As I sat down to start this post, I heard a cry come over the listener. It was Brody. He woke himself up crying in the middle of his nap. I snuck into his room and found him sitting in the corner of his crib, crying, but still kind of half asleep. I scooped him up and tried to settle him back down. We sat down together in one of the chairs in his room. He shifted and whimpered, pulled his bunny to his face, let out a content sigh, and fell back to sleep. To cradle him, I let his head rest comfortably on my arm but I had to scrunch up his body in order to keep his limbs somewhat contained. When the time was right and I could tell he was not stressed anymore, I stood up and put him back in his crib. Brody's ample weight means that I have to shimmy to the end of the chair and the use my quads to propel myself up in a way that us not as simple as it used to be. As I carried Brody to his crib, I became painfully aware that my once little baby is not a "little" baby any more. Holding him like an infant, with limbs dangling half way down my body, was a poignant reminder that he and Brady are grown up babies, toddlers really, and they have done a lot of growing these last few months!
It is hard for me to believe that these boys are closer to their second birthday than their birth. It seems like just yesterday I was shaking my head in disbelief as their 6 month birthdays rolled around. Seeing them at 6 months is a cheerful reminder that they have stayed happy and cute, but have amassed many more skills!
Lots of the photos from these last few months came from my cell phone. These days, it is unrealistic for me to grab my camera and try to shoot "real" pictures since typically I am running after these guys at full speed trying to make sure they do not get into trouble! The benefit of using a cell phone to capture these moments is that I have been able to record some really funny, spur of the moment instances that will make me laugh forever.
There are many skills and funny things that both boys do. They like to wrestle and they will pull on each others shirts and "lead" (aka drag) the other one around the house. They both like to clap hands, stomp feet, twirl around in circles and are working on jumping. They like to climb everything. They tackle each other and laugh and giggle when the other one does something funny. They are best buddies. Though I have seen them retire to a quite corner and read a book by themselves or play with a toy independently, more often than not, they are playing right next to each other or trying to do what the other one is doing.
We have been to the beach several times over the past month. They boys love playing in the sand and it is a great place to have some father-son play time. Wide open spaces, dirt (err, sand), and water, what more do menfolk need to feel like they are in their true element?
Brady
Brady is a thoughtful, kind little boy who likes to observe his surroundings before he participates. He does so many funny things that it is hard to list them all. Most notably, the finds me hysterical and has a great sense of humor, just like his mom. He is sweet and kind and loving. He has a little dimple on this left cheek that I could kiss all day. He is "squiggly" and I don't even really know what we mean by it, but we call him that all the time and it seems to fit. If I had to define "squiggly" I would say it is a cross between squeaky and wiggly, both of which describe him.
Weight: 23 lbs 13 oz New skills: Brady can climb on all the furniture, even though he still likes to grunt and ask for help getting on the couch and the chairs. He is really aware of his abilities and understanding that if he needs to get down something (a curb, steep hillside, off the furniture, etc) he can roll over on his belly and slither down whatever he is trying to traverse. This makes for a really funny scene at the park because if he wants to get down a step (such as the lip of the sand pit) the rolls over on his belly and starts moving backward from as far away as the other side of the side walk (meaning he is wiggling backwards like a little bug for several minutes before he achieves his goal). He can also put his finger to his lips and say "shhhh" like we do when we read Pajama Time and he is starting to learn to count on his fingers. He LOVES when I count to five using my fingers and as soon as I showed him how, he started to stick one figure out, and then added another finger to count to two.
He LOVES to be tickles and zurberted. If you do either of these things once, you better be prepared to go for several rounds. After the first giggling fits subside, he will make a tickle motion on his own belly and urge you to do it again and again. How can you turn down such a funny request?! Brady is a good eater (as long as he is not teething). He likes fruit and veggies as well as hamburgers and roasted chicken. He is pretty adventurous and always wants to try any leafy greens I am eating. This is comical because he will horde a mass of greens in his mouth and then spit out a huge green ball of ick. When he wants to eat something I am eating, he sticks his tongue out and grunts repeatedly trying to move his tongue closer to my food until I give him some.
Teeth: Five but the sixth has broken through and is making its decent
Word and phases: Brady is really a talker! He can say a lot of words but the most memorable things are that he can say lots of two two phases like "hi cat" and "hi dad". I love when he says cheese, trees and cherries because they sound so cute coming out of his mouth. He still says "all done" and turns his hand up toward the sky when saying it. The most impressive though is the other day he dropped an alphabet book in my lap and said "ABCs" and when I pointed to a few letters, he could name them. He also says "no" clear as day and when he says it, he gives a single, distinct head shake along with it. It is hysterical. After he says it, he often laughs and runs away.
Funny memories: Most recently, the funniest thing that have happened is that Brady peed on his brother. They were kind of lined up, waiting to be lifted into the bath tub and I saw Brady start to pee all over Brody. I could not stop laughing and now my motherly instincts wonder if my laughing may have been a little too much positive reinforcement?! I guess future antics will answer this question. Other funny memories from this last month are that Brady has started tackling Brody. Usually it is the other way around but recently Brady has caught on that he can chase his brother and he can even tackle him. The great thing is that Brody LOVES it so he just laughs and giggles the whole time. Also, Brady loves scooters and bikes. If he sees one at the park with will gravitate toward it and try his hardest to get on and ride. Also, he loves all dogs and cats and he tries to kiss ours daily. For Brady though, kissing the animals involves him making a kissing sound while cocking his head to the side and trying to lay his head on the animals. I have to be careful if we are at the park because he will run at any dog we see and try and kiss them. This keeps me on my toes when we are out and about.
Brody
Brody is outgoing and lovable, kind and sincere. Honestly, he is a total ham. He says hi to EVERYONE when we are out and even has what I call and "aggressive hi" where he says "HI" repeatedly until the person responds. He knows how to get peoples' attention and he knows what is funny. For example, one time when I went to get him out of his car seat, I found him chewing on his big toe. I thought it was funny and laughed and joked with him about it. Now EVERY time I go to get him out of his seat, shoes on or off, he tries to stick his big toe in his mouth and munch on it. He loves to snuggle and loves to rub noses. He is a very physical guy but also very cuddly. Sometime when I am carrying him to the car, he will put his head on my shoulder, throw his arms around my neck and give me a big hug. Then he will put both hands on my checks and whack me in the face. You really need to be on your toes around him. He hates wind in his hair and vehicles that make loud noises. He is amazed by airplanes and firetrucks.
Weight: 29 lbs 10 oz (I'm shocked he is not over 30 lbs. The kid feels like a ton of concrete when you pick him up!)
New skills: Brody can climb with the best of them, often only needing to throw one of his long legs up onto the lip of the couch or a ledge in order to shimmy on up. He has climbed onto all the table tops in the house, sometimes with me watching, sometimes without. He has managed to figure out all the child locks in the house and (with a little help from his brother) has pulled the stove safety lock completely off. These things are no match for twin powers. Brody can throw a ball with impressive accuracy and speed. I swear this is not just one of those "my kid is the greatest at everything" tidbits. He has an amazing overhand and switches from overhand to underhand depending on the distance between us. I am shocked at how hard he throws. I know first-hand how hard he throws because often pelts me in the face with food from his tray (a skill I hope he soon forgets). It is shocking how fast those berries come whizzing toward me. Brody also has a kind of "Timmy's in the well" sort of grunt he uses if he is trying to tell me something. A classic example is when Brady runs down the hall and closes the boys' bedroom door. Brody will run over to me and grunt and point telling me that Brady is locked away. It is really very cute and reliable. Brody claps after everything which is really funny and really nice. It is kind of like getting a standing ovation for everything you do. He also knows his own name. If you say Brody, he point to himself and I have heard him say Brady a few times. "Brady" may be the single sweetest word I have every heard him say.
Teeth: Honestly, I'm afraid to check. Brody will bite down on your finger faster than you can wiggle it around inside his mouth. From what I can tell, he has 8 with 3 or the four molars completly erupted and the last one is just a mountain underneath the gum-line.
Words and Phrases: In the last week, the big new word developments have been a transition from Da/Ma and Dada/Mama to Daddy and Mommy. He will string these words together in different patters like "Daddy, Daddy, Mommy, Daddy" etc. Honestly, nothing sounds cuter coming out of his mouth, except for maybe his brother's name. He has a word for airplane, but it sounds nothing like airplane, I have no idea what he is actually saying but he says it repeatedly when he hears something in the sky. He still say "what's that" and "all done" the most but he can fill in with most other commonly used words when prompted. He has also learned to scream and thinks it is hysterical.
Funny memories:
Despite how big he is, it may be surprising to find out that Brody mostly subsists on fruit. I like to call him my fruititarian. If I put something new onto his tray that I want him to try and he does not like it he will pause mid-chew, get a scornful look on his face, scrape the food off his tongue, and fling it at me. Even though this is really gross, his reaction is really funny and I have been known to laugh despite having food stuck to my face. It is really funny how picky he is given the voracity with which he eats the things he likes.
Things I am surprised I have had to say out loud (more than once):
1. Ack, don't pee on your brother.
2. Please stop throwing food at me
3. Don't drink out of that puddle (both boys on all fours trying to drink out of a disgusting puddle. Luckily the 3 inch brim of their baseball caps prevented them from getting their lips to the ground).
4. Please stop eating tissues.
5. You can't put more than one shoe on your foot at a time.
6. Your brother is wearing that shoe, please stop trying to take it off of him.
7. Why don't you have any pants on?
8. Where is your diaper?
9. How did you get up there?
10. I am offering you a clean butt, why are you fighting with me?
Looking back, it is amazing to me how fun this phase is. I know it keeps getting better and that is exciting. I am so happy that I have so many fun things to remember from this phase.
