Move and March Madness

We moved!

We're renting a wonderful home from my parents. It has an amazing backyard that I am so excited to use (if it ever stops raining).  I love Lebanon! It's the perfect size for me. Has just enough of everything we could need while having short lines and scant traffic. Every week we aren't sick we enjoy story time at the library, a playgroup at the church, and a music makers class at the church. Everyone seems so friendly in this town and it's so easy to find places when we go somewhere new.

We bough a car last month. Same make, model, and year as our other car; just a different color. I had been feeling really trapped. Even though Lebanon is pretty small it was too difficult to bike everywhere I needed to go with all the rain and I couldn't visit family or get to the doctor if there was an emergency (which happened and contributed to the speed of the purchase).

Here are the wonderful things I want to remember that my boys have been up to lately:

Ammon learned how to crawl and has an unusual way of doing it. He moves his arms as you might expect but he plants his right foot flat on the ground and drags the left one under him. His left pant leg gets dirtier than the right.

 
Ammon often has toys hanging out of his mouth. He has started to pull himself up and loves to stand. Quin thinks it's really funny when the baby is standing up.

Ammon LOVES baths. Being put in the tub instantly soothes him if he's grumpy or tired, even if there's no water in it. As soon as he hears the water turn on he starts kicking his feet trying to splash. His favorite toy is a yellow cup that we use in the bath to rinse hair. He will choose that cup over any other toy it seems. He tends to prefer playing with things that aren't toys. Toilet paper tubes, spoons, cords on daddy's computer, and especially paper. He is a book eater! His favorite toys that are actually toys seem to be legos. Also, EVERYTHING. He is such a jolly little guy with a ready smile and enthusiasm for life. He's is such a delight and pleasure to have around and we are so lucky to have him as part of our little family.

When he's in a stroller or shopping cart he happily kicks his legs most of the time. It almost looks like he's propelling it Flinstone-style.

 Ammon likes to watch me eat and tries to share his food with me by holding it up to my mouth. He can crawl up to us when he's in distress or needs a hug, which is really useful. It makes Michael really happy when Ammon crawls up to him.

Reading up on how to be a superhero

Quin's current obsessions are monster trucks and superheroes. He wears a cape and a mask almost everywhere we go. 100 times a day he says "I love monster trucks. Do you love monster trucks, momma? They are so amazing" and "Look at this giant monster truck!" while holding up his monster truck toy for me to admire. His favorite song is the "Blippi Monster Truck Song." He constantly asks me to sing it.

Any truck with big enough tires is a monster truck to Quin and he points them out excitedly during walks and in parking lots. 
He likes to identify the parts of machines. He points out the cab, tires, and engine of our car (although he usually gets the location of the engine wrong).

The superhero fascination is actually kind of handy for me. If I say "superman, I need your help!" he is always eager to find out how he can save the day. And after he helps he repeats "I saved the day!" He saves the day by putting diapers in the garbage, dirty dishes in the sink, and giving toys to Ammon. We all had a stomach bug and Quin wanted to climb on me while I was laying on the couch. I really wanted to be left alone so I said "please don't climb on me. If you want you can kiss me right here" and pointed to my forehead. He kissed my head and jumped up and down saying "I saved the day da kiss your head!"

His favorite primary song is "I am a Child of God." He calls it "I am a Child in God." It's his bedtime song, so I've literally sang it almost every day of his life. He likes to hear me play it on the piano and will sing along. When I get done playing he climbs up on the bench and tires to immitate what I do on the piano, including trying to use the pedal and singing while he plays. I put the pedal on a yoga block so he could reach it from the bench. I love it when he makes up words to songs.

Full costume at the park

Quin frequently asks "what is it called?" and "what is that?" I can tell the left hemisphere of his brain is kicking into gear with all these questions. I'll have to keep reminding myself of that when I feel annoyed with the constant "what's that? but why? what are you doing?" questions that are sure to increase in the next few years.

Ammon was bothering Quin at one point. After hearing lots of "no, baby!" and screaming from Quin I came out of the bathroom to find Quin had set up a DIY baby gate around himself so Ammon wouldn't touch him. I was so impressed and proud of his critical thinking and problem solving skills!

When Quin doesn't want to do something he sometimes runs upstairs and flops down on the bed saying "go to sleep" or "take a nap!" to try to avoid it. A pretty clever strategy but it doesn't always work.

When I was changing Ammon's diaper Quin exclaimed "Thank you da take care of da baby Momma. You are so much helper!"
Unprompted, random things I hear from Quin throughout the day: "I'm so pwowd of you, Momma!" "It's okay, Momma." "What's wrong Momma?" "How your days going?" "What a doing, Momma?" and "I wuv you, Momma!" He wraps his arms around me with the last one.

Quin is so loving and affectionate. I can tell Ammon is learning by his example. He already knows how to hug back with his arms and often gives us wet open-mouthed kisses.