Hellobee

I find myself evaluating each stage of my kids’ lives. I try to identify which ones are the most fun, and so far I feel like each stage is progressively more and more fun. It sounds so cliche, but I really do enjoy the new stages, and I think that as each of my kids develops, I see things that are incredible and things that scare me. I wonder what will be next, but for now I like to remember what I loved, and relish in the stage we’re currently in.

LeLe: Little miss is almost 3, and she really does get more and more entertaining each day. When LeLe was a newborn, she was so easy. Very laid back and pretty agreeable. She cried when she was hungry or wet, and she liked to be held and cuddled. I loved her smell and the funny loud noises she made. She was incredibly vocal and she loved being active. She hated being in the car and it was absolutely awful for long trips.

As a 1 year old, she was still very agreeable. She learned to walk at 11 months, and she talked shortly after that. She loved interacting with people, laughing at things, being on adventures outside, and was charming to everyone. As she went through her second year, she became more independent and wanted to do some things on her own. I distinctly remember how big she suddenly got when Little Bug was born and how heavy she was. The shock of how quickly she wasn’t my baby anymore was intense.

And now, she’s rounding the corner to three years old and I am increasingly amazed at how incredible she is. She’s smart, like really smart, smarter than me. She’s funny, loves to talk, and is super independent. In the last few weeks, she has exploded with new words and new behaviors that astound me. This girl is fearless, and she loves trying new things. But she also has big emotions, and can get upset at the strangest things. She asks questions, so many questions, about everything and anything. And she understands pretty much everything going on around her. It’s magical watching her mind expand and her abilities increase daily. The most recent thing that blew my mind was her being able to completely dress herself. She has been using this new skill to help me dress Little Bug as well, which is both helpful and really entertaining.

So I’ll say it again, I love this stage. It is my favorite so far and I can’t wait to see what else comes up. Yes, she is a handful at times and her constant energy is exhausting. I especially find the defiance difficult to take. But the thing that makes me laugh is that in one minute she will be doing something terrible, and in the very next she will be hugging my legs and telling me she loves me. It’s amazing.

Little Bug: My little guy is almost 18 months now, and he is growing like a weed. He’s sweet, but also really incredibly naughty. I keep saying he’s like a sour patch kid, sour one minute and sweet the next. As a newborn, he was pretty difficult. He cried pretty much all the time and seemed to never sleep more than 45 minutes at a time. Honestly, I was miserable for a lot of his newborn stage, and until he was about 11 months old. He started walking at 10 months and hasn’t stopped moving since.

So far, his second year has been a significant improvement on his first. He is still quite sensitive, but holy moly he has a personality on him. He is not speaking yet at all, but that does not stop him from getting his point across. He uses a series of grunts, yells, pointing, and leading to get what he wants and needs. And he is charming beyond belief. He has a magical smile, all teeth and twinkly eyes. It’s heart melting and amazing. And he is fearless too, just like his sister. He is constantly jumping, climbing, running, and getting into everything. He knows when he is doing something naughty because he has a mischievous little grin that appears only when he is about to do something, or has been caught.

Man, I really love this stage… And the two of them together, it’s like nothing I could have expected. They seriously love each other and even though a lot of my time seems to be spent breaking up their little fights, a lot of it is also spent marveling at how adorable they are together. I just can’t wait to see what happens next, what the next stages will be like and how much they will change.

Do you have a favorite stage?