4 years and 15.5 months

Shep had his 4th birthday yesterday! He's getting to be such a big kid now. He's really obsessed with building guns from blocks right now. He did that with Daddy almost every day of spring break a couple of weeks ago, and has carried that activity on his own nearly every day since. He likes wearing "short pants," regardless of the weather, with a shirt that's tucked in and a belt. He's recently got into superheroes and Star Wars, as well. With the new movie, The Force Awakens, that came out at the end of last year, there was a lot of advertising and merchandising, so I think his initial exposure came from that. This week he got to see some of the real movies though and although it may not have been the fulfillment of all his expectations ("Is this a people movie?" he asks, as opposed to a kid's movie), he still enjoys his birthday stormtrooper mask (he is happy to have one like his cousin Mason's finally) and "shooting." Guns make me uncomfortable, so this isn't my favorite phase, but it's still fun. He was pretty into balls for quite some time before this, but his interest in sports has worn down a little. Despite this, we did sign him up for soccer again this spring, which he seems to be enjoying.

Maya is 15.5 months. She loves to walk, but mostly she likes to do so with the support of mom or dad. She has been walking with us holding her hands for quite some time and has been able to take steps independently for a couple of months, but she is too cautious to forge out on her own. I recall Shep being the same way, and while this abundance of caution seems like a somewhat unusual baby trait, I suppose it helps them get fewer bumps and bruises! Maya is kind of a tease sometimes. She's still majorly uninterested in other babies and adults outside of her little sphere, but she's getting less upset about social interaction with the outside world. And sometimes with those who are a bit familiar to her but not necessarily in her comfort zone, she is a tease and a flirt. She seems more stoic than Shep was as a baby (I think I read something about how studies support that girl babies are less expressive than their male counterparts)? She's a good pal to always have around. I carry her around a lot. She's been fussy and clingy a lot the past couple months, but I think she's starting to feel a little better. She spends all her time with her brother, so they are buddies. We got her a little slide that she can climb up and slide down, which she loves. She still loves to eat pretty much anything although teething at times has made her uninterested in food. She's a really slow teether, like Shep, but she's been doing a little better about sleeping at night instead of waking up crying as she had been. Unlike Shep, she seems to like to color, but I don't often get stuff out because Shep is totally not entertained by it. She loves to be outside and wants to be playing in the dirt all the time. Perhaps most fun of all is that she's starting to talk! I'm pretty sure her first word was poop although she doesn't really use that one anymore. She is not super consistent about any of the words she really knows, but she says hello and bye bye, apple, mama, daddy, bubble, etc. She's constantly forming new words and mimicking us, so it's hard to think of all the words she knows.

Maya 12 months

Maya turned one! I can't believe it's been a year. And what a whirlwind year it was. Poor thing didn't get much of a birthday celebration because we were moving the day of her birthday, but she's changing all the time! I know I just posted about her, but I wanted to remember some other things about what she's doing right now:

• Interested in walking but only if her hands are being held. Daddy helped her walk up and down the stairs several times the other night, so she was in heaven.
• Also sometimes when we're holding her hands, she'll bend her knees and start bouncing. She's into jumping and bouncing overall. 
• Not so interested in eating food lately, but super interested in feeding other people! It's funny and her favorite thing.
• She really likes carrying around little objects like chapstick or toothpaste tubes or things like that.
• 4 teeth total have broken through on the top, and 3 on the bottom.
• Maya HATES strangers! She really really doesn't like other people or other kids. This is kind of funny to me. She has deep, deep stranger anxiety. I don't know if I'm recalling incorrectly or not, but it seems worse even than Shep's stranger danger. Shep when he was a baby seemed okay with kids or other babies, but even if other kids or babies get in Maya's bubble when I'm not holding her, she will lose it. And sometimes even when she is in my arms. 
• Maya seems a little less chill than she used to be--she must be sensing all the changes that have gone down over here and the general limbo that we seem to be living in. She is rather clingy and doesn't like to play by herself or be put down a lot lately.