Baby bliss

I know I have lots of photos I need to post of Toby. I have lots of photos that I need to take of Toby, too! For example, I really need to get some pictures of his little mouth and curled feet before he is completely out of this newborn stage. Anyway, I may never be able to catch up, but here are some from last week that remind me of all his sweet baby-ness. Now if I could just capture how the top of that fuzzy head feels or how he smells!

A joke from Zeke

Zeke: Knock, knock.
Me: Who's there?
Zeke: Booger.
Me: Booger who?

(At this point, there is a thoughtful, maybe slightly confused pause. I think I took the joke beyond where the typical audience of four year old friends goes with it. "Booger" and "poop" are the height of sophisticated humor in that set.)

Zeke: Booger Ravenscraft. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

When I grow up

When I grow up, I should like nothing better than to be four years old.

Yes, four year olds have their ups and downs and their fair share of bumps in the road. Who wants the injustice of adults telling you what you can and cannot do all day? Why doesn't everyone know how much you can do by yourself? Why just yesterday, Zeke told Aaron, "Stop telling me what to do!" (And then some four year olds have it real rough -- their parents introduce a baby into the mix!)

But, there is such a joy to the life of a four year old that I am often jealous of Zeke. Last week, I made a big effort to do something fun with friends everyday. I haven't quite gotten the hang of how to be at home with both of them without ignoring a) Zeke, b) Toby or c) whatever it is that I need to get done in the house, so it is often easier to plan our day around an activity outside of the house. Zeke is on break from school, so we have a lot more days to plan out, too.

Anyway, one day we met two friends and their moms (and similarly brand new siblings!) at a free outdoor concert. We'd packed a picnic lunch with some to share. I loved watching Zeke as he and his friend ate the better part of a watermelon half. They had pink juice dripping everywhere, they put the rinds in their mouth to make exaggerated smiles, and they shared so easily. After -- with a few wipes later -- they had grabbed hands and were dancing and laughing and playing with some other kids they didn't know. One of those kids shared some bubbles and then they were off playing a new game of Chase the Bubbles, almost oblivious to the concert going on. I had a good time, but am still sure they were having a better time.

He also can talk to any stranger and tell them the story of his day, dance in the aisles of the grocery store, sing completely made up songs as well as adaptations of well known favorites and be completely open with his feelings. I love when I tell Zeke that Aaron bought some peaches at the farmers' market and he yells, "Yay! I love peaches!" He might get knocked down and cry, but then he is up again and completely forgiving of whoever/whatever caused the spill. He is friends with whoever will play with him. He will wear an eye patch and then have to be a pirate through lunch. If he wears his Batman shirt, he may be Batman the whole day.

Even when being four gets Zeke into trouble, I can't help but find some upside. At school, I could sometimes hear his teacher call his name even before I hit the door, but I am sometimes glad for it. He is so self-possessed as a four year old in a way that I am not always able to be as a thirty-something. I'm still trying to suss out all of the ingredients to this magic: innocence, fearlessness, and lack of awareness that we are not supposed to find happiness in so many simple things. (Well, a lack of regard for other people's -- namely mine -- authority!) I may never be four again, but I am so happy to get to share time with this four year old.

All about Toby

Toby is now six weeks old. Ah, that is just a little heartbreaking to say, as he has already leaving that precious newborn phase. Just tonight (during his first bath in the tub), we noticed that he is already losing that fuzzy feel to his head -- now he is a baby with hair. Oh, but what a baby!

Any guesses to his weight? I weighed him yesterday and he was 14 pounds, exactly three pounds heavier than exactly six weeks before. I still am astonished by his size. Sometimes I forget, but it certainly comes back when a friend blogs about how her daughter was 14 pounds at her recent 9 month old appointment. I am also constantly reminded by strangers whose first comments are always about his size. For future reference, if you see a big baby, please lead in with "Congratulations on your beautiful baby" and then start in on size. Or, if you must start with size, go for "Ooooh, I just love the big squishy cheeks on big babies."

He is still a very laidback baby...at least compared to Zeke. Case in point: this one lets you know when he wants to go to sleep. In response, I change his diaper, swaddle him up, put him in the cosleeper and kiss him goodnight. With Zeke it was nursing, swaddling, giving a pacifier, rocking, making shooshing sounds and playing ocean sounds loudly. It was a big routine that took time and luck if you wanted it to work. This one, you just put in him bed. Frankly, it is a little confusing to me.

Luckily he is a laidback boy because I force him to adapt a lot. He goes with me everywhere and has been to a lot of places in six weeks. Again, this is a real difference in comparison to Zeke. With Zeke, I made it out of the house a handful of times in the 8 weeks after he was born. Toby went to his first movie and symphony concert when he was three weeks old (Zeke was 3 1/2 for his first movie), visited tons of parks and kid friendly places, been in a restaurant more times than I should recount, and been to at least three childrens' birthday parties! We also left both the boys with our favorite babysitter, when Toby was 3 weeks old. I bought the tickets to a Van Morrison concert before he was born thinking that he would be at least a few weeks older, but no we went past our due date and he was a day shy of being 3 weeks. Zeke? It was at least a year before I left him with someone that wasn't family.

The poor thing, though, is definitely suffering the curse of the second child. It takes me much much longer to respond to his crying, because he inevitably needs me just as something in the kitchen needs my attention or as Zeke needs me. I guess I have a thicker skin for it now.

In addition to generally being a low maintenance baby, he is also pretty sweet and started smiling at 4 weeks. Lovely, lovely. He is also a very strong baby. He has very good head and neck control and pushes to stand, if you are holding him upright. Since two weeks, he has also been able to roll to his side. It is not intentional and does not seem to please him much, but he does seem to get some momentum going.

He sleeps pretty well for a newborn and generally will sleep for long stretches at night, waking up to nurse somewhere around 3 and 7 AM. Still, it can be tiring, because when he is awake he does prefer to be carried and rest high on my left shoulder. Between how he likes to be carried and his size, it is a backache in the making. I find myself wanting to get into the chiropractor a lot more these days. I'm trying to use a wrap to carry him comfortably in that position, but I haven't gotten into using it since it is more complicated than the sling and the onset of the Atlanta summer makes it seem less enticing to wrap yourself in a couple yards of fabric. Nursing has been pretty simple this time around and a lot easier to do on the go. He does seem to have a sixth sense for knowing when I am just about to eat, as those are the times that he wants to eat. He also wants to nurse quite a bit. Again, this seems attributable to his size and that he takes smaller "meals".

In general, Toby is doing really great and is a perfect addition to the family! We couldn't have asked for better.