W
here to begin about my little Evan....or should I say my big boy! He is the absolute most fun right now, saying or doing something new everyday. I'm going to have to start capturing his new little sayings daily. He has been the best big brother, loving and kissing on his little brother all the time. Don't get me wrong, Cooper gets the occasional bonk upside the head every now and then when E gets a little too excited, but for the most part is very gentle and always trying to be a big helper. He automatically goes to get "Cooper diapers" when I lay Cooper on the changing pad, without even having to be asked! Wonder how long he'll keep up the big helper act?!?! He did go through the transition phase in the very beginning where he wanted to do everything and be everywhere Cooper was...like the pictures below where he wanted to be swaddled and lay in Coop's moses basket to sleep. He also tried to sit in his bouncer and lay on his playgym...he even made the occasional attempt to stick Coop's bink in his own mouth. But after a few days, he adjusted and realized there was a new baby in the house and he was now the big boy of the house.
I think part of the reason he adjusted so well to having Cooper with us is that his BeBe and Boss spoiled him from the moment the arrived (giving him everything he wanted and doing everything he wanted to do....just like grandparents do!!), so he never felt like the attention was ever diverted elsewhere. They had the best time together. Evan spent more time outside in the 3+ weeks they were here than he had in the whole time we've been here. They would take a walk each day...sometimes even 2 or 3 a day. By nap time, he was always completely worn out. They even chased each other around the driveway in the rain. They played with his new water toys. They chased butterflies and watched the monkeys, squirrels, and birds. Actually, my dad nearly killed himself when he fell off a ladder while trying to get up to a bird's nest to show Evan the bird eggs! They cleaned the back patio one day, went to the bird park once and then to one of the museums by the mall. They also went to the pool a few days. Needless to say he got quite the tan while they were here...guess his Boss wanted him to look even more like him!! He also managed to get a few nasty mosquito bites (which he is totally allergic to, just like his mother!)...one to his eye that swelled up so bad it looked like he had been in a boxing match! I tried telling Boss he was a "bubble boy" and couldn't play outside without managing to get bitten at least once every other outing. Even though they kept him lathered in mosquito replenant he stilled managed to get bitten about 4 other times. He also got one of his first "real ouchies" by falling in the road while running....skinning up his knee and taking a small chunk out of his thumb. But my little E is a real macho...he only cried for a bit and then it never phased him again. He even seemed enjoy putting on the antibiotic ointment and the Thomas and Friends bandages. I don't think he'd ever had as much fun as he had while his BeBe and Boss were here and we were very sad to see them go. Here are a few pictures from their adventures....and I'm sure my mom would like everyone to know she did all these things with the boys too, but she was the one always taking the pictures!!!
Saying Bye to BeBe and Boss before the leave to Singapore to catch their flight the next morning!So after the grandparents left, it was life back to "normal"....or as normal as we are going to get for now with a newborn in the house. I started taking Evan to my artist friend's craft day she holds weekly for the expat children. There were 4 other children there plus Evan. He was the youngest in the group, but had a great time with the other kiddos, which ranged from 3 to 4 years old. They would run around chasing each other while yelling and E just stood there and took it all in...as to say "what are these crazy kids doing!!" The craft of the week was to make a mask to wear. E had a good time and enjoyed coloring his. It kept his attention for a good 20 minutes...I was really surprised. He usually can't sit still on one project for longer than 5 or 10 minutes when we are at home. It must have been because all the other kids were sitting there with him. We plan on trying to make it as often as possible from now on since he seemed to really enjoy himself. 
It looks like we could potentially have a "lefty" on our hands!! He uses it way more often than his right hand to color with and eat with.
Taking a break from coloring to pose with Mom for a picture!
He enjoyed making the mask, but not so fond of actually wearing it!
I managed to get it on him long enough to take a picture at home....note: the coloring near the mouth was his actual work, the rest Mom had to help with!!
We'd been considering enrolling E in a Montessori school and even went and scoped it out back in January to see if it was a place we'd feel safe sending him to. After checking it out and talking with one of the teachers, we decided we would send him, but would wait until he was a bit older (they start accepting children at 18 months, but most usually start at age 2). Since he seems to be enjoying spending more time around other kids lately, I thought it might be time to get him started. He will be the youngest at the school, but I only plan on sending him 1-2 days a week for now...and only for half a day. I just really want him to go for the social aspect. Anyhow, we went back last week to see about getting him officially enrolled, but they now said we had to wait until the new school session starts in September. He seemed totally stoked about going when we asked him if he wanted to go to school and play with the kids. He kept saying "kool...kids". So needless to say, he was a bit disappointed when he couldn't stay and play with the kids. I told him they said we had to wait a bit longer before he started going, so it then turned to "wait...kool...kids!" It was too cute. As you can see in the picture below, he was all ready to go and check it out with his back pack, sunglasses and sippy cup. He'll be off to pre-K before we know it....and this picture will be in front of his elementary school door instead...oh no, my baby is growing up way too fast! 
