Shia - future rockstar

So how does a 19 month old with 2 parents that have ZERO musical talent know what a guitar is, how to say the word guitar, and understand the concept of a microphone?

I am baffled

Picture Day

Today was picture day for the Stickler 3. Our expectations going in were very low. We have done pictures every late Summer/early Fall since Eliott was little.

Two years ago, Eliott - age 22 months - would not put down Doggie (his lovey) and when he did, you could so of still see Doggie hiding behind him in the pictures.

Last year, Shia was 7 months (and relatively cooperative), but almost 3 year old Eliott REFUSED to smile.

So this being the first studio shots of all three, we weren't expecting much...we were pleasantly surprised.

Eliott did smile - followed directions - and even wanted to go first. He did put his foot down when asked to hold Dov up or allow Dov to lie on his back, but Dov is heavy so we understood.

Shia, who is never camera-shy basically stared into space and refused to smile... never thought he would be the difficult one.

Dov was happy Dov and cooperated probably better than Shia did last year.

It ended up being a relatively pleasant experience.

So maybe we will continue the tradition of passing down the "picture dress up" shirts each year if it is going to go this well.

Dovie can clap?

I am just not used to the speed of this child! First, the combat crawling started this week and now all of the sudden he has gone from sitting up for 10 seconds to sitting up for minutes at a time. They were not lying when they said that with each child, time moves much much faster. I thought things were fast this time last year with Shia, but Dov is just moving TOO fast. Did I just say that?

This video is proof that Dov and Shia are going to be great friends, but also proof that Dov is becoming the "runty" twin instead of the "irish" twin he actually is!

He somehow just today discovered his hands, that they clap and open and shut. So cool!

Shia as Spider-man

This week Shia has learned two new actions:
1. Dancing - If you ask him to dance, he sways from side to side. He also has decided that it is fun to stand up in the bathtub and dance while repeatedly saying Dan' Dan' Dan' (dan = dance)
2. He has learned to "fly". See attached video...

The Superhero Saga continues

Not much to say, but if you ever wondered when the Superhero fettish seems to begin, it is around 6 months. This picture was taken this morning (at 6am).

Cheerios vs Puffs

We have been feeding Dov, who is now 5 1/2 months old cheerios for about a week. With Eliott, I think we waited until he had 4 teeth which would have been at 9 months old. Shia had 6 teeth by 4 months so I was less concerned about his eating abilities so he also started cheerios early. Dov only has 4 teeth. He seems to really love cheerios and also rice krispies so this weekend I bought him a container of those baby puff things. What a disaster! He kept choking on them. I can't figure it out... he can eat the "big kid" food fine, but cannot seem to eat the "baby food". We will not be buying anymore puffs. He will just stick to cheerios and rice krispies which I think is the cheapest option anyway!

Big Kid Bed week 2, what's next? Potty Training?

This morning a very interesting thing happened. I was working in the laundry room (because I have neglected laundry for about a week), and Shia came over to me. Usually he likes to help me put laundry into the washer or dryer.

Today was different. He came in and was tugging on his pants and pull-up. I thought oh great, another poopy diaper to change, but upon checking, he was dry. Then he walked across the hall (2 steps) to the bathroom and started to open the door. Brilliant mother that I am, I put two and two together that he was asking to go potty.

Sidenote: This is not the first time he has asked to sit on the potty, but we usually just do it for fun. Nothing evers comes out of the experience, but a good laugh.

Today, again no pee, but today was different. Right after he got off the potty he wanted to brush his teeth. He started to brush, looked at the potty and then peed all over the bathroom floor.

Now some people would be upset about the pee on the floor. I am choosing to look at things another way.
1. he knew he had to go
2. he asked me to take him to the bathroom
3. we need a different potty seat because he is uncomfortable

Eliott potty trained at 2 1/2 exactly. Shia will be 1 1/2 in 2 weeks. We'll see...