Lewis the Truest, Vol. XX

I was feeding Lenore one day in her room, and Lewis was sitting in there with us, chatting it up:

Lewis: Why does her milk come out of your body?
Me: Because we are mammals. All mammal mamas make milk for their babies.
Lewis: Oh!
Me: Elephant mamas make milk for their elephant babies. Goat mamas make milk for their goat babies. Doggy mamas make milk for their doggy babies. 
Lewis: Oh!
Me: Did you know Hattie used to be a mama?
Lewis: Yea.
Me: Can you believe she had three puppies that she cared for?

[She was taken in by a rescue as a stray, and all three of her puppies died of parvo soon after they were born. She was very depressed afterwards, until we met her and brought her home to be a companion, mother, boss, etc. to Peter and the rest of us. The rest is history.]

Lewis: Yea! Did they look like little Hatties??
Me: I don't know, I never met them, but I bet they did! Can you imagine--I bet they were so cute!
Lewis: What were their names? Gloodly?? (Or something made-up off the top of his head like that.)
Me: I don't know, buddy, I never knew them. What do YOU think their names were?
Lewis: Hmm. (long pause) Sun, Cloud, and Rain.

It made me smile on many levels. I was touched that he was so sweet about Hattie's long-forgotten puppies.

----------

Lewis tends to wake up early (5:30-6ish), and then will fall back asleep until his normal awakening time (around 7-7:30). He usually just needs to be covered up or reassured, and, as I am still on nighttime-Lenore-duty, Kevin takes care of Lewis duty.

One day, I *happened* to already be up with Lenore (lucky me!), so I slipped out of her room and into Lewis' room and laid with him. I wouldn't normally lay with him (he sleeps in a twin bed, after all, and he twirls my hair so that I can't fall back asleep), but I must have been extra tired that morning. I was in and out of sleep, but at one point, Lewis was saying, in a trance-like state (while twirling my hair):

Lew: Don't eat cows. Eat more chicken. Don't eat cows. Eat more chicken. Don't eat cows. Eat more chicken. (On and on...)

Over and over and over again. I thought I was in and out of a trippy dream, and I didn't even remember it until a few days later. I'm not even sure where he got that--he has a little stuffed cow from Chick-Fil-A that Grandma Sharon gave him, but I didn't know he even knew their slogan. Proves once again that he is ALWAYS LISTENING. :)

----------

I'd written this down on the notebook I keep in my car, and I just found it the other day. I vaguely remember it from earlier in the summer:

Lewis (totally out of the blue, staring out of the window): When I get older, I'm going to ride the Wing Coaster, ride The Beast, and get a John Deere lawn mower.

:) It made me smile. The boy has plans for his future!! He and Kevin sometimes watch roller coaster videos at bedtime, so Lew is very excited about being big enough to ride the big ones. There were lots of commercials earlier in the summer for The Thunderbird (aka the Wing Coaster) at Holiday World. And I'm not sure how The Beast came into the picture, other than Kevin and I agreeing that it's the best roller coaster we've ridden.

And then there's the John Deere lawn mower. He has said a few times now that he wants a JD Gator for Christmas (like one of the big Power Wheel ones that costs $400+). Either that or a blue train and an orange train, JUST like the blue and orange trains at the zoo--separately, but equally as difficult for me to make happen.

Lenore at 10 Months

*Editor's Note: Little Miss wanted to help celebrate her 10 month birthday by waking me up at 1:30, 4:30, and 5:30 overnight last night. Kevin got up with her at 5:30 and let me sleep, but now we are all heading for Family Nap Time.

10 Months Old 

(double digits!)

Her stats (from the pediatrician's office last week, percentiles from BabyCenter):
Height: 29.3 inches (between 75th and 90th)
Weight: 21.53 pounds (between 75th and 90th)
Head Size: 18.7 inches (above 95th)

We actually just went for her 9 month check-up last week because her doctor was on vacation and had to reschedule her original appointment. She only had to get one shot in the thigh (no tears!) and will go back at one year (in just two months). The pediatrician said her ears look good, which is good to hear--she's been tugging on one, in particular, so I was afraid her ear infection(s) had returned. I'd taken her in to have her ears rechecked a few months ago right after a round of antibiotics to treat an ear infection, and it turned out to only be teething. I wasn't sure what was going on this time, but she has just gotten 2 more teeth on the bottom, so teeth, it is. I don't remember Lewis tugging on his ears quite as intensely as Lenore does, poor baby. :(

What she's up to this month:

• She is into EVERYTHING! It feels like she's into things much sooner than Lewis was. I can't put her down and walk away for a second--she's in the cabinets (LITERALLY, INSIDE OF THEM), up the stairs, getting into the printer paper, etc. (these are just a few examples from the other morning). Oh, in the fireplace and in the dishwasher, too. I guess I need to do some child-proofing. :/

• On that note, she started Parents' Day Out last week at Lewis' school (just one day, for 3 hours). She is one of only two kiddos on the day she goes, so she gets lots of love and attention from her teacher (who is Lewis' former teacher from his 2-year-old class). She has laughed in Ms. Cheryl's face as she tries to get her to nap, but maybe she'll eventually come around (if not, no big deal). All of the teachers I've talked to have said how sweet her giggles are, so I'm sure it's not exactly a conducive environment for napping when everyone was just wants to ooh and ahh with her. I love their school so very much--all of the people I've met are just wonderful, and I know that they love our kids. But anyway, I digress...
• She is saying Mama! Or Mamamamama, but still. She also has said Bubba (we think). She's reached that oh-I-just-found-my-voice phase, so she'll yell out at random when we're at the store or at a restaurant, just to hear herself.
• She is cruising, both side-to-side along a table and some front-to-back (like if she's pushing a box or Lewis is pulling her along on a box). She also has a walker she is practicing on. Our house is usually crazy-town. :)

• She is big on standing on her own. She might pull up and then let go of whatever she was holding onto. She seems to slowly be getting more steady on her feet, but she always ends in a plop on the floor. It won't be long!
• Sleep has been all over the place. She is napping twice a day, sometimes only for 45 minutes, and sometimes for 3+ hours. I'd say her naps are 'usually' 1 1/2 hours, but I can't bet on that on any given day.
• We were in a good routine overnight (going down easily at 7:30 or 7:45pm, sleeping until 5:30 or 6am), and then teething struck. (I think of my old camp friend Alycia--the one responsible for Kevin and I ever meeting--who said, 'Why can't they be born with teeth?!') Teething caused some middle-of-the-night awakenings for a few days. Now, lately, she's not been going down well at bedtime. I nurse her and leave the room, as I have from very early on. It seems like that is not enough for her now, so we have started either having me offer both sides and/or having Kevin go in with a bottle of formula after I am finished nursing. Maybe it's just from her getting bigger and having a larger appetite? I am fine with the formula if she needs more than what I provide. We've already made it way longer than I ever thought we would with breastfeeding.
• Speaking of eating, she is a beast. She nurses every 3-4 hours, and she eats a full breakfast, lunch, and dinner with Lewis and I. She loves her meat and cheese, especially, and she still hasn't really rejected anything we've put in front of her.
• She's hilarious to watch, too--she's very efficient with finger foods. She gets so excited to eat--she will put a bite of food in her mouth, and sometimes she'll change her mind on which food she wants to eat. So she'll put a piece of food in, spit it out into one hand, and then put a different food in with her other hand. She's getting better about how much food is dropped into her bib/high chair, but now she's started intentionally holding food for the dogs to eat out of her hand. She'll put it in her mouth, then change her mind and hold it out for Peter. :) Hattie waits for what is dropped, Peter takes things gently out of her hand.
• She is wearing 12 month clothes.
• Current Tooth Count: 6 (2 upper, 4 lower)

Outtakes, because there were many:

There was someone hiding behind the chair, believe it or not. ;)

Surprise!

And we're done. :)