but to tell daddy he's done it 3 times because he was about to get it again :), as he studiously and meticulously worked with it. Though he didn't get it a third time that evening, he has since done it again. And the second to complete the maze, me of course. Justin finished it too, a few days later. 

Survival Mode

Having a new baby at home feels like we are just trying to stay afloat each day. We love having Lucy here, but adding the third makes everything more challenging (to be expected, right)! And for a family that is used to getting out everyday, spending so much time at home is tough on its own. Jack literally asks where we are going each day we tell him it's a stay-home day, ifthat tells you about our frequent tendencies to leave the house. In our defense, the rainy weather has kept us indoors more than usual too. We will figure this whole outnumbered thing eventually. Until then, this is what survival mode looks like. A cluttered home with toys EVERYWHERE, and an unshowered mommy!