Boys

Malcolm is 14 pounds and 9 ounces. He is 25 inches long. He wears 3-6 month clothes except in sleepers, which are 6-9 month. He eats very well and sleeps pretty well too. He is usually a very cheerful boy, but his shots made him very grumpy. However, by Friday he was completely back to his normal happy self, content to lay on the floor while I work and grin at me whenever I look at him.

He is so different from Eamon. The doctor noticed it too. Malcolm was laying on the table grinning and giggling. Eamon was standing watching him, quiet and serious. This isn't to say Eamon is always serious, in fact, he is a very funny little boy, but he seems to take after his father when in social settings. He likes being home and in small groups of people, but get easily overwhelmed in new or different places or around lots of people. Malcolm on the other hand will smile at whoever smiles at him. He giggles and coos to people at church, in the store, or wherever we are. But is obvious already that they like each other.

When Eamon sits next to me while I am nursing, Malcolm will tip his head back so he can watch what Eamon is doing. And often when Malcolm cries, Eamon shares his Silky with him. This melts my heart because Silky is Eamon's greatest comfort when he is hurt or sad, and to see him share it that way is so sweet. There have been several times when Eamon is playing with Malcolm and it looks like he is being rough, but just as I am about to say, "Be gentle," Malcolm breaks out into a laugh. So I say, "Make sure you aren't hurting him," instead. Of course, there are times when Eamon doesn't want Malcolm to play with his baby toys, or they both want Mommy and they don't want to share her, but those times are really rather rare.

Malcolm can roll over from his belly to his back, but he doesn't always enjoy doing it. He actually doesn't mind being on his belly to play or look around. He has been trying to roll from his back to his belly too, but hasn't quite managed it. His favorite game is trying to put everything in his mouth, but the doctor says the teeth are still far below the surface of his gums. He also enjoys being lifted into the air, standing up, and being tickled. He is very ticklish so when I take off his shirt or clean him up during a diaper change, he giggles and squirms. Recently he has been "koala-ing" onto our arms - wrapping his arms and legs around our arm and holding on, trying to sit up. He is getting better at holding himself in a sitting position, but he still falls over if I am not holding on to him.

Eamon speaks in complete sentences now. He seems to have grasped personal pronouns, and is understanding verb tenses better. The way he uses, "for me" is pretty cute: "Some trailmix for me?" or "Drawing for me?" He even tells jokes from time to time and he is beginning to get some of our humor. Whether or not he knows why, he is very good at making us laugh. Perhaps the most relieving development has been his ability to put himself back to sleep better. So even when he comes to us in the night, we can take him back to bed, kiss him and let him be, we don't have to stay there until he falls back asleep. He seems to be finally getting used to the house/recovering from the move, although, he doesn't like being anywhere without me. He did go to a friends house so I could work on Christmas presents and he keeps asking to have some of his little friends to his house, "Edmund come to Eamon's house?"

Today we enjoyed being in our Church's Christmas Program and now that he has seen some presents, Eamon is getting excited for Christmas. We hope you all have a lovely holiday.

Merry Christmas!