What I like Wednesday

I saw this on a friend's blog and decided to challenge myself to it!

I like this cute wooden rocking horse with a corduroy seat. I can't believe Lucas is proudly kneeling next to it as a big brother! Just yesterday, he was reaching out his little hands with great intent to touch the horse's hair (it was the first thing he grabbed.)

I like that Lucas has not yet acted jealous of Sofia and that he's always happy to see her.

I like that no matter how much Sofia spits up or how much difficulty she has in processing the broccoli I ate (oops!) she always has a smile for me.

I like that I can't find a window in my house that doesn't picture a dogwood tree. And I especially like the wild dogwoods in the forest in my backyard.

I like using hazelbrand soaps on my babies and myself :)

I like that Lucas's basement playroom which is the bane of my existence and a total wreck right now, just got a huge smile and a "Woah!" from his friend Alexander.

I like that Lucas reacts to a dinner of smoked salmon on toast with sliced, salted cucumbers on the side with a "ya!" (fist in the air.)

I like that Lucas is almost always willing to give me a big hug, kiss and grin. Even after a meltdown and a time out.

I like that my washing machine and dryer are downstairs and not down the street.

I like our mega den!

I like that whole foods now gives pseudo-healthy snacks to kids to occupy them while you shop. Lucas loves the chocolate coconut milk.

I like watching Lucas build coordination and strength (and have lots of fun!) in his gymnastics class.

I like that I will probably get some sleep tonight! Looking forward to that. :)

Justin Bieber?

Lucas Loves Legos!

Lucas continues to amaze me with his Lego skills. He spent many hours putting together this 662 piece fire station, asking for help only a couple of times. Lucas is quite accurate, but occasionally something will be transposed or a bit off. At the end, daddy helped to rework a couple of things so that the stations could be linked together. Definitely Lucas's biggest Lego accomplishment so far!

Sofia at 2 1/2 Months

Well, here we are. Almost out of the "4th trimester." Sofia is an easy baby to love and she just gets better every day.

Since the beginning, she has been a good sleeper, nurser, spitter and a tummy time champion. At her two month appointment she weighed 12 lb. 8 oz. and was 24 in long (if my memory is right.) That put her in the 90th percentile. She was already in the 90th percentile at her 2 week appointment and I was sure she'd take this as a challenge and jump straight into 99% like Lucas did. But it seems that she may not be a chart topper, at least not for a while.

Her hands and feet are more dainty than were Lucas's paws and her features are more delicate as well. It's still hard to say, but we think she may be blonde with light eyes.

Although Lucas likes to remind us that he is faster than her and always will be faster (and taller, older, etc.), Sofia is every bit as athletic as her brother was at this stage. She rolled over from her tummy to her back when she was 3 days old. And at two months she did it over and over again just to prove that she could. Now that she's conquered it, it doesn't much interest her. She was holding her head up well almost from the start and has been facing out in the wrap for increasing lengths of time since before she was 2 months old. She started grabbing things this week and is doing crunches, in training for the day that she can sit up. (She has the strength, but not the balance.)

Sofia has chubby cheeks, poochy lips, perhaps a little dimple in her chin, and a huge gummy grin which she reserves for off-camera moments :) Her personality shines through more each day. She goes with the flow but makes her requests clear when she needs a change of scenery or diaper. She doesn't startle when I grind the coffee, but may have a full-fledged panic attack if she sees one to many new faces. She puts herself to sleep in the crib with mild fussing and has a love/hate relationship with the swaddle. She resists it like mad, especially now that it binds the hands she is learning to do so many things with (rub her eyes, scratch her nose, grab toys and clothes and blankets.) And although I bundle her up tightly like a little burrito, she somehow wiggles herself free only to cry out at 5am to be re-bundled.

Sometimes I feel she is so easy, that we must be doing something wrong. But I have no real time or desire to worry about that so we will continue on. We'll just call her the little angel and the huge blessing that she is. Sofia Marie.