Growing Pains

It's been a fun week with the boys.  Every day growing and learning new things.  I find it interesting that it is inevitable that they will crawl, walk, talk, fight, discover, etc. and yet it still amazes me when I see them do something new.  Why do we get excited over the natural progression of things that will happen?  Perhaps that is part of what makes us human.

Last friday we took the boys for their nine month photos.  We got a little teaser yesterday of some of the photos on facebook.  It sure makes me excited to see the rest of them.  I must say that the session went really well.  I made sure to schedule it for 9 am so the boys were fresh and happy.  It was a stretch to get there on time but it paid off.  Levi was totally hamming it up.  I was glad to have a session where he wasn't crying through most of it.  William was crawling all over the place so it was a tad more difficult to get pictures of him.  But he was happy being the center of attention as usual.

Their nine month photos were a little delayed but we needed to make sure Papa was able to be there.  Doug was in Houston for a month in training.  A big hoorah goes to him for becoming a Captain.  Four stripes and a left seat.  That's like getting the corner office and a personal assistant.

I have mentioned before that Levi started to wave.  Well he loves doing it because it gets a reaction every time.  He has also been raising both of his arms over his head.  Sometimes it is because he wants to be picked up and sometimes I think it is just for the pure fun of it.  He does it in the feeding chair often.

Yesterday morning William was really studying Levi wave and raise his arms up.  Then he started to imitate Levi. It was so sweet.  The rest of the day I would catch William waving and raising his arms.  Brother taught him something new!  Perhaps that was a thank you for William teaching Levi to clap.

One day last week I was changing William's diaper and Levi was at my feet pulling all of the clean diapers off of the shelf.  I let him do it because it does no harm and it is easy enough to clean up.  So I ignored him while I took care of William.  But then the sound of his playing changed.  It wasn't quite right.  So I looked down and Levi was not there.  I bent down and saw that he had crawled up onto the shelf with the diapers and was trying to sit up but didn't have enough space.  That shelf sits about 14 inches off of the ground.  What a strong kid to pull himself up and onto it.

Later that day he started crawling around on his hands and feet.  Yes, feet.  That little booty was sticking way up there.  I found it quite entertaining.

Levi is quite meticulous about walking around or over things.  He holds onto whatever he is traveling around and takes very careful steps.  He has an attitude like the proverbial tortoise; slow and steady wins the race.  He just works at things until he accomplishes what he sets out to do.  Very little frustration.  Today Doug was laying on his back on the floor.  The boys were on him like flies to honey.  Levi had his hands on Doug's stomach and then started walking up toward his head.  He stepped over Doug's arm and kept moving.  Then he got to Doug's head and he leaned over a little more, lifted his leg and brought it up and over the head.  There he was straddling Papa.  I was laughing at least.  I'm sure he would have gone all the way around if Papa hadn't decided to move him.  Fortunately he wasn't smelly.

Although he has been a bit of a stinker the last couple of days.  By means of testing the limits.  I have a table that they unfortunately shake.  Because they are strong enough to shake it, it makes it fun.  Fun means do it again, often.  Levi will deliberately go over to it and then look to see if I will watch him (sound familiar?) and then shakes it.  Well this is not something I can ignore as I did with the DVD player.  If he keeps shaking it I am afraid he will weaken it to the point of it coming apart.  I don't know if it will but I don't want to find out.  He has been doing this for a few days and I would say "no" then move him away from it and give him something to distract him.  Yeah, that worked really well.  Not.  He would instantly go back and do it over and over again.  Mama saying "no" was funny to him.  He thought this was all a game.  So we had a "correctional" day.  Each time he did it I would say "no," spank his butt once and then put him in the pack-n-play for one minute.  I have the pack-n-play in another room.  It didn't take long for him to finally get a glimmer of what "no" meant.  He did not want to be left alone.  Tears would then come.  Ah, so now we are getting somewhere.  Unpleasant consequences.  Such a useful tool.  It was a daylong adventure but I was persistent and did not let him get away with it.  By the afternoon he would stick closer to me and I would find him looking over at the table and staring at it for a moment.  He was thinking about what happens when he shakes that table.  I honestly didn't think he would get that far in one day.  Yesterday he did much better.  He only got in trouble twice in the morning and twice in the evening.  Vast improvement from the day before.  But I am staying persistant so that he doesn't ever think that "no" sometimes doesn't mean "no" and then get confused.  This evening he got in trouble once.  After that he again started to shake the table but as soon as I said "no" he stopped and gave me a look that said, "oh, I'm in trouble."  I kept eye contact and waited a moment.  He took his hand off and then moved away so I praised him.  Small victory.  This happened one more time and again he stopped.  I hope each day brings us closer and closer to a full understanding and of course obedience to "no."

William got a fifth tooth last week!  I didn't even see it coming.  It just appeared.  Sneaky little bug.  If he keeps this up he will have a full set of teeth by his birthday.  I love it when he smiles and shows off his "toofers."  Sigh, such a cutie pie.

I love William but that doesn't seem to change the fact that he is WHY-NEE!  I don't get it.  There are days when he crabs, complains and whines all day.  Those days are when I have moments when I wish I could just wear earplugs.  He can get frustrated and angry about everything.  When Levi is too close or he can't squeeze his body between two items or he can't go in the bathroom or the cat is out of reach or just because he can.  Mostly because he can.  I of course get frustrated, irritable and even angry because I can't fix it.  I feel like a terrible mother because I can't meet his needs.  Some days it downright brings me to tears.  I don't think there is anything that can be done to change this.  He probably needs to work it out on his own and I need to just grin and bear it.  But when he does smile and laugh so hard that he gets hiccups, it makes everything seem perfect.  It makes my whole being just melt and I just want to hold him, kiss on him and never let him go.

Time flies when you're....

So what has happened in the last month?  Let's see.....

William got a fourth tooth a couple of weeks ago.  It's so sweet to see him smile with those pearls gleaming back at me.  Levi still has none.  Those bumps I mentioned before have stopped growing.  Thankfully his discomfort and runny nose are gone too.  At this rate I'll be surprised if he has any by the time he turns one.  Sigh.

Levi started to crawl "normally" about a week ago.  My mom was asking me if I ever thought Levi would start to crawl on his hands and knees.  I said that I doubted it.  He was so good at the army crawl that he probably didn't want to change.  I guessed he would go straight to walking from there.  So of course the next day as I was watching him he got on his hands and knees and started crawling very slowly.  Such a stinker.  He has been at it ever since.  Now he whips around the floor as fast as William.  

And boy are they fast.  I have to race them around sometimes.  If I see the bathroom door was left open it's an all out race between me and William to see who gets there first.  I don't always win.

They like to climb on anything.  And in typical toddler fashion, they make a mess wherever they go.  Toys, toys everywhere.  Levi likes to pull all of the diapers off of the shelf.  I let him do it.  There are far too many other things I have to say "no" to.  I figure it doesn't do any harm and it is easy enough to pick up.

Speaking of saying "no!"  The VCR/DVD player is just within reach of their little hands.  I was trying to teach them to not touch it.  For a while there I was making progress with William.  He became aware of what "no" meant.  He would stop and think about it and often times go do something else.  Levi on the other hand thought that it was a game.  He would smile or laugh when I said no.  In fact he wanted me to come over and take his hand off of it.  I guess he thought it was a way of getting my attention.  I noticed that he would go over to it, scratch at it with his fingers and then turn his head to look me in the eyes with a impish little grin on his face.  Game on.  Change tactics.  I decided to pretend I didn't see him.  I didn't want him to think it was okay to now play with it so I stopped noticing.  I would not look at him when he was messing around with it.  It didn't take long for him to give up on it.  They still mess with it occasionally but it doesn't last long before they are distracted by another toy.  Babies 0, Mommy 1.

We have been baby proofing for a few months now.  You would think you can just spend a day doing it and then be done.  Not a chance.  They always find something else that needs to be dealt with.  The other day Levi knocked the floor lamp over for the last time.  It's toast.  Oh well.  I didn't like that particular lamp anyway and I have been meaning to replace it.  Now I get to go shopping for one that I can attach to the wall.  Unfortunately it is difficult to find any in the stores.  Everything goes on a table or on the floor.

The one thing that I really need to protect is my computer.  That would not be cheap to replace.  But the boys want there paws all over any kind of technology.  Especially William.  Phones, computers, remotes.  Anything.  At times I let William have my phone until he starts banging it around.  Then when I take it from him he cries bloody murder because he is so mad.  Temper, temper.  

Thursday Levi started to wave.  Perhaps it was an accident at first.  I think he wanted me to hand him a toy that I was holding onto.  Instead of reaching out for it he was shaking his hand.  I started praising him and waving back.  He did it again.  More praise.  Now it is a frequent occurrence.  So cute.

Of course I have a first birthday party to plan soon.  I know they won't remember anything but it's a huge deal to me so I'm splurging.  All of you creative minds out there can send me ideas please.  Anyone have a recipe for a yummy sugar free or low sugar cake?  

The eighth month in photos

Levi's sweet smile.  Such a round little sweety.

Goofy boys.

Ham.

William grinding his teeth.  Which bothers the Mom.

I think Levi has a sweet hairline.

Shake shake shake.  Shake shake shake.  Shake the keys...

I see lots of mischief in those eyes.  And a nice bruiser on the forehead.

"Let me out!  I'm a prisoner in here!"

William insist on getting into the box often. 

"Look at that world.  Wish we could go out there."

"Hi Mom.  Watcha doing?"

"Hello camera"

Levi is not happy about something.

Levi did NOT like his yogurt.

But William did.
William, William.  This photo cracks me up.

Noise maker.

One of their favorite places to play is in the curtains.

"I got a sock."

Looking for trouble in all the wrong places.

I love this one.

Crashed hard after a playful morning.

Lipsmackin' Fun

Yogurt Hater

I gave the boys some yogurt yesterday.  Here is their reaction to it.  Well, mainly Levi's reaction.

Now where were we?

It's been a while since posting.  I haven't forgotten about you.  Every time I sit down to write I get interrupted.  Can't imagine why....  There are so many things I have wanted to say and I doubt that I can think back to remember them all.  Too bad because I certainly don't want to forget.  So here is my attempt at remembering some of those things.

      A Fistful of Cheerios:

Levi likes his cheerios.  A lot.  "Like" is really an understatement.  If he sees the box or hears the crinkle of the bag inside then he gets very excited.  The eyes open extremely wide, the back stiffens and straightens, the arms quiver, the fists are rolled tightly in a ball.  Then the mouth lets out an intense shriek of delight followed by the smile.  Did I mention it was loud?  Yeah, loud enough to make you plug your ears.  That kid needs a volume button.  Or mute button.  Either way would be helpful.  His level of exuberance even tops that of Williams if you can imagine.

He sure is cute though.

     Cold Inside and Out:

I see that old man winter decided to finally pay us a visit.  As well as the colds and stuffy noses that go with this season.  Levi had it first but it lasted all of two days and wasn't all that bad.  William on the other hand had it for much longer and was worse off.  Actually he had it for a couple of days and then it seemed that it was gone.  Until he had his flu shot.  That night he had a fever and then the cold came on worse than it was before.  I pulled so much snot out of that tiny nose.  I kept the tissue box close by so I could keep his nose clear.  That is until Levi discovered the box and started eating the tissues.  Gross.  Williams cold is gone now thankfully.

     Late Night Delirium

These kids are quite the challenge to get onto a good schedule.  They like to be up late at night but that doesn't work so well for the mommy.  It's pretty sad when they have so much energy and there I sit contemplating what it would feel like to use toothpicks to hold my eyelids open.  Seriously where does that energy come from?  It is wasted on youth.  I think that the older you get the more energy you should have to get things done.  But the older I get the more I want to sleep.

Midnight is not my idea of a proper bedtime.  Unfortunately that was what they were doing for several nights.  Or if I did get them to go to bed at eight then they would be up at midnight and go back down around three-ish.  So far my solution is to get them up around six am and aim for bed around eight.  They get a two hour (max) nap in the morning and a half hour nap in the afternoon.  Yes, I wake them up from their naps.  I think it is helping because I am having an easier time of getting them to bed around eight.  Well, more nights than not they go to bed by eight.

Unfortunately they have both been restless at night so I don't get any solid sleep.  I haven't figured out what is bothering William at night but he sure has been tossing and turning.  Levi may be teething finally.  I know I have said that before but this time I think I am right.  There are two bumbs on the bottom gums.  He had a fever the other evening and he has episodes of unconsolable crying and only calms down after I give him some Tylenol.  I hope those teeth break through soon but it looks like they have a ways to go yet.

     Cruisers and Crashers

Those boys crawl around here like it's cake.  They are speedy little bugs.  I have to be quick about getting the gate put back up when I go through so that they don't sneak through it too.  They are not satisfied with things at the floor level anymore.  It's all about up.  Climbing up to stand at the gates, chairs, tables, walkers and anything else they can get half a grip on.  Even my legs are a target.  I'm going to need to buy a belt soon because I don't know that my pants will stay on much longer with the amount of pulling they do.

They have been pulling themselves up to the walker to stand on its base and play with whatever they can reach.  Well sometimes when they lean on it, it will of course move.  Both of them have been very good about being able to hold on and follow it.  I think this has been giving them the strength and confidence to cruise the other furniture.  They aren't fast by any means but very slowly they will walk from one side of a recliner to the other or from the recliner to the coffee table.

Levi has been the more cautious of the two.  After falling a few times Levi decided that he didn't want to take the risk of getting down on his own.  He would get up but then whine and cry for someone to help him back down to the floor.  It wasn't worth falling and getting hurt anymore.  I would pull his hand down to the floor and he would then be fine.  After a few times he was able to get down as long as he had someones hand to hold onto.  Now he gets down on his own without any hesitation.

William is the risk taker.  He doesn't think much about consequences for letting go.  It's pretty evident in the fact that he gets so many bumbs and bruises.  I think he forgets to hold onto furniture or the walls and the oops! there he goes.  Yesterday he managed to sit up on his knees and he was so happy that he started bouncing and wasn't holding onto anything.  Then he crashed forward and hit his head on the corner of the wall.  Now he has a neat little line on his forehead.  Poor kid.

     Mah-mah!

One evening last week William started looking for me and saying Mama.  My mom and I are both convinced that he knew what he was saying.  We think that they both know what "kitty" is and William definitely knows what "no" means.  Levi not so much.  When we say "no" to him he just laughs as if we are playing a game with him.

    Clappity-Clap

William has spontaneously started clapping.  I haven't not knowingly clapped for him prior to this.  He just started doing it one day while I was changing his diaper.  Then he did it most times I changed his diaper and now he does it whenever.  I encourage him and copy him.  I tell him to clap and then show him and he will respond back with a clap.  He gets the biggest grin on his face when he claps.  So much joy in that little boy.

Crawling is a creative outlet too!

Who knew that there are different ways to crawl?  I honestly never thought about it before.  Until now.  Yep, that's right, the boys crawl in their own unique way.

William holds his head high and looks at where he is going.  He keeps his back straight and when he pauses his hands are directly under his hands and his knees directly under hips.  Then he lifts his hands and knees high as he moves forward.  His movements are quick and exact.  It makes me think of a prancing pony who has been trained for a show.

Levi looks down at the floor ahead of him and goes to town.  He pulls with his arms and pushes with his knees and feet.  His tummy touches the floor mostly and that little butt is just wiggling back and forth.  He looks like an army boy in boot camp that needs to crawl with his belly in the mud and stay as low as possible.

They are adorable.

William just had a third tooth break through and has a fourth that will be close behind.  Levi still is waiting.  I feel for him because sometimes he seems uncomfortable and I'm sure he is teething but I see no evidence yet.  Even this is indicative of their personalities.

Papa is off to Houston for the next six weeks.  He is in training to upgrade his First Officer status to Captain!  Yay!  The boys are going to miss him lots and lots.  We hope there will be some chances to come home for a day or two but in the meantime we will be planning lots of Skype calls.

We are a little late in wishing everyone a happy new year.  May God bless you in each task you undertake.  And be sure to take time every day to reflect on the amazing grace of God.