NKOTB
Having Oliver has been such a different experience to having Patrick that it's as if I'm having my first baby all over again. For a start, I'm not as depressed as all hell. I have good days and bad days, but overall, it's been amazingly positive. I missed out on so much joy with Patrick, I'm beginning to wonder how I managed to get through it at all.
Oliver is just such a different baby it is hard to believe these two are brothers sometimes. I now know why people say that babies have their own personalities right from the start! As stressy as Patrick was, Ollie is chilled. As blondie as Patrick was, Ollie is dark; as scrawny as Patrick was, Oliver is triple-chinned chubby; as startly as Patrick was, Ollie is snoozy.
But they both are champion boobie gobblers!
To illustrate just how laid back Oliver is, I'll share a story that is as much about my bad parenting as it is about Ollie's personality. We had a picnic lunch the other day at these trains. Whilst T and P were off catching the train to nowhere, I had just fed a snoozy Ollie, and he was laying down on the picnic rug, snuggled up in his blanket. But sleepy as he was, he was just obviously not comfortable. Something was giving him the irrits. I'd just changed him, so I was pretty sure it wasn't nappy related. I'd also not had any coffee or chocolate, so i was pretty sure it wasn't caffeine, either. But every time he looked like he was about to doze off, he'd squirm. And wiggle his head to and fro. Hmmm: maybe it's the wool in his hat that's giving him the shirts, I thought. I pulled it off his head, and there, underneath were two little black ants running around his poor bare noggin.
Now, if this had been Patrick, for a start, there is NO WAY IN HELL he'd just drift off to sleep on a picnic rug. Ohhh no. He would have needed to be swaddled, put in the sling, rocked, patted and sung to for at least an hour before the sceaming settled. And that's even without the ants!
I'm loving Patrick to bits right now, even though he is doing some really, really testing toddler behaviour. Like the running off caper. I thought he'd learned his lesson, but, uh, no. Today as we were leaving the playground he ran the other way. I thought I'dd call his bluff by continuing to walk home and wave good-bye to him. Hm. BAD idea. He waved back. And continued running. I had to park the pram and make a sprint for the opposite end of the park to prevent him from running onto the road. I picked him up and told him I was very, VERY cranky with him. This is normally enough to get a "sorry mummy" out of him, and sometimes even a pouty lip and a sniffle (he's learning remorse! It's awesomely cute). But today he just grabbed my face and started to kiss me, so that I couldn't tell him off any more. (Not quite "get your tongue out of my mouth I'm kissing you goodbye"). Monkey.
The point being that the bad start with Patrick hasn't eroded my love for his awesomeness now, so I can harly wait for Ollie to grow up. It's pretty fun to be me right now.
Mostly.
Oliver is just such a different baby it is hard to believe these two are brothers sometimes. I now know why people say that babies have their own personalities right from the start! As stressy as Patrick was, Ollie is chilled. As blondie as Patrick was, Ollie is dark; as scrawny as Patrick was, Oliver is triple-chinned chubby; as startly as Patrick was, Ollie is snoozy.
But they both are champion boobie gobblers!
To illustrate just how laid back Oliver is, I'll share a story that is as much about my bad parenting as it is about Ollie's personality. We had a picnic lunch the other day at these trains. Whilst T and P were off catching the train to nowhere, I had just fed a snoozy Ollie, and he was laying down on the picnic rug, snuggled up in his blanket. But sleepy as he was, he was just obviously not comfortable. Something was giving him the irrits. I'd just changed him, so I was pretty sure it wasn't nappy related. I'd also not had any coffee or chocolate, so i was pretty sure it wasn't caffeine, either. But every time he looked like he was about to doze off, he'd squirm. And wiggle his head to and fro. Hmmm: maybe it's the wool in his hat that's giving him the shirts, I thought. I pulled it off his head, and there, underneath were two little black ants running around his poor bare noggin.
Now, if this had been Patrick, for a start, there is NO WAY IN HELL he'd just drift off to sleep on a picnic rug. Ohhh no. He would have needed to be swaddled, put in the sling, rocked, patted and sung to for at least an hour before the sceaming settled. And that's even without the ants!
I'm loving Patrick to bits right now, even though he is doing some really, really testing toddler behaviour. Like the running off caper. I thought he'd learned his lesson, but, uh, no. Today as we were leaving the playground he ran the other way. I thought I'dd call his bluff by continuing to walk home and wave good-bye to him. Hm. BAD idea. He waved back. And continued running. I had to park the pram and make a sprint for the opposite end of the park to prevent him from running onto the road. I picked him up and told him I was very, VERY cranky with him. This is normally enough to get a "sorry mummy" out of him, and sometimes even a pouty lip and a sniffle (he's learning remorse! It's awesomely cute). But today he just grabbed my face and started to kiss me, so that I couldn't tell him off any more. (Not quite "get your tongue out of my mouth I'm kissing you goodbye"). Monkey.
The point being that the bad start with Patrick hasn't eroded my love for his awesomeness now, so I can harly wait for Ollie to grow up. It's pretty fun to be me right now.
Mostly.
posted by jen at 5:15 AM
1 Comments:
i'm so pleased for you!
and i love hearing about their differences. it is fascinating how babies are born with the dispositions they're born with.
oh, and the "calling his bluff" trick at the park? i used to do that with my rottweiler. it used to freak other park-users out - rotti on the loose! but i don't think it ever failed. (and he was generous with the kisses when he came back to me)
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