Do fish have necks?

You boys... you never cease to amaze me.  Today was just a normal day and you two make it extraordinary.  I love you so much. 

NICHOLAS
Agua
Nicholas, you really have taken your first word, agua, and run with it.  You ask for it when you want it, you point to it when you see it.  There is no doubt in my mind anymore.  AGUA is your first word.  I love it!

Funny Face
And your expressions.  You are finding your outer voice for your inner frustration.  You make a very serious face and growl when you want something.   It's only a matter of time before you find a few words to add to your repertoire so I can understand you a little better!  Nevertheless, you are the happiest baby around.  Happy to play.  Happy (real happy!) to eat.  Happy to be outside.  In the yard, you make a bee-line for the swings.  You love to swing.

Walking

First there was your walker.  It took you a few weeks to warm up to the walker but once you decided it was going to give you some freedom it took you about 24 hours to master that thing.  You can do a 3-point turn to get yourself out of any situation.  You've even figured out how to lift up the front if you get stuck on a rug.  Pretty sharp, little man!

And now, you've moved on to your push wagon.  You push it yourself and with Sam in it.  You even like to climb into it and stand up.  I think you're gonna be a pretty adventurous guy - you don't seem to be scared of anything!

Your Dad and I have a bet about when you will walk.  I say right at 12 months.  He thinks by 11 months.   You could wake up tomorrow and walk.  Wouldn't surprise me.  :)

SAM
god is Nature
Sam, tonight, I told you the story of the lost city of Atlantis.  When explaining that the god of the sea, Poseidon, was the ruler of Atlantis, you asked me why there was more than one god at Atlantis.  Since you've been taught about one God at school, this was a legitimate question.  I explained that people believe different things and that long ago many people believed in gods of all kinds of things: sea, love...  Your response astounded me:  "Mom, maybe it's just like God is everywhere so there are lots of different gods.  Maybe god is nature."   Religion is not a straightforward concept in our house.  We don't subscribe to any one religion, but you are learning Christianity in school.  On your very own, you came up with a set of beliefs that have taken me over 30 years to cultivate and articulate:  god is Nature.

Do Fish Have Necks?
You also ask the most probing questions.  Today you asked both me and your Dad (separately) whether fish have necks.  I'm not sure if you thought of this questions because you seem to notice the smallest details in your drawing.  Perhaps you were drawing a fish and wondered if you should draw a neck.  Whatever the reason, we talked about how fish don't have necks like us and how they have to turn their bodies if they want to see from side to side.  You made the astute observation that fish can bend much easier than we can so that's not such a big deal.  In addition, we talked about vertebrate and invertebrate animals and you understood it right away.  Fish.  Vertebrate.  Snail.  Invertebrate.  Butterfly.  Invertebrate, of course, you said.

Shrimp School
And yesterday,  I had bought 6 shrimp at Whole Foods for you and you asked why I didn't buy more.  I explained that I rarely buy shrimp because fishing for shrimp destroys the oceans.   We spent the rest of the night and the morning playing a game where you were a shrimp and I was a shrimp fisherman.  You explained to me how my nets scraped the bottom of the ocean and pulled out all the coral and seaweed, caught lots of fish and turtles, and everything died.   We decided that we would start a shrimp school and teach the fisherman about how those nets hurt the ocean.  We would teach them to fish for shrimp with a fishing pole, which was your clever idea.  One fishing pole can't hurt the ocean floor and will only catch one shrimp!   I can't wait to start our shrimp school!

Nicholas - three months old

Nicholas,

You are now three months old.  I don't think I've ever met a happier baby.  Really.  You just light up whenever anyone smiles at you, you love to smile, and you're "talking" already.  We coo back and forth and it really feels like we're having a conversation.  You are so expressive.

You've hit some terrific milestones.  

1. I've stopped nursing you.  You LOVE the bottle - I guess it's more satisfying.  Nursing has been a challenge for me (it was the same way with Sam, too), but even so, I miss it.  It's a special bond that only Mother-Baby share. 
2. We gave you your first tiny taste of bananas the other day.  You loved them - hardly spit out a spoonful.   Over the next month, we'll give you some little tastes and by 4 or 5 months, you'll be eating like a champ.
3. You are playing with toys.
4. You are rolling from your belly to your back and occassionally from your back to your belly.
5. You are standing up (holding our fingers) and holding your head up.
6. You slept thru the night twice so far.  Dad and I have our fingers crossed that it becomes a pattern :)

 Before you hit #6 milestone, I would sit up at night nursing and think about you and Sam and what kind of boys/men I hope you become.  I want to teach you both how to be polite, engaging, creative, and inquisitive.  I want to teach you how to treat women.  I want to teach you how change a tire, light a fire, pitch a tent, marvel at the world around you, laugh, and hug.   I also want to teach you how to question the "norm" and challenge the status quo.  I want you to become leaders... in anything.  Lead yourself, lead your peers, lead your community, lead the country, lead the world.  What you choose is up to you, but make sure that whatever it is, you love it and you do it well.  You can be ANYTHING you dream of and I hope you both take that opportunity and make the most of it.

I can't wait to watch you turn into the incredible people I know you will become.

Hand-Foot-Mouth Disease

Boys,

We all got hand-foot-mouth disease.  It's a pretty common child virus that results in high fevers, malaise, sores in hands, feet, mouth (go figure!) and was completely miserable for the three of us (Daddy avoided it!).   You all were troopers.   Sam, you got it first - probably from camp - and woke up from the afternoon nap with ouchy swollen cheeks!  Nicholas, you were hit a couple of days later with a 103 fever and hardly able to take a bottle because your mouth or throat hurt so badly.  Coincidentally, I was weaning you, so you were barely nursing at that point either.  Poor dear.  It was the first time I saw you really cranky.  At three months old, you have barely cried.  You are just the happiest baby ever.  You smile, coo, and play all day. 

During the illness, I revisited the dosage for Tylenol for you, Nicholas... it turns out that on those LA-Baltimore flights (to LA, home for Stuart's birth, back to LA, and home again), I was not only giving you Ibuprofen (which is not recommended for kids under 6 months), but I was dosing you like a 25lb kid (you weighed about 13lbs)!  OOOOOPS!  I told your pediatrician about my mistake and she was not worried, but said prolonged ibuprofen use can cause damage.  Wow, I must have grabbed the wrong bottle.  Neither Dad nor I realized it.   Anyway, i guess that explains you sleeping through all four flights.  Sorry sweetheart, but thanks for sleeping  ;)

I love you guys SO much.
Mom

Sam-isms

In the shower: "Dad, are you putting air conditioning in my hair?"

Sam to me: 
"Guess what my dinosaur name is, mom...
Crackodon...because I get up at the crack of dawn."
Daddy had a role in creating that one!!!

Sam and Nicholas talking (June 29, 2011)

Newborn photo shoot

Since I regretted not doing a professional photo shoot for Sam, I decided to make sure I got some good newborn pictures of Nicholas.  Of course, Sam the big bro, was included as well.   It seemed really simple as I was watching the photographer, but I've never taken shots that look like this.   I'm so pleased!

Nicholas, you were a bit of a squirmer -- fighting sleep the whole time.  Fortunately, I was able  to nurse you into a food coma - at least until we could get some shots of you.   Sam, you were NOT excited about this photo shoot at all -- throwing a fit when it came time for your turn.  You refused to take off your Mr Mischief shirt, so we compromised and you turned it around backwards.   But it all worked out (after 3 hours!).   Aren't my boys handsome??

Anni Oh Photography (www.anniohphotos.com/).  Anni is terrific!

Our Steinmeier Boys

Sam Smith was born on August 22, 2007, 6lb 6oz, 19 in.

36 weeks pregnant with Sam

Nicholas Craig was born on May 7, 2011, 8lb 10oz, 22 in

36 weeks pregnant with Nicholas

Waiting for Nicholas...

With Daddy in the hospital

A few days old

First bath

Peace Out!