Making friends

Kyle and I have been pretty social lately. I think I go in spurts from wanting to just be home and not minding being alone with Kyle, to wanting to be with others and give Kyle opportunities to interact with other babies. Overall, I'm kind of surprised just how much of a homebody I've become. I was always really social growing up and through college, but since getting married and having Kyle, I really enjoy just staying home. Kyle and I get out many times a day and we both like the change of scenery, but I don't mind being with "just" him. And I don't feel like I bombard Rudy with adult talk later on either. Maybe that's the teacher in me. I'm used to interacting with kids all day. I just flat out feel so fulfilled being a mom. That, and all the other ways I've changed surprise me and I find it weird that I wouldn't have been able to anticipate those changes at all.

Well, we've had our share of play dates and I'm loving being a student of my son in this new way. He's become more and more social as he recognizes another small person in the room and sometimes tries to interact with them. So far girls are not a favorite (which is fine with mom ;)! Of course, I really know its just more about personalities than gender at this point. Over the weekend we saw a lot of friends who are at least a few years older and it was a bit different. Kyle got a lot of love from the bigger kids but wasn't interested in trying to understand them. Maybe he was just trying to keep from getting squashed by all the hugs and tugs he was getting. Yesterday we were with Elsie and later on we saw Jillian. Kyle didn't know what to make of both girls. Jilly and he just stared at each other and made weird faces. J is just 3 months ahead of Kyle so they were much closer in development and could relate better... in theory. Neither one would approach the other until we played outside by the ducks. Kyle curiously touched Jilly's hair and she poked at the alligator on his shirt. That was pretty much it. Then, when we brought them back inside, J went in one direction and K in the polar opposite. We could not get them to play together! Both have a "let me size you up before I decide whether to play with you" type of attitude, so we think it might take awhile.

Today we saw 1 year old Alexander. What a difference. It was a riot!!! They loved each other. Kyle was all smiles and squealed to get down to play. They followed each other from room to room and "talked" back and forth. It was so cute!! Unfortunately, the mommies wanted to go running, so the two boys were left to look at each other through the slits in their strollers. Next time...

So all in all, while I enjoy being home and doing our own thing... I am definitely excited about all our future play dates where Kyle and friends will get to know each other. Fortunately, so far, Kyle is sharing his toys. Even Mr. Fish.