Woven and Spun

Snips, and snails, and puppy dog tails; That’s what little boys are made of.

I remember watching an interview with Johnny Depp where he was describing the birth of his son and daughter. He said his daughter was instantly fragile and precious while his son seemed to come out of the womb running into walls. Well, being a first time mom, I don’t know how true it is, but there do seem to be some distinct differences between baby girls and baby boys, and I don’t mean just the obvious . Drew is developing his own little boy antics, and I thought I’d share some of them with you:

• The Ravenous Beast – My friend Liz told me the other night that she didn’t think she could ever nurse a boy – Liz has four daughters. She said she was with a friend once while she was nursing her son, and he had his arms flailing and his legs kicked up on her. I laughed when she told me – perfectly able to relate. When Drew is getting ready to eat, he throws his arms all around and grunts and snarls. Tim just looks on wide-eyed, thankful that he is a guy, and as he says, “not able to do that!”
• The Pirate – since his birth, Drew has had this funny habit of looking at you with just one eye open. Now that he has gotten more vocal and started smiling, he will open one eye, flash a crooked grin, and make a growling noise – Pirates of the Caribbean watch out!
• Snooze Button Please – Most of the time, Drew enjoys a good sleep, the problem is usually waking him up! He goes through this entire stretching and grunting ritual that takes anywhere from 15-45 minutes to get through before he is fully awake. We are already wondering what life is going to be like when he is a teenager – he’s going to be a snooze button abuser.
• The Pout – Now that Drew is more alert and interactive, we’ve noticed some definitive facial expressions emerging. One of them is the pout. Drew has become a master of the pouting, quivering lower lip accompanied by the most pathetic whimper you will ever hear. We already know this look is going to get him pretty much anything he wants (and we think he knows it too). Watch out future babysitters…and weak family members (including sometimes Mom and Dad )
  
• Mr. Clean – For the first few weeks of life, Drew never seemed to care if his diaper was dirty or not, but in the last few weeks, he has developed an opinion on the subject, and ‘clean’ is definitely his preference. When you take off his dirty diaper, he actually starts smiling and laughing. We are hoping this is because of the clean diaper and not just because he likes being naked.
• The Contender – Drew is just starting to learn to use his hands, although coordination is definiatley not his strong suit. Mostly he just jabs at the things he wants (or doesn’t want). Last week, very early in the morning, I was lying on the bed with him after feeding him. I was just in the middle of the thought of how precious the moment was when Drew socked me right in the eye. Yesterday, he was even more risky and knocked Daddy right in the nose. We are assuming right now that these gestures are accidental…but Daddy let Drew know that he is not going to get away with that for much longer.
• The Adventurer – A few weeks ago, Daddy began playing ‘Daddy games’ with Drew. He would hold him vertically and bounce him up and down so Drew looked like he was jumping, he would fly him around the room like an airplane, and other boy games like that. Most of the time, Drew loves it – and often it stops him from crying. The other day, I was home alone with Drew and he began having a meltdown. I tried everything to calm him and finally resorted to jumping him up and down like Daddy. Drew settled down and even started trying to throw himself around, indicating he wanted to do more, when I stopped, tired from lifting the heavy little booger. Daddy has managed to create a miniature daredevil…and Mommy is going to need to start lifting weights to keep up