The Second Child

As an only child myself, I am traversing the path of siblinghood with mixed portions of shock and awe. Grant continues to love on Grace with one breath and step on her face on purpose with the other. Grace, this week, has learned to fight back in the form of the "blood curdling scream," an official practice, no doubt, shared by younger siblings the world over. If he takes her toy, it's on, and I think she whispers to him before she screams, "watch how quickly Mommy comes running when I let this one go."

But, adding a second child is not only different for Grant, but it does change how Bret and I parent. I get why first borns get to tell their younger siblings that they came from outer space because, somehow, there are no pictures and no baby books filled with pictures, records of growth, little lists of their words, their foods, their every movement in that first year of life. In addition to this blog, Grant has a large scrapbook of his first year and a calendar I filled out noting what he did and where he went in that first year. I'm trying to keep up with Grace, at least in the form of this blog (that counts, right?), but time to do all those cutsie things completely evaporated when she came along... what happens when you add a third?

So, in an attempt to make sure Grace has some adequate information, here's a quick update.

Foods
Grace will eat anything, but she has started to show that she has key preferences. She's not a big bread/carb girl (which I TOTALLY don't get). She likes meat. Every meal. Any meat. She's okay with cheese, loves fruit, loves veggies, and isn't a big American snack fooder. She'll down some goldfish and Cheerios with the best of them, but she doesn't like crackers or cookies. But, she does have a bit of a sweet tooth, a quality Grant doesn't really possess. She'll try anything, which is nice. She has started to use a sippy cup (not used in China), so that's an important skill we are glad she is mastering.

Moving
She's really working on walking, and I think she'll take her first steps by Halloween. She pulls up and walks around furniture, and in the last week, she has started to pull herself up--on her own--in the middle of the room.

Sleeping
Grace sleeps soundly through the night without as much as a peep. She does not want to go to bed, so she starts crying if any two of the following are in place: it's dark outside, she's in footed pjs, you start singing to her, you rock her. She screams for awhile in your arms, ultimately starts chewing on her shirt, and as she gets tired, we put her to bed. She cries for about 45 seconds in bed before conking out for the next 12 hours. She isn't quite the napper Grant is (he's working on three hours right now), but she's content to play in her crib for a bit upon waking.

Talking
Grace's language was pure babbling for a bit, but now, we are starting to hear some words. She said Mama and Dada in China, but now she waves goodbye and says "buh-bye," says "thank you" (but not on command), and just today, said I love you, which came out "Ah lob boo" (but was a clear mimic), and she calls my mom, who has been able to watch her some while I sneak in some errands, NeNe. It's amazing to me, as she's only been in the States a few weeks, but it's an amazing testament to her resilience.

Okay, that's enough for now. Here are some pics, which are really the reason you come anyway!