More Little Drummer Boy

In case you wondered if Joshua is still into drumming...

More stages

Ellie has reached that clingy stage in her development... well, one of the many, I imagine. I say that because as she has become more clingy and needy, so, too, has Joshua. Imagine that! When I leave the room, Ellie shrieks like I just broke her heart. Never mind peaceful swinging during dinner time, she wants to be held... or better yet, eat at the exact same time as the rest of us. Not that I can blame her, it is no fun to eat alone... but you should have seen me with the kids by myself the other evening at the dinner hour. (Joshua does pretty well on his own these days, but he still needs some help.)

Anyway, I realized that Joshua was unusually needy. He wants to cuddle more, and he will charge David and me to give us a big bear hug spontaneously. (Talk about trust... he really takes us by surprise sometimes, but we have caught him every time up to this point!) Sometimes I think his desire to cling is simply because he sees Ellie shriek and get a response. Other times, I think that he has reached yet a new level of awareness of who he is who we are.

Stroller seasons

Yesterday, I took the kids out in the jogging stroller for the first time in a few weeks. They sit side by side, which I think they both prefer. (Until Ellie is a little older and we have to draw an imaginary line, right?) Anyway, we went to the Cameron Park area to run and go to the zoo. (I know, pity the other people at the zoo, but if I am going to be outside with both kids, I might as well get a run out of it!) I noticed some changes in the kids during our outing. Ellie was a little bit more fidgety, and she stayed awake the whole time. Every other time we made this trip, which was weekly over the summer, she took a little cat nap. Joshua was a little less restless. He would usually sit forward and grip the bar in front of him while pointing out every duck, squirrel, bird, and dog. Yesterday, he leaned back, crossed his ankles, and pointed out the big trucks along with all of those fun animals. Every now and then, Joshua sat up for a few minutes to look at something. When he leaned back, he gestured for me to arrange the cushion behind him because it had shifted. It made me smile!

Swimming debut

A reassuring kiss from big brother

Looking on longingly as Joshua plays because Mom didn't want to do extra diaper changes

Mom gave in, and Ellie's taking the plunge!

Ellie finally got to swim this month! At the beginning of the month, we put her in our little plastic pool with Joshua. Since then, she got to play in the "big" baby pool near Grandmom's house as well as the inflatable pool at Grandmom's house. The girl really likes the water, even though the pictures show her uncertainty with her firs pool experience.:-) Joshua is more and more confident in the water; he loves to lay down in it and get it all over his face.

Roll call!

If you wondered about my blogging hiatus, two words will explain it: David gone. David had training for his job for two and a half weeks, so it was the kids and me. Do you believe that I found a few things to do besides sit at a computer? We spent some time in Houston with family, and then we went up to the Northeast to see family and meet David for a weekend in the middle of his training. As Joshua has been talking more, he has been learning people's names. Each time we were around a new group of people, Joshua listed their names over and over. It took him a few minutes to learn, and then he was hooked! Each time we left a household, he would name all of the people he met in that household. Our sweet boy loves people!

Blocks

New in the life of Joshua this month: lots of words and a new love for blocks and cars! We don't have much yet... just a few rubber blocks for babies and a some Duplos, but Joshua loves to build towers and push cars around on lots of different surfaces. It is so fun to watch him as his interests develop! And in case you were wondering, Joshua still loves to drum!

New perspectives

I have a lot of catching up to do, I know. We have been pretty busy this month! I have to start somewhere... Ellie has gotten a lot stronger, and she sits up pretty well on her own now! Not well enough that I would leave her sitting by herself, but well enough that she sits with me without leaning against anything for quite awhile. Now, this is our second time to walk through these stages, but the things that strike me are the differences between our kids and the way they respond to life. Ellie loves to sit upright. In fact, our girl who liked tummy time quite a bit is not very content to be all the way down there on the floor any more. She wants to sit up, see things, and lunge at them! She doesn't fall backward like her brother did; she falls forward or to the side. Maybe it is a small difference, but I think it shows some of her personality. Ellie loves this new perspective on life in the bathtub as well. I still bathe her laying in a little tub, but I let her sit for some play time at the end. You would think I had put her in a new place; it is like she didn't know the water was there while she was leaning back! As soon as she is sitting, Ellie splashes and reaches out to grab at the water. She now spends as much time as her big brother in the bathtub, and she is not pleased when I take her out!