Calvin Tyler: Twenty four weeks old

I had some extra time this week (ok, the boys were both asleep in the car and desperately needed naps, so I sat in the car for an hour in the garage), so I caught up on some of my favorite humorous mommy blogs. This one was particularly fun to read: 15 Differences in the child vs. the second. Not all of these are true for Calvin vs. Caleb, but a few are, especially numbers 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, and 14. Especially number 8 this week...Calvin is officially rolling all over the place and as fun as it is, please bring on the duct tape or at least some ankle weights to hold him down (see video below). Caleb rolled to his tummy for the first time the first week of July and was crawling by the middle of the month. Everyone tells me the second one moves faster, but does this have to be the case? Caleb rolled just before six months, crawl at 6.5 months, and walked at ten months three days...please Calvin, I'm not ready for this! I liked leaving the room and knowing you would be right where I left you. I'm not ready for the constant worry about what small toy is left where you might get to, or obsessively checking and double checking the gate at the top of the stairs...ready or not, here we come I guess. Here are some ways life our lives are different for our first vs. second child

1. Bedtime
1st child - sure you can stay up until 9:30 with us every night. Maybe this will help you sleep later. Sleep when baby sleeps, right?

2nd child - in bed by 7:30, maybe 8:00. We need some time to furiously get things done around the house and I don't know maybe sit down, relax, and talk as grown-ups.

2. Interaction with other children

1st child - only time Caleb saw other kids was at daycare. Otherwise he had an adult lifestyle. Most of our friends didn't yet have kids so he was with adults all the time. Maybe that's why he has such a serious, grown-up personality.

2nd child - around kids all the time! Bring on the playgroups, pool outings, and trips to the park. Caleb needs to be around kids and lets face it, I need some adult time, so Calvin sees other children daily if not multiple times a day. Not to mention he lives with one.

3. Baby monitor

1st child - if he was asleep and in his room the monitor was on and no more than two feet away from me. I'd obsessively check it to see what he was doing.

2nd child - it's only on if we're outside or asleep when he's asleep. I've even forgotten to give it to babysitters on more than one occasion.

4. Mom Guilt -- turns out this exists no matter what, but the questions I ask myself are much different...

1st child - am I spending every waking second with him? Am I reading to him enough? Am I stimulating his brain enough? Is he developing on the right track?

2nd child - did I talk to him today other than to care for his immediate needs? Is his hearing going to be impacted by the constant noise in the house? Did both kids get some individual attention today? Am I giving in to too much in an effort to maintain some sanity?

5. Outings

1st child - we went to Hy-Vee and Target a lot and occasionally the mall. Once a week we had a mom and new baby class at the hospital.

2nd child - anywhere and everywhere. Bring on the park, pool, zoo, museums, library, etc, etc.