Photos of Life Lately - May 2017

In an effort to preserve this precious time in our lives, I'm compiling an (admittedly random) assortment of photos from recent months, beginning with May, since my last catch-up post was May 1. Therefore, in no particular order:

Bedtime stories with Daddy (we love The Gruffalo, a gift from our friends)

Blowing bubbles on the big patch of grass a few blocks away. Marshall can blow bubbles on his own now!

A (3rd birthday!) gift from PopPop and JanJan - a construction set that connects to his train tracks!

We are loving Duplo (Lego) sets right now.

Our friends gave us a Finding Dory book with an audio CD, and Marshall loved it (narrated by the character Mr. Ray). Honestly, we loved it, too, because sometimes it was great to give him 15 minutes of reading time while we could put Declan to sleep or something else productive.

He grew out of this year's Christmas pjs so quickly. Also...how has this time passed so quickly?

(Marshall at 7.5 months, same bookshelf)

We visited Travel Town in Griffith Park, and I'm already looking forward to going back. Trains everywhere!

I'm so glad Marshall still shows interest in cooking. I look forward to many more adventures in the kitchen with him (and Declan, too!). At this point he can crack and whisk eggs for scrambled eggs, and his pouring skills have gotten much better so that baking is less of a mess. 

Who looks like his daddy?

My sweet sister-in-law (and brother, but let's be honest) gave me this lovely delicate necklace with the boys' initials for Mother's Day. I LOVE it. It goes with everything and is my new favorite piece of jewelry (aside from my wedding ring and engagement ring, which will always have the top spot).

Marshall and I had some time to play with chalk recently, and I loved letting his imagination guide us. He decided we would draw a park, and he dictated while I drew. He called it "The Waiting Park," and I think it would be quite a lovely place to wait.

Before we know it, Declan and Marshall will be sitting at their little table together for meals!

For now, we're still laughing as their bond grows...

Doing it right.

I think I shared this one, but I love how he looks at cake.

We visited my brother and sister-in-law and the twins, and Marshall and the men checked out the air show. (I may have shared some of these photos before.)

The twins used to be tiny, but they've grown SO much and are following in Marshall and Declan's footsteps for size!

I will miss these newborn days. Cuddling my sweet nephew.

Car seats on a plane are key!

Handsome haircut!

On a down note, Marshall had a very strange reaction (to what, we aren't sure) several weeks ago, and we had to take him to the doctor. These types of visits are quite rare for us, and I was reminded how thankful I am to have such healthy children. It's so stressful to worry about even minor medical issues like this; I have so much respect for parents who have to endure more serious and more frequent concerns. (Luckily, the rash was gone in a few days and all's well now.)

And that's May! I'll post June, too. I do love looking back at these snapshots of our lives, so forgive the random nature of the compilation!

Declan: Eight Months

Declan: You are eight months old! I absolutely LOVE this age with you. You are so interested in the world around you (especially people! all the people!), and you're on the verge of so many new skills. It doesn't hurt that you are the happiest baby I've ever met.

Seriously, that smile never seems to leave your face. I'm thrilled to have such a cheerful little tyke in our family! You make us all smile, too.

This month has been filled with lots of almosts. Almost sitting up by yourself.

Almost crawling.

Almost saying "mama" and "dada" (but not consistently enough for us to call it the real deal).

Almost showing interest in books (but mostly focusing on their flavors).

Almost sleeping through the night.

HA--just kidding. :-) You are definitely nowhere near sleeping through the night, but, as I've said before, I don't mind. I miss you so much during the day; I really think I'll miss that time with you when you do sleep all the way through. Still, it's time. In a few weeks we'll move you to your big brother's room for sleep, and my heart will break just like it did when we moved Marshall away from us. But I know you'll sleep better, and we probably will, too. 

You are now down to two naps per day, though, for the most part (some very early wakeups and short naps will occasionally lead to a necessary catnap at the end of the day). Bedtime is now around 6-6:30, though we're starting to try to push it a little later to be able to enjoy more time as a family. 

You seem to have really discovered TOYS this month! You're quick to scoot toward anything that looks fun. You especially love toys that have some sort of a movable feature, like a truck that tips or an activity cube with doors that open and close. Your teacher at daycare told us you get so determined trying to scoot toward a toy you want!

You also seem really into music! You love when we sing to you, play music, or hand you a musical toy. I am eager to see if you'll want to play an instrument someday!

A big first this month: swim lessons! You seemed to take to the water really well, and Daddy dipped you under a few times already. Hopefully you'll be a little fish in no time.

You attend daycare full time and are doing so well. You seem happy and comfortable there, and we are becoming more comfortable with it, too. Luckily, we LOVE your teacher, and the other teachers all seem to know and love you, too. You are certainly well loved. Of course, I'm still struggling on the whole with leaving you there and missing you so much, but I know you are safe and happy. Also, my work has been incredibly supportive, and I even get to bring you to work sometimes! I have a truly wonderful work situation for parenting, and I promise never to take that for granted.

Ever-important and hugely improved: FOOD! You are still not eating chunky foods, but you LOVE purees. We've done quite a lot of varieties:

- mashed banana
- mashed avocado
- applesauce (with cinnamon!)
- broccoli soup
- homemade hummus
- apple-cinnamon oatmeal (blended to smooth)
- strawberry oatmeal (blended to smooth)
- a peach (skin peeled, and you went to town!)
- water in your water cup, which you LOVE

Now that you're really enjoying different foods and flavors, it's so fun! As soon as you see your spoon, you get all excited and start talking up a storm!

I have no idea how big you are, but you're in size 4 diapers and 12-month clothes. I think you're starting to slow down on growth a bit... Also, no teeth yet, but one may have just popped through (about a week after you turned eight months old). 

You love: scooting toward toys, knocking down stacks of blocks, looking out the window in the car, watching your brother (Marshall often tries to cheer you up if you're upset by dancing and making silly noises!), eating, being held, being outside, and interacting with other people. 

Dislikes: Almost nothing! Except when Marshall takes a toy from you (although he has learned to bring you another one in its place), or when you're overtired.

Declan, we love you so much and cannot imagine our family without your sweet smile and hilarious giggle. You light up every room, and we are ready for whatever next month holds in store!