Sweet Babbling

It was hard for me to surrender to the fact that Ethan didn't need a morning nap any longer. I guess it happened sometime after Christmas. Morning nap time was always "my time" to read the Bible or get ready for the day. I think Ethan needed a break from me too :-) Giving up a morning nap also meant that Ethan wanted to crash for his afternoon nap before or around lunch--not too ideal for the schedule. So taking the great advice of my sister, I tried putting Ethan in his crib for quiet playtime in the morning around the time he usually took a nap. I left the curtains open or the lights on, put toys and books in his crib, and let him play. It worked GREAT!! At first he would play for a few minutes, fuss, and then fall asleep. Now, he usually stays in his crib without fussing for 30 minutes. He comes out a happier, less-fussy boy than went in :-) My favorite part of this is listening to his sweet babblings. I hear him reciting names of people he knows, "reading" his books as best as he can and singing at the top of his lungs ("singing" consists of the word "la" put to his own melody). He does also throw all of his toys & books out of his crib one by one, but hey, it keeps him entertained! My favorite was last week when I heard him say "tittle-tittle" (tickle, tickle) and then giggle. I guess it's amusing to tickle himself :-) On rare occasions, he still falls asleep during these morning "break" times.

(yes, his wet diaper is protruding through the bottom of his outfit :-( Bad mommy!)