A Little Girl in a Boys World

When we got pregnant with Neal, and found out we were having a boy, I knew my whole world would be changing.  Not only would it be changing simply by the fact that Tyler and I would soon be parents but also changing because we were having a boy.  Since I come from a family of all girls (except for my dad), having a boy was going to be a whole new world for me.

The last few months I have started to see how different life will be for Gwendolyn too.  I never grew up around boys so my house and memories are filled with lots of girly things.  I remember playing with barbies, Rainbow Bright,  My Little Ponies, having dance parties and reading Little House on the Prairie.   I never remember even hearing much about any Superhero, Ninja Turtles, pirates, or having battles.   I'm sure there will be lots more girly things coming to this house now that Gwendolyn has arrived.  However the environment Gwendolyn is growing up in is so much different then mine was.   I can already tell she loves all her brothers toys (she even picks them over her dolls/books sometimes).

I love watching Neal's imagination and how he is always pretending to be a different superhero.  You wouldn't know that we owned any toys in our home, because if you come here you will most likely only see superhero costumes and any random object being used as a sword or gun.  

I love the toys that fill our home, and the new adventures I have with Neal every day and I especially like watching as Gwendolyn takes it all in from her little seat in the middle of the room.  She can't take her eyes off Neal when he is running around playing a superhero or "saving the world".   Gwendolyn is going to have a lot of different memories then I did.  She is going to be well versed in superhero lingo, and will surpass my knowledge of these things before I know it.  Just look here...she looks pretty excited about all these action figures.

When we play trains here we don't drive the trains around the nicely constructed train tracks (as I would have growing up).  The trains here are on a collision course for each other and usually some dinosaur, superhero, or Godzilla is destroying the trains and the little town within seconds.   I know Gwendolyn will have tons of fun with her brother and I'm sure she'll take on the roll of the princess who needs saving sometimes, but I also think she'll be pretty good at battling and "saving the world" right alongside her big brother.

March 10 on 10

We remembered to do a "10 on 10" photo day this month!  I meant to take a picture each hour but the day got away from me.  This shows our day yesterday, March 10th, not necessarily spread out by each hour but close enough...

7:30 am - Still sleeping

With the time change this week our little Gwendolyn has been sleeping later 

8:00 am - Breakfast for Everyone 

Gwendolyn is now eating rice cereal and Neal is enjoying his "talking cereal" (rice krispies)

9:30am - Headed our for run 

A beautiful sunny day for a run with good friends - the best thing was Tyler was home so I didn't have to take the kids in the stroller :) 

12:00 pm - Getting dinner cooking

Slow cooked drip beef sandwiches for dinner...the house spelled so good all day

1:30pm - Cleaning Project

Trying to get some things done while the kids nap

2:30 - Trampoline Time

The perfect day for a jump

3:30 pm - Hanging outside with Mommy 

Watching brother jump and enjoying the warmth and sunshine 

4:30pm - Ahoy Mate!

Neal sailing his pirate ship and looking though his "telescope" 

5:30pm - Playtime

She is learning to put in her own binki - such a great skill to have :)

7:00 pm - Playing with the neighbor

Nothing like a fun evening pulling the neighbor boy behind the tractor 

One Extra photo to end the day:

7:30 pm - Sunset 

The very end of a beautiful sunset, this is when I wish I had a different camera then just my phone.  It was so gorgeous in person. 

A great day, with great sunny and warm weather!  Sure hope this spring weather decides to stay around.

Gwendolyn: 5 Months

Time seems to be passing even quicker these days then I though possible.  I am sitting here thinking, where have the last 5 months gone?   Neal summed it up great the other day when he said "What!?! Are you kidding me?  Gwendolyn is 5 years old?"  I had to correct him that she was only 5 months old but really I'm sure she'll be 5 years old in just a blink of an eye.

Here is a quick summary of our sweet girl at 5 months -- 

Smiling

Laughing

Eating her toes (every time the shoes/socks come off her toes go into her mouth)

Just starting to sit on her own (for short periods of time) 

Rolling over (however she mostly chooses to just stay in one place) 

Loves tubby time 

Loves to sleep (which makes us all very, very happy) 

What I am really these days is watching her and Neal interact together.  Neal can always make her smile/laugh and is always quick to come to her rescue if she starts to cry.  You will often here him say "Gwendolyn, what's the problem?" or "do you have a smile just for me?"  Gwendolyn can always be found watching her brother if he is in the same room.  She loves watching him "fight" battles and run around.

There is already so much that I have seen that will be different for Gwendolyn growing up with a brother compared to what I was use to, growing up with all sisters.  But I'm saving some of those observations and details for another post...