The O'Neill Life: Everyday Happenings

Colin is just about 11 months and Whitney just about 3 years and 9 months. They both have been growing so much lately I thought I should write about it.

As I watch Whitney walking around talking, singing and playing make believe, I can't believe my first baby is so old! She continues to make us laugh everyday with her silly ways. Ever since she was a baby she has loved to put things on her head. Buckets, boxes, napkins, blankets. And to this day she loves to put random objects on her head and thinks it is the funniest thing ever. Lately, she has been singing a ton and we have gotten some really good recordings of it. Anything from Call Me Maybe, to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to Doe A Deer. It is so fun to watch her grow and see how her mind works. We love seeing that she is such a blend of the two of us. She can be quiet at times like her Mama, but loves to be a jokester like her Papa. She loves to sing and dance like you know who! She loves maps, and lists and puzzles and just loves to figure out how things work. Definitely a Papa trait. Whitney has always been such a loving little girl but lately it has matured in a way. Really asking me how I am feeling about something or asking me how my day went. The other day she asked after a baby shower, "How was the baby party, Mama"? I am so proud to see the loving and considerate little girl we are so blessed to call ours.

Now Colin is my snuggle bug. This boy just continues to melt my heart with his snuggles and kisses. However, he gets very excited and those kisses sometimes turn into bites. Bites that really hurt! So, we are working on that! He has been cruising the furniture for quite awhile and is getting much better with his walker. He has even had brief moments of standing with no hands. My prediction is he is walking by 13 months. He seems to be about a month ahead of Whitney with that stuff. He is an eating machine. He loves just about everything we put on his plate. Some recent additions to his menu are tilapia, soy beans and he LOVES pears. His favorite thing to do is to play with Whitney's kitchen. Yes, Whitney's big play kitchen she got for Christmas gets more play time from this guy. We have blocked off our unfurnished living room so he can't escape and put the kitchen in there. He will spend hours in here. He likes it because he can look in and see me cooking dinner but is happy in there playing by himself. He has also started dancing. If music comes on he stops what he is doing and does a very subtle nodding of his head. Very cute!

Whitney is so good with her little brother. If he is crying, she says, "It's ok Colin, I am right here". And of course he wants to do whatever she is doing. Which of course has caused for some difficulties with grabbing toys and such but that just comes with the territory of having siblings. I love to watch their bond grow every day and I feel so lucky I am home to witness it all.

Here are some fun photos over that last month.

I mean, who doesn't watch TV with a hat over their face.