Parallel-Play
First of all...a big congratulations to Dustin and Katy Owen, who are expecting a baby sometime this August! Also, a very belated Happy Anniversary to Kim and Justin, Julie and Chris, and Elisa and Erik! And also, congratulations to Sarah Kay Wollschlager, who's book entry in the Zondervan writing contest is now one of the five finalists! They find out the winner...today...I think?! She'll have to let us all know!
An update, if you have the time:
The morning after my last post, Shaun found Madalyn standing in her crib! She was holding the rail and going up and down from her knees to toes--pulling up and not quite seven months yet, crazy girl! She always stands on the very tip of her toes, like a ballerina on point. I don't know how she'll ever really learn to walk if she keeps that up! She's also mimicking Shaun and saying "da da da da." Both of our kids said da da first. I must be a bad mom because I think most babies say "ma ma" first! She also ate her first saltine cracker at the mall yesterday, in the restaurant...let's hope she doesn't decide they'll be her sole diet, as has Evan. She did try to steal some of my salad when I wasn't looking. I turned to find her with strings of carrots hanging from her mouth and ranch dressing all over her face! What a funny thing!
Evan...
The other day I was helping Evan use the mouse with the computer and he was so proud. I said, "now go tell daddy what you did!" So he ran into the family room and looked at Shaun who asked, "what'd you do?!" Evan said, "I touched...I touched the bunny rabbit." (He couldn't remember what the mouse was called.)
Honey and Poppy visited yesterday and we went to the mall. Evan got to play in the brand new children's area--which he was thrilled about. He ran around yelling and talking excitedly. Mom said it's so funny how they all get so excited to be together but can't quite play with each other interactively yet. They play next to each other instead. "It's called parallel-play," she said.
But I don't blame him for enjoying the company--Shaun and I are still like that. We'll spend whole evenings sometimes, sitting next to each other on our laptops--total dorks, I know--and work on our separate projects. Or we'll read in bed like that, too. Scrapbooking fans, also, complete many a page in the presence of fellow scrappers! I guess sometimes it's nice to just have somebody next to you, even if you are lost in your own little world.
It'll be really fun, though, when he can start playing interactively...to see how he fits in with his friends...if he's the clown, the somber one, the brain, or the prankster. He already feeds Madalyn pretend food out of the pages of his picture book. Shaun got onto him the other day because he thought he'd put something in her mouth, (which is an obvious "no no,) and I said, "No, he's only pretending to feed her Cookie Monster's cookies."
Of course, girls are more mature than boys, as a general rule. My friend Kristen's little girl, Ainsley isn't much older than Evan and she was so sweet to him a couple weeks ago. He was babbling away, and he's used to not getting a response, but she would answer "Uh huh, uh huh... Yeeeah," in the sweetest, nurturing voice. I have precious pictures yet to develop of them together...will have to post some later. He was shocked and quite pleased to get such a cordial response from her...so a big thank you to Ainsley Clifford!!
You are so sweet!
