Wow time is flying with having two kids! Rooney has a pretty structured schedule due to preschool, karate and swimming so we have a good routine going but Ailbe is growing and changing so much everyday that it's hard to believe she's 3 months old already. Where did the time go? Oh yeah to Rooney's stuff!Ailbe is a pretty good little trooper. I've become better at managing our time and getting all 3 of us out of the house. Mike helps alot in the morning and Ailbe helps alot by sleeping in the morning. I think her record is 10:20am without having any type of morning bottle. So far she is not on any type of nap schedule. She naps here and there. Sometimes I'm amazed at the stuff she can sleep through. I will have her in the office with me while I'm working out. I have to have the TV on very loud so I can hear it, on the treadmill, while I'm running. Doesn't even stir. Rooney comes in the bedroom in the morning with his 4 year old "must yell everything" outside voice and she hardly makes a peep. Plus all the loud and chaotic places we go to like swimming and KidsQuest and she seems immune to all of the noise. It's great now. I hope it lasts.
Like I said Ailbe is changing day to day. What her eventual hair color is a constant question. Her hair was so dark when she was born that many people thought brunette. I knew it wouldn't stay because it was too dark. It wasn't right. Plus the texture of her newborn hair was baby hair texture not lasting hair. So then her hair started getting reddish looking and now blond.
I think she might end up being blond or strawberry blond but all the dark hair hasn't fallen out yet so it's hard to tell but this baldening process is all too familiar (The Baldening and The Baldening II). One thing is certain her eyes are definitely blue. She's also starting to move alot more. She has started rolling onto her side recently. When I have her on the floor she throws her legs around like she knows it can get her somewhere. Pretty soon I think we'll be seeing some rolling action. She smiles all the time now and I can't wait to her her little laugh. And not that Ailbe is vain but she really likes to hear mom sing her "Ailbe" (a variation of Barry Manilow's Mandy).
Rooney is still doing great with Ailbe. His preschool teacher told me around Thanksgiving when all the kids were saying what they were thankful for she said without hesitation Rooney said Ailbe. What a sweetheart! I often hear him telling Ailbe how "Momma and Daddy made me first then they made you". Rooney seems to be grasping how family works and understanding the relationship of his relatives. It's pretty cool. Reminds me of when Cuyler was little and Annie was explaining to him about step-families. She told him "I know it's probably confusing to you" and he shouts back from the back seat of the car "No one is confused here". For some reason I always think of that when I'm explaining this stuff to Rooney. Anyway he really likes to talk about family and likes to know if he was a baby in my stomach or a baby when things happened. Although he seems a little confused on my having Courage before I met his dad. I guess when you're a kid it's hard enough to imagine there was life before you so it must be impossible to think there was life for your parents before they met.Rooney is still enjoying karate and swimming very much. He really seems to like earning the stripes once a month in karate. He has several on his belt already and asks frequently when they are getting the next one. This last week he started to learn how to dive in swimming lessons. We've been very fortunate that in several of his classes he has been either the only kid or there has only been one other kid. So his teachers are really able to spend more time with him individually and he seems to be getting alot out of it. Mike and I have been talking about signing up at the country club here where we live for the summer. We can basically buy a pool package for the summer and Rooney can take swimming lessons here and get on the swim team. I've been told that each little kid gets a teenage buddy and they stick with the kids. Plus there will be swim meets and Rooney has been very interested in trophies and awards lately so I think it would be good for him. He got his first taste of jumping off the diving block last night at his regular swim lessons. He had no fear and was talking about how he would sink in the deep end water. I don't have video of it yet but as I always say hopefully next time.
Lastly, Rooney seems to have picked up the drawing bug over the last month. I am so happy because I love the pictures kids draw but I didn't want Rooney to fall behind in his fine motor skills. He has been drawing up a storm and has many of his works of art displayed on his bedroom door...both sides.
True to being a male, or maybe he watched Superbad one too many times (no he's never really seen it) but a good portion of them involve penises. Everyone has one, he doesn't discriminate on who gets one and even drew a picture of a penis machine. I wouldn't normally write about that but it seems to be a big phase he has been going through so for that reason I thought it was worth mentioning. There's a lot going on and it's all exciting. Can't wait to see what these two do next.
