Now, we've officially reached our fourth-month milestone for Luke - and as Caedmon really wanted to know, the four month mark until his birthday. These guys have been keeping us on our toes and leading us a merry dance lately - as the weeks fly by.
Caedmon will be starting pre-k after Labor Day, and is excited to get back and see his friends. I'm excited for him too, he was really starting to enjoy being around the other kids and doing interesting projects and crafts at school, frequently surprising us with little tidbits of things that he's learned. It helps that he is so enthusiastic about going; it makes it somewhat easier for me to let go of my big boy as he begins real school.
He has been increasingly interested in his youngest brother lately; frequently he is the first one up in the morning and will come join me in the nursery, always giving Luke a sweet kiss on his head in the morning and at night. He loves to bring toys to "Luker Schnooker" when he's playing in his bouncy seat or on the floor, talks to him, and gives him good head rubs. Daniel overheard him singing a song to Luke that he made up, to the tune of "Angels We Have Heard On High," about how much we love him. So tender!
Caedmon is also beginning to show an increased independence and strong feelings about how things should be done. We are often hearing "I want to do what I want to do!" Don't we all! We are learning to balance those feelings with also thinking about what others want or need.
Isaac has definitely had a growth spurt recently; we can see that his pace has picked up when we take walks or chase each other in the yard. He has such a fun sense of humor and frequently uses silly voices or surprises us with the funny things he says. He has a strong sense of adventure and is willing to try new things without reservation - this summer he has begun jumping into the pool (with a lifejacket), climbing the tree in our backyard (once before I got out there - he did get his ankle stuck and was hanging by his ankle and hands while Caedmon ran to tell me to come), and riding anything with wheels. He is in constant motion and loves to play chasing games, any sort of sport, and go for walks.
One evening last week I was getting the boys ready for bed and left the big boys drying off and getting their pajamas on after their bath to go change Luke's diaper. Isaac had been complaining about it being too cold, but I encouraged him to hurry and get dressed to warm up. I heard the water in the sink turn on, and when I got back to the bathroom I found Isaac sitting in the sink with the water on. He said that he needed warm water because he was too cold!
Both boys have become fascinated with the PBS kids show, "Wild Kratts," in which two brothers visit different habitats and use special suits to take on characteristics of the animals they're learning about. They really have learned a lot about a lot of different animals and have had so much fun pretending to have those special suits and transforming into cheetahs (Isaac's favorite), falcons, badgers, ka-zelles (gazelles) and anything else that struck them. I frequently hear them saying "Activate CHEETAH powers!" and then racing away at full speed. It was fun to pretend, but they really, really wanted these special "creature power suits" so I thought it would be a fun project to make some with them. It took me a while to gather the materials we needed, and in the meantime I realized that they didn't want pretend suits - they wanted the real thing!
They have also begun quoting the brothers, so I frequently hear little snippets like "welcome to my world, dude" and "to the creature rescue!!" One afternoon Isaac was eating a snack and started coughing; I asked if he was okay and he said, "It's just a hairball." I sincerely doubt he has any idea what that means but he heard it once and remembered in what context to use it!
Luke is at such a sweet and fun age - he is a smiley little guy, has lots of giggles (especially for his brothers!) and loves to be where he can see the action. We are so amused at his fascination with the television - it's not on that often but when it is, it doesn't matter what is on it (perhaps even just a big blue screen), he will watch with wide eyes. He joins us for meals sitting in his bouncy seat on the table where he can see everything that is going on around him, often adding his two cents to our conversation and kicking his feet. Some nights his foot-kicking is so fast, and sometimes he just kicks one foot at a time for a while. I commented, to the big boys' great amusement, that it looks like he is riding a scooter when only one foot is kicking at a time. Now we can get his attention and say, "Ready, set, GO!!" Whether he understands our game or is just inspired to start kicking because he thinks we're excited, he almost always starts "riding his scooter."
He has begun scooting in circles and sometimes making forward progress when in his crib or playing on the floor, and now rolls from his tummy to his back all the time. He is still working on his eye-hand coordination but can grab objects that are close to him, and frequently has his hands clasped and in his mouth. His favorite activity right now is taking baths; his eyes get so wide and he smiles and giggles as he kicks and splashes, it's great fun for all of us!
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