May 21 {infatuation}

Maxine is totally infatuated with her brother. Derek and I get smiles, coos, and eye contact but we have to work for them. Cole, however, elicits these in his sister with little to no effort. She watches him whenever he is in eye-shot and smiles at him non-stop. I know they will have periods of time when they can't stand eachother, but I am so happy that they have one another! I hope they will always be close.


We ventured to the Broadway Oyster Bar for dinner.  Maxine didn't care for it much I suppose...she cried the whole time.  Oh well, I got to eat my food when we got home.  Luckily, she let us enjoy the rest of the night.  It was perfect weather for an evening on the deck!

 

May 20 {Home}

Such a great day at home.  

Cole helped me clean and cracked me up, shaking his bootie while dusting, not knowing I was watching.

Cole dusting.  He climbed behind the tv cabinet.  I walked in to find him dancing his heart out.  I snuck these pics before he knew I was there!

It was so nice to have a helper AND he really truly did a good job!

I "caught" him being super sweet and playing with his sister.  

He started by "exercising her yegs" like he has seen Daddy do.  

Next came the kissing of her feet.  (unprompted - how cute is that!?!)

Then he crawled in to hug her, kiss her, and show her the toys.

After naptime...

...we enjoyed Daddy's cooking (because Cole "will eat when Daddy cooks")!

Goodnight!

Pink and Blue will save my butt in the future.

Sometimes when I look at Maxine I swear I am going back in time and looking into Cole's little face a few years ago.

I decided I needed to see how much this might be true.

Here are some photo comparisons of them around the same ages.

Have a look...

(in each: Cole's photo is on top, Maxine on bottom)

First day home from the hospital.

About 2 weeks old. (not great comparison photos)

Around 6 weeks old.

A few observations:

They look very similar, yet I see that they are going to take on different looks as they grow.

I think Maxine will favor her Daddy more.

I am so thankful to have a nice camera (now) to capture them in all their glory!

I think it's magical how when I look into their faces, even from the beginning, they look so familiar...like I have always known them. Do all parents feel this way?

Cole had more hair!

Looking at photos of these cuties in 10 years, I am going to be thankful for pink and blue!
The thing that pops into my head each time I look into these faces (in photo or in person) is *I LOVE YOU!*

May 19 {magic}

Today's adventures took us to the Magic House.  

But first, I had my 6-week postpartum OB visit.  There's a first time for everything...like nursing a baby during a vaginal exam while your three year old narrates what the doctor is doing (with a giggle, "he's looking at your butt!").  That brought us to some questions (again) about how babies come into the world.  Cole played his new favorite game of *follow-everything-mom-says-with-'why?'-and-see-how-many-'why?'s-it-takes-her-to-snap*.  After lots of maybe-too-honest answers, I told him that babies are made with love and magic.  I thought about my answer for a while and decided it was so true.

Then we had our picnic lunch in the car and proceeded to the Magic House.  Maxine rode out the day in her wrap with a little discreet nursing when she needed it while Cole explored.  He made me so proud, exploring independently and being respectful of the other Magic House guests.  I am proud to be his mom every single day, but today I loved seeing him be him. 

Lots of fun.

Cole visited the Magic House in March with his class and came home talking about the mouse door for days.  He was thrilled to find it again today!

Lots of fine motor work.

Lots of learning.  

Lots of pride (for mama).

May 18 {potato...}

...sack.

Family Fun Day at Cole's school.