But, even though they are so different at this age, we love our Jamesie-Baby so much, and I for one am thankful he's still so baby-ish. He lets me rock him at night, he cuddles us, he kisses us, and he actually still lets us feed him because he's pretty luke-warm toward using a spoon for himself still. Although he has chosen not to talk, the pediatrician says it is very normal at this age when there is a --chatty-- older sibling in the house. Once when I was asking Jamesie if he wanted more milk Sean answered for him, as usual, saying, "no, he doesn't need anymore." I said "Sean, we need to let Jamesie answer, please don't answer for him." To which he aptly responded, "well, he doesn't know how to say the words." (True...but...). Anyway, even though he doesn't really talk, he communicates with us all the time, and mostly through sign language. We did baby-signing with Sean, and he responded very well to it, but we were certainly done with it by this age. I am really glad we are doing it with J, because its his main mode of communication these days. The nurse at my OB office asked me if he was deaf the other day, and I'm pretty sure the ladies at the grocery store just assume he is. I have been absolutely amazed at the signs he does regularly and what he can tell us-- for instance:
He can tell us if he wants eggs or cereal for breakfast;
More milk (that's an easy one around here);
He tells us when he had a poop;
When he wants a bath;
When he sees a dog, horse, lion (in a book, not around the neighborhood) and many many other animals;
When he sees or hears (long before we do) an airplane or a truck;
When he wants cheese, crackers, or cookies (our grocery store gives out free cookies to the kiddos and he is now conditioned to do the sign for cookie as soon as we pull in the parking lot);
He does his sign for his frog when he wants to go to sleep, then asks for a book when we get upstairs;
He tells me when he wants to see Daddy or Seannie (brother);
He tells me when he sees a little boy or girl or baby when we're out, and always promptly reports if he sees someone within a 100 yard radius wearing a hat;
He can ask for his music (a play CD player);
And ask for Ketchup (about 50x per dinner).
There are a lot more in our day to day interactions, but these are the ones I can think of sitting here right now. Its been awesome to watch. And he actually does have a few spoken words, but his pattern is to try out a word for a few days then never say it again. Or, in the case of the person most near to him most of the day, his mother, to never even try to say her name. Maybe by the time he goes to school he'll be able to identify me.
Some other things Jamesie is into these days:
His favorite toy in the world is an empty plastic water bottle and its lid. He will be a happy camper for even the longest car ride with an old Dasani bottle. At home its empty milk bottles and their lids. gross.
He does not like TV. Again, at this age Sean could sit for an hour long show and be glued to the TV. Jamesie once sat with me for two minutes to watch Curious George, but that's his record. Most days if Sean is watching a show, Jamesie just goes about his business sweeping, using Sean's toys, rearranging the recycling (empty bottles).
He is quick and quiet. He's a very sweet little baby, but you have to be careful. He can climb stairs quicker than anyone, then silently poor out a bottle of shampoo on the bathroom floor with a sweet little glint in his eye. Or pour powdered make up into my shoes, or draw with marker on the back of his head. All silently. Cody thinks he has a future in the CIA.
He loves stickers and is adept at putting them all over himself. He looks like this so often that I usually forget to take the face-stickers off before we go out somewhere.
He likes our governor, Nikki Haley.
He LOVES anything that's Sean's, but especially Sean's marker jar. Quick and Quiet.
He loves all things DOG. We got him a very realistic looking stuffed dog from Melissa and Doug for Christmas, and here he is pulling the dog onto his lap. Jamesie also had no fear around real animals-- while Sean still runs and screams from animals of any size, Jamesie goes right for their faces usually. He is totally comfortable in a dog's face, and last month at the zoo showed the same attitude toward a giraffe when he got in its face and let the giraffe lick his hand. I'm pretty sure if he did meet a real lion on the street he would rub its nose and poke its eyes.
I love Jamesie's soft whispy hair. Its so baby-ish. Cody unfairly thinks it needs to be cut and has threatened to cut it while I'm taking a nap one day (while I really don't want it cut, this threat has done nothing to cut down on my rate of nap-taking). I think its sweet, even if it hangs over his ears a little bit. What do you think?
Still have the same opinion?
Our littlest love is such a sweet, cuddly, soft little baby. I joke about him not talking, but he's done fine with his sign language and impressed us with his level of understanding. He still holds his breath to the point of passing out once in a while (he did it at a friends' house at brunch yesterday-- or choked on a cracker--we're still not sure--it was scary either way). He is fiercly independent though, preferring to count his own fingers or climb stairs on his own instead of playing with other kids if they are over at our house. If another kid (his friend Adelaide) wants a toy he's playing with, he will passively give it up and move on to the next one. Or just walk into the corner to examine his shoes while she plays with his things. I do wonder how much he will change when the new baby comes, but we have a few months for that. The next big thing will be moving him into a big-boy bed in Sean's room. I'm sure he will LOVE being with Sean full-time, I just hope they sleep at some point.
2 comments:
Sweet Jamesie! I wish he would haul off & punch Adelaide when she steals his toys!! :)
Jamesie and Seannie in one room together will be priceless! Please get a nanny cam to capture any interactions, verbal or non-verbal.
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