Wow! Where has the time gone? I did such a great job keeping up with Colin's monthly updates until he turned one, since then I've definitely been slacking. So, now I'm left with trying to recap the past several months...here goes...
Colin is now walking.
In August and the beginning of September, when we were up in Pennsylvania he was really getting the hang of it and could move from one piece of furniture to another, always with a close destination in mind. I had a feeling that as soon as we left our family and headed back home he'd start to actually walk...sure enough he started in the airport!
Alright, so this isn't actually a picture of him walking but he was having the grandest time at the airport. He loved looking out the window at all the airplanes and workers. He especially enjoyed all the people at the gate. I'm pretty sure this is what prompted him to start walking. It actually appeared as though he was showing off for the crowd and he was so proud of himself! I wish I could have caught it on video, or at least a good picture but between trying to keep track of our luggage, watch Lilly, and chase after Colin all by myself there was no documentation to be had.
Colin is talking.
As I've mentioned before, Colin's first word was Lilly followed by Mom (not Mommy or Momma, just Mom) and Dadda. Shortly after this he began saying "duck" which was one of the first animals he really seemed to take a liking to (well besides dog). It probably helped that only a short walk from our house is a duck pond and Colin loves to go see the ducks. Our neighbor, across the street, has a duck statue and every time Colin gets out of the car he points and says "duck". It's quite a ways away and it really surprised me that he even noticed it in the first place. Colin is one aware little boy.
After duck followed quack and a whole slew of animal names and sounds. I think his favorite is making the "ssssss" sound for snake and whenever you say dinosaur or monster he will yell "Raaaaa!!!" In addition to the car sounds which he did back before he turned one, he now makes the sound for a spaceship and an airplane. I've been pushing the airplane quite a bit lately and trying to help him understand that Daddy flies planes. Besides sounds, Colin has said a lot of other words but nothing too consistent. He'll go to the back door, bang on it, and say "outside" and Mimi and I swear he said "Hi Mimi" on the phone the other day. Mommy also swears that Colin said "That is Daddy" when pointing to Daddy's picture but I could have been hearing things. By far the cutest thing is when Colin's giving Lilly a treat he will say "siiiiiit." He occassionally does this from his high chair before throwing down food he's decided he doesn't want...it's not so cute then but sure does give me a good laugh. I'm so proud of Colin and how well he communicates with me. He is an amazing listener and works hard to use his signing and words to tell me what he wants.
Colin is getting into everything...and I do mean everything!
This was actually taken back before Colin started walking. He's become quit the climber and the dishwasher is one of his favorite things to climb. He's broken a plate at our house and one at Mimi's....
Before Daddy left, I made sure he baby-proofed most of the house unfortunately there were a lot of places we missed! With Colin getting into everything Mommy was beginning to go nuts. Fortunately, I found these wonderful clips at Target for drawers which were perfect for our bathroom drawer and desk drawers. I also purchased a new trashcan as I could not take Colin pulling one more piece out (and usually attempting to eat whatever it was...) As you can see he wasn't too happy about the changes...
Luckily, he is now adjusted and is playing with his toys and reading books a lot more since there are much fewer distractions. The new thing I have to start worrying about is the fact that he will push a kitchen chair all the way over against the stove. His next step is going to be climbing onto the chair and doing god knows what else. I think we are in the market for some oven baby-proofing tools!
Colin loves to read.
At any given time there are books all over the house. Colin will often go into his bedroom and go through all of his books. This is a pretty typical scene:
Colin is a chef.
If Colin isn't reading he is usually cooking. Back in August, I picked up this wonderful little kitchen at the consignment shop for $8. It's been the best $8 I've ever spent. I found the perfect little spot to put it in the kitchen so Colin is able to play and make his own food right along with me. At the time of this photo Colin wasn't even walking yet but was able to pull himself up on the kitchen to play.
Colin is always looking for new things to play with in his kitchen. Often stealing things out of the fridge or recycling bin. Sometimes I wish I could just freeze him in place when I open these things so he can't wiggle his body in to take something.
Colin got ahold of this bottle one day and literally carried it around all day. He loves to pretend to drink and eat.
Finally by bathtime he figured out how to open it...
Gotta stir real good!
All done and waiting for the bread to come out of the oven. Colin had amazing self control and didn't try to eat any of the batter. He did, however, repeatedly say "mmmm" and smack his lips throughout the preparation.
For our next cooking adventure we made peanut butter cookies. This time I decided to buy a tarp to cover the floor so I relax and not get stressed out as ingredients flew out of the bowl.
Since our cookies, Colin has also made his own quesadilla using our quesadilla maker (in an attempt to get him to actually eat the corn he put inside) and pumpkin bread.
Colin has become a picky eater.
Notice not only the adorable smile in this shot but the pears which have been pushed over to the side.
Fortunately, Colin will still eat out of the pouches and gets some fruit and veggies that way. He'll usually have applesauce in a pouch once a day. Sometimes I will try to spoon feed him some applesauce. He refuses to let the spoon get anywhere near him and I end up just letting him play with the bowl....
As for veggies....its even worse. There isn't a single vegetable Colin likes anymore. Coming from a kid who was an amazing eater for that first 6 months or so this has been very discouraging. I've tried to get really creative with the way I disguise veggies in meals therefore Colin eats a lot of veggie pancakes. I basically choose a veggie (cauliflower, zucchini, broccoli), mash it up, add a few eggs, bread crumbs, and cheese then bake or fry it. Even these he sometimes refuses but usually I can eventually get him to eat it, even if its on the third day of trying.
I was really excited about this creation and really hoped he'd eat it...
apparently it was a lot more fun just to play with it.
So what does Colin like? Any sort of cracker type snack, cereal, eggs, hot dogs, cheese sticks, macaroni and cheese, lasagna, and stuffed shells. Of course, if I can't get him to eat anything at all, there is always Chik-fil-a...
Colin is still a silly, social bug.
Our little boy LOVES people. I mean loooovvvesssssss them! It can be difficult to fully meet this need to interact with Daddy gone and all of our family hundreds of miles away. One of Colin's favorite pastimes is looking at all the photos we have around the house. And yes, he even talks to them.
Wearing an appropriate shirt....Colin shows off his silly side by playing peek-a-boo with Lilly's blanket.
At least a few times a week, he'll drag the blanket out of Lilly's cage, carry it around the house, and randomly stop to play peek-a-boo.
Colin is a future keyboardist.
This photo says it all:
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| He brought the small keyboard over so he could play them both at once. |
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| Love this smile. |
The past few months, Colin has been transitioning from two naps to one. It's made for some long days and lots of passing out in the car. We're looking forward to getting into a consistent nap routine sometime soon.
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| When outside he likes to sit on his chair like Mommy sits on hers. |
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