Nolan is simply amazing. He has already started crawling forward (at the same age as Alexander did -- which is no mean feat, given that Nolan is carrying around quite a few more pounds than his older brother did at that age) and his new favorite pastime is pulling himself up into a standing position, walking around the edge of the table or couch he's holding onto, and then falling down and bonking his head on the nearest piece of furniture. If he is unable to find a good solid piece of furniture to bonk his head on, he just whacks his head on the floor with as loud a ]thunk[ as he can manage.

He smiles all the time (except when he falls and hits his head), and is gurgling and cooing all kinds of sounds. His upper front teeth are breaking through, which has involved some degree of teething discomfort, but he's doing okay.

These past few mornings, Paulette has been getting up early to do some of her freelance graphic design work before it's my turn to head to the office to start my own work day. Thus, I am taking care of the kids from the time they wake up until Paulette is done with whatever she needs to do that morning. Nolan has been getting me up at roughly 5:30 or 6:00 each morning, but he's going back to sleep faster and faster each time I try to sooth him back to sleep. By 7:30am, he's just not interested in sleep, so he and I will typically go downstairs to play until his big brother comes down to join us.

As a late night person, I hate getting up early. But I'm loving spending these morning hours with my boys. They're happy to see me, we have a great time going through the morning routine (getting them fed and dressed is a game we all like to play, not a chore), and it gives me a chance to connect with them with no distractions. The work day arrives soon enough, and the evenings are too little time with too much that has to get done before they go to bed.

All that said, as Nolan's personality becomes more and more pronounced, interacting with him in the morning is increasingly special. He's just so delightful. Inquisitive and smart, definitely, but also pleasant and laid back -- all while showing a certain amount of determination. I've used these same words to describe Alexander, and both guys are about as easy as I can imagine children their age to be. Sure, their poop still stinks... but it's still easy to clean them up, too.

But while both boys have a sunny disposition, it's clear that Nolan and Alexander are shaping up a little bit differently. It's hard to put my finger on, just yet, but it's there. Some differences are probably just situational -- Nolan is still at a stage of discovery where little bothers him because everything is still new.

Nolan is taking to solid food more easily than his big brother did at the same age, and this surprises us not at all. Nolan has always been a bit bigger than Alex at the same age, and it wouldn't surprise me if Nolan outweighs Alexander within a couple of years. Nolan isn't constantly hungry, but neither does he completely refuse solid food when offered. His favorite right now is sweet potatoes. Must get that from his mother's side.

Happily, though, as he practices standing and side-walking and crawling, he's also turning that baby fat into muscle. This kid is solidifying quite nicely. (Unlike dumpy Dad.)

I have to admit that I get rather irritated at the general impression that our society has about the incompetence of fathers. Movies and other entertainment media reinforce the idea that dads are only good for teaching baseball (if that) and offering bad dating advice to their boys. Horse shit.

I change diapers, feed with bottle or spoon, rearrange rooms to make a safe play area, and supervise as much or as little as needed, depending upon the situation. I enjoy it all. I wish I could spend more time raising our sons than I'm currently able to do. I've offered to swap the workload (child-rearing versus job) with Paulette, but she's not going for that.

When Alex was born, I was underemployed. Most of my work was free-lance, and I did it at my home office, much like Paulette's work situation. Thus, Paulette and I split the efforts of raising Alexander pretty much fifty-fifty. I'm not capable of breast feeding, but Paulette wasn't capable of waking up in the middle of the night to take care of a crying baby, so we had a balance that worked out pretty well. For the record, I changed almost all of Alex's diapers for the first several months. Not that I'm keeping score -- I'm just trying to refute the "Cheaper By the Dozen" and "Daddy Day Care" presentation of fathers as being completely out of touch with taking care of children.

By the time Nolan came around, I was back to being fully employed and working out of an office away from the house. I'm therefore not getting as much quality time with Nolan as I did with Alexander at this age. (And, for the record, Paulette has arguably changed substantially more of Nolan's diapers than I have changed.)

As a result, this current arrangement where I take care of the kids in the morning is proving to be extra special. I'm getting that time with Nolan that I wouldn't otherwise get. At night, the ritual involves me putting Alexander to bed -- reading, teeth brushing, etc. Paulette takes care of Nolan in the evening. Now, finally, I get to spend that time with Nolan in the morning that I don't get at any other time of the day.

So why am I babbling so much about this? Because now I get to see more smiles from our little guy. When he smiles, it just lights up the world. It starts my day off on the best possible footing.

I'm starting to see the person Nolan is becoming, and I love what I see.