Big Brother, Little Sister

Xander and Maya don't exactly play together yet, but Xander does like to take care of her, even when his "helping" her makes us cringe, "Watch her eyes!..." or "Maya can't eat goldfish!"  Anyway, Xander is very sweet to her and sometimes even likes to read her stories.   I'm looking forward to seeing them interact more and more.

Going Running

Xander has become very interested in running, since Dad goes running often these days.  Xander loves to go running around the house exclaiming, "Running!  Running!"  Unfortunately he is not as enamored of the chariot as he once was and sometimes needs some encouragement before he is interested in getting in.  Encouragement comes in the form of toys and other things to play with while watching the world go by.  The routine goes something like this. 

Daddy: "Xander, do you want to go for a run?"
Xander: "Running!!"
Daddy: "Let's get in the chariot and go for a run"
Xander: "NO!"
Daddy:  "Do you want to bring your blanket?"
Xander: "BLANKET!... Baby?... Doggie?... Blocks?...  Milk?... Books?..." and so on.

Eventually when I have an arm full of toys we head for the chariot.  The extra weight is good training, right?

An Unexpected Visitor

We had an unexpected visitor in the back yard, a large bull snake.  They aren't poisonous and tend to mind their own business so nothing to be too concerned about.  Xander was fascinated and has been talking about "sniks" non-stop since.  We have had to explain to him that we don't play with "sniks" and that if he sees one to come tell mom and dad.  As a result Xander does a lot of pretend snake seeing.  When do we introduce the "Boy who Cried Wolf" parable...

Sitting Up

Maya likes play time on her mat and pulling on the rings and monkey and lions.  We even occasionally prop her up in her bumbo seat, although this is a bit challenging for her.  What's funny is that Xander is still drawn to the toys that were his favorites at this age, but luckily he is happy to share with his little sister.

Best Buddies

Xander and Jackson, best buddies.  Eat your hearts out ladies!!  Oh, the trouble these two are going to get into.

Playing with words

Today I told Xander and Jack to play with the books in Xander's room while I cleaned up Maya's room....  I wasn't expecting this! 

Yesterday, Jake asked Xander to bring down a pair of socks from Xander's room- and was delightfully surprised when Xander, a full 15 minutes later, handed him exactly one pair of socks.  After putting socks and shoes on Xander's feet so Jake could take him running in the Chariot, we realized that Xander had actually thrown the whole box of socks down the stairs...  how do you explain to a 2 year old that this was a clever solution, but not really what you want him to do next time?

Luckily, Xander was more than happy to help pick the socks up and return them to his "socks box."

Xander's first Easter Egg Hunt

Despite having a cold, Xander braved the rainy weather and participated in the annual neighborhood Easter Egg hunt.  He wasn't so thrilled with the Easter Bunny-lady but really got into the idea of putting the eggs into his bag- luckily, he didn't realize there was candy inside the eggs, which we left with some of the older kids.

Maya, 9 weeks old

Length: 22", 50th %ile
Weight: 9.75 lbs, 25-50%ile
Head: 14.4", 25th %ile

Favorites:
Mom's milk, warm blankets, Dad's cuddles... & Baby Zantac

Xander, 2 years old

Length: 34.5 inches, 50th %ile

Weight 28.5 lbs, 60th %ile

Head, 19.75", 80th %ile

Favorites:

"Goodnight Moon", "Kiss Goodnight", "Lunch" aka "Messy Mouse"

Climbing, Swimming, Playing on his bicycle, Being outside,

Elmo, Thomas the Train,  

Yogurt O's, Cheese, Fruit, 

Blanket, Baby & Doggie,

Screwdrivers (and tools in general),

Best Friends Alex, Leah and Jackson 

 

Maya, age 6 weeks