Blake's Growing Up!

I've been wanting to do an update on Blake for awhile, especially since he turned two and half in December.  But since he's had a lot of changes lately, I want to keep updated on what he's been up to, because apparently things can change quickly. 

 Two weeks ago Blake was sleeping in a crib with a pacifier- not his pacifier of choice but he still found one to use in the meantime since we "lost" his favorite one.

Then last week, after I put Blake to bed and he'd had a completely normal day, he started fussing around 10 pm and Luke held him for awhile and then came back and said that Blake didn't want to sleep in his crib. I probably should've pushed it but I went along with it and got him a pillow and sleeping bag and laid on the floor with him until he fell asleep. Big mistake...sigh.

The next day Blake absolutely refused to take a nap even though he was exhausted. Unfortunately it was also my first day watching a little three year old boy who I'll now be watching twice a week, so having him there didn't help Blake's situation. I finally got him to lay down in my bed with me but it really was no use. He just wanted to go play and the idea of him taking a nap was literally giving him an anxiety attack. And the next day was the exact same.

 

Feeling discouraged and exhausted that Blake's 4 hour naps were officially a thing of the past I asked if Luke could start getting Blake's bed set up that night while I was out at mutual. And right at bedtime, he texts me this picture of Blake sleeping soundly in his new bed- I was blown away.

 

So for the rest of the week Blake refused naps in his bed, though he was successful in getting me to take a quick nap in his bed! Ironically, on Saturday's Luke has been able to put him down for a nap, but then he doesn't go to bed until almost 10 at night, so I've let it go. I was really sad at first to let the naps go since he'd always done so well, but turns out he's been just fine without a nap too and is happy to just keep playing all day. And now that I'm getting more used to it, I enjoy the freedom that allows me again! So I guess we're all growing a little bit ;)

Oh and with the change to the bed, after the first few days he's also weaned himself off a pacifier and seems to have realized he doesn't really like it anymore. Sometimes he still likes to hold it but almost never puts it in his mouth anymore, so I'm hoping he's done for good. He relies more on his blankie and duckie for comfort. Actually, he LOVES his duckie- he's even given him pajamas and asks me to change duckies diaper, haha. Here's a picture of him with his blanket and duckie back at the hotel during the wedding along with a couple other cute pictures of him my sister took.

Lots of silly faces and smiles!

Blake has quite the personality and can go through a range of emotions in a very short period of time. He will still flop on the floor when he's upset, and if he doesn't want to answer a question or doesn't like something he will pout and "pfft" with an eyeroll. His dramatics and big eyes and sweet voice sometimes make it hard for me to get upset with him. Like this picture of him sticking his peanut butter sandwich ends to the wall- how can you get upset when he is so cute and proud of himself?!

A lot of times he is very silly and loves to giggle and play with Jacob- though usually Blake's way of playing is by tackling his older brother. Blake loves trains, and cars, and practically anything that Jacob is interested in too, and is very possessive of his toys. We are still working on his behavior with other kids, and also his diet- he is literally the pickiest eater I have ever seen. He sure can be stubborn at times but he can also be the sweetest and cutest little boy.

Sometimes I still like to think they're my babies, but I guess Blake is slowly growing to be a big boy!