Halloween | Shay-o-saurus

On the hayride with Mommy

Leaving the house to go trick-or-treating!!!

ROAR!!

Putting candy in my bag

I was really good about only taking one piece of candy

I insisted on walking most of the time

@20 months...

-My favorite word is, "Bye bye!" When I leave the room, when someone else leaves the room, when we say we are going for a walk, always! I even throw my pacifier back in the crib when Mommy gets me out in the morning and wish it a fond farewell - "Buhbye, pap!"
-Mommy taught me the Baby Bumblebee song and showed me the hand motions, then I walked around with my fingers interlocked and sang, "bay-bee-buh-buh-buh!" I even started to do the hand motions later when she started whistling it. She says I'm a musical genius!
-I know the sounds for a dog ("woo woo", cat ("mouw"), duck ("kack kack"), owl ("whoo"), bird ("tee tee") and (sometimes) elephant ("high-pitched "ooo")
-New word: "shoes." When Mommy or Daddy tells me to go get my shoes, I can do it. I also like to bring them my shoes and tell them, "Shoes bye bye!" since I know we need shoes when we are leaving. I can sort of put them on my own feet too. Sometimes I insist that we go for a short walk outside too
-I surprised Mommy and Daddy one morning, when I pointed to my cup and said, "Malk!" It was supposed to be "milk" but it didn't come out right! Since then it has also been, "Mork"
-I know some of the actions to the Itsy Bitsy Spider song, so I wiggle my fingers together, and twist my wrists, and put my arms up when it's the part about the rain
-When the 49ers scored thier first touchdown of the season, I was able to signal my first real touchdown!
-I'm putting more words together, like, "Go bye bye." and "I got it!" and "More nah-nee" (banana) and "I want dat" (while pointing) and "What dis?" and "Mommy more" and "More cookies!" "Daddy shoes"
-Being dropped off at school is getting a little better. I know that Mommy is going to come back, but I still wish she didn't have to leave. I still cry everyday, but it's not very long.
-I went with Mommy and Daddy to get sushi one night. They had the sushi, but I ate the edamame. Yum! I tried the rice off of chopsticks, but it was not my favorite. And then I flirted with the waitress and she gave me a small bag of M&Ms! I got such a sugar rush from the few tiny bites that Mommy shared with me that I was in the middle of the street that night at 8:30 trying to walk it off! Mommy said she was afraid that I was going to fall because I was walking so fast!
-I can hum parts of the "Wheels on the Bus" song
-My teachers at school taught me how to sign, "All done." by opening my hands and twisting my hands at the wrist. Now, I can say it too
-I tell my toys, "Nai nai." (night night) when I'm cleaning them up
-For some reason, every time I say, "Thank you." it comes out, "Thank you, Daddy." instead! It doesn't matter who I'm talking to either. Which gets Mommy some pretty strange looks in the grocery store!
-I'm also learning to say "Please" (sounds like "peace")
-I'm wearing size 12 months pajamas, and size 9 months pants
-I hold Mommy or Daddy's cell phone up to my ear and repeat, "Hi! Hi! Hi!"
-Sometimes, I ask for "more pap" if I'm not quite ready to wake up in the morning
-I've learned to bark ("woo woo!") at all of the doggies when we take Wrigley for his walk. It's what he does, and I want to be just like my big brother! I also like to point out all of the cars ("car!")
-I finger-painted at school, and chose green paper for Mommy's favorite color, and blue paint for Daddy's favorite color
-My second favorite word is probably, "Cookie!" I think it's because I usually get one after I say it
-After school, I'm a bit cranky. It's a long day, and I usually need about 15-20 minutes of sitting with Mommy watching YouTube videos to decompress! I'm starting to ask for videos by name ("Baa Baa" for Baa Baa Black Sheep and "Row Row" for Row, Row, Row your boat, and "Duck" for Five Little Ducks or "Baby" for the Baby Animals song or "Ol-mee" for Old MacDonald or "Bus" for The Wheels on the Bus and "Bee" for the Baby Bumblebee song)
-I say "play" when I'm walking into school
-I can answer questions with, "No." (and shaking my head, sometimes furiously if Mommy is attempting to get me to eat veggies again!) but don't say, "Yes" yet, so I usually just repeat whatever it is that I would like if I mean "yes." I can repeat, "Yes" though
-I've said "more" for a while now, but it's coming out "moy-ee" recently, kinda like "muy" in Spanish. Daddy thought there might be a little girl at school who speaks Spanish that I was trying to impress!
-I've been sick a few times with colds that I've caught at daycare, and Mommy will let me lay on her chest and sleep for a few hours at night so all that yuckiness can drain a little bit and I can breathe again!
-One weekend morning, after I woke up, Mommy put me in bed with her and Daddy and Wrigley. We were practicing everyone's name, so I said, "Daddy" when she pointed to Daddy, and then I said, "Mommy" when she pointed to herself, and then she put my hands on my own chest and said, "Shay" so I repeated it, "Yay." We did it all again and I repeated, "Tay." The third time we did it, Mommy put my hands on my chest and I tried to say my name before she told me, but it came out wrong and I said, "Puppy!" We all giggled!
-I can correctly repeat, "Shay" now
-I had my first over night away from Mommy (if you don't count the first several months of my life!). Mommy and Daddy went to a wedding and I stayed at home with Grandmommy and Grandaddy. I got to say goodnight to them over the phone though
-I still say, "Oooooh!" after I burp
-The war on all veggies still wages!
-One of my favorite things to do is walk in circles around the dining room table. I'm still getting a kick out of the fact that I can walk!
-In an effort to show Mommy that no, my tantrums are not meant to be funny, I've upped my arsenal of tantrum behaviors to include: putting my head on the floor, throwing myself on the floor, going completely limp when she tries to move me, and throwing my head backwards, in addition to the usual whining, protesting, crying, and stomping. Note to self: attempt in public more often as I am usually given animal crackers from Mommy's purse in response to above behaviors
-A car doesn't count as an animal, but I know it's sound: "Vroom! Vroom!"
-When Mommy holds a tissue to my nose and tells me to 'blow.' I just make noises with my mouth!
-I help wipe my face and hands with a washcloth after I eat. And usually my feet and hair too!
-I smell all of the flowers in all of my books. It's just what you do with flowers
-Almost every time I see Daddy, I 'beatbox' at him (blow short bursts of raspberries). I smile really big because I know it is our special thing
-My flipflops went missing for a week. It turns out I had put them in the doggie toy basket instead of the shoe basket!
-I can hold the bubble wand and dip it myself. Still need help with Mommy holding the bottle even though I try to get her to give it to me. I know to put the wand to my lips and can make bubbles now. Every once in a while though, I can't resist and stick the wand in my mouth! I'm not sure why I can't remember that it tastes bad!
-I had picture day at school. Mommy didn't end up ordering any because she couldn't decide if I was cuter in the picture where I was crying or in the picture where I was staring blankly at the camera with my mouth hanging open!
-My bottom molars are almost all the way in and my top ones are barely peeking through
-When Mommy picks me up from school, I immediately drop whatever I am doing (even if it's a spoon full of applesauce!) and run to her. I always say, "Mommy!" then smile SO big, while tucking my chin to my chest giving me at least a dozen chins, and put my arms out, fingers spread, palms up, for a hug, while I walk bouncily over to her! Sometimes, I'm even so relieved to see her that I start crying. God help the teachers who need to take me back to wash my hands off or change my diaper after I have spotted Mommy!
-I like to alternate between walking on the sidewalk and walking on the grass when I walk inside from the car. Three steps on the sidewalk, three steps on the grass, three steps back on the sidewalk, three steps back on the grass...
-When we go on walks without Wrigley (when I am literally walking, not being pushed in the stroller), I like to pick up everything ("Leaves!"), and pull the stuff from the drainage grates, and poke my fingers in every spider web I can find on people's tires in the parking lot!
-Mommy didn't even have to say, "Thank you, bye bye!" to the lady at the deli counter who gave me a small slice of turkey
-Apparently I talk in my sleep. Mommy said it's mostly in the morning when I'm waking up, and usually I talk about Mommy or Daddy, but sometimes, "puppy"
-I'm learning to use a fork to eat my egg in the morning. I can hold it correctly and put the egg and fork in my mouth and get the egg off, but it's the getting the egg on the fork part that's the hardest!
-I can stack four large blocks like a champ!
-One morning, when Daddy got me out of my crib, he flicked on the big overhead light, and I told him, "Bright!" (Mommy taught me to say that when the sun gets in my eyes)
-All the kids in my books are "boy." Even the child on the side of my yogurt cups is "boy."
-I felt silly one week and added "ie" to the end of some of my words, so "duck" was "duckie" and "bup" was
bup-ee" and "book" was "bookie"
-I remember certain things about books that then become the 'title' of that book to me. So one of my books is called, "Moo" because there is a cow in it and that's what I like to find in that particular book. Sometimes, I will stand in front of my book shelf and say, "bubble bubble bubble" over and over while pulling out each book until I have found the Clifford book about bubbles! Mommy and Daddy eventually caught on and help me look for the book I want
-My third favorite word is "muffin" ("muh-in"), and this is also because I usually get one after I say it! Mommy told me that she put shredded sweet potatoes and carrots and zucchini in them so I would eat veggies, but I can't taste them
-I like taking books outside with me when I go to the playground at school. One of my teachers said I must be more mature than the other children because they eat the sand and I like to sit and read books!
-I had a little bit of a rough time adjusting to my later naptime at school and was upset during the first outside time of the day for a few weeks
-Mommy showed me a picture of a girl in a bed in one of my books, and said she was going 'Night night," so I put my head down on the book, closed my eyes, and said, "Nai nai!"
-I tell Mommy, "NECK!" ("next") when we are listening to music in the car and I don't like a song!
-In the morning when we are getting ready to leave, I will tell Mommy, "Hurry up and put on your shoes, because I am excited to get to school and play with my new friends!" but it comes out: "Play. Bye bye. Play. Boys. Shoes." Sigh, I wish my speaking skills would catch up to my typing abilities!
-I try to open the fridge my myself, and when I can't, I say, "Pull!"
-I announce, "Hot!" if I feel my eggs and they are still a little bit too warm!
-My favorite game right now is 'chase' but I usually get so excited that I end up running toward the person and falling into their arms! I also love being ticked and laugh/scream/squeal when Mommy tickles my collarbone or squeezes my thighs! She calls them my "fat legs" even though I don't have a bit of fat on them!
-I've been sick a lot more since starting school. I didn't have a fever and I wasn't acting sick when I had a cold this month, but I had a pretty nasty cough that made me tired since I didn't sleep much at night
-Mommy hung a clothesline in my room for me to hang my artwork on. We do crafts a lot at school and I'm always bringing things home that I've made!
-I've finally decided to call Wrigley something. I thought that I would have figured it out a long time ago, but Mommy and Daddy call him so many different nicknames and he's also "Dog" and "Doggie" and "Puppy" so you can see why I was confused! It sort of sounds like, "Dee Dee" but there also times where it sounds like, "Ree Ree"
-When Mommy takes me to the library to pick out new books, I think it is my job to pull every board book off of the shelves and yell, "I got book!"
-I like to point out the babies in books and magazines ("Baby")
-Daddy is trying to teach me about soccer. I repeated "Sah-kuh-bah" (soccerball) a few times and stood extremely close to the TV when it was on. I also got my soccerball from the toy bin and told Daddy, "Kick!" I'm getting better at using my feet to move the ball around, but might have to be a goalie since I pick it up a lot too!
-One of the teachers at school told Mommy, "He's a really good boy." She was talking about me!
-I've learned to say, "No more" when I'm finished eating (often combined with signing 'All done' and repeatedly saying, "No no no no...")
-I like to feed Wrigley treats, so I go over to where his treats are kept and grab on of the bag of treats and bring it to Mommy or Daddy and say Wrigley's name. Sometimes, I start to move the treat toward my mouth, but they remind me to let Wrigley eat it, not me. I'm getting much better. They don't taste very good! And I make sure to tell him, "Good Boy" when he takes the treat nicely from my hand
-I finally got my fourth lower center tooth...after all of my molars came in. I don't remember hearing anything about preemies and weird order of teeth emergence!

Ta-da!

"Neck!"

I thought this was supposed to get easier...

Oh, well this way is pretty easy!

Nope...Mommy said I had to use the spoon...

Maybe if I just open my mouth wider!

Taking a lap around the dining room table again!

Maybe if I hold the food still...

"Boy!"

"I got book!"

Eating a "muh-in"

Puddles | A walk in my new shoes

 Daddy and Mommy decided to take me for a walk to see how I would do with my new shoes. This is what happened instead:

NICU followup clinic visit #3

Actual age: 19.75 months

Adjusted age: 16 months

Weight: 22 pounds, even (5th percentile)

Length: 30 inches, even (5th percentile)

Head circumference: 19 inches (50th percentile)

First, the nurse asked Mommy lots of questions: "Is he eating table foods?" (Yes) "Is he drinking whole milk?" (Yes, well, sort of, 2%); "I see he is walking." (Yes, for a few months now) "What words do you think he is saying?" (Uh...he has right around 50 words) "Wow! That's 24 months! Is he putting two words together?" (Yep) "Excellent. I don't need to ask any higher questions."

Then, I had to do some funny things like put blocks in a cup, and put pegs into a board with holes in it. I got three in a row and then she turned it around. I put one peg in the middle of the three remaining holes and then had some trouble navigating in between pegs to put the last two in, but finally got it. I did a puzzle with three shapes, a circle, a square, and a triangle. The nurse gave me a circle piece and I got it in the first try. But then she turned the puzzle around so that the circle cut out was on my left. I tried the square first. Nope. Then the triangle in the middle. Nope. Then the circle on the end. Yep! She clapped for me and I gave her the biggest smile! After that I pointed to some body parts. I was kinda shy, but she counted it when I went to lift up my shirt to find my bellybutton, but didn't pull it up to show her. And I found my hair and nose for her too. She showed me these really funny-looking black and white pictures and I had to find the dog, shoe, and star. I kept pointing to her shoes and Mommy's shoes instead! I even told her, "Shoes!" while I was pointing  in case she misunderstood that those were shoes, not the funny-looking things in the picture.

Next the doctor came in and started asking Mommy odd questions like, "Is he pulling up on furniture?" (Oh yeah. For a long time now." And can he balance on his own standing?" (Yeah, but he didn't really stand on his own until after he started walking) "Oh, he's walking?!" (Um, yes.) Then the nurse burst back in the door and apologized for sending the doctor into the wrong room! So silly! But the nice doctor stayed and talked to Mommy for a while anyhow. He asked about my background and seemed quite perplexed when he found out about my PVL and saw how well I am doing developmentally. The nurse explained that my Claim to Fame was my "roving PVL" (remember that it was on one side and then the other side the following week, with no indication that it was ever on the original side? And then would switch back? And it SO frustrated Mommy and Daddy?!). He said, "How unusual." Mommy shared her theory that it must have been so tiny that they couldn't really tell where it was! The doctor then said things like, "cystic" (must not be a good thing) and "sizeable" (yikes!) to dispute Mommy's theory. She said, "It doesn't matter to me if the mystery is ever solved since he is on track!" The doctor then stroked his goatee while pondering how out of the ordinary it was to have a "cystic" "sizeable" PVL and be developmentally appropriate. (Ok, I lied, he didn't have a goatee!) He called me a "case study" since I guess I don't fit into the norm. Mommy called me a "miracle."

Then the correct doctor came in. He wasn't much of a talker though. He showed Mommy my yellow 'report card' and tapped on my knees with a mallet and checked my feet for reflexes. He also pushed and pulled my legs all over, in and out, to check my joints and muscles. Then he said, "Everything looks good." What I think he meant to say is: "Hooray! You deserve a party!" while jumping up and down. Then Mommy asked if I still had two ages. The doctor said since I was all caught up, I only need one age now! So I went home with one age and no nap, and we took a two hour nap on the couch! Which was way better than any party would have been! Maybe. Unless said party had cupcakes!

Another trip to the zoo

Staring intently at something in the reptile house

Whee!!

"Daddy! Look! A bear!"

"Cheese!"

"Whoa! A tiger!"

"Uh....I think he wants to eat me..."

"Did you just see that?? Close call!"

On our way out

Beach photoshoot

@19 months...

-I can stand up on my own! It only took two full months after I started walking to be able to get up into a standing position on my own. I have to start on my hands and knees and then put my heiny in the air with my hands and feet on the floor. Then I bend my knees so I’m in a squatting position and push up to standing with my arms out to the side for balance!

-I’ve been to the petting zoo! It rained the night before so it was pretty muddy and a little difficult for me to walk and Mommy had to carry me with my legs out to the side. I wasn’t scared of any of the animals either. I guess since my Wrigley doggie acts like one, I’m pretty used to it! Even when I went in to the pen with about 20 goats three times my size, I just walked around like it was the most normal thing ever. Their noises made me giggle! I got to feed the goats and cows right from my hand too! Not scared of that either, since I’ve shared my Puffs with Wrigs since forever. I watched lots of different birds in their cages, but this huge turkey with a big, blue, warty gobbler hanging from its beak kept following us around and would randomly shake all of its feathers and gobble really loudly. It made me jump and Mommy squealed a few times!

-“Mama” is no longer a distress call! I will actually just say, “Mama” to acknowledge that she is in the room with me. I guess she likes it too because she always scoops me up and gives me a big hug when I do that. I also say it to get her attention and to let her know I’m happy. It came out “ma-ma” for a while, but now I call her “Mommy” because she’s says that’s her favorite!

-I announce when I am finished eating by yelling, “Bup!” and ripping my bib off and tossing it on the floor

-I’m starting to label pictures in books. I know baby, banana, duck, ____. I can point to some pictures if you ask me to where they are: ball, duck, banana, dog, bubble, apple, strawberry, book, doll, blocks, shoes, tiger (“rar!”), star, milk, and puppy

-When I walk around (often without a destination or purpose, but purely for the sake of just walking), I rub my fingers and my thumbs together

-Mommy pointed at Wrigley, and asked me, “Who’s that?” I said, “Banana!”

-When Mommy tells me, “no no,” I look at her and repeat, “no no.”

-Since Mommy taught me to blow on my eggs when they are too hot, I held up every piece of egg for her to cool off the very next day, and then blew on them myself just to make sure!

-At my 18 month doctor appointment, I screamed bloody murder when the nurse attempted to measure my head circumference…and my length…and when the doctor looked in my ears…and nose…and mouth…and when she laid me down to check my diaper parts. Mommy told me that there was no shots at this visit, but I still remembered all the times this winter when I was there and got shots and they had to hold my legs down. Mommy had to fill out multiple questionnaires at this visit. My communication skills were age-appropriate, as in, age-appropriate for an 18 month old, not my adjusted age of 14 months! I blame Mommy for ‘therapy-ing’ me all day on speech and language stuff. My social/personal skills were borderline (but age-appropriate for my adjusted age), and my motor skills were still below (but also age-appropriate for my adjusted age). I weighed  20 pounds, seven ounces (6^th percentile), was 30.2 inches long (2^nd percentile), and my head measured 48 centimeters (67^th percentile). The doctor said that my head size has evened out a bit and is not growing as steeply on the curve. Horray!) At this rate, I’ll hopefully be able to wear the 18 month hats I own for the next year!

-When I visit Grandmommy and Grandaddy’s house at the pond, I walk around the kitchen and open all of the cabinets that don’t have child locks on them, and then walk right by the ones that do and say, “ah ah!”

-I’m a little bit southern when I say, “bye” and it comes out, “Baaaaah!” I’ll let everyone know when I’m leaving the room too: “Byeeee!” and when I’m returning: “Hah-eeeee!” Sometimes it comes out “Byes” or “Buh-bye”

-I can sing the first five notes of Baa Baa Black Sheep: “bah bah bae bae hae”

-New word: “more” (“moe-uh”) I request more food, more things, and more actions. I also say “more” when I’m hungry or thirsty, even if I haven’t had anything yet! Mommy says I sound a little demanding, with my tony pointing finger and my furrowed brow. So now we are working on saying, “More, please.” Since I can’t say ‘please’ yet, one time I tried, “Thank you” instead. Mommy said that will work for now. She did not, however, like when I repeatedly hit Wrigley in the face with my sippy cup while telling him, “More! More!” I thought he might be thirsty too!

-Another sentence: I brought Daddy a book and asked him to read it to me: “Dada book.”

-Mommy asked me one day at breakfast, “What’s this?” about a banana. I answered, “mine!”

-I’ve been using “Bup” to mean “Down” too, but sometimes I’ll repeat, “Dow”

-New word: “gentle” I say it or repeat it when I’m petting Wrigley nicely, usually right before I grab fistfuls of his fur and squeal!

-I ask to go “nai nai” for naps and at night. Sometimes I have to let them know to hurry up or I’ll lose it: “Mama nai nai!”

-I can follow some simple directions! (Do I sound like a speech pathologist’s son, or what?!). I know how to “Go get…” and “Put in…” and “Come here.”  And “Put your hands up.”

-New words: “Mmm, good!”

-I ask, “What dat?” or more often just, “Dat?”

-Mommy and Daddy still have a picture of me on the refrigerator from when I was tiny and one day I pointed at it and said, “Baby!” (“bah-bee”)

-I watched T.V. for about five minutes this one time. There was a short cartoon-y music video on between shows, but I lost interest as soon as the actual show came on

-My last day of play gym class was August 21^st and I learned how to do a forward roll on the balance beam and a front flip over the uneven bars. The rings are still my favorite though. Daddy came to my last class and watched me play and exercise. I was so excited that he was there that I would participate for a few minutes and then randomly walk over to him really fast to give him a hug and say “Dada!” When I started play gym, I couldn’t even walk! That’s actually one of the reasons why Mommy started taking me (besides it being super fun!), to build strength and confidence to hopefully help with walking. I guess it worked!

-I had my second haircut. I chose to sit in the fire truck seat and held a toy train in one hand while eating animal crackers with the other (We went to a place that specializes in children’s haircuts until I learn that it’s not torture!)I didn’t cry or cream or wiggle at all (see all distractions listed above that obviously worked!), but I did jump a few times when the snipping got close to my ears. It was a really informative 10 minutes! The lady who cut my hair talked to Mommy the entire time and shared all sorts of information about what she thinks my hair will be like. She said that I will get more hair! She said that you shouldn’t be able to see scalp and that my hair will get thicker in the front (it’s normal at this age for the back to be thicker), and that my hairline on my forehead will be lower. She pointed out the line of peach fuzz on my forehead. She also said she’s not sure where my hair will part, since my front cowlick goes to the right and my back cowlick goes to the left. Sounds like a perfect combination for a Mohawk it you ask me!

-One of my new favorite games is called, “Take-everything-out-of-the-recycling-bin.”

-When I am super excited about something, I make this gravelly inhale noise that sounds like a lawnmower!

-New word: “pap” It means ‘pacifier.” When I try to say ‘paci’ it comes out, “papi” and then it got shortened to “pap.” So now I just say “pap.” And I can repeat “bye bye pap” when I leave it in my crib, or tell it “nai nai pap” I still like to hold all of my ‘paps’ when there is more than one in my crib

-When we were out past my bed time one night, I pulled out all of the stops to let Mommy and Daddy know I was ready to go home: pointing to the door, walking them to the door, “bye bye!” “Mama nai nai” “bye bye Dada”

-When I’m happy and I know it, I clap my hands and stomp my feet!

- I stayed a few hours with some of Mommy’s friends. It was the first time in over 18 months that I have stayed with someone other than Grandparents! (Not counting the four months in the NICU of course!) It was not the greatest experience, but it was definitely not the worst either

-New sentence: “Thank you, Dada.” (“dang-do dada”)

-So embarrassing: One day I was playing with my pajamas while walking around and got them stuck on my head covering my face. Instead of stopping to take them off, I kept walking while trying to pull them from my head and walked face first into the tower air purifier in the living room!

-Mommy handed me an empty fruit cup and told me to put it in the recycling bin. (She was trying to fix me dinner and I’ll admit that I was being less than pleasant, so she was distracting me). I took it right over to the bin, lifted the lid, and tossed it right in!

-I can push the stroller across the living room while the wheels are locked

-I give kisses with my mouth wide open. Or you could opt for me to blow you a kiss, because I give those too!

-Hats are still my mortal enemy! A walk around the lake takes about 20 minutes and I took my hat off at least 100 times. Mommy put it back on my head at least 101 times!

-Can repeat “Grandmommy” (“mom-mom-mee” or “gay-mom-mee”) and Grandma (“dam-ma”)

-I’m great at animal sounds! I know a sheep says, “baa” and a cow says, “moo” and a Grandmommy says, “ah ah!” J

-Daddy taught me to go, “aaaaah!” after I take a long drink

-I shake my head ‘no’ in response to questions like, “Want some…?” or “Want more…?” I’ve started to say “no” too

-I’m not such a great traveler anymore. I only nap for a maximum of two of the three hours that it takes to get to the Delaware pond house and then I’m fussy the rest of the time. Sometimes I even need Mommy to reach around and hold my hand for a little bit. She wiggles her fingers and then I squeeze her finger the same number of times that she wiggled

-I love watching YouTube videos! My favorite is the guy who sings the songs really slow and drawn out. And he’s from New Zealand like the kids in my other favorite video: “If You’re Happy and You Know It” Maybe I just like New Zealand accents!

-I know the animal sounds for a cow (“moo”) and a lion (“rar”), and can repeat “bark bark”, “quack quack” and “neigh.” I’m trying to make a pig and elephant noise too

-I have associated “nai nai” with getting to go upstairs and have my pacifier, so sometimes I tell Mommy “nai nai” just so I can have some time with my pacifier, not because I’m sleepy!

-Sometimes I bring Mommy a book and tell her, “Sit!”

-Most of the time I walk around the house just for the sake of walking! My favorite circuit is around the dining room table between the chairs, around and around and around. I also like to have my snack while walking. I’ll get a small cracker from Mommy and then take a lap in the table and check back in to get another cracker. I’ll eat my entire snack like this some days. Since I don’t have to keep my arms up in the air any longer for balance, I often swing them back and forth at my sides like I don’t know what to do with them!

-I can repeat “push” and “pull” when helping Mommy open doors and cabinets

-When I walk past things I’m not supposed to touch, I’ll say, “no no” or “ah ah” to remind myself. But it doesn’t always work!

-New word: “doggie”

-I love to give Wrigley his treats and will ask for “more” to give him

-Daddy and I hung out an entire day when Mommy started going back to work, and he taught me to beatbox. He said since Mommy had already covered the basics, like walking and talking, that he would teach me the cool stuff. Now, whenever he comes home or comes in the room, I ‘beat box’ at him (blow explosive raspberries with my lips a few times)

-Another day I stayed at my friend Avery’s house. I was fine at first and then started saying, “Mama, bye bye” on and off for two hours! It exhausted me because I ended up putting myself to sleep on a mattress, with my bottom up in the air

-I went to the water park right near my house for the first time. Mommy and I played on a pirate ship that sprayed water everywhere and rode down water slides together. We went in both the big lazy river together and in the kids’ lazy river in my own tube! I can’t wait to go back next summer

-I’m a big fan of hugs and walk over to someone and fall in their arms when they bend down and stretch their arms out. Sometimes, Mommy even gives me upside-down hugs!

-Both of my upper first molars have come in. Mommy didn’t even know until she saw them on a picture she took of my upper center teeth!

-New word: “shoes” Sometimes it’s just “shoe” or “too.” I bring my flip flops to Mommy or Daddy, or bring them their shoes, and let them know, “shoes!”

-I’m working on finding my nose and ears when someone asks. I already know hair, feet, and bellybutton

-I like to sit in the small space between the sofa and fireplace. I have to turn around and back in bottom first and then slide down the wall into a sitting position

-New word: “poopie” I pointed at Wrigley when we were talking him potty and pointed at Wrigley when he was ‘going’ and announced, “poopie!” I also repeat “poop” or “poopie” when I have a dirty diaper

-The first day Mommy went back to work, I missed her so much! That night, I took a nap on her chest, which I haven’t done in a really long time. I looked up at her, told her, “Mama,” and patted her chest. She said she might quit her job if I keep doing that

-I sing the “Row row row” part, and Mommy sings the, “your boat!” part. Then I repeat it at least 30 times

-I wiggle my fingers together when we sing, “Itsy Bitsy Spider”

-New word: “Puffs” and another sentence: “More Puffs” (“moe puh”)

-I knew to clap my hands and stomp my feet the very first time we read, “Here We Go ‘Round the Mulberry Bush.” I think it’s because I watch the “If You’re Happy and You Know It” song all.the.time

-I can say the “k” sound pretty well, and say ‘book’ and ‘cracker’ and ‘car’ and…

-New word: “cookie” It sounds like “khaki” though. And I emphasize the first “k” sound so it sounds like I’m making static in my throat! “kkkkkhaki”

-I had a run-in with the shoe basket and rocked a slight black eye for a few days this month

-I’ve been practicing with a regular sippy cup recently (not a straw one), and am getting pretty good. I’m still confused at first about whether to tip the cup backwards or keep it upright to use the straw, but I catch on pretty quick

-I can blow bubbles myself!!!

-Mommy read in her baby book that she used to put clothes or pajamas on her head or around her shoulders and walk around with them like that, just like me!

-I can walk on my tip toes if I want, and I’m getting faster and faster, but not running yet

-New word: “toy” or “toys”

- I woke up really early and had to take a nap in the rocking chair with Mommy. I told her, “Nai nai, Mommy” and then put my paci in my mouth
-I started ‘school.’ Mommy doesn’t like to call it daycare, so she calls it school instead. My first day wasn’t so great and I cried all day! I only slept 45 minutes at naptime, and they had to take me on a walk around the lobby so I wouldn’t wake up the other children. I kept telling the teachers, “Bye bye!” and taking their fingers and pulling them to the door, but it didn’t work. I was a good eater, and then even let me feed myself with a spoon (which Mommy and I haven’t practiced enough to just let me have a bowl full of yogurt!) Needless to say, I was covered with yogurt from head to toe, and I literally mean it was on my shoes and my hair was crunchy because the first thing I did was get a big spoonful of yogurt and put it right on top of my head! When I saw Mommy at pick-up time, I burst into tears. Each day since then has gotten better and better, but I still cry when Mommy leaves, and when I wake up from my nap, it just doesn’t last as long anymore. The second day, I was covered in applesauce, and the third day it was paint. Notice a pattern here??

Hahaha. That was funny!

Wait....what?

Greatest outfit EVER! Thanks to my Auntie Therese for the sweet new kicks!

Stop! You. Right there. Yeah you! Give me more banana!

I'm still having this problem with saggy pants. Anyone know what to eat  to make your heiny grow??

My chompers. Look really close and you can see my upper molars!

WHEE!

Ready? Set. Empty the recycling bin!

Here Uncle Keith. Eat this!

Can't see me...

Here I am!

Just another day at the office

Mommy and I on the first day of 'school'

"Perpetual Motion"

'Real' cape. At least the one Mommy used to be forced to wear when she played whatever sidekick Uncle Keith needed her to be!