Little Boys

Oh I just love these two little guys. I never imagined I'd have little ones 14 months apart, but foster care is a wild ride! 7 months in and I feel like I am finally breathing a little easier now that Israel is walking well and sometimes kind of communicating/listening to me. Here is an update on these two little brothers.

Baby Boy age 7 months:

BB has started solid foods and loves them! He eats every puree I give him and usually gobbles up the whole jar easily. He doesn't have the motor skills to feed himself yet but I imagine as he gets closer to 8 months he will. After switching yet again to another super expensive formula I think we finally found one he isn't allergic/sensitive too. I will be glad when he is 12 months and we can be done with formula. 

He is supposed to start physical therapy but it keeps getting pushed back. He has learned to roll both ways and has just started army crawling! We are working on helping him sit up and bear weight on his legs. He is in the 99th % for height and 30th% for weight. It is strange to have a skinny baby and I'm always worried he's too small but he's growing well each appointment. He weighs about 16 pounds now. 

Baby Boy loves all the older kids and is always watching them. He is super social and smiles so easily at everyone. He loves to be held and is almost always happy to be worn in a carrier. He really is very cute and lovable. I wish I could show his face because he is so beautiful and I'm always amazed at how adorable he is. Like, how did I get so lucky to have him?

 He doesn't like being cold and is very sensitive to pain. He is a good napper usually but still wakes up a few times a night. Where is the good sleeper everyone told me that formula magically created??? 

Baby Boy has gotten much easier but still has screaming fits a couple times a week (it used to be a couple times a day for the first few months).  I have figured out the things that set him off but sometimes they just can't be avoided. 

There are so many emotions when it comes to my relationship with him. Some I can't even define. It can be so hard thinking of him leaving, thinking of our attachment. thinking of the future, his parents, everything.  I won't pretend that foster care is easy, because it never is. But it is so so worth it. I just have to keep repeating to myself the Beatles song "All you need it love. Love, love is all you need".

 Israel age 21 months:

Oh Israel, this child has really found his voice the past few months. He has many words. His most used is proabably "MAY MAY" which is usually screamed and means whatever the girls or we are having he wants too. Anytime I get anything out of the fridge he says "may may" over and over until I give him some haha. He recently learned how to say "Echo" (millennial baby) His other notable words include hot cocoa, cookie, candy and if you're sensing a theme here, yes, he is obsessed with junk food. I guess  I should have known he loves to eat considering his size as a baby. 😆

Israel is still nursing, usually 3x a day, morning, nap, and night. Lately he has been asking much more often though, since he's been sick and grumpy. I'm getting a little tired of nursing him. He has a hard time taking no for an answer but he will go to sleep without it. I nursed Adele until 22 months so I'm almost to that point now. I want to nurse him until he is 2 and then I will most likely be done shortly after that. We'll see what happens though.

Israel loves music more than any baby I've ever seen. He has been humming along to songs since he was a baby, now he sings along too. He LOVES to dance and his dancing is the cutest thing I've ever seen. I just watch his dancing videos over and over. I have to be sneaky though because he stops dancing if he sees me recording.

Israel loves trains, the book Freight Train and playing with his wooden train track. He also loves monkeys. His monkey pajamas, the book Hand Hand, Finger Thumb, and Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. He loves little nursery songs like The Wheels on the Bus and The Isty Bitsy Spider or any song with actions. He gets so pumped for the song Book of Mormon Stories and knows all the actions to that too. His other favorite animals are lions, bears and pigs. He likes balls, balloons and bubbles too.

Israel loves all of his siblings. He cries when Baby Boy goes to a visit and is often looking for him if he is asleep. He and Adele love to rough house and are always playing together lately. He loves Esther too and she can get him to laugh easily.

Israel loves books as I said and is finally interested in sitting through whole books as long as they aren't too long. Although I really try to limit his screen time, he has become interested in a few shows. He loves Puffin Rock "Ba Ba Boo" and Little Bear "Beh".

He finally got the last of this teeth (until his 2 year old molars) (hallelujah, best milestone) and now sleeps through the night almost all the time. I'm very grateful. He still naps once a day, and still loves his binky (Beep-ee).  He is very affectionate and will give me kisses anytime I ask. He is still a Mama's boy though he does warm up to new people a little easier now. He is the sweetest and I love him even though he is often a cranky toddler. :)