Crime and Punishment.

When Alex was in his early months of existence, everything he did was lauded as an accomplishment. We'd encourage him to bang things with his hammer, cheer him on when he could throw a toy, and beam with pride as he vocalized his feelings with bouts of random screaming. And for the most part, it's still very adorable to see his communication skills and expressive skills developing through these actions. However, as we surpass his 15-month marker, we're realizing that at some point, we're going to have to start the good old discipline. And we know it all goes downhill from now because we have a teenager with a lying compulsion.

For the most part, he has free rein of his terrority. Heck, the living room is basically his domain - it's like a second-hand toy store with furniture. Santa shops here for the kids. But there are some things that are starting to either be dangerous or just annoying. Dude, you can only turn off the TV for the 22nd time before I get a little miffed. And it's not like I'm watching the Spice Channel's special on "Pornstar Bloopers" or anything, he could be watching The Wiggles and he'd walk up to the telly and turn it off. And on. And off. Then the captions. Then the volume. I'm usually counteracting with the remote, but that only works for a while before I realize that because he's standing 2 inches from the TV, the infrared doesn't go through Alexes.

And he's into everything. He'll camp out in the fridge if he had the opportunity, emptying eggs, drinking ketchup, and pouring out the liquid specimens I have in there.

They're for research.

And we babyproof as much as we can, but I never realized how many dangerous things exist within children's grasp until now. He's proven that swinging doors can be hazardous, and I have to second guess the cheese grater now when he pulls it out of the drawer. What if he decides to run his tongue up and down it? Screw that, what if he enjoyed it?

Last night, when we were hanging out and he was leaning against my leg, he decided to fulfill his cannibalistic desires and chomped down on my knee. Of course, I didn't expect that since he wasn't even nibbling on it before. It was just like a sudden CHOMP. So I jumped and yelled, and my knee jerked him and he flailed about before landing on his side. And he bawled his heart out. I felt bad for scaring him, but told him not to bite people anymore. I'm sure he was listening.

We've talked about playpen timeouts, but it's still a little iffy if he understands cause and effect, action and consequence, or good and bad. Perhaps for now, I should put off the idea purchasing an electric cattle prod until I know that he understands the difference.

Dollaraire!

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My Little Z-Bear

I'll be the first to admit that Zoe does indeed get overshadowed by her brother a lot. After all, he's the showier one who can now climb over couches and chairs and like a good showman, put on quite an act. And perhaps Zoe is well aware of this and is slowly starting to speak up for herself, so I'll dedicate this post to her!

As I mentioned, Zoe is definitely far more vocal, even more than my wife's two daughters. Zoe has a way of letting you know how she feel, and she's been doing that for quite some time now. Pretty impressive being 3 months old and all. I like it when she's sitting there, looking at you, and suddenly she'll coo and squeal out a very audible expression, just to let you know to pay some attention to her. She'll also express her discontent quite readily, with a cute little warble that may be a distress call in nature, but cute as hell to listen to.

She also has a great little smile - sometimes it's a coy smile, sometimes it's a happy smile, and sometimes it's just a smile that lets you know, "Yep, I'm pretty proud of myself too!" She has very expressive cheeks and a great little smile that just brightens up your mood. Whereas Alex is playful in his smiles, Zoe's is sweet and accepting.

She's also got a great brain, 'cause in addition to the early talking, she's already learned how to reach for things. She'll bat at the rattle that's in front of her if she's there long enough, and she's a great listener when it comes to noises. She also found her thumb really early on, and she sucks that thumb with gusto, I tell ya. Whenever she gets tired, all you hear is "Slurp, slurp, slurp."

I also like it when she's awake in her crib, just chilling out. She'll coo and talk to herself, or maybe she's telling stories to Alex and letting him know that once she gets to be his age - he'd better watch out. Cause then she's the boss of him.

I watch Rollie Pollie Olie with the babies and there's a character named Zoe, and it reminds me of Zoe. It lets me imagine that that's the kind of personality she'd have, and always amazed by her older brother, always giggling at all the fun things to do.

I like the way her eyebrows furrow sadly whenever she's not getting what she wants. Her lower lip would curl in to show how sad she was, and she'll give you the saddest little look in the world. At which point I usually laugh at her and give her a kiss because it's too adorable to be sad.

I love my Z-Bear, and I can't wait to hear her tell me more stories.

Not that I'll be able to prevent it anyway.

Me and the Boy

Truck

Horsies

One of the few photos that turned up.