Wilder, 2.5 years old!

2 and a half!

How is my little Wild man two-and-a-half years old already? Sometimes I look at him, and he's so small. He's a little bitty boy, especially standing next to his daddy. Other times, I can't believe how big he's gotten. I remember like it was yesterday when he was a newborn and infant. And sometimes, all those feelings happen consecutively, like today when we went outside to take some photos. Wilder is a talkative-yet-introspective kid. I know it sounds like an anomaly, but while he talks a LOT... he likes to observe first, especially in new situations. He pretty much narrates his life though, and I love it.

Here's some things he's said often lately.

Let's go _____. It's gonna be so much fun!

Let's do it!

That's fancy. Look how nice. (He said this about the UPS delivery truck  today. The other day he said it about the farmhouse where we were staying.)
Why hello, sister! What are you doing?
Just one more ______. (book, pouch, playing with something.... pretty much anything)
The kitty goes meow meow. Ellie goes woof woof.

He's explored watercolor paints and finger paints this month, to his delight. It surprises me how long it captures his attention, because crayons don't really hold much interest.

One of my favorite things to do with Wilder is read books together. It's such a special time. He loves to read and always wants to read more. I love those snuggles!

Wilder has started "helping" bathe his sister in the tub... by pouring tiny cups of water on her. She thinks it's great.

He's starting to get REAL particular about his clothes sometimes. Especially his shoes. I guess he comes by that naturally! Hence why he's wearing these tennis shoes in his photos today. He would NOT put on the navy blue Natives today. "Want the other ones!" And so it goes, with a 2-year-old.

Wilder will play with his trains for a very, very long time. I'm talking more than an hour sometimes. He's so careful and methodical with them most of the time. He gets a lot of enjoyment from seeing how he can connect them and push them around the track, up bridges and through tunnels.

I'm grateful for the cooler summer so far. Wilder is really big on running running running. Kicking the soccer ball and pushing his lawn mower/lion walker at top speed are his favorite outdoor activities at the moment, but really--anything Zach or Dean does with him outside is happiness for Wilder.

Wilder really notices when one of us leaves now. He will ask "Where did daddy go? he drove away?" and you have to tell him or he'll keep asking. He notices a lot of things.

We started reading from the Jesus Storybook Bible at the breakfast table a few weeks ago, and I thought it was too old for him because he always started talking before I finished a story. Within three breakfasts, he started asking to read the Bible at every meal. It's pretty chaotic, because Felicity always chimes in and he still talks a lot, but we usually get through a story or half a story at a meal. Hopefully it's helping to set a foundation!

Here are some photos from today. I also took a couple of Felicity--she's all squinty and making a funny face! And eating grass. :-)

LOVE this photo

racing!

I love his smiles for me

picking blueberries

And here are some of Felicity!

eating grass lol

CURLS!

Felicity 7 months

7 months old

Felicity turned 7 months old today. I feel like this past month has been full of changes for her. We went to Paris - her first flight, first international trip! She started eating solids. And when we got back from Europe, she transitioned to her own room. She's blossoming into her own little personality and she's so much fun! She's happy most of the time. She loves her mama, but she has a lot of fun with Daddy and Mimi and Papa. She gazes upon her world with wide eyes, taking it all in, but she's ready to meet everything with a big cheesin' smile. I look at Felicity and I just can't get over how beautiful she is. I love watching her expressions and how she interacts with other people. She's my dearest doll, and I feel so lucky that she's my daughter. She thinks her brother hung the moon, and he is starting to play with her more, which she doesn't quite know what to do with, but she thinks he's great.

Height and weight--I'll update tomorrow after her pediatrician appointment. She's wearing mostly 9 month old clothes.

Food-- solid food is a biggie this month! She's been eating dinner every night, but it's just a few things since she's just started out with baby-led weaning. I started Wilder on food a bit earlier than her, and it's interesting--I feel like she's getting the hang of it quicker somehow. After the first week or so, she likes everything she can stuff in her face: cucumbers, broccoli, asparagus, chicken, pork, watermelon, blackberries, bananas, bread crust, cottage cheese, strawberries... she is willing to try everything at this point. It's super fun. Today I gave her breakfast too, just banana and toast, and at lunch I realized that she doesn't want to play with toys in her high chair anymore, not when brother is right there eating food. So she got some watermelon for lunch. With Wilder, it was this big production to add a meal each month. But we're already fixing food for Wilder. Might as well give Felicity food too. It's just messy of course. :-) But she's enjoying the sensory experience.

Moving Felicity to her room has been a huge change. She likes her bedroom and loves her bed. Instead of always nursing to sleep now, she'll nurse and then pop off and roll onto her back, like she's ready to go to bed. Often she won't fall asleep completely, but she's ready for bed. I put her on her tummy (she'd roll right to her tummy if i didn't) and she "swims" for a while as she goes to sleep. She sweeps her arms, scratching the sheets, and kicks her legs back and forth. She'll pop her head up, look around, then lay it back down and sweep her arms/kick legs. This goes on for a little while until she goes to sleep.

We're off and on with naps. Last week she barely napped. I'm lucky if we get one 90 minute nap in a day. We keep trying for two, but it's rare to get them both. She is toast and ready for bed by 8 pm... wakes up around 6:30 am. She wakes up 1-2 times a night these days.

I feel like she might be less of a cuddle bug than Wilder. She loves being close in the carrier, and likes to be held, but she doesn't ever relax and snuggle into you like Wilder does unless she's dead asleep. She likes to be asleep in her bed, and it's rare for her to sleep in our arms. I came to this realization over the last few weeks, so I try to savor holding her limp little asleep body when I can. I try to memorize the feeling and the way she looks. She's so strong and upright when she's awake and she's going to grow out of this stage in the blink of an eye.

Felicity is working on getting up on all fours. She's really good at scooching backward and she can turn every which way on her tummy. She sits by herself very well, which means she and Wilder take baths together and that's really fun. She can stand up and hold your fingers.

She's starting to make sounds: mamamama and dadadada and all kinds of raspberries and blowing bubbles. When she gets excited, she kind of roars like a dinosaur. Her laugh is deep and it's so funny.

Here are some photos from today!

Bluebonnet babies

Ah bluebonnets. Every spring, families herd their little ones out into the fields for photos amongst our state flower. It gives me such joy to join the tradition. These photos are from a month ago--life got REAL crazy right after we took them and I'm just now coming up for air!

I smiled the whole time I edited these. Such silliness. Wilder wanted to kick the bluebonnets for some reason. Getting them both to look at the camera and smile was pretty much impossible! But I just love these photos. Hope you do too. :-)

serious face

This next sequence of photos makes me laugh.

Doll baby

Every baby ever. EAT the flower.

Outtake!

FINALLY!