The two sides of our youngest son

So our youngest little man is one of a kind.  Like many stories I have heard in the past, he is completely different from my first.  He's a talker, loves to tease people by pretending to give kisses before pulling away, and into EVERYTHING.  I mean everything.  All of my hair ties are used on our cabinet doors to keep Ethan out, because nothing else will.  Even still, he figured out he can wiggle his fingers into the slightly open cabinet door and then work his arm in to get what he wants.  He also figured out how to move furniture so that he can get up on the table, our beds to jump on, and can load and unload the washing machine.  He also knows the steps on how to turn the washer on to do a load.  If you don't want him to learn something (like how to take something apart), then make sure he can't see you.  He is a quiet child, stares at strangers and watches new surroundings before deciding to dive on in.  Most people who do not know him think he's always frowning, but if you look closely, you can see the wheels turning in his head.

One of the biggest things that gets everyone is his look he gives.  The little smirk and ornery look in his eyes he gives before he goes off on an adventure.  Even people who don't know Ethan very well say, "He looked at you and you could see the mischief in his eyes before he ran off to do something you don't approve of."  This is Ethan to a 'T.'  He will give me the "look" and you can see trouble in eyes, and then he runs off to do something.  When I successfully give him my stern face, telling him "no," he gets the biggest, brightest smile on his face that normally every mother would love to see.  Every time I see that look it makes me melt inside, though I never let him see that.  It is then that the realization hits that Dave and I are going to be in for a long ride trying to keep some reigns on Ethan, and just keeping up with him in general.  I asked Dave if he has noticed this look and he has verified that I am not imagining it.  He has also verified that David never had that look in his eyes.  I always wonder what Ethan will be like as a teenager and what he's going to be when he grows up.  I keep going back and forth on whether he'll run to exciting places at the first chance of freedom or if his closeness to mom and dad that he has shown from the start will keep him close to home.  With David, it's always been easy to know where his future will take him...Ethan is just an enigma. 

Ethan has a new funny quirk.  He loves buckets/baskets and carries them around EVERYWHERE.  It's getting difficult putting him in the carseat and buckling him in with 6 buckets he refuses to let go.  These buckets sometimes stay empty, or sometimes are full of just random items.  While getting ready for work one morning, it is in one of those buckets that I finally found my deodorant, another held one of David's shoes, and another held a bunch of matchbox cars. If we are coming over your house and you have a collection of baskets, I ask that you hide them, as I can't guarantee he won't try to sneak one out of the house when we leave.   

Both of my boys have beautiful brown eyes.  David's are a little lighter and Ethan's are considerably darker, almost black.  As you can see in the picture below, those big, dark brown eyes with incredibly long eyelashes can easily persuade you to do whatever he wants...if you're not careful! 

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Another one of Ethan's looks. Here he is trying to appear innocent before he attempts to feed the dogs the rest of his meal.