25 month / 15 week update

Here are my two rug rats - growing up so fast!  This has been one of the best and busiest months ever, as Shaggy and I tried to maximize as much of our "funemployment" time as possible.  Since we knew this was such a rare time to have in our lives, we went out of our way to enjoy it without spending too much money (#fail)!  We even went on one last family vacation to Sesame Place - not the relaxing getaway I had in mind, but totally worth it seeing Josiah giddy from the water rides and character sightings (Cookie Monster!).  This final month of maternity leave was so much more enjoyable than the other months, so I was sad to see it come to an end.  But alas, I can't play and spend money forever!  And I actually miss being a 'productive' working person.  So, I went back to work last Friday and I was filled with mixed emotions - really happy to see everyone on the team and be back into a rhythm, but also really dazed and foggy from being gone for so long...and of course constantly thinking about the kiddos.  My insecurities about not meeting expectations are starting to set in and I'm already exhausted from just one day of not even doing much work.  How am I going to do this?  

JOSIAH - 25 months

Our little man is as crazy and silly as ever...and it's so fun! He continues to be such a sponge and surprises us daily with new phrases.  Some of recent ones are: "what's that noisy?", "I be wight back", "I sleeping!", "I working" (while taking out his fake laptop), "help, I stuck", "honey, I'm home", "count with me", "where e'body go?"...and his recent favorite, "let me do it".  He wants to do everything himself, which is great, but also takes a lot of patience on our part! 

He's very possessive lately and loves attaching his name to everything.  For example, whenever people sing happy birthday, he'll add his name ("and Josiah!") to the song and be delighted at everyone's reaction.  I've learned to manipulate him a bit though - if I want him to do something that he doesn't want, I simply say I'm doing it (e.g. "I'm drinking MY milk") and watch him come running.  Don't you love reverse psychology?

Josiah's become much more social and is starting to understand that he has "friends".  He particularly likes hanging out with older kids and imitating what they say and do.  He even has a four-year old friend that calls him (via the nanny).  It's hilarious hearing their convos - the four year old chatting away and Josiah simply saying "ok, bye" and running away.  Haha.  Josiah is beginning to be more affectionate with his sister "Samtha" as well and sometimes asks to hold her ("it") or push the stroller.  He will even sing songs to her and tickle her, although she seems annoyed when he gets too close or loud.  I still have to watch him carefully to make sure he doesn't get too rough. He's quite the klutz lately, so I fear him tripping and falling on top of her!

Lately, he seems to be scared and timid of many things.  He often says "I scare...hold hand" when he's watching something on TV.  And even at Sesame Place, he refused to go on any ride until we coaxed him to give it a try.  Sound like anyone we know?

Sigh - my baby is growing up so fast. He is no longer the chubby "Michelin man" of the past, but continues to stretch out...so much so that he has white striped tan lines on his arms!  In fact, according to his 2-year doctor's appointment, he is at the 50th percentile across the board.  I guess that's a good thing, but I definitely miss the baby chub.

SAMANTHA - 15 weeks (just past 100-days)

Our little lady is a sweetheart!  I'm loving this phase, as she is starting to coo, laugh, and really interact with us.  Most of the time, she's still a pretty calm and almost stoic baby.  However, the best is making a funny sound and seeing her break out into a fit of giggles! She also seems very observant, always watching her noisy brother and giving him a firm kick or punch whenever he gets in her face.  I hope she continues to hold her own with him and other pesky boys!

Samantha is still a pretty big girl (95th percentile on height and weight), despite her lack of interest in drinking milk.  The math doesn't add up.  But, I think it's due to her love of sleep and the growth that apparently happens then.  She still sleeps through the night, as well as much of the day! I definitely can't complain, although I've got to be more diligent about rotating her in the crib so that she doesn't get a flat head!

Samantha has recently discovered her hands so she is sucking her fingers and fists constantly.  It's pretty funny seeing her go at it, but also frustrating since she seems to like it better than drinking milk. She's also starting to show an interest in TV.  Whenever it's on, she starts grunting and complaining if she's facing the other way.  We definitely want to limit her exposure to TV, but it's so hard to resist since it's the best way to get things done around the house with two kids!

All in all, Samantha continues to be a pretty easy baby (knock on wood), aside from her feeding/digestion troubles.  I hope she outgrows that soon so we have less spit-up/vomit to clean up.  She seems to be interested in the food we're eating already, so perhaps she's just ready to grow up and move on!