So somehow over the past week, even with all the drama of being sick, all three kids managed to grow up. (Yes, I'm sure it's actually been slowly happening, but I hadn't noticed, so you're going to get the more dramatic version.)
The biggest improvement of the week (of the year???) is that L is now sleeping in his own bed in his own room every night. I may jinx it by writing about it, but he hasn't slept in our bed or even in our room in 5 or 6 nights. We ended up having to let him cry it out. I hated it, but when they were sick we realized the boys don't bother each other with their crying. They will check on the other one, and then the non-crier will happily lay down to sleep while the other fusses. Jeff's theory is they actually use the crying to check on the other one, and the non-crier is somewhat comforted by the sound because it means his brother is there.
So last week I started tucking L in with his his blanket, his bear, and his brother (in the crib next to him). He did not like it. The worst was the third night in which he really realized what was going on and SCREAMED for 20 minutes, but by last night he gave up, and he hardly fussed. On the other hand, he did keep getting up all night last night to check on me, and he has been sleeping from 10:30 - 5:30 or just getting up once. Either way, we are finally making progress, and one of these days we'll get him tucked in without a screaming battle and get him to sleep through the night.
L is also desperately trying to walk. The only thing he lacks is confidence. He has been cruising the furniture like a mad man, and one of our favorite tricks is to sit on the couch with our legs out while he is cruising the couch. He gets so caught up in what he's doing, that he will cruise right down our legs. Eventually he realizes that he is in the middle of the living room rug. (Well, if it's Jeff's leg. If it's my leg, he's still pretty close to the couch.) At that point, he looks up and shoots us a dirty look, and then he hurls his body back at the couch. Yesterday, he briefly stood unsupported. He was busy busy standing and playing with the big castle we got for R's first birthday, and he let go so he could hold two things at once. As soon as he realized what he did, he plopped down, and he didn't try that again. As R would say, it was too scary!
L also learned to dance on Saturday. He is doing the typical baby-style dance in which he bends his knees and bounces up and down. It happened on Saturday night while we were watching Sesame Street clips on the computer, and he started dancing every time he heard a new song. Given that he has to hold on to something for support, he definitely looks like a little pole dancer shaking his booty.
The second biggest improvement of the year is that over the weekend R started using the potty ALL the time. No accident of any kind. Actually, the biggest improvement is that SHE started telling us when she needed to go. We didn't have to drag her to the bathroom every two hours and tell her she needed to try. I think she was as startled as we were by this change in events, because on Saturday it was with definite surprise that she climbed out of her "office" that she built behind the couch and told me she had to go as she ran for the bathroom.
While it's much less dramatic, I do have to brag on another R accomplishment. Since we are always discussing family and friends in Ohio and other far-off places, Jeff got R a puzzle of the United States in which each state is a puzzle piece. He got her the puzzle about 10 days ago, and she has been dutifully working on it each day. It's a framed puzzle on a board, and the outline of each piece is drawn on the board. Apparently, that's all she needs to help her, because on Friday Jeff discovered that she had done the entire puzzle by herself.
It kills me that when I have so much to say about one boy, there is not much to report about the other, but that's definitely the case right now. M is in a quiet phase, at least developmentally. But that's not to say he isn't learning. He has turned into our observer, and as a result, he is the first to actually learn how to follow directions. He doesn't like it, but when I tell him to sit down in the tub, he knows what to do. He also knows where to crawl if I tell him it's time to eat, to read stories, to get a clean diapie, or to take a bath. (With two you can't always cart the baby with you. They have to be self-reliant! Even at 11-months-old!) Over the weekend he figured out how to turn the pages of books. It started with just cloth books on Friday, but by last night he was flipping through board books. I caught him staring at a book filled with pictures of food with a puzzled look on his face. After some careful consideration, he realized the book was upside down and he turned it over. Given that a whole pizza looks about the same right side up or upside down, I was really impressed and called Jeff over. That's when M stuck the book in his mouth and started chewing on it.
My favorite M stunt right now is his turbo crawl. He'll be heading towards a forbidden zone - R's room or the dogs food dishes while they are eating (He loves to eat dog food. I'm still not letting go of the theory that he thinks he's a dog!) - and he'll realize that Jeff and I are in hot pursuit. So he will turn on turbo crawl, thinking he can outpace us. It hasn't worked yet, but he keeps trying, and it does make me laugh every time.
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