May I have your attention please?

We've been in Australia two weeks now.  While Evan started getting into an overnight sleeping routine fairly early, and the last few nights he's even slept all the way through the night again (something he had just started doing at home before our trip), he still struggles during the day with naps.  He fights and fights going to sleep even though it's clear he's very tired.

Evan has also become a lot more demanding, seeming to constantly want attention.  Sure, he may still spend a few minutes on his own entertaining himself, but for now it seems that the days of him entertaining himself (often times until he'd fall asleep for a nap) may be over.  Luckily, we have many helping hands around here, who are all more than eager to hold him, take him for a stroll, or read and play with him.  However, I hope this doesn't further reinforce his need for attention all the time!

We still wonder if Evan may be teething, as he loves to chew on things (including my fingers!), he drools quite a lot, and has been more fussy than normal.  He has also started to suck on (or maybe it's his attempt to chew on) other body parts, including my shoulder when I carry him upright, or even on Nana's arm when she's holding him in her arms.  He's very good at holding onto toys and of course putting them in his mouth too.

Nana wanted to caption this photo with "Ambition".  He does think he can fit more in his mouth than he really can though.  He's been working on getting his whole fist in too!

Evan props himself up really well during tummy time now and will probably soon be rolling over.  Whether it will first happen back-to-front or front-to-back, I'm not sure, but he loves to wriggle and twist his body when he's laying down, and seems so close to that first time when he will accidentally have enough momentum to flip over.

Having a good laugh during some tummy time.

He absolutely loves having me sing Patty Cake to him, while I help his hands through the motions.  John has started asking me to do Patty Cake on call, for guests, family members, you name it.  It's like his proud daddy way of showing off his son.  I can't blame him, who could resist seeing Evan smile and giggle (albeit his giggle is still more of a grunt sound) the way he does during that song?  His eyes light up and sparkle and he is truly (and so "cutely") happy.

Nonetheless, being the zero-to-sixty baby that he is (this nickname was given to him in the hospital by one of the nurses!) he can be laughing (again, more like grunting) one second, and then whining (also like grunting at times) the next.  Part of me hopes it really is teething that's making him so easily fussed and in need of extra attention, such that I hope when the teeth are in he'll be right back to the really easy going baby he was a few weeks ago.  However, it could still be a repercussion of jet lag, or just the change from his normal routine we'd had at home, or even just a new phase he's entered that just happened coincidentally at the same time as our trip here.  I've learned that life moves fast with a baby on board, as they are learning and doing new things at such a rapid pace.  So whatever is ailing us now may be ancient history a few weeks from now, therefore I am trying to not fret too much and just go with the flow.  See, I'm already learning some of the most important lessons of being a parent, now aren't I? :)

Just one last photo to show off Evan sporting one of his summer outfits (this one from Nanny and Grampy O'Brien)