The Differences Between the Boys

If you are expecting consistency from this blog, I'll refer you back to its title.

My oldest turns two in three weeks and my youngest is 2 1/2 months old. Everyone told me that the boys would be night and day. So far there are some marked differences and some similarities as well. I figured this might be a good place to chronicle the differences and similarities. This is for my own reference more than anything else- I doubt this entry will have much entertainment value.

So far the big difference is sleep. Ted was going 6 hours between feedings at 3 weeks old. By the time he was 6 weeks old we were contemplating moving him out of our bedroom and by 8 weeks he was in his own room.

Henry's gone 6 hours between feedings exactly once. I'm still nursing him 3 times a night regularly, sometimes more. He's still in our room with no prospect of moving out. (Some of that is my fault though- he's moving into my sewing room, Nate's ready room, and every time I go in there to start getting things organized, I end up sitting down at the sewing machine and making something new. Recently it was 17 fabric balls, each having 36 pieces. I have more fabric on the sewing table now than I did when I went in to get it organized.)

Ted was late with every physical milestone- for this first time mom it was a little unnerving, but I'm over it now. He:

• rolled over consistently at 9 months
• crawled at 11 months
• walked at 19 months
• started talking, really talking, last week- that will at some point be the subject of a future entry.
• got his first tooth at 6 mos but started teething at 3 (this was on time)
  

The lesser milestones I don't remember. I'll check his baby book and see if I have them written down.

Other differences between them: Ted had periods where he'd cry nonstop for no reason I could ascertain. It didn't happen often, but it did happen. It was frustrating because I kept looking for a cause and a cure. Henry's a generally happier baby. Ted was intense- always observing. Henry's a lot more interactive. He smiles and burbles and coos. Ted required more laundry- every time I fed him, he pooped. Henry's gone as long as 8 days between. Ai-yi-yi what a mess that can be. Ted loved being in the car seat- I would put him in it sometimes when he was fussy even if we weren't going anywhere. Henry loathes the car seat. Ted would only sleep in a couple of places, but when he slept, he'd sleep for a long time. Henry can catnap anywhere. He even fell asleep in his grandfather's lap yesterday afternoon.

One main similarity is in build. They are both long in the torso and both have quickly grown out of their clothes. Henry's already pushing the outer limits of clothes that are labeled as being 3-6 mo clothes. Ted did the same thing. Not quite as quickly, but Henry was a half pound bigger than Ted at birth.

I'm looking forward to getting to know this little guy. We're beyond the newborn stage and Henry's personality is coming through. Ted has a lot of my intensity. I wonder who Henry's going to be like.

I'll update this post as necessary when things become apparent.