ARI MEETS EZRA

my mom gave ari not one, but two babies and about six books on babies to help him prepare for the arrival of his new sibling. ari was too young to understand that there was a baby inside my belly and didn't seem to be phased by the fact that i was getting larger. i was pretty confident their first encounter was going to be just fine. it took forever for us to get moved into a postpartum room so ari didn't meet ezra till later that night. 

he was quiet and cautious as he walked into the room. i decided it would be best to have ezra in the basinet when he walked in. we spent the first few minutes pointing and watching the baby from my bed. i asked him if he wanted to hold the baby and he said yes. in fact, my hands were not to be involved in the holding process. ari wanted to hold him all by himself and kept moving my hands back to my lap. there were a few minutes of excitement and then he wanted to move on to investigating the room.

he doesn't like hospitals or doctors so after a while he let us know he was ready to leave by climbing into the stroller (and it's usually a mild wrestling match to get him in there).

TODDLERHOOD

is finding joy in a costco box for 45 minutes...

it has also started to mean some pretty intense emotions. ones that involve rolling around on the floor while kicking and sobbing.

BATH BLUES

before the holidays ari started getting really upset and cried every time he took a bath. it was really bad when we were traveling and he was in an unfamiliar tub. luckily, bath time is bringing back the smiles. fingers crossed it stays this way. 

a sad bath time in utah. 

JACK & ARI GO TO THE BEACH

jack and ari both love the beach. and ari loves jack. but they had never gone to the beach together. taking jack to the beach is kind of a mess but it needed to happen. and i'm glad it did. ari was so pleased to have his best buddy with him and kept squealing with excitement. those two would be more than happy if we moved closer to the beach. 

THE ZOO

we were lucky enough to have a visit from david's mom this weekend. while david was still out of town on thursday we hit up the zoo for the first time. ari was a little apprehensive at first and for some reason the chill zebras made him really nervous. the penguin feeding was a hit as was walking around and pointing at all the signs. we finished the trip at the huge zoo playground. 

IN THE KITCHEN

ari has started to get really upset whenever i am at the kitchen counter. obviously i am doing something really exciting and he needs to see said exciting activity NOW. he will stand there and whine and swat at my legs (or pull my pants right off if i'm wearing sweats) until he sees what i am doing. so now when i'm putting together a meal (usually his) i have to pull up a chair and give him a bunch of spoons to play with. this actually works great until i need to use the stove. he's also had his first taste of baking. i have learned that he prefers the batter or dough to the real thing. i like his style. 

SITTING

ari really likes to sit on things. boxes, mixing bowls, jack - you name it, he will try and sit on it. but his favorite place to sit, is on the fireplace hearth. he plops himself down on that three inch ledge multiple times a day. whether to read, dig through the toy bins or try to unplug the router.

POOL TIME WITH NICK

we spent the past week with my entire family in mexico. i kind of failed in the picture department though (this was the only time i pulled my camera out). a month ago ari cried whenever i tried to go swimming with him. but in mexico, he loved it and would request a dip all on his own. i think it helped that it was hotter than hell and the pool felt like a bath tub. our pool had a little ledge that was perfect for him. 

FIRST TRIP TO THE BEACH

we took ari to the beach for the first (real) time this weekend. he absolutely hated the dry sand. he burst into tears the second i put him down. he had the same reaction when he realized a wave was coming in his direction. we were able to convince him that the wet sand wasn't so bad. finding a sand dollar to hold onto helped. we're going to mexico this week so we're hoping to build up his beach tolerance.