Getting to know Avery Jack

Everyone always asks you what your baby is like, "you know, what kind of personality does he have," they'll clarify, and I never know how to respond.

In trying to enjoy kids for who they are, I try not to put anything on them. Yes, he can be fussy, but I don't think that necessarily means he's going to be impatient and demanding for the rest of his life. Plus, I'm too close to him to really be able to distinguish him from other babies. I don't know other babies. I know my baby, and to me, he's a joyful baby.

 

Eight- and nine-month-olds can be pretty clingy to mom, so we're a little like magnets right now. I try to not always have him within a one-foot radius of me, but he's certainly much happier without me near if I'm just not in the house. (This is good for Ian, who says -- teething, notwithstanding -- he's pretty fun to hang around with alone when Julian and I go out.)

It's nice when people comment about what an all-star parent you are, because deep down inside, you know you are, too. Parents who are doing the juggle take on superhuman strengths that are hard to imagine when you're not required to have them. Even when Julian was 2 or 3, I remember looking at moms with babies that are Avery's age and thinking, "How in the hell do you do that?"

I tell you, it ain't easy. At times, you'll find yourself feeding the baby while feeding yourself and your inbox. And you don't even think it's of note until your husband says, "I gotta take a picture of this."

Babies are a lot happier in the summer, I'd say, than in winter, when their little hands and feet are so cold all the time.

Plus, naked baby time is a lot more fun than being in footed Onesies all the time.

It's nice when people come and visit us because it's hard to pack up everyone and have a good time at someone else's house. Both the boys enjoy being in new places, but it takes some planning to make sure everyone's as comfortable as they would be at home.

Plus, you get to hold and kiss the baby as much as you want.

Avery loves taking baths. Much more than Julian, but J is getting better about it. 

Music is a good way to keep his attention.

 

Happy baby, I say.

After what seemed like many months of teething, Avery's first two bottom teeth poked through in the past week and a half. At first, he was a little snaggle tooth, but the other tooth started to come in, too. It'll be nice when this phase is over, but when their first birthday looms on the horizon, you try to hold on to the baby days because you know they'll be gone as soon as they came.

Brotherhood begins

Avery has been going to school with Julian since January. He was four months old and I was back at work. Instead of Ian being a full-time stay-at-home dad, we'd send Avery to school so Ian could actually get some work done at home.

Of course, on the second day of school, they had school pictures, which means Avery got his photos taken, too. I wasn't planning on being in the shot, but since Avery couldn't sit up by himself, I got to hold him.


Because they get to spend so much time together at school, in addition to being together at home, I feel like they are creating a really special brotherly bond, even though Avery is still very much a baby.

Julian does everything from "helping" change his diaper or feed him to being on guard all the time for choking hazards that Avery Jack might put in his mouth. He's a big help, most of the time, but for at least 30 percent of the time, his needs are greater than Avery's. It's his emotional needs, but they are needs, nonetheless, and they are exhausting to deal with.

It's typical 4-year-old stuff: An obsession with Transformers, a dish he's not quite sure of, clothes that don't fit the right way, a desire to watch something different than what we're watching. He's vying for attention with a baby, but Avery is rarely the focus of his frustration, even though they share the same room.

I think that's a good thing, but as with all aspects of parenting, I can't be sure.

Ian is doing a good job balancing both boys, even though Avery is still waking up around 3:30 or 4 a.m. for a snack and daddy feels perpetually sleep-deprived. (Mommy does, too, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.)

They get a boy night all together at least once a week, but I try to limit my work-related evening activities to no more than that. I've started taking Avery or Julian with me to activities that are appropriate for one or the other, which means Ian only has to stay back with one, but the vast majority of nights, we're all together, watching a movies or TV show streaming on Netflix with popcorn and Coke. (It's a weakness.)

It'll be nice when Julian and Avery can really occupy each other's attention in a way that doesn't feel so lopsided, but I think even Julian appreciates that he's still in his cute baby phase.

Easter in Oklahoma

Like we've done several times over the past few years, we met my parents for a long weekend in Oklahoma, and my grandmother, sister and brother-in-law came along this time.

They are all so musically talented, it's incredible. Kenny, Ian, Mom and Dad makes some beautiful music when they get together. My sister and I sit back and get to enjoy it.

Avery had just started crawling and pulling up on chairs on this trip. This was also the first time for us to get to see my sister after she got pregnant. They are getting ready to move to Boise, Idaho, where Kenny is starting a new job at a church, and she's due in November. The other big celebration on this trip was Kenny's graduation from college.

It was so wonderful to get to see GaGa for a few days straight. She went canoeing with us on Easter Sunday. It was a wonderful 3 hour canoe on a river in Beaver's Bend State Park. (Hopefully I can get some of the other photos from the egg-hunting and hikes from two readers of this blog who have cameras who were on that trip. :) )

Meet Cotton and Julia

We jumped on the backyard chicken bandwagon about six months ago when we bought a chicken to put in our neighbor's coop. (They had two laying hens already.)

Within a month, we'd set up our own hutch for two chickens. Julia, a Rhode Island Red, came back to live with us and Cotton, a light Brahma with feathered feet. Con Can Broyles Ann is her real name, but Julian lets us call her Cotton for short.

We've been keeping track of the 62 eggs we've collection. All but two are from Julia.

Julian loves picking up Julia, who is half the size of her finicky half sister. They've started laying fewer eggs now that it's almost 100 degrees every day, but even if we aren't getting the 5-6 eggs a week it seemed we were getting this spring, it's still fun to have them around.