A couple weeks ago, Deuce passed his four month mark. (I'm not really sure how to define each month... Did he turn four months old at 16 weeks, or not until 10 February? Either way, he's over four months old now.) He has started babbling (usually incessantly at 0500 hours on the dot). He's also quite recently discovered that he can grab things and put them in his mouth. The fun is about to really begin! Be careful if you get too close - he will grab anything and everything. And don't let his diminutive digits fool you; he has the grip of a sliver back gorilla! Despite frequent hair-pulling incidents, Squirt is growing ever more fond of him. I wake up most days to find them snuggled up together. This morning, when I went into the room to wake Squirt, I found she was already awake. She was snuggled up to Deuce quietly singing him a song about how he was her "best fwiend fo-ebaaaah."
D-guy at 16 weeks, with Squirt getting her hit of baby head. (That smell is addictive!)
Shortly after he passed four months (both possible dates), Deuce finally got a spot in Squirt's daycare! I was ecstatic. Squirt was ecstatic. EVERYONE in the family was ecstatic. He'd been going to a different daycare since the end of January and, while the teachers were so sweet, it was a massive annoyance, because we had to go so far out of our way every day to get there. Now, the kiddos are in the same center, saving us so much time and headache every single day! To top it off, Deuce is with the same caregiver as baby Squirt. She is so gentle and protective of "her babies" and always made me feel comfortable about leaving my baby. She marvels every day about how much alike my babies look. It's so special to me that he's with her.
Getting ready for baby-guy's first day at Squirt's "school."
Squirt. Oh, Squirt. She is almost four, and seems so grown up right now in many ways (indeed, she often insists that she is a grown up). She is becoming more independent and fiery, which can be great and is something I hope to encourage, but it's lead to countless power struggles. Still a tiny kid in a big world, she's seeking to have more control over the world around her - what she eats, what she wears, what she does. Unfortunately, her "control" efforts are to not eat (at all, unless it's burgers or "noogles"), wear sleeveless sundresses during a snow storm, and stand outside of daycare, refusing to go in with bone chilling, 40 mph winds. I try to let her have as much say in things as is reasonable, but so much of the time, she wants things that are unreasonable and it turns into a fight. It's frustrating for both of us. I'm struggling to find gentle, positive ways to parent through this challenging period...
On the other hand, while she can be quite the monster to dad and I, she can also be the sweetest thing. Yesterday, Dad took her to the park and they had a wonderful time. She told him that she loves holding his hand (usually, she's telling him she's "not [his] friend"). A few nights ago, she charmed us for half an hour by singing adventure stories she made up while dancing and waving around a little wand. She still has her little toddler voice, complete with adorable mispronunciations, but her vocabulary is surprising. One of her favorite words right now is "actually". I must resolve to start using more diverse language around her. Her dad continues helping her learn Danish words. Listening to her try to repeat some of the words is more amusing than trying to repeat some of them myself (he says I sound like a baby alligator - not sure how he knows what they sound like...).
Stunning Squirt.
Golden sunrises and rainbow diapers - the story of my life right now...
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