Let's Sit and Read...and Sing!

Yes, both.  Christmas evening Ethan decided it was about time that he could sit by himself.  He's come a long way very quickly since then.

Look what I can do Grandpa!

So big and tall!

He's a big fan of books too.  He loves to read, and Ethan was super lucky to get so many great books for Christmas.  We read a lot at home, and they read multiple books everyday at daycare.  The colorful images on the pages and the sing-songy rhymes are pretty good at keeping his attention.

Ethan started daycare on Monday.  So far, I couldn't be happier with the program.  He seems super happy there and seems to really enjoy the interaction with the adults and kids alike.  Being a learning center, they do all sorts of great things with the kids.  They read, sing, play instruments, dance.  He scooted though an obstacle course on his belly today, and made his first refrigerator art.  Ethan also was introduced to sign language for the first time today.  They are working on "more," "please," and "cold." All the teachers at daycare comment on how happy he is...even on his first day! We're so proud of how well he is adjusting.  He's even NAPPING!!

Speaking of napping, we started "sleep training" last week. I can't believe it, but it actually seems to be working! When Ethan wakes up at night, we work really hard to get him to fall back asleep without a bottle, rubbing or patting his back in his crib.  The goal is for him to fall back asleep, and if not, to at least delay the feeding by a half hour. When he calms down, we let him fuss in his crib until he falls back to sleep.  If he gets upset again, we go back in and start over. Repeat until he sleeps or until the half hour is up, whichever is first. The hope is that the next night, he wakes up at the new postponed time instead of his "regularly scheduled feeding."  Well, so far so good. He sleeps better and better every night. Last night he didn't wake up for a bottle after 10pm.  I'm sure being worn out by all the school fun is helping too, but I will say that it was working even before he started his busy weeks. If nothing else, he is definitely doing much much better at falling asleep on his own. Now to see how long it lasts...Until then, I will enjoy my zzzzzz's.