Highlights this month:
- Gran and Grandpa go back to Oregon
- Calan gets with swimming and explores his new likeness for hiking
- Evan seems to double in size and works toward “doing his nights”
Before the first week of July was complete, Gran and Grandpa left for home and left us on our own. Heidi’s mom had been with us for nearly six weeks, so for the first time, we took full control of the reigns of caring for two children. The end of an era so to speak of a family of only three, and the beginning of new, even more fulfilling one. So much is the same the second time around with a baby, yet so much is different. No longer could we just easily trade-off caring for just one little being…it’s full on tag-team city. As so many parents do, we quickly learned to juggle and work together to care for two little people with nearly constant needs and attention…all the time wondering how in the heck people do this with three, four and more. We can safely agree two is a nice place to stop. 🙂
While not a summer filled with family activities, adventures and outword-bound experiences (for obvious reasons), no summer will ever be the same, we’re sure. The time has been filled with countless tender moments, watching our two boys together and the regular squeezing and kissing that comes with holding your own tiny baby as he looks up at you or sleeps peacefully. And in light of our tag teaming previously mentioned, there were still plenty of strategic activities where Calan and Dada got out of the house so Mama could focus on Baby Evan, making meals or hopefully get some rest.
Calan
Swimming: Despite not really getting into his swim classes last month, the little guy finally got comfortable again in the “big” pool. The keys to this seemed to be letting him make the decision on when to actually “go swimming”, let him “be” while he’s in the water, and of course dawning a floaty vest. It also helped seeing his friend Declan from two doors down, who is also three, swim in the “big pool”. Whatever the ingredients for success, it’s been nice seeing Calan have fun in the water. He really enjoys floating, kicking and splashing around in the backyard pool. He doesn’t go every day, but two or three times a week seems to give him his fill. It’s also been great centering his eagerness for swimming around small pool parties with friends. Several visitors, including Declan, Benni, and Jake (plus brothers) have come over to cool off in the pool this month, giving Calan a chance to both see his friends and have more practice being in the water. He even seems to choose the pool over going to the beach where the waves are still a little scary. One outing we made to cool off in the water though was to the neighborhood to the west of us (Village at the Park). They have a small “splash pad” with several fountains raining out water when you push a button. In his typical fashion, Calan was completely content with just pushing the buttons and standing under the refreshing spray, while the other children there ran all around and slid down the park slides with slippery, wet bodies. It looked like a lot of fun, but Calan knows what he likes for sure, and you can rarely convince him to try for more in the moment.
Hiking: Calan has often asked Dada if he could go hiking. He’ll point toward the small mountains near our house and ask which mountain we can climb. Well, we finally went, and to our surprise he raced up the trail as soon as his feet hit the ground. Our first outing took us to a more difficult hillside, with steep inclines that even Dada had to carefully negotiate. That didn’t stop Calan though. He instinctively sunk low to the ground and crawled like a bear up the sharp angles of the rocky trail. When we got to a stopping point, he asked how we were able to get so high. You could tell he was hooked, as he made the connection with climbing up the trail with getting up high and seeing the “ants on the freeway way over there”. Another sign of being hooked was when we got down, he immediately wanted to go back up. We went on a second hike to a spot in Newbury Park where you could do more walking than climbing, and he ran along the path like a cross-country racer. Now, there are two things we need to change as we go forward on these hikes: First, a good pair of hiking shoes. And second, finding a way to keep the flies away. Ultimately, Calan can’t stand the little flies that buzz around your face and ears on the bushy hillsides. Perhaps there is something to repel them during these warm summer hikes (?) so Calan can focus on having fun instead of flapping his arms at the persistent flying creatures when he’s finally had enough of them.
Speaking of warm summer… it’s been a bit of a consistently warmer and muggier July this year. We all have our ways to keep cool of course, but Heidi had to laugh when she recently found Calan’s hamper practically empty after many days since doing his laundry. It tells you obviously the kid needs to not wear the same pair of underwear two or more days in a row(!) but also that he is simply not wearing a lot of clothes in general. And it’s true… going through pictures this month, there were clearly more shots of Calan wearing only underwear versus at least some kind of outfit. We have definitely just become accustomed to Calan hanging around the house in his tighty-(“Thomas”, “Cars”, etc. themed”)-whiteys. Clearly one area where Mama and Dada are happy enough to leave a battle alone and let this guy have his freedom.
Another point of entertainment for us from Calan recently is how he talks about dates and numbers. We’re not entirely sure what’s behind it, but it usally has to do with either his age, a distance, a year, or a number on a train. Most notable is his “1971”. This, we think, is a diesel engine…and he believes it is coming and that he will get it. He also talks a lot about turning four…and then five. But then these monologues will usually take on a goofy twist and something comes out like “Did you know the 145 is in the 60s, and it comes for 40 hours when the 41 is way ahead of the track. So, my 1945 is just like my 1962 and the 1921 for the south, did you know that? Those engines are gonna come in five years at Christmas.” Is it possible his head is picking up a signal from a nearby train traffic coordinator? hmm
Earlier in the month Dada asked Calan what his top-10 favorite things to do were. He played along for fun, and the following are the answers he gave:
- Play with trains
- Play with cars
- Play with friends
- Have more planes
- Love everybody
- Write messages on the computer (although he rarely does this)
- Look at pictures
- Eat
- Play in quiet time (previously afternoon nap time)
- Go to bed at nap time (contradiction to#9 lol)
As July came to an end though, it was clear is new favorite thing was counting the days until his birthday and party. He is definitely looking forward to it. Mama is as well, as she quickly found out planning for even a small, simple party has enough variables to make planning and preparations a bit of dedicated project.
Evan
We know that newborn babies don’t keep their lean figures for long, and Evan is no exception. He seems to be growing so fast that if you go for more than a few hours without seeing him, he looks visibly larger when you see him again. We’re convinced this is not an optical illusion either, as confirmed by how quickly he’s stopped fitting into newborn and other small onesies. It’s bitter sweet to look at an outfit we once saw Calan wear for what felt like weeks (and in fact it was!), and think how both boys have now outgrown it. It’s clear though that with Calan being born two weeks early, and Evan a week late, Evan only wore some stuff once or twice before it became too tight.
It finally came time for Evan to try a bottle this month as Mama going back to work is just around the corner. He took right to it, and was a complete natural. He doesn’t seem to be picky when it comes to the bottle type or temperature of the warmed up milk. Calan on the other hand had to have his bottles just right, or he’d let you know. The fun things about bottles this time around is that so far, if Mama is away during the day and it’s time to feed Evan, Calan is quick to ask if he can give the bottle to his baby brother. Of course, it’s one of the cutest sites you’ll see in our house. Dada also looks forward to starting the bonding tradition of giving Evan his late night bottle before both go to sleep for the night.
Evan’s sleep patterns are beginning to improve as expected. A little more consistency definitely started creeping in this month. Longer nights of 6-7 or even more hours are thankfully more common. Sleeping during the day is still a bit erratic but little by little he’ll get in his rhythm and find a schedule that’s good for him…and mom and dad!
Other expected developments this month included Evan revealing his smile to us. You can usually get him to show it if you tickle his cheek and say “Hi, cheeky-cheeky”. He also likes to look around the room when there are a lot of people and activity. He finds this amusing and will sometimes grin as he bounces his big eyes around the room. And of course we love his little coos and other baby sounds. Sometimes you think he’s trying to say something, and it’s true that some of the cute sounds he’s making are just letting us know he’s happy. Evan’s baby acne also cleared up by the end of the month. So, until he’s a teenager, he’ll probably be clear of that. Also, his hair seems to be staying in. Unlike Calan, who lost his initial fuzzy head (and started over), Evan’s seems to be getting ever so thicker and darker. We’ll all be wondering what coloring he’ll end up with. No matter what he’ll be our “Little E” with many similarities to his big brother but for sure his own person as he continues to grow and grow.