Kid updates!
February 27th, 2010This is one of those posts for the grandmas and the scrapbook…lots of details that are likely only amazing to us!
Zeke is changing so much right now! My baby is disappearing already! I love this little boy! He is 11 months already!
The biggest update is that he walks! He has been taking a step or two when prompted since around ten months. But he never initiated steps on his own and never took more than a couple. Well, all of sudden, he is off! The same week he turned 11 months, he went for it! He still crawls when we wants to get somewhere in a hurry (like the stairs, a snack on sister’s table, toward an open door to the bathroom - oy!). But he toddles all across the house now. One of our favorite moments was when he was taking some of his first steps and Ella yelled, “That’s what I’m talking about Zeke!“ Joel thought that was hilarious!
Zeke is really interacting too! When you ask, “How big is Zekey?,” he raises his hands to say “SO big!” He can wave hello and bye-bye and also blow a kiss. He baby signs “more” and “all done.” He also plays peek-a-boo. When I ask, “Wheeeere is Zeke?,” he covers his eye (though sometimes it is ear, head, anywhere). When you start singing “pat-a-cake” or “If you’re happy and you know it,” he immediately starts clapping. He even rolls the dough! The cutest though is when you say, “Will you give mama a kiss?” He leans in to peck on the mouth! Oh, and when I tell him “no-no” he raises his little hand and waves it back and forth just like I do!
On the less favorable list, he just started throwing food on to the ground from his high chair. He loves toilets (ick!) and climbing stairs. He does not have the same interest in books as Ella always has but I keep pushing it. He likes turning the pages.
He has recently stopped putting his head down on my shoulder when I rock him before bed. He has always been really cuddly once we turn off the light and put on his sound machine. Now, he wiggles in my arms and won’t cuddle in so I have to just kiss him and lay him down right away. Boo.
As a boy, he seems much more persistent than Ella. When she was getting into something, I could distract her, move her, give her something else. He immediately makes a bee-line back to what he wants…very focused! Those boys and their one track minds!
He loves to dance, bopping to any music. His favorite foods are bananas and pear chunks. He refuses any kind of chicken, no matter how I disguise it. In fact, until recently he never really refused food period. But, he spit out oatmeal this morning which he used to love. He just learned to drink from a straw! Oh, those little lips! So cute!
His words are still just mama and dada. But he tries to repeat lots of sounds, copying me. He also has a game with Ellie where she makes a sound at him, he laughs and then makes it back. “Tst!” “Dat!” “Ah!”
Zeke never refuses a smile to others. He has four front teeth on the top now so his grin is SO CUTE!
Eloise is growing and learning too! She is so independent. She can take care of most of her basic needs by herself - getting a snack (with permission of course), going to the bathroom and washing her hands, getting herself dressed. She can pick out a video and get it all set and playing in her DVD player. She also gets us the paper from the porch each morning.
She takes EXCELLENT care of her brother. The other day, I was at the gym and I can watch the kids on the monitor in the childcare area. EVERY time I checked in on them, she was giving him a toy, a snack, his pacifier. She yells to me anytime he is going near the stairs or the fireplace. When he gets hurt, she has the most wonderful little sweet comforting voice for him.
Ellie helps set the table each night and she is in charge of putting away the silverware when we empty the dishwasher. I have her pick up her own clothes and put them in the dirty clothes basket and also put away books in her room every couple of days. She never really fights me - we talk about how we all contribute to take care of our family and she seems to get it. She is also Joel’s right hand, helping him with all little house projects.
We are still working on night-time potty training even though she has been potty trained since before she was two. We tackled the pacifier first - dropping that at Thanksgiving. She is a loving, but passionate little girl. Most of the time she gets discipline it is for talking disrespectfully to mama or pushing Zeke away from her toy or food. As a first-born, she is definitely bossy with friends and brother.
Ella can draw happy faces and is getting close to writing her name! I write out the letters and she copies me! She sings ALL the time (Joel LOVES this and just soaks it in!).
She continues to love Snow White, Grover, and Yo-Gabba-Gabba. Her favorite color, she will tell you, is blue. She announces to many that she lives in Washington DC on Fourth Street. Her favorite food is macaroni and cheese and juice box, no question. Oh, and Grape Nuts cereal. She also loves edamame in the pod - calls them pop-pops.
Ella loves her cousins and best buds, Giovanni and Violet. Mom and Dad are okay too - she sticks pretty close to us. Whenever I move around the house doing chores, I find her right behind me.
I am so thankful for the chance to raise these kids! Now if time would just slow down!
The second video is Dad doing some street snow skiing.