Watchfulness and Walking

Last Wednesday and Thursday I watched C & K.

Wednesday was a full day (6:45 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.). K was awake when I arrived, but C was still sleeping. Mommy K and Daddy M warned me that C had been a bit jealous of K lately partially due to all of the attention she is getting due to recently beginning to walk on her own, no hands!!! In addition, C was not taking kindly to K being able to walk around and reach toys of his that she had not had access to before. They asked that I be watchful of C when he and K were playing together so I could help C share with K and divert K's attention to her own toys if necessary. They also asked that I give C a little bit of extra-attention throughout the day to help with the jealousy issue. They left and I fed K breakfast, played with her, and watched her practice her walking. When C got up he was happy to see me and raring to go. He told me he wanted to clean the playroom, get dressed, and go outside to play. So, we did. During K's morning nap, C and I practiced riding his new "big boy" bike in the driveway, played t-ball in the backyard, and built sand castles in the sandbox. When K woke up we went inside and had lunch. The morning was gorgeous, but after lunch we had severe thunderstorms and switched to indoor activities. We played trains, read books together, watched a little bit of Noggin, and, while Kate had her afternoon nap, painted. All in all an excellent day.

On Thursday, K woke up shortly after I arrived and C woke up about an hour after that. We had breakfast, got dressed, and played on the swingset until Daddy M arrived home. Low key.

Some reflections and observations:
I thought that as K got older and more mobile everything would get easier, but in some ways it is more of a balancing act. I have two children to chase. I have to monitor both children more closely. They need help learning to play together. C has more adjusting to do as K gets older as well. I love every minute of it and I love being a part of their lives and helping them along the way, it is just interesting all of the things I am encountering that I never considered before.

As K is becoming more mobile and realizing she can do things on her own, she wants to do more things on her own. She likes to play by herself. Most messy, she insists on feeding herself. She also eats and loves anything and everything she is given and eats more at a sitting than before. The hotdog is one of her latest favorites and she can eat a whole banana in a sitting(!!!!). Her vocabulary is ever expanding. A few new words: fish, truck, cup.

C has much less anxiety when his parents leave and when he wakes up and finds me there instead of Mommy or Daddy. He is also a little more nonplussed when his parents return. He is much more vocal about what he would like to do and has more of an idea of time in that he "plans" his day. For the longest time he wanted me nearby when he went to the bathroom and always had me help him get dressed, but those needs are now a thing of the past.

Both of the children are gaining more independence, but in different ways.