Weekly Recap

It was a crazy week at the Holden House.  Even the pets got in on the fun!

Parker (2 Months)
Parker's sleep schedule is improving.  He has been doing a few 4-5 hours stretches between feedings at night.  He is a loud sleeper due to some congestion so mom is still not sleeping too well.  We are working on establishing a sleep routine for Parker that will hopefully work once mom goes back to the office routine in a few weeks.  We have started putting him in his crib for his first stretch of sleep to get him use to sleeping there.  We then move him to our room because it's just easier to manage when he wakes up.

Parker is still spitting up a lot.  The pediatrician isn't concerned since he is gaining weight and doesn't show any discomfort so it just means LOTS of laundry!  Good thing he has such a cute face that I don't mind to much.

Parker is starting to follow objects with his eyes and he seems to enjoy looking at lights.  He will stare at a face for a while but lights/windows/tv are more entertaining.  He is also starting to make good eye contact.

Carter (20 Months)
Carter had a rough week sleeping with a cough and a few teeth popping through.  He has woken up around 5am a few mornings which has made for some long days for dad.  He seemed to get back on track by the end of the week.  All four of his canines have now popped through so we just have his 2nd year molars to go!

Carter's vocabulary is growing each week.  He seems to have a few new words daily. He is getting really good at copying what mom and dad say and acts like a little parrot repeating things back.  We have been working on getting him to say "Thank You" after he asks for something and receives it.  He is also doing a good job putting together basic sentences.  This week a new favorite was "Goodnight xxx".  His favorite word this week was "Zebra".

Carter is also becoming a mimic, copying people's actions.  Dad taught him how to say "No" while shaking his finger and his head.  It's cute for now but we'll see how long that lasts ;)  Here is a video showing his "No" routine, followed by "Yes" and then waiving at mom in the window.

He has also brought home a few new mannerisms from daycare.  When the dogs bark, he looks at them, holds his finger to his mouth, says "ssshhh" and then points to the dog that is barking.  Speaking of daycare, according to his teachers he and Audrey are still going strong.  Dad asked him about his romance and he smiled really big and shook his head "Yes".

Carter is very particular about his hygiene these days.  He has to brush his teeth each night.  He loves his bath and will point to a place if mom forgets to wash it.  He also likes to have lotion put on his face before bed and in the morning.  He will point to the place he wants it and then point to where he wants it on mom/dad's face.  At night he likes to have hand sanitizer put on his hand and then on mom's hand before bed.

Carter is also concerned about Parker's hygiene.  He enjoys giving Parker a bath and this week he started making sure we were changing Parker's diaper correctly.  He got the diaper, wipe and cream out of the caddy and then unfolded the diaper and laid it out.  He then asked mom to bring Parker over so dad could change his diaper.  This came out of the blue.  Mom was feeding Parker when Carter was ready to start so he tried to pick up Parker himself to carry him over.  Here is a picture of the diaper change in progress.

Carter is also showing his brother some love.  He says "Goodnight baby" each evening and gives him a hug before bed.  He also gets concerned when he cries and says" Uh-Oh baby".  He will even get Parker's paci and put in his in mouth to help stop the crying.

Carter is also showing our pets more love.  He tries to play with Morgan and often ends up pulling her tail.  Surprisingly she doesn't seem to care but he will give her a hug to say "Sorry" when he does it.  And during dinner, Carter usually drops food which Madie eats right up.  He has started noticing when Madie gets something so he will call "Brie-Brie" (always says it twice) and then throw something at her to make it even.  This cracks us up because Brie has no interest in Carter and usually barks at him when he tries to play with her.

Needless to say, this child entertains us every day!  It's so much fun to watch his little personality start to emerge.  I could tell 20 more stories but I think this is long enough!

Here are a few more pictures from the week.

Riding his "Neigh" from the Stipes/Jones

He wanted everyone to wear a hat and he picked out two for himself.

Hello Good Looking!