Buddies

Here are some more pictures of Erin and Alex from our infamous picture day. I am posting them together because they are such good buddies. These two really do get along so well and always have. Wherever they go they have their best buddy to play with. When Alex was really little (about 18 months) he started getting scared in his room alone at night, so we put him on the floor in Erin's room and they've been inseparable ever since (although he has an actual bed now). For a long time they even slept on the same twin bed until he got his own bed. All the kids decided that they wanted to have a boy room and a girl room, which means that Erin and Alex will be separated, so we'll see how that goes. I think mostly they just want girl and boy decor, but other than that I think they would be perfectly happy sharing a room for a few more years.

They do so much together and have a lot of the same interests, aside from Erin's make-up phase and maybe her dance class. They both love to draw/color/paint/do art and they are both starting to get very interested in playing the piano. Whenever Erin learns a song, it's not too long before Alex has picked it out as well. His most recent is the 7th Article of Faith. They are constantly coming up with new, creative things to do like have Karate class, build forts, write their own books and make up new games. Erin, admittedly, is in charge, but for some reason Alex is cool with that. The world needs followers too, you know (speaking from experience, you can be a follower and still be a productive member of society). Alex is great with playing with Marissa too, but she is a bit of a bully sometimes. He is genuinely a kindhearted and gentle boy. I honestly can't think of a time when he and Erin have really fought. They laugh a lot and are always having fun. I hope that they will always have a close relationship as the years go by. They are both so lucky to have each other.
And yes, those shoes are way too small for Alex. He has a bit of a hard time transitioning up to bigger clothes. His favorite swimsuit, for example, is a 12 month size. 12 months! The only reason I didn't take it out of the swimsuit drawer is because I have another baby two kids younger than him who is that size. Really, he has other swimsuits but he doesn't like them to touch his knees. Believe me, I try with him, but he is set in his 12 month ways sometimes. I finally convinced him that he can only wear that suit in the backyard and not at any public pool or water park. Hopefully it'll take. Oh, and he does have bigger shoes too, but you know, these are kind of the favorite pair right now.