How we are doing: Cameron

I always want to remember what these early days with Lola were like. Over the next few days, as I have time to post, I am going to be jotting down my thoughts and a few things about how we are all doing, in a separate post for each family member.

Today is Cameron's turn....

Lola Claire has been such a wonderful addition to our family! With her arrival, we've all changed a bit, and there's been a lot of adjusting--but on the whole, it has been nothing but positive since she joined us.

The boys--Cameron:

Cameron loves Lola immensely, but he expresses it differently than Ethan and Colin do. He asks to hold her a lot, but not as often as Colin--he is actually content to constantly just pet her while someone else holds her. He loves to give her kisses on her forehead, too. (Smother her in kisses would be an accurate description. *grin*)

Cam enjoys holding Lola most when she is quiet--when she starts to cry, he usually gets flustered and wants me to take her right away to calm her down.

"I'm done with Lola! I'm done!" he'll say to me, over her cries.

The funny thing is, though, that when she is not in his arms (like, if she is in the car seat or the bouncy seat) and she cries, he does just the opposite of getting flustered. He remains very calm, and begins to sing to her--generally a rousing rendition of "Jesus Loves Me" or the Lola Claire song. She seems to really respond to it, and many times calms right down--which certainly makes him feel like the proudest big brother ever.

Cameron says the cutest things about Lola, like (at bathtime today): "I love Lola's name Mommy. Lola Merritt Fransisca Merritt." *grin* That kid constantly gives me a chuckle.

The problem we deal with with Cameron--which is something that is just a part of his nature--is that he can be very 'not-so-gentle' with her, even though he doesn't mean to be and would never hurt her purposefully (read: using her head for leverage when he's getting up off of the floor, and so on. *yikes*) We have to remind him quite often about being gentle and careful.

One of my favorite things about how Cameron deals with Lola is also one of my favorite things that he does with me. I've mentioned it before--Cameron is very 'fashion conscious', and he is constantly admiring every little thing about Lola. He is always complimenting her on how 'cute' she is (just this morning, while holding her on the couch, he kissed her on top of the head and said to me, "I love Lola, Mommy. She's cute."), and always saying how pretty she looks in her outfits. He especially loves her headbands, or the hats with the over-sized flowers or korker bows attached.

This past Sunday, after seeing her in her church clothes and hat, he declared:

"Oh, she looks so beautiful, Mommy! Lola, you are beautiful!"

It is so precious to see Cameron's love for his sister....

How we are doing: Ethan

I always want to remember what these early days with Lola were like. Over the next few days, as I have time to post, I am going to be jotting down my thoughts and a few things about how we are all doing, in a separate post for each family member.

Today is Ethan's turn....

Lola Claire has been such a wonderful addition to our family! With her arrival, we've all changed a bit, and there's been a lot of adjusting--but on the whole, it has been nothing but positive since she joined us.

The boys--Ethan:

Ethan loves to be right next to Lola at all times. Whether it means sitting next to me while I am nursing, next to Daddy while he is holding her in church, or on the floor with her during 'tummy time', he is right there with her whenever he can be.

And I mean right there. We are always very encouraging of him to be next to her....we just have to frequently remind him to "stay back from her a bit." *giggle*

Ethan wants to hold Lola quite often, but seems to always ask at the worst times. I try to let the boys hold her whenever they ask to--but the times Ethan seems to want her is when she 1. just woke up and is starving or 2. when she is ready for a nap and is fussy and grouchy. Most times, within moments of my handing her over to him, she is full-out crying. I will go to take her back, and he always makes sure I know that he is "not done holding her yet, Mommy!" One of these times, he'll get the timing right, I'm sure.

(You can see her starting to fuss here--she was crying by the time I put the camera down after snapping this shot!)

E, however, is most notably known around here as the 'blanket patrol'. Each and every single time Lola cries, he suggests that she needs her blanket--and then promptly goes about the house in search of it. He has his favorite one that he likes to bring her--he calls it "Woe-wah's bank-it"--and he insists that it calms her down.

Ummmm....the jury is still out on that one.

He will even share his blanket with her, in a real bind--and those that know Ethan would understand what a big deal this is for him. He LOVES his blanket more than life itself, and has never been willing to share it with his brothers--ever. (He would have fits in the car if they would even try to sneak a corner of it because they were cold!) It seems that he has quite the soft spot already for his little sister.

The other day, he had given her his blanket to use, and when she was nursing, she gagged--and then proceeded to projectile vomit all over it (and him, and me, and my couch....). I told him I had to wash it--a process he hates, for the very fact that his blanket is not accessible to him while it's in the washer. Almost every single day since that happened, at some point in the day, we have a conversation that goes like this:

Ethan: "Mom? 'Member when Woe-wah 'pitted (spitted) all over my bank-it? All over it? And it got so so so so yucky? And you had to wash it? In the washer? Member dat?"

Me: "Yep, Buddy. I remember that."

Ethan: "Yeah." *sigh*

And, that's the whole conversation. He'll probably never, ever forget that event, his whole entire life. *giggle*

But he's still sharing that bank-it. He loves her, in spite of what she did.

Let's hope that soft spot always remains for her.