Joey: 21 Months

For the first time ever, just a few mornings ago, I woke up to the sound of Joey laughing instead of crying. I was immediately confused and disoriented. What time is it? What's going on? I looked at the clock and it said 6:23. It was light in the room. Morning. Now I heard two voices, Timmy's and Joey's, and they both sounded like they were having fun. I went into their room and saw Joey out of his crib and the two of them playing. Okay! A little while later when I was remarking on how strange it was to hear Joey happy first thing in the morning, Timmy said, "He woke up good and I got him out before he got mad." And that is all fine by me as long as it takes place after 6.

This brothers' room-sharing success story is another sign of a partnership I see starting between the two of them. Neither of them had much use for the other until recently. Timmy was too young to take care of any of Joey's needs, and Joey was too much of a baby to be a buddy to Timmy. But now that Timmy has proven himself able to help Joey do things he can't, and Joey can now amuse Timmy as they play silly games together, we're seeing the beginnings of a beautiful friendship.

Another new development is that Joey, at long last, has adopted a lovey. I figured the window for loveys had passed, but as of the last few weeks every time he goes to sleep he does so while clutching "Car", a little blue Ford GT. Cuddly, right? It's about 6 inches long so it's not as easy to lose as a regular Hot Wheel would be. It used to be Delaney's, but after he dropped it one two many times and the doors stopped closing the right way, she gave it to him.

It never gets old hearing everything he says in his baby voice.There are a lot of motorcycles here in Okinawa, and Joey loves them all. He points them out and calls excitedly, "Gagoo! Gagoo!" The kids love getting him to say their favorite words, like 'poop' and 'butt'. He says the former like "put" except with p at the end, and the latter like "bet." It's hilarious and cute. And isn't it great the vocabulary we're helping him build? He's also starting to add some phrases in. For example, we'll go around the house looking for Car, and when we find it he says, "Eh you ah!"

He still loves his Elmo, and since we still don't have our TV I let him watch it on my Kindle a couple times a day. It's so nice for getting him out of my hair. He yells out the parts that he knows and sings along with the song. Annie got him a little stuffed Elmo at the Exchange.

We were at one of the sushi restaurants at American Village. The table they put us in is a little different than what we're used to. We have to take off our shoes, climb up some steps and then sit down on the floor with our feet going down into an opening in the floor. They provide these lovely boosters for the babies, but when the booster isn't strapped to a chair, you see what happens.

I've started taking him to "lap sit story time" at the library for babies up to two years old. He is at the perfect age for it. He loves the songs and the big stuffed puppy that goes around giving hugs. I love how laid back it is --- the babies can wander around and that I don't have to try to make him sit still and "behave". I used to try taking Timmy to a story time when he was that age, and they were very strict about kids not being allowed to move around or make a lot of noise. I had to take him out for breaks and what's the point of that? It's supposed to be for the toddlers, not for us. We're going there tomorrow morning, as a matter of fact.

There's a page in The Little Blue Truck where the toad character is smiling all big and toothy and showing his muscles because he's going to help; and Joey looked up at the page to me, smiling the same way. He is so cute and funny.

Last night after his bath I was holding him as I pulled pajama pants out of the drawer and selected just a random shirt to go with them. He said, "One. One," and reached toward the drawer as I was carrying him away. I went back to the drawer, and sure enough he wanted to pick a different shirt. Already?

This is our bedtime routine as of right now: At around 7, I tell him it's time to get ready to go night-night and bring him upstairs to put on his pajamas. Or if he's having a bath, I put on his pajamas afterward and tell him it's time to get ready for bed. Once he's in pajamas I take him back downstairs so he can make his rounds and give out his "mas" -- kisses. Once he's given everyone a "ma", I take him back up to his and Timmy's room and turn out the light. He always likes to take a look at the ferris wheel out the window, and I say, "Goodnight, beautiful ferris wheel." Then I nurse him and I say prayers and lay him down. He likes for me to kiss each of his hands. He holds up one and then the other. Then we blow kisses to each other as I leave.

I know I said I love watching him grow and change, but right now I kind of just want to freeze time. Is there a way to do that?