Poor Chase has had a fairly rough go of things in his first year. First he had severe reflux. Then he cut a bunch of teeth all at once. Then he had sleep issues. Then he was extremely frustrated because he so badly wanted to move around on his own but couldn't quite figure it out. Then he outgrew his class at school but there were no openings in the "big boy" infant classroom and he was bored to tears (literally). He smiled a lot, but didn't say much, and getting him to giggle out loud was a challenge, if it happened at all.
I knew we had turned a page yesterday when Riley came running into the room to find me. "Monny, Monny," he gasped, "Chase just laughed!!! I haven't heard that before." And then he turned to Chase and said, "I'm so proud of you, sweetheart."
My heart melted on so many levels. First of all, that Riley genuinely loves his brother so much is precious. He really IS proud of him and tells him that often. But even more than that, the sound of Chase's laugh is just so delightful and contagious. Partly because it was hard-earned, partly because it is a sign that he's finally comfortable (for lack of a better word), but mostly because he does it often and on his own. His true personality is starting to shine through, and let me tell you, he is one funny dude. I would not be surprised if he ends up as the class clown someday. When you enter his room after he's been sleeping, instead of reaching up towards you so you'll pick him up, he scrambles in his crib in the other direction, giggling like it's the funniest game. When you try to change his clothes, he thinks it's hilarious to try to get away from you and climb off the bed. When he's around Riley, all he does is try to crawl away from him as fast as he can and he'll squeal in delight when Riley chases after him. In the car on the way to school, all he does is try to make Riley laugh by making silly noises or kicking his feet all around.
And if that isn't enough to make me smile, there's the dancing. This kid LOVES to dance and he loves music. No "baby" or "kid" music for him. Nope, he likes to rock out to Coldplay, Mumford & Sons and (as of yesterday at the pool) The Who. He will stand up and start bopping up and down, his little diapered bottom showing his enthusiasm. And he will grin, and not just a small smile, but a full-on goofy, semi-toothless grin which is wide enough to show off his silly fangs. There is no way not to smile and start dancing in response.
I can't tell you exactly what has changed for him. Maybe it's the table food -- this kid eats more than any baby I've ever seen (he usually outeats Riley who is over three years older) -- so much so that we often refer to him as a garbage disposal. Maybe he spent the first several months of his life starving and uncomfortable because his reflux made him hate formula. Maybe it's that he's mobile. Maybe he's having an easier time with teething. Maybe it's that he can finally communicate with us some -- he will point at things and clearly wants us to identify them because he will smile once you've told him what it is that he's pointing at. Maybe he's less bored. Maybe it's that he's finally taking real naps at school and getting the sleep that he so desperately needed. I don't know what it is, but I'm just so happy for him. Life is good.
Monday, June 24, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Snuggle Time
Not sure exactly what is happening, but for the past few nights Chase has woken up around 6:00 a.m., a good hour and a half before his normal wake-up call. It will start out with him just jabbering, clearly talking about something and not sounding the slightest bit tired. Then he'll get quiet for a few minutes, lulling you almost into a false sense of security that you can, in fact, go back to sleep. Then he'll start whining, followed a few minutes later by crying. And not the type of crying that makes you think you can just let him "cry it out." We know the difference by now.
So I've reluctantly gotten out of bed and gone into his room only to find him standing up in his crib waiting for me. He immediately stops crying and breaks out into a big smile when he sees me as if to say, "Look lady, I tried talking to you about it first, but you ignored me, so I gave up and have resorted to this ridiculous crying." As I pick him up out of his crib, instead of squirming to get down as he normally would, he just buries his head in my chest, still clearly tired. Turns out that he was trying to tell me he wanted something and that "something" was me. With my sweet little boy laying with his head resting on my chest, silently sleeping the most contentedly peaceful sleep, I get the very rare chance to study every little feature on his tiny face and count my many blessings until I too fall back to sleep.
So I've reluctantly gotten out of bed and gone into his room only to find him standing up in his crib waiting for me. He immediately stops crying and breaks out into a big smile when he sees me as if to say, "Look lady, I tried talking to you about it first, but you ignored me, so I gave up and have resorted to this ridiculous crying." As I pick him up out of his crib, instead of squirming to get down as he normally would, he just buries his head in my chest, still clearly tired. Turns out that he was trying to tell me he wanted something and that "something" was me. With my sweet little boy laying with his head resting on my chest, silently sleeping the most contentedly peaceful sleep, I get the very rare chance to study every little feature on his tiny face and count my many blessings until I too fall back to sleep.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Musical Lesson
This past week, two significant events have occurred in Chase's life:
1. He graduated to the older infants classroom at school where he is the only child under the age of 1. It has been a good move for him -- the class is much more regimented in terms of specific play time, specific meal times and specific nap time. From about the second week of life, he has demonstrated that he does much better on a schedule, and the move to his new classroom has made a world of difference both at school and at home. He is more content and seems much happier. He has made leaps in his development (although that could be coincidental). He has started pointing at things and when you tell him what the object is, he smiles signifying that you have done exactly what he was requesting. We can also tell that he's trying really hard to learn how to stand on his own and to walk. He will let go briefly and stand on his own (I think 3 seconds is the current record) and grins like he is the most capable little dude in the whole world. He will walk across a room as long as you hold onto his hands and the focus you see written all over his face is incredible. He is babbling more, starting to wave hello and goodbye, and I would swear I've heard him say a few words (hey, bye, mama, dada and Ry-ry). It has been a fun week.
2. He graduated to the big boy car seat. He still has to sit facing the rear of the car and after one weekday incident and four additional incidents over the course of the drive to and from Chicago for Cody's graduation, we have determined that he shares my motion sickness gene. Poor guy. We are hopeful that this will cease when he can sit forward-facing when he turns one.
As a result of #2, he has developed a new hatred for the car (and believe me, he has never been a huge fan of the car). This morning was no exception and after about 3 minutes of screaming and crying on the drive to school, I thought I might have a mental breakdown. Following Riley's advice, I turned on the radio. Mumford & Sons was singing "I Will Wait", a song I like anyway, but that brought a new-found happiness to my life this morning when the screaming and crying from the back seat immediately turned into Riley slapping his knees as if they were drums, Chase squealing in delight, and both boys giggling. My only regret is that I couldn't see either one of them in my review mirror because I am certain the smiles on their faces at that moment would have been worth every single second of the crying and screaming (Chase) and resultant whining (Riley) I've had to endure on that 6 minute car ride for the past 7 months. That's the amazing thing about being a parent -- one great moment erases hundreds of less favorable ones.
1. He graduated to the older infants classroom at school where he is the only child under the age of 1. It has been a good move for him -- the class is much more regimented in terms of specific play time, specific meal times and specific nap time. From about the second week of life, he has demonstrated that he does much better on a schedule, and the move to his new classroom has made a world of difference both at school and at home. He is more content and seems much happier. He has made leaps in his development (although that could be coincidental). He has started pointing at things and when you tell him what the object is, he smiles signifying that you have done exactly what he was requesting. We can also tell that he's trying really hard to learn how to stand on his own and to walk. He will let go briefly and stand on his own (I think 3 seconds is the current record) and grins like he is the most capable little dude in the whole world. He will walk across a room as long as you hold onto his hands and the focus you see written all over his face is incredible. He is babbling more, starting to wave hello and goodbye, and I would swear I've heard him say a few words (hey, bye, mama, dada and Ry-ry). It has been a fun week.
2. He graduated to the big boy car seat. He still has to sit facing the rear of the car and after one weekday incident and four additional incidents over the course of the drive to and from Chicago for Cody's graduation, we have determined that he shares my motion sickness gene. Poor guy. We are hopeful that this will cease when he can sit forward-facing when he turns one.
As a result of #2, he has developed a new hatred for the car (and believe me, he has never been a huge fan of the car). This morning was no exception and after about 3 minutes of screaming and crying on the drive to school, I thought I might have a mental breakdown. Following Riley's advice, I turned on the radio. Mumford & Sons was singing "I Will Wait", a song I like anyway, but that brought a new-found happiness to my life this morning when the screaming and crying from the back seat immediately turned into Riley slapping his knees as if they were drums, Chase squealing in delight, and both boys giggling. My only regret is that I couldn't see either one of them in my review mirror because I am certain the smiles on their faces at that moment would have been worth every single second of the crying and screaming (Chase) and resultant whining (Riley) I've had to endure on that 6 minute car ride for the past 7 months. That's the amazing thing about being a parent -- one great moment erases hundreds of less favorable ones.
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