My little camera man

Micah is not really into having his picture taken. Never really has been.
But then there is Judah.
He finds the camera.

I try to take a picture of him doing something, but he almost always looks.
And smiles.

 A beautiful, full-face smile.

What a cutie!

2nd Birthday Celebration

Better late than never, I suppose!
Because Micah's birthday falls so close to Christmas, but even more so just because we want to, we have decided that we definitely want birthdays (and other holidays too) to be more about experience than about gifts. Gifts are not bad. But we hope the memories created in the experience will last longer than the gifts. Right now, the boys still have no idea what these holidays really mean, and they don't know yet that they are "missing out" on gifts.
So this year, for Micah's 2nd birthday, we had a day full of "experience."
We started out at Chick fil a for their "picture with a Santa Cow" and the boys (unwillingly) got their picture taken with the cows and then they got free breakfast.

Although this is not a good picture, I think it shows a lot. Micah (in all his true-personality-form) is running away from the cows. He likes to have a little more time to "warm up" to new people. Judah is just relaxed. Really, I think he is falling over and the cow is not really holding him, but either way, he was oddly comfortable with the cow.

Then we went to a nearby children's museum. Both boys were free (due to age), plus I had a buy-one-get-one-free ticket, so we paid very little for hours of fun. The museum far exceeded our expectations and I am so glad this is what we did. One set of grandparents got to join in the fun and it was a great time for all!

 Above pictures = happy times.

Below pictures = getting a little worn out.

The boys were tired, but they were troopers. We then went home and enjoyed tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches and then carrot cake cookies for dessert. No candles. But there was singing.

And then there was some very gentle handling of the cookie in order to get the most benefit from the icing on top.

And then there was Judah, who could not indulge with us, but was clearly relaxed.

Judah was exhausted and quickly fell asleep, but Micah was all about opening presents, and enjoying the first "snow" of the winter.

 Flexing his muscles in his new apron.

 The first "snow."

A great day. A great celebration. Some not-so-good pictures and some good pictures. Overall, some great memories for all!

Favorite Things...

Some of Micah's favorite things to do:

Play hide and seek. It's cute when he covers his eyes because he is "hiding" or when he just goes somewhere and turns his head to "hide." "If I can't see you, then you can't see me, right?"

Playing Peek-a-boo. He loves playing this with us, but is also learning that Judah loves when Micah plays this with him too. So cute to watch them play together!

Playing with the random cats that live in the neighborhood.

Wearing our shoes around the house. He puts them on himself, and seems so proud as he walks in them. This picture also reveals one of his first times "posing" for the camera. He normally gets shy and turns away, or else immediately tries to look through the camera before the picture is taken. But he is learning to let his picture be taken and then he can immediately come and look at it.

Eating sweets. Just like his mom, he definitely has a sweet tooth... there's some stylish bed-head going on here as well.

Favorite color: orange. EVERYthing is orange right now.

Favorite way to do things: "do it self" (mr. independent)

Favorite thing to say/question to ask: "whatsat?" (as in, "What's that?" and it is always said in such a curious and cute way as he loves taking in everything there is to take in of the world around him)

There are more, but I'll save them for another day and another time...

All About Judah

Judah is crawling like crazy! He always crawls on his knees (Micah always crawled on his belly) and he is quite fast. He did get his first bloody mouth recently from crawling and his arms giving out, which made him hit his mouth on the floor.
It's not just about the crawling, though. It's more about where he is crawling to. It is usually because there is a destination that involves pulling himself up onto something. A coffee table, a wall, my leg...it often ends up being things that roll or that are too light to hold him, but he'll try to stand up on anything. After he started crawling, he was very quick to find the stairs and very quick to be brave and started crawling up the stairs! One day I found the boys sitting on the stairs playing together! Judah is definitely not as cautious as Micah, and when I say "No" in my stern voice so he knows I am serious about him not going upstairs, he just looks at me and laughs!!
And a new favorite is to stand by the window at the front door so he can look outside.

Just like Micah used to do...

From the looks of these pictures, it looks as though Judah may end up with a fuller head of hair than Micah. Too funny!
Judah still just has his too bottom teeth, but there is a good bit of swelling on the bottom gums and I keep waiting for more to pop through. Either way, he definitely puts things in his mouth a lot more than Micah ever did. Gotta watch him closer!

But I don't mind watching him, since he is so darn cute!

Testing the Limits

Micah has always been a "conservative" kid. A little more cautious. A little tentative. A little bit of "testing the waters" first. Always wanting to fully check out a situation or a new environment before he decides if he is comfortable. Checking people out before he runs right up to strangers. He listened to "no" very good as a baby, didn't require us to get a gate to block stairways, and usually asks for help before trying something that could be dangerous or even questionable.

But he has been starting to test the limits a good bit lately. Both on the things he is willing to do and on the things we are saying. When we tell him to stop doing something "or else" he is testing more to see if we really mean the "or else." When we tell him not to step on something that he shouldn't be walking on (like a DVD), he gets his foot as close as possible without stepping on it to see how we respond. Or sometimes I think he believes we are not looking (when we really can still see him) and then he steps on it just a little, just enough so he knows he is breaking the rule, but just enough to test and see if we stick to our word. And we do. That is one thing we know we have to do in our parenting: stick to our word, whether it's good or bad. Let your yes be yes and your no be no.

 

Getting more brave as he stands on his bike (with wheels!).

Loving going down the big slides by himself.

 And wanting to go backwards up the slides too...

Contagious

Judah has a smile that is contagious. A laugh that is beautiful and infectious. It melts my heart, makes me forget all the fussiness, and brings me pure delight!

Playing with friends

I think it was definitely a good thing for Micah that we had Judah so close in age to him. It has made him learn lots of things that he wouldn't have had to otherwise. It has made him hear the words "be nice" and "be gentle" a lot more than other kids might since he is living it out in the house and not just on play dates.
Micah has a friend, Ty, who is 6 months younger but quite a bit smaller, so Micah hears these phrases also when playing with him. They do play well together. They love hugging and sharing things with each other. They love to sit in the same seat, share a snack, and watch movies.

 What a lesson in love!
But then there are the times with Micah starts off seeming like he is going to do something loving and friendly, but then it turns out that there is the biting of the bottom lip (always means aggression is starting) and some strength and overpowering involved...

But he is learning. Just like me. Learning to love. Maybe we need to get him around more kids who are bigger than him so he doesn't always think he can be the "bully."
But for now, he is giving us opportunities to teach him how to love his friends...

Teething and Eating

I think there might be some more teeth popping through soon for Judah.
I'll probably be saying that for the next year...
Not sure if it has to do with the teething, but this guy has not been as interested in his bottles as he has been in solid food.
Some new things we've tried: avocados, peaches, pears, and yogurt. He hasn't turned any of them down!
Today, in ONE sitting, he ate a banana (the whole thing), a peach (the whole thing!) and about half a pear! Yep, in one sitting.
I might start calling him porky.

Comparing

I spend a lot of time comparing and contrasting Micah and Judah. It's fun. They are very different in the personalities and in their physical build. But, depending on the pictures that are taken, they can often look very similar in the face. And they both like their tongues.

Here is Micah at 8 months.

And here is Judah at 8 months.

Micah. With a bigger head and pointier chin.

Judah. With bigger ears and eyes that smile.

Oh, how I love them!

Shortcuts

There's so much that's new...I'll just go with the latest laughter I have experienced with Micah.

Me "Micah, let's count to 10."
Micah "10"
Me "1,"
Micah "10"
Me "2,"
Micah "10"
Me "OK, i don't think this is working. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 (as fast as I can)."
Micah "10"
I guess I did just ask him to count to 10. And I didn't say he had to say 1 through 9 first...Oh how he makes me laugh! Guess he was just trying to get to 10 as fast as possible.

Judah is blooming in the fall...

Judah has his two bottom teeth in now. It was either a lot more painful for him than it was for Micah, or this was an early look at how Judah is going to be less tolerant of pain in general.
Judah has tried a few new foods, like sweet potatoes and pumpkin, but they both seem to leave his butt pretty raw, so we may have to stay away from those for now. He really loves bananas!
Judah pretty much loves life! He is happy, he is doing great with sitting up tall and interacting more with Micah.
He loves bath time, but requires a lot more attention in there right now since he wants to be rolling around!
Judah loves to be held, but also does better than Micah ever did at just playing by himself in the pack n play. I think it could just sit in there forever and watch Micah play beside him. Such cute brothers!

Cha Cha Cha Changes...

There are SO many changes happening around our house these days!

Micah is saying anything and everything! Even and especially when we aren't talking to him. It's great! It's hilarious! He is trying all sorts of new foods, he is getting very picky about the clothes he is wearing, and he has a weird obsession with shoes.
Micah loves balls, whether it's throwing them or kicking them or rolling them, as long as they are round, he loves it. And trains! He loves just making them go around the track, and especially down the hill.
He sure is a smart kid. I'm sure every parent says that, but he seem very aware, very observant, and very smart to me!
Judah is growing up so fast!

He is 7 months old. Pretty much within the last week he has started crawling, siting, and being able to get from a crawling position to a sitting position. He is also pulling himself up to his knees and sometimes to his feet! He also cut his first bottom tooth and has really grasped eating table food. He pretty much loves to eat.
Judah is a very happy baby! As long as he has food and a bed, he is a happy boy!
As they both grow and increase their awareness of each other, it's great to watch them interact...

Love these guys!