Reflections of a New Parent of Two, Part 2

The next in the series of initial observations I've made in my five weeks since becoming a parent of two under two:

3. Toddlers are fascinated with babies. Except maybe your own toddler.

You can barely keep others' delighted little hands from your baby's face, while your own kid will barely sit for a picture with him.

I can understand, though. From his viewpoint, this little loaf-of-bread-sized human has invaded your world and is taking up some of Mom and Dad's time and attention--Not to mention it's no fun; it only sits there staring and making noise. It doesn't even have WHEELS, for crying out loud. It makes sense that you might not be super excited about this whole 'baby brother' business right away.

Discouraging as it may seem at first, however, things do improve. Why, not long ago, Sonny yelled, "BABY!" and biffed Little Bro's sock monkey at to him... with more enthusiasm than we wanted, but it's a start.

Over the past month, I've seen Sonny warm up to his little brother, pointing out his feet or stalling bedtime by asking to say goodnight to him. He'll come over and pat him on the head while we encourage him. It's a wonderful thing... I think.

I'm confident they'll be great buds one day. In the meantime, I'll probably just keep an eye on things, lest my baby boy mysteriously somehow end up curbside in the recycling bin.

To be continued...

Reflections of a New Parent of Two, Part 1

When I announced the upcoming arrival of our second son in December, a (somewhat humourous) Facebook friend asked, "But... what will this do to your cartoon-drawing time?" Ah yes, seems I hadn't thought this through.

Good news, though; I have managed to find some cartooning time in the five weeks since our little boy was born. Thank goodness for the Moby Wrap for allowing me hands-free parenting time to break out the drawing tablet!

So now I have two delightful boys under two (I know, right? *cue scary music*), which apparently means I have my hands full. Nonsense. I just have twice as much to draw about... twice the love, twice the smiles, and 18 times the laundry.

Now, I'm new to this parent-of-two business, but I've made some initial observations since bringing a baby brother home for my almost-two-year-old, which I will share with you.

Reflections of a New Parent of Two, Part 1:

1. Toddlers grow about a foot and gain ten pounds overnight when you have a new baby.

When you see your tiny toddler again after spending three days with a floppy newborn, you may just fall over. My little boy is officially enormous.

HOWEVER,

2. This does not mean they are too big for baby equipment.

A toddler may show renewed interest in baby swings and bouncy seats, which I can report do hold at least 25 pounds (at least momentarily).

To be continued...

Big Jammies to Fill

I still see my son, at 21 months, being so tiny. Heavier, but tiny. Aww, such small shoes, small jammies. I enjoy watching someone that small bombing around the house on little legs.

But wow, nothing makes you realize how much your 'baby' has grown like seeing newborn stuff again.

His jammies are HUGE! When did he become such a big galoot? I've been watching the whole time!

Uh Oh, Shoes!

WHY DO THEY TAKE THEIR SHOES AND SOCKS OFF ALL THE TIME?!

That's rhetorical, by the way. I don't need to know why.

I did hear recently, though, that a toddler's needing to take his/her shoes and socks off is a sign of sensitivity, and a person likely to grow up having empathy. I like that.

The actual taking off of shoes and socks anyplace, anytime, I don't like as much. Especially with winter coming.

 Incidentally, do winter boots come in hip-wader style?

The Stuffed Animal Crew

Lots of little kids have a favourite stuffed toy. Apparently some kids like to amass a crew of them.

My son always had his sheep (no longer stuffed), which has been renamed "Fwah" for some reason... but now he also has Doggie, Lion ("Ria") and Teddy. He has deemed them his bros, apparently, and they must travel together.

It's fun to go along with it, except for when he wants them all at the dinner table with us, or when we're trying to get going in the mornings. Or, you know, pretty much get anything done.

Anyone else's kid have a crew of buddies? Hmm, maybe it's a sign he's ready for a little brother...

Zonked

Hi folks,

I know I haven't posted a cartoon in a while. It's not because I'm extremely busy, though.

For some time now, we've been expecting our second child for Christmas. Though he seems pretty low-maintenance at the moment, it means that after a day of work and looking after the little guy, this has been my evening routine:

My husband and I have been renting a fair amount of action films lately, mostly because we both know I won't last longer than the first 20 minutes no matter what the movie is. No point in getting something I'd enjoy!

Needless to say, then, with 'awake time' and 'down time' being mutually exclusive these days, my drawing time hasn't been at an all-time high lately. But I've been witnessing a lot of material.

Now, I'm sure some might say that once our second is here, I'll be so busy and frazzled I won't have time for anything, let alone drawing.
In fact, some DO say.
In fact, EVVVVERYONE SAYS IT. (That, and "are you INSANE?"- Thanks, fitness instructor! A little bit, yes!)

Ah, it's always nice to get warm words of encouragement and good wishes. Especially when you're already beat to a snot. 

 Luckily I didn't just fall off the turnip truck and so have an idea what's coming. And yet, we're excited!


 All that to say more cartoons will come soon. I swear. Thanks for following.

Eye?

Warning to parents: If you teach your child the names of body/face parts, be prepared to have yours pointed out with great enthusiasm when you least expect it. Eyes seem to be a favourite.

We don't have any pets, but legend has it that a pet's eye isn't safe within miles of a toddler either.