Mind the Gap: Aidan's first Lost Tooth

Remember back in late February 2017 when you turned 7 years old and a visit to the Dentist revealed how close you were to losing your first (one or two) front bottom teeth?

Well, over Passovster weekend, it really became clear how wobbly your tooth really was!

Very...very loose! One night I was helping you brush your teeth and we even saw a little bit of blood. 

The end of the first baby tooth was nigh! You were so excited. Your sister was jealous.

And then...low and behold...less than a week later we got this amazing text message from Miss Mary, your kindergarten teacher:

"Aidan lost his tooth! We got our tooth necklace on!"

Our big boy's first lost tooth! So crazy! I know it's just a natural event in the growth of any child...but it seems like a milestone of your growth. And it's perfectly timed with new really awesome developments in your maturity and abilities. So, this really is a SWEET tooth to lose!

You really hammed up the GAP at dinner! Rockin' and Rollin' over your first lost tooth!

You left your tooth under your pillow...

Left the tooth fairy a note and a picture that you wrote all by yourself...

"Aidan rrc [you want some r's and a c in your name badly]: Toof Ferree. Jleu (Julia...the name you chose for the Tooth Fairy)"
Drawing is of you on a pillow on your bed with me, and mommy, and julia. And a scribbled-out bad guy.

...and awoke excitedly at 6:40 am in the morning to see that the Tooth Fairy had taken your tooth, and left you a certificate and a FIVE dollar bill!

As it turns out, you're in good company! Your good friend Brady lost his first tooth nearly on the same day! 

Good buddies...Gap Kids!

Your smile is as beautiful as ever...and this new gap (soon to be doubled, I assume) is a wonderful reminder of how much you've grown! 

Proverbial Treasures: The Things you Say- 2016 Edition...

You two are amazing. You are growing up to be remarkable children, and amazing people.

Aidan, you are earnest, sensitive, funny, loving, passionate, smart, occasionally defiant, and so sweet.

 Julia, you are clever, cerebral, able, goofy, energetic, occasionally stubborn, creative, and so much fun.

That's not to say that those lists of superlatives couldn't be applied vice versa, but I just wanted to let you know that you are so complicated and interesting and amazing. So much of what I chronicle here are our adventures and milestones met. But, just like I said last year, some of the most interesting insights into your minds are what you say.

Aidan 2016

Julia 2016

I take notes occasionally when you say things that tickle me, touch me, or I generally find so "you" that I don't just want them to go out into the ether without finding a permanent home.

Here are some of the highlights of your words in 2016- windows into who you were, what you were thinking about,  and pathways toward who you are.

***

Jules, look at this poop! Aidan 1/16

Daddy I don't want any kisses because my tushy hurts. Just blow me a kiss. I'll put it under my pillow where the tooth fairy can't get it. Julia 1/16

Ow... You're hurting me. You win you win you win. Aidan 1/16

Aidan: I found the morning light!Julia: I found a Lego on our bed!1/16

I'm the teacher... I learn my kids all the stuff. Julia 1/16

Chuckle bread... Aidan always

Daddy, you're my best friend. My best buddy! Aidan 1/16

Daddy, your name is not poopoo daisy any more! Aidan 1/16

Q: why do you like pockets?
J: because I love them! I like to put in my Legos...and treasures...and necklaces!
Julia 1/16

When there's a tornado you have to watch something on your tv!
Aidan 1/16

Daddy can you put some good dreams in my head? Dragons...ninjas...and Jules.Aidan 1/16

Do you want some Chapstick? It makes you fancy!       Julia 1/16

Dream requests:
A- darth Vader and darth maul together...and the bad one
J- shiny rainbows and crystals and diamonds...and hearts
1/16

Don't make me call the police!
Aidan (when we were giving Julia medicine) 1/16

It's taco Wednesday!
Aidan 1/16 (on a Monday)

I brush my teeth all night!
Aidan (at the dentist) 2/16

Julia you are the cutest thing ever!
Aidan 2/16

Preston said good night with his tongue...
Julia 2/16

Aidan lets play what we played yesterday. Get naked and get the star bed... Okay?
Julia 2/16

I don't want  to be tall... All my costumes are so little!Julia 2/16

My favorite part was the ketchup!
Julia 2/16

Daddy I was so proud of you when you sang!
Aidan 3/16

I'm your girlfriend!!! ( to ladies at the playground)
Aidan 3/16

I was two for a little bit but now I'm three... Daddy I can't wait to be four!Julia 3/16

I dream of me and Julia and mommy and daddy and Rebekka and ross and Molly... Flying!
Aidan 2/16

Compost is my favorite job. I like to go outside and see the world! Esteban the magnificent!Aidan 3/16

If someone makes a mess, someone helps clean it up!
Aidan 3:/16

We are the bosses of ourselves...mama is the boss of the house.
Aidan 3/16

I want to sit next to you because I love you!
Julia 3:16

J: dad, smell my butt!Dad: Julia, that's not appropriate.J: dad, smell my butt PLEASE!Julia 3/16

J: "I had a dream that aunt sham was here and she gave us presents.
Then I woke up and the dream disappeared. I really wanted those presents!" 3/16

J: when I was little I couldn't climb it but now I can do it all by myself!
4/16

A: remember when you told me not to run off?
Daddy: yes. You are very special and we don't want anything bad to happen to you...so please don't run off.
A: yeah...cuz I'm made of stardust...
Aidan 4/16

Mommy will you put pizza pockets in my lunch today so Michael will be proud of me?
Aidan 4/16

I want pizza very badly.
Aidan 4/16

We're not going to Mars. It's a hot planet; we might get cooked up!
Aidan 4/16

Re: package on doorstep.
What is it? A doll? A toy? Or something delicious?
Julia 4/16

I love you mustache man!
Julia 5/16

If you laugh like that again I will comb your hair with your teeth!
Julia 5/16

If you laugh like that again I will take a banana and squish it on your hair and your hair will turn yellow!
Julia 5/16

How 'bout this? You get up and feed us breakfast and turn on the long episode and then you can go back to bed?
Julia 5/16

Dad: I'm going for a runJulia: don't forget your shirt!Aidan: and don't run too far because you'll get lost in the woods...and there's a bear.5/16

I know how to get it because I have walking legs and hands!
Aidan 6/16

My eyes need a little sleep!
Julia 6/16

I love Angekula. I love to help her clean! I do dusting!Julia 6/16

Dad your toots are not lovely... Not cute
Julia 6/16

I learned it because someone didn't teach me... I learned it in my mind!Julia 6/16

Next time... I want to be on stage! But I won't be the bad guy...
Aidan 6/16 (after seeing beauty and the beast)

Daddy don't laugh during the movie... I don't want to be under arrest
Aidan 6/16

Daddy, your Nipples look like pepperoniJulia 7/16

Dad do you know what my best food is? French fries and ketchup. I love the way they taste together.
Julia 7/16

We are the champions! I'm Wonder Woman with no panties on!
Julia 7/16

When I grow up I'm gonna to have an Aiden. Aiden Powell Weinstein with an 'e'. I'm going to lay an egg... Did you crack me out of an egg?Aidan 7/16

It's a beautiful day.
Aidan 7/16

I picked a flower for you mommy! And if all the petals fall off, it's okay. I'll pick you another one!
Aidan 8/16

Daddy kiss me one more time. I just love your mustache when you kiss me.
Julia 8/16

Daddy I'm in love with your mustache!
Julia 8/16

I want to skip bedtime and just do another day!
Julia 8/16

Daddy can I borrow a bit of your ocean?
Julia 8/16

Oh no! I gotta poop! Like daddy! It's gonna take for a long time!
Julia 8/16

I love my school! At my school we do lunch in the afternoon!
Aidan 8/16

Did you push the rain button? I did accidentally. Because I love the rain!Aidan 8/16

Dad you know what? When you go to school you can bring me for show and tell!Julia 8/16

I wish I was a real kid... With no broken arm...Julia 8/16

Snakes don't have fangs... Only draculas.
Aidan 9/16

Mom...it's taking a long time to grow up!
Julia 9/16

Daddy. I see the world. That's an opinion. Aidan. 9/16

Don't worry dad... I'll still be your kid when I'm four. Julia 9/16

You know what? I'm going to be creative! I'm going to build a castle or a bomber...
Aidan 9/16

I'm so excited for show and tell! I've never done show and tell before! It's been a long time!
Julia 9/16

Daddy- nothing to worry about!
Aidan 9/16

I love these! I'm going to put them in my room so I remember! So I remember the fair! I'm going to tell miss Mary I went to the fair!
Aidan 9:16

I'm the queen of the rings!
Julia 9/16

This is my sister Julia; she's afraid of zombies.
Aidan 9/16

My momma is Holly Weinstein...and she hates grasshoppers
Aidan 9/16

My brother doesn't have tickets in his nose!
Julia 10/16 after daddy helped Aidan blow his nose and said 'that's the ticket!'

Aidan's not going to bed... He just reading a comic book!
Julia 10/16

Mimi's strawberries were covered in cotton balls!
Julia 10/16

Paper! Towels! Paper! Towels! Paper! Towels! Paper! Towels! Paper! Towels! Paper! Towels!
Julia and Aidan 10/16

A: why do you have your shirt off?
Me: because I'm going to get a hair cut
A: oh... Who's giving it to you?
Me: mommy!
A: oh... Are you going to bleed?
Me: ...no.
A: but you bled last time... Remember?
Aidan 10/16

I want to stay a kid forever!...I want to play in my room with my toys....
Julia 10/16

Does a man cut the moon in half?
Julia 11/16

Alright kids... One at a time!
Julia: but dad... You have two ears!
Julia 11/16

A: I like bugs. No. I like insects!
Sham: what about your 'ant' sham?
A: ...
...
...
 Who?
Aidan 11/16

A: where did we get this house?Daddy: mommy and I bought it!J: was it heavy?Julia and Aidan 11/16

J: daddy if you want to be Maui, you have to put stamps all over your body.
A: and no shirt!
Julia & Aidan 11/16

Do you know my favorite part of going to the library? Being quiet!
Julia 12/16

I'm a smistachio master. I'm a master at eating smistachios.
Julia 12/16

Wind... can you blow my hair cuz I'm a little sweaty?Julia 12/16

Dad, I just want to remind you this is a pool for kids only to practice swimming. No grown ups. Good thing you didn't bring your swim suit!
Julia 12/16

I don't want you to get old like Mimi and pops!
Aidan 12/16

Turn around Julia I can't see your beautiful face!
Aidan 12/16

Awww it's dead. Can we give it a card to make it feel better?
Julia 12/16

Pre-k A-okay

Aidan, back in late August you started an new school for your pre-k year. It's actually a school school! Your last school was more of a Mother's Day out/day care for two days a week. You had a lot of fun there, and had several great teachers who you still talk about. You grew a lot and we are thankful for the experiences you have had there. It's hard to imagine you were ever shy, but you really came into your own at Kidding Around.

But we thought you might be ready for the next step. So you interviewed and interviewed and got in to a lovely, cool school called White Rock Montessori. 

 

Your first day of school was a bit complicated by a bump in the road. Your Mom had drawn Spider-man on a ziplock bag which contained your spare clothes for the class room. While walking in to class for the first day, you were so enamored with the Spider-bag that you didn't watch where you were going and tripped on the sidewalk, cutting your knee pretty solidly. Bleeding and upset, you got to check out the nurse's station. You got a great big band-aid, and pretty soon thereafter dried your tears and happily marched into your classroom. So, your first day of school had some tears, but none of them were going-to-school related. They were just falling related.

 

And after day one, you've happily marched to school five days a week from 8:30- 11:30. You seem to like your teachers- Mrs. Mary and Mr. Lewicki- very much. You brought in a photo of your family, and a potted plant to take care of, and rain boots so outdoor play can proceed after wet weather. You don't really talk much about school, but when you do- in small details- you really seem to like it. You do sing about school a lot though: You come home singing new songs you've learned (like "Where is pointer? Where is pointer? Here I am!" and "The earth goes around the sun" and a song in Spanish that we haven't quite identified yet.) You also get really excited for Wednesdays, because that is show and tell day. For your first show and tell, you brought in photos of our spider, who lived on our deck over the summer.

 

After 2 months at school, we finally got to see where the magic happened: open house night. You took us to your school, marched us into your classroom, and immediately sat down on the carpet and told us to do the same. Then you took your mother, sister, and me around to some of your favorite stations to show us the cool work you do every day. You were so proud to show off, and we are so proud of you. You also showed us the turtles...who you named "up" and "down."

 

 

Your sister found the photograph of our family, your mom spotted your potted plant (you're taking care of both of them quite well). Your sister also had so much fun playing in your classroom that she forgot that she needed to go potty...so she wound up wearing my t-shirt.

 

 

 

You got some hugs from fellow students on the way out, and we met a few of your buddies.

 

I still am not sure of what goes on at school everyday, which is so weird to be in the dark.

 

Your teacher told us that you are one of the star students in Music class, and that it is one of your favorite parts of school. I don't doubt that- given all the songs you sing!

 

But we see the growth and changes in you ever since you've been attending WRM. We all still have a lot of growing and learning to do, of course; but I can tell that you love your school, and that you like going there.

 

 

 

When Mommy picked you up the other day, Miss Mary told her that she was so impressed with you because you've been working on your work stations for the whole 'work station' time lately.

 

And the next day, Wednesday, when you brought in "Billy Goats Gruff" for Show and Tell, Miss Mary told Mommy that she LOVED it when you do Show and Tell, because you're so animated, energetic and unafraid to talk in front of the class.

 

So far, so good in school and on a lifetime of learning. Soon enough you'll be teaching Mommy and Me!

Two Months Old! Short and Sweet

Baby Julia,

It's hard to believe, but you are now two months old!

You've grown from this:

To this!




Month 2

 And grown you have! You were born weighing  7 lbs 13 oz. and were 20.5 inches tall.

And today at your Doctor's appointment, what we have assumed for a few weeks has been confirmed. What we guessed has been blown away! I thought you were going to now be 10 lbs and 22 inches tall. But you're now 11 lbs 14 oz and 23.25 inches tall, placing you in the 75th percentile for weight and 80th for height!

What does that mean? It means you're growing! You're healthy! You're sturdy! You're becoming a little girl before our very eyes. And it's happening all too quickly.

You are kicking butt at tummy time, holding your head up for minutes at a time.

You are ruling at sleeping, still sleeping through the night, and sleeping on your Daddy and Mommy for hours at a time as we have you Moby Wrapped.

The other day, you slept on me from 4 pm until 8:30 pm. You slept while I grated a potato, while I cooked dinner, while I ate dinner, while we tucked in Aidan, while I wrote some thank you notes. Then you woke up to be fed, play a little, smile a lot and went back to bed to sleep through the night! We're really getting a hang of this whole Daddy/Daughter thing, you and I.

I really get the impression that you like me. Which is awesome, because that may mean that you recognize me and know who I am versus any old man off the street. This is an experiment we will not be conducting.


You've also been talking a lot more. Reacting to our voices, to our faces, to our kisses.

Cooing and gurgling and giggling. It's too much. Too much cuteness to handle.

 
You're doing baby sit ups now, and really seeming to like those as well!

This post is short and sweet, just to let you know that you, my dear, may have grown taller and heavier, but you are still so very sweet...and just a little less short.

Half Way There: Week 20...and kicking

Little One,

You are 20 weeks old...and kicking.

That's right! Your mother feels you kicking many times every day...mostly at night.

She says it feels "like little bones kicking"...which isn't as poetic as I would have hoped. Despite the 'day of the dead' mood that conjures, I am extremely jealous! I still haven't been able to feel your little kicks. Every time your Mom announces that she feels a kick, I put my hand on the belly and wait patiently...and the kicks never come.

Last night, your Mom woke me up and said "give me your hand." I was confused since I had just come out of a slumber, but I was compliant enough and gave her my hand. She placed it on her belly, since you were being very active.

Alas, I still couldn't feel the kicks. I guess they're still only feel-able from the inside. But when they're feel-able  from the outside, you know I'll be first in line.

Even though I couldn't feel you kick, I was content with my hand hovering somewhere near your little foot, and I dozed off holding your Mom's belly.

And even though you're not yet big enough for me to feel from the outside, you're certainly getting bigger. And this week I have proof! Your Mom begrudgingly agreed to take her week 19 and week 20 photos!

Week 19

Week 20

Week 11..WOW!

See, you're waaaay bigger than you were back on week 11!

In fact, now that you're at week 20 and you're half-way here, you're the size of a banana!

Good work! Keep on growing and hopefully soon you'll be doing the banana splits...and I can feel you kick!

Growing Every Day: cookies, colors, blues and paints

Aidan, every day you continue to amaze your mother and me. These little looks, or actions, or connections you make are just a testament to how wonderfully you are learning about the world around you.

You are doing so much better at being left at school now, and you even have been spotted by Miss Jessica interacting and 'talking' to the other kids.

Yesterday you made a birdfeeder. It was basically a bagel, spread with peanut butter and then dipped in bird seed. You were so proud of your 'cookie' and for some reason kept trying to eat it. You were a bit upset when your Mom hung it in a tree in our backyard.

But, you did get a real cookie anyway. It's Girl Scout season and we have a box of the chocolatey, coconutty, ringed goodness that we call Samoas. I left the box within your reach and you brought it to your Mom, saying 'cookie,' in your convincing manner. So she let you have one. And you LOVED it.

You're making pretty advanced connections. On Tuesday morning, after an awesome three-day weekend together (and pretty much a full Monday of Daddy and me time), your Mom brought you into our bed. You saw a lump of comforters and covers and pillows where I usually sleep and you excitedly said "Dada? Dada!" Your mom pulled back the covers to reveal that I wasn't there and you were sad. This story hurt a little...but it also made me proud that you knew to look for me...and knew that I resemble I pile of linens!

You've been sick recently (double ear infection and bronchitis), so we've been having to give you some nasty medicine. After two days of fighting us with the medicine, you realized that that tactic wasn't working. And without prompting, you figured out what you thought would be a better way to avoid the medicine. I came in with the oral syringe and, upon seeing me, you hid your face behind your hands. If you were hiding, and therefore 'gone', how could we give you the medicine? Luckily, we still found a way (and you adapted again, by spitting most of it out); but I give you an A for effort. Your Mom and I were in awe of your cleverness!

Your vocabulary continues to grow too... you went up to Miss Jessica yesterday and said 'hug!' because you wanted a hug.

On Monday, you and I were playing with cars and you said "Blue" (although it's more like "booo") when holding a blue car. I tested you with some more blue cars, which you correctly identified. But then I held up a red car and you were stumped. So, I knew that you knew blue!

Yesterday at dinner, you got crayons to play with, and you picked up the blue one and said 'blue!'

Then you through the blue one to the ground and held on to the yellow one really tight. Yellow seems to be your favorite color (you also held a yellow crayon for a few hours the other day as well). But you're just at the beginning stages of being able to say 'yellow.' But, at the restaurant, you did say "green" for the green crayon, with some encouragment.

And you've started to identify crayons as "colors" (although it's more like "curr")...but we know what you're saying. And more importantly, you know what you're saying!

Color me proud!

More into the world of colors, back on Valentine's Day, I decided that we needed to do the inaugural dip into the non-toxic finger paints we got while back so you could make your Mommy a V-Day present. You've finger painted before with this colorless stuff that doesn't appear until it's placed on the special paper. That's pretty fun, but mostly you like opening and closing the paint container.

But this finger paint....you loved it...all 2 minutes of the finger painting experience (until it quickly turned into a disaster). I gave you a little squirt of each color: green, blue, red and yellow.

As you can see from the finished result, you really aren't a fan of using blue, although you're a fan of saying it.

So you started sheepishly touching the paint dollops. I showed you how to paint it on the paper.

You were intrigued. You did it a little more by yourself. A little green...a lot of red...

Then you started piling the paint on the paper and smushing it around. I pushed your hand down to make a handprint.

Then you started smearing the pallette's paints altogether into a lovely brown.

This was fun...and messy...good thing I got us both down to our undergarments only for the painting experience.

I momentarily thought, "he'll be fine...I'll just go grab my camera and take a few pictures."

Good thing I didn't! Because in a split second the following happened:

You decided to start just rubbing your hands together.

Then you began clapping.

Then the paint started flying everywhere (I'm still finding it in the kitchen).

Then it got on your face, to which you logically and immediately responded by rubbing your eyes with your hands, which were covered in paint. You immediately responded by crying and screaming loudly...having paint all over your eyes.

Emergency eye wash in the kitchen sink, and the crying subsided a little.

Then straight to the bath, where I managed to get all the paint off your eyes, face, hands and arms. And off of me too.

But you know what? You were fine in a few minutes and your Mom loved the painting.

We're even going to frame it.

With all your connecting and learning and experimenting, you are truly an amazing almost-two year old. You are a work of art (and a piece of work) and we're just constantly amazed at how much you are growing every day.

Sometimes it's all we can do to keep up!

Ramp Up to Month 8: The Baby Sitter

Leading up to your 8th month birthday you are really kicking it into high gear as far as becoming smarter and more mega-awesome!

On Saturday, your Mom and I put you down in your crib -which we had fortuitously already lowered down to the lowest setting because of you clunking your head while making your early-crawling moves- to play for a second while we were doing something.

So, you were playing in your crib, we did adult stuff like take out the garbage really quickly or something.

And then I walked back into your nursery and -low and behold- you were sitting up! Just sitting there in your crib!

I called to your Mom: "Holly! He's sitting up!"

We couldn't believe our eyes! "How did you get like that?" We asked. But you just smiled at us and then flopped back down on your side to keep playing.

Then a few moments later, I returned to your nursery and we saw something very similar to this staring back at us:

You did it again! You were just sitting there in your crib!

You've been able to prop yourself up on one arm like a kickstand for a couple of weeks now, and been able to stay in a sitting position when we put you in it for at least a month. But we never thought this monumental day would happen so quickly.

Finally we caught you in the act to see how you were getting into a seated position. And it was pretty awesome. You just got into your arm-as-kickstand position and then just slowly leveled out and balanced. And, voila, you were a baby sitter!

You love doing this now! Every time you're free to move around, you get into a seated position.

In fact, you love it so much that it sometimes gets you in trouble. On Sunday night you were trying to fall asleep in your crib. We heard you make some of the usual little cries and moans as you talk yourself to sleep-- but then the crying got louder and more intense. Something was wrong.

Your mother went to check on you and the sad-Aidan noises stopped a few seconds later.

She came back upstairs and told me that "It's hard to fall asleep when you're sitting up!"

She had laid you down and you fell asleep instantaneously! Apparently you'd gotten into a seated position and couldn't figure out how to sleep that way. So, sitting isn't always a plus. But it's definitely super cool!

We even have a hot-off-the-presses video of you doing it. Granted, you're a bit pissed in the video..but, as you can see, the urge to sit conquers all!

Sitting is definitely one major step forward for you, young Master Weinstein...but wait til you see what else you've been doing this week!

Six Week Report Card

We're nearing the end of your sixth week of life here on Earth and, as my K-12 training has taught me, 6 weeks is the perfect period of time in which to grade someone's performance and give them a report card.

GROWTH: A+
First of all, I'm still trying to get over the fact that you've grown from this:

To this:

To this:

To this!

And now, to this!

But, the amazing growing baby continues to amaze! Just yesterday, your Mom put the blue pair of socks that we brought with us to the hospital on your tiny, teeny feet. And, guess what? At the hospital, those things slipped off your feet as easily as if they were made of ice...and yesterday they fit snuggly! You're already growing into your socks!

That's pretty crazy, considering that I still remember being psyched about seeing your feet like this: And now look at those feet!

When we took those pictures about four weeks ago your feet were about as long as my index finger. Now they're way longer!

BATH TIME: A+

Let's just say that ever since your umbilical cord fell off, Sesame Street has been correct: Bath time IS so much fun. You like it a lot more now that we can get your belly wet and keep you clean. In fact, your Mom and I are kinda getting to be like old pros at bath time. Well, mostly your mom. I'm getting really good at filming bath time and warming the towel up in the dryer and catching your slippery little self as your Mom hands you to me!

DISCOVERING: A+

Wow, this one's been really coming along this week alone. When babies are born they don't know their heads from their hands or their Beatles from their Stones (well, maybe YOU know the Beatles, with parents like us!) But, recently you've started discovering that you have arms and hands and that, yes, they are yours for you to use how you see fit!

Last week you took your Mommy's glasses off (though I maintain that was a happy accident).

Yesterday while Mommy was kissing your feet, you reached up and touched her hair.

You totally grabbed my hand on day 1, but that was just a reflex. But grabbing things consciously- while not quite there yet- is developing nicely. Check out how you manipulated this Sheep toy your Auntie Deborah got you!

Now, of course, you may just be thrashing to get the thing off of you, but I like to think you were hugging it!

Most impressive, though, is that we've caught you "self-soothing" by sucking on your forearm, your entire hand and even your thumb. This is great for everyone! If you can self soothe, then you can put yourself back to sleep if you wake up. But, also, knowing where your hands and arms are located at all times is a pretty important life skill to master, so you're making major headway this week!

CUDDLING: A+

'Nuff Said.

Sleeping (without someone underneath you): A -

This used to be a big concern...would you ever be able to sleep for more than an hour without your mother or me underneath you? That would have been really awkward when you went to college.

But, recently, you've been able to sleep longer and longer without someone underneath you. In fact, I'm happy to report, that last night you slept in the Cradle your Nanneh made you all by yourself from 10:00pm to 1:am. In fact, you were sleeping so hard that I had to wake you up to feed you! (which I know I'm not supposed to do, but if I let you go too much longer, I would have gotten no sleep at all, and then I wouldn't have had all this energy to write this blog post today!)

You are improving day by day on your sleeping. And trust us, in this family, you'll need your sleep. We're tiring.

UPDATE! Just got this message and pictures from your Mommy: "You'll be happy to know that little monster is taking his nap in his cradle! Now let's hope that the mail man doesn't come by now and make the dogs go crazy and wake him up!!"

Yes indeed, we all hold our breath around mail delivery time as Preston and Toby have declared all Mail Men (and women) their mortal enemies, and feel the need to tell them that loudly...through the door. Everytime the mail-dog bark- aidan awakes situation happens, your Mom tells the dogs that they are one step closer to being punted to the back yard.

I know, I know...I was surprised that your Mom knew what punting was too!

Smiling: A+

Two days ago when I came home from work you smiled at me. This was not gas. I repeat NOT gas. It was a real smile, and you've been doing it more and more ever since!

Pictures will be coming soon, as soon as we can readily predict your smiles!

Not too bad, son! In your first 6 weeks, you are a Straight A student! Keep this up and you'll be Valedictorian of your class (though, Toby and Preston are really going to have to fight it out to get Salutatorian status).

I can't wait to see what the next 6 weeks brings!