Hey, kid - I like you.

I had a pretty fantastic afternoon. I went to pick Ethan up from preschool, and his face lit up when he saw me. He did a little happy dance when I walked into his classroom. He then ran around to all of the kids in the room and gave them an enthusiastic "Bye bye, (insert kid's name here)!!!" He handed out hugs to his friends like they were candy.

He told me clever things as we walked to the car, got in all on his own, and tried to buckle himself in, stating, "I need to help Mommy." He tried to tell a funny joke. He sang me "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" as we drove out of the parking lot. He danced with gusto to every song on the radio, shouting with glee, "This is my FAVORITE song!" with each new tune. He giggled at me whenever he caught me glancing at him through the rearview mirror.

He asked if he could help me close the garage door when we got home, and asked his stuffed dragon to help me as well. He thanked dragon for being so kind. He requested pizza for dinner and gave me a huge hug when I said yes. He helped me put away the baby clothes that I washed today, and stumbled over the word "onesie" in his cute little voice as he handed me each tiny infant item.

I looked at the boy who has been my only baby for so long, and realized something. I obviously love him. But I also really like him. I enjoy hanging out with him. I think he's funny. I adore his gentle heart and the way he turns a phrase in his adorable, awkward three-year-old dialect. I dig each of the faces he pulls that are so undeniably Ethan.

I love his spunk, his spirit, the way he throws himself head first into discovering everything this world has to offer. He's a pretty amazing kid, and I'm super lucky to be his mom. And when lucky little baby brother gets here, he's going to have a pretty incredible role model.

Babble Boy

We had a great visit with Pa-Pa, Oma, and Aunt Mary this weekend! Though it's only been a few months since we last saw them, it feels like Ethan is completely different now. Baby growth is so similar to dog years - a short time on the calendar makes a HUGE difference developmentally. One of the many milestones that they were able to witness was Ethan's babbling. He usually chatters with "da" and "ya", but recently discovered "ba" and seems to be a big fan of his new sound. Aunt Mary grabbed her camera to take a video during a particularly chatty car ride. Every single time Sarah went to wipe his drool, Ethan would start talking to us. We got such a kick out of it, both for the predictability and repetition as well as the silly way he was turning down the corners of his mouth.



Did you notice how he flashed a toothy grin when he saw the camera in the beginning? Daddy has trained him well. What a little ham!

Chillin' in My Hood

It's been so rainy and yucky lately that we jumped at the chance to spend some time outdoors during a brief dry spell. Ethan has pretty much mastered the art of sitting up unassisted, even when he has the interference of a dog sitting on his lap!




His sitting isn't the only thing that's changed in the short time since our last post. He has four teeth now, and loves eating his oatmeal cereal. He'll crane his neck forward and open his mouth in anticipation of the spoon. My, how things can change so quickly with this little guy! Sarah started making and freezing the next few foods that Ethan will be introduced to. This weekend he will have his first taste of sweet potatoes. Hopefully he hasn't inherited his Daddy's disdain for veggies, otherwise we'll be stuck with a freezer full of baby food mush!


Another new trick Ethan learned is blowing raspberries. He takes a deep breath in preparation (which gives us a two second warning to shield our faces), and then lets the spit fly. We know we shouldn't laugh... but it's so darn cute that we can't help ourselves! He's already discovered this is a great way to get a rise out of us, and it's encouraging him to find every opportunity he can to soak Mommy and Daddy. He squeals with delight every time he does this, which makes us laugh even more. He's such a funny boy!

Heads Up!

Remember the post not too long ago where we said that it took Ethan about 20 minutes to roll over? He's made so much progress since then. Not only is he rolling over almost instantly from his back to his belly, we also recently discovered that he can roll back the other way! His routine when we put him down in his crib is as follows:

1) Roll over to his side
2) Insert thumb into mouth
3) Hang out for a few seconds
4) Take thumb out, roll over to belly
5) Reinsert thumb and fall asleep

It's pretty cute.


Ethan has also made a lot of improvements with his head control. Gone are the bobblehead days - this boy is doing a great job of using his neck muscles to hold up his head! Check it out:



He was doing this for about ten minutes yesterday before Ryan picked up the video camera, so he had lots of practice! Ethan is also practicing his laugh, and has tried out several different squeaks and squeals in the last week or so. He cracks himself up, and gets caught off guard by the sounds that come out of his mouth. He's such a funny boy!