Pictures

Since the last post was long this one is just pictures. These are all from the past month. Enjoy!

look at those eyes

Evan the train conductor

cheese

I drew Mommy right there

peek a boo

helping clean the house

wore this hat most of the day

new hat new day

playing with his bud Frank

milk....yummmm

Evan stacked these all by himself

Evan knocked these down all by himself

Evan having an "ice cream" sandwich for the first time

he likes it

Had to do it all by himself

It was gooooood

Spring has sprung..and not a minute too soon

I am slacking on my blogging duties and will try to catch up on as much as possible. Evan is literally changing daily so I will try to do my best.

We are so so happy that spring is here. It feels that Evan has been more sick than not this winter season. I told our doctor when we were there AGAIN the other week that Evan should have the immune system of a super hero by the time he enters school! We have had many sleepless nights and our fair share of watching too many kid shows. Once we can get out doors again and get in the fresh air I hope the germs will dissipate.

We have really lucked out with Evan and traveling. He loves the plane and even asks to go on it again when we land. A 2 1/2 hour flight is not that long and seems to be good for him since he no longer wants to take naps on the plane. It was our first trip with Evan totally mobile and we were worried what was in store for us. He did amazing! The most excited he got was when we were in the Seatlle airport and he saw a plane with Mickey and company painted on it. He was screaming "mickey, duck" while running to the window.

The three of us just got back from Arizona where we watched our cousin Dana get married. Evan is very excited for our new cousin Brian who also has red hair :) It was a beautiful event and Evan did an amazing job meeting so many new people.

While we were in AZ, we watched Evan's vocabulary flourish. If you ask him to say a word or a name he tries his hardest to say it. He can now say many family members name's and many other things. Evan can now also count to 2! He needs both hands as he counts 1 on one hand and 2 on the other.

It's so amazing to watch his brain work and connect. The other big thing that Evan is doing is identifying letters and the sounds that they make. We watch a DVD from Leap Frog called The Letter Factory and it teaches the sounds. Evan will tell you the letter when he sees it on the screen and is working on their sounds. He actually points out letters on everything.

This past week we have hit the independence stage of toddler-hood. I have been bitten, laughed and at screamed at all by Evan. We had a few days of HORRIBLE temper tantrums. Evan would just sit down wherever and scream and cry. I had the joy of Evan having a tantrum at the children's museum and me carrying out a screaming, kicking child to our car. That seems to have been the worst for now but Evan has his moments.

Some things we just never had to worry about with Evan since he didn't seem interested or we thought he understood it wasn't safe. WRONG. In his streak to push every boundary he can. Evan likes to keep going towards a hot oven to touch and laughs when he is told it is hot and dangerous. So much fun :)

We love being able to talk and interact more and more each day with Evan.

Sorry for the super long post just trying to catch up.

Will try to post more frequently and pictures will follow soon

Sam

18 months

I keep meaning to get on here and update but a busy toddler and an exhausted Mommy at the end of the day don't help. My baby is now a full blown toddler! He talks, disagrees, walks/runs, throws temper tantrum, has become a very picky eater and LOVES to try and say what we do.

Evan asking for more books since he doesn't seem to think he has enough

having fun with his toys

Loves his Thomas

At Evan's 18 month check up he weighed 25.8 lbs, 33 1/2 inches and his head measured 19 1/2 inches. So he is in the 40% for weight, 75% for height and 90% for his head :) The doctor thinks Evan will be about 6' when he gets older. Luckily Evan has slowed down in growing unlike his first year. We are able to keep clothes a little longer than before. Evan is long enough to wear 2T clothes but is no where near 27 lbs. So he will have saggy pants for awhile :)

Evan went to the allergist yesterday to be retested for his food allergies. I was hopeful but the allergies are still there. The good part is his reaction was less than it was 6 months ago. The doctor is very hopeful that Evan will be able to eat dairy and eggs before he is 3. We did learn that when Evan does test negative for his allergies it is going to be a VERY SLOW introduction. Like a tablespoon a day of milk (mixed in his formula) for a few days and then slowly increasing the amount. We had also mentioned how Evan has had croup 2 times in 2 months. The doctor said that if Evan gets it one more time in the next 10 months we will need to see them. Croup can be an indicator for asthma for a child with food allergies. 90% of children with food allergies get asthma! Fingers crossed that Evan will be in that 10%.

I went away for a weekend and left the boys to fend for themselves, it seemed to go great. I got in the car and Evan could care less that I was gone. All he said was "door".

being cute as always

playing in snow back from the beginning of January

the kid LOVES his football

18 months old and what a sharp dresser :)

twins

the happy picture before the split lip

Speaking of vocabulary, Evan is just a talking machine. You ask him to say something and he sure tries. Doesn't always sound like the word but he knows what he is talking about. Door is again the word of choice and he likes to point to them or when people come in our out of our house. He always has to point out they used the door. There are too many words/signs that he is doing now to write down but he is a sponge (guess we should start watching what we say around him)

Evan has started recognizing letters AND can make the sound of a few of them. If I ask Evan "what starts with M" he will say "mama", he knows dada/daddy start with D and that BeBe/Baby start with B. Evan has a book for the tub called Bath Time. He will point and say the B,A,T,M and for the E he will point to himself for Evan. We have a play mat with pop out letters and he loves to just point at one to find out what I will tell him the letter is and the sound it makes. Watching him learn and connect things just blows my mind.

When Evan was first eating until a little after 1year he would eat just about anything you put in front of him. I would say at around 14 months that all stopped! We have a very very very picky eater on our hands which makes meal times not so fun. For a long time Evan would just look at his plate and say NO, but in the past week or so Evan will at least touch the food and at times even put it to his mouth! Then last night I was cutting up bell peppers and carrots and Evan tried and continued to eat them. He also ate pasta which he never touches. It was such a great feeling and a peaceful dinner (for a little anyway) since we were ALL eating.

I think I am all caught up for now.

More later

Happy 2011

So 2010 has no come and gone and 2011 is off to a great start. Right before Christmas we were finally able to get to Colorado and spend time with my brother, sister in law and adorable niece. It was nice and relaxing and so great to see the kids play together. They are about 4 months apart and was about time they got to meet. Only a few altercations over toys but I think Annabelle and Evan became fast friends.

My  brother Ross and niece Annabelle

Konikoff's in Nederland, Co

Evan and Annabelle sharing

While we were away Evan was working on his walking and now is a pro. He hasn't figured out how to stand not holding onto anything but that doesn't slow him down at all! Isaac and I agree we are glad he took his time learning to walk. He likes to just get up and go. Laughing and squealing in delight while he walks around the house.

It is so wonderful to hear Evan laugh and talk. If you ask him to say a word, he will try his best to say it and sometimes he gets the word perfect. I am starting to realize he will say something he shouldn't and that will be because of me. I am working hard and watching what comes out when I speak.

We love in the morning to hear Evan having a conversation with his Lovey while in bed. It puts me and Isaac in wonderful moods and has us laughing. We don't understand much but it sounds like Evan knows what is going on. He doesn't just talk in bed he will do this around the house and in the car. I asked him one day if he was singing along to the radio, he told me no. I then asked if he was just talking and he said, yeah.

For Evan's 1st birthday he got a play mat that has the alphabet and numbers on it. His new thing is to point to letters and numbers while you tell him what it is and what sound it makes. He also has magnets in the kitchen and does the same thing. He knows some letters and numbers. He has known the number eight for awhile. He is now pointing out the B and saying B or the sound it makes. We can ask him what starts with M and 99% of the time he will say Mama, and with the letter D he will say Dada or Daddy.

I am more impressed and amazed every day with what this child can comprehend and learn. He is a sponge and it is great to watch him take it all in.

Last week me, Evan and some of our friends went to the Seattle Aquarium. He couldn't stop saying and signing "fish". He could have stared at them all day. Watching the world through his eyes is so much fun.

We started up again this past week with our Mommy and Me class. Last session Evan was having some major separation issues from me and would scream and scream when I left. It was challenging for me and wasn't seeming to get better. On Tuesday I was prepared for the same situation, I said good bye and without even looking at me he said "bye-bye". I was so excited and relieved. He played and colored and didn't care I was gone for 30 minutes or so.

Isaac and I have also now been told " I love you" from Evan unprompted. My mom taught him how to sign it in their own special way. While we were in Colorado, Evan looked over at me and did the sign. I kept it together but that moment will be forever stamped in my mind.

The end of this month Evan will be 1 1/2. We are in shock how quick our little baby is transforming into a little boy.

Until next time.

Walking Walking Walking

Well, here it is. The day we have been waiting for. Evan can walk without help! He still hasn't figured out how to stand on his own without holding a hand or wall. Today about 50% of the times I let go of his hand while we were walking he stayed standing and took about 10-15 steps or more.

Tonight Evan was having a blast walking from Isaac to his JuJu and Mama. Great to see and scary all at the same time.

Ready for December

The end of this month has been busy and not always in a good way.

Over the weekend our dog Lady went to a new home. We realized about a month ago that Lady needed more than we could give her. She wasn't getting the excersize she needed and was suffering for that. We had gone through the Alternative Humane Society which was the organization we got her through over 2 years ago. There were 3 families that wanted Lady.

It seemed too good to be true when the best family was chosen. They live about an hour south of us on 10 acres of land. They are an older couple with the husband retired and they were looking for a Dobie/Rottie mix. The wife told me she thought it was deja-vu when she saw Lady's picture. They have always had dogs and Lady was just the one they wanted. I called to answer any questions they had and let them know about her aggression issues but their minds were made up. I hung up with them around 10am and by 12:30 Lady was in the car and on her way to her new home.

It was extremely hard to watch her leave. Isaac and I still look for her around the house.  I will look at where her bed used to be to see if she is sleeping or why isn't she waiting for dinner. It is getting easier every day.

So...then Saturday afternoon Evan was still running a temp that started Friday afternoon. I had called our dr since we were getting on a plane Monday morning. They said to call Sunday morning if he had a bad night. Well it took 4 HOURS to get him to sleep and I started seeing bumps on his hands.

Called the doctor Sunday morning (they have a clinic on the weekends) and they saw us right away. Evan was diagnosed with Hand, Foot, Mouth disease. Sounds so much worse than it is. It's a virus that has Evan covered in bumps and also in his mouth and down his throat. He isn't complaining but his food intake is small.

The biggest problem with this virus is that Evan is very contagious for about 5-7 days. We had tickets to go to my brother's in Colorado to celebrate Thanksgiving and our niece Annabelle's first birthday. I was trying to find anyway that we could go but knew we couldn't go and risk getting anyone else sick.

We are now going in 3 weeks and luckily got most of our money back and use towards the new trip.

It seemed to be a sign not to go because the weather was so bad yesterday in Seattle I am not sure we would have made it to the airport.

So Evan and I are indoors until Friday and staying warm since it is 24 degrees out today. We will be having a small family Thanksgiving at home. We have made some wonderful friends here in Bellingham that have invited us to Thanksgiving dinner even though we can't go. It is so nice to have that support.

So here's to hoping that December is a better month with a lot less illness that November.

The Beginning of Fall

I seemed to have blinked and it is a week before Thanksgiving! 

Not writing for October I can't remember everything that happened but I will do my best. 

October was a fun month with Halloween and trying some new activities. Evan and I have started taking a baby gymnastics class once a week. It is a great workout for both of us :) Evan being his ever cautious self had to check everything out and took a few weeks to try something new. He now LOVES when they parachute is taken out to play with. Last week he even went on the little swing which is on a zipline and of course had the biggest smile on his face the entire time and kept asking if he could go again and again. 

We had a blast for part of Halloween. We had a party with our Mommy and Me group. It was so cute to see all the kids in their costumes. Evan even wore his which I never thought would happen. I learned a valuable lesson with this costume thing.....don't make a big deal about putting the clothes on and Evan will never know he is wearing something different. 

Evan helping Mom carve the pumpkin

All of us in our Halloween get-ups

On Halloween Evan was sick and we got to stay home and hand out candy. It was fun to see all the kids. 

My mom (BeBe) came to visit and Evan soaked up all the attention. She taught him a very cute way to "sign" I Love You. He still does it and they do it every time we Skype. Evan even got to try some gelato for the first time. We found out the fruit flavors are dairy free. Evan was very mad when his snack was gone. 

Yummmmm

Evan getting mad that there is none left

We have a little toddler roaming around the house. Evan is so so close to walking himself. He can hold onto one finger and walk but the second we let go he gently sits down. He walks about 3-4 steps every day. Evan just needs to gain confidence and off he will go!

It also seems like Evan is gaining new words on a daily basis. We still do plenty of signing and asking if that is what he wants. But I can also tell that when you say a word, many times he will try to copy the word. His comprehension is amazing. Now granted we are his parents and don't have other kids to compare to, but I can't get away with much these days. Evan knows we watch Elmo on the television and will point to our tv and say "Ehmo" and gets quite pissed when I tell him we aren't watching that yet. 

One of Evan's favorite things to do is sing. He can now help with No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. And now that Evan can say "no" he does it at the point in the song. Mr. Bossy will let us know the song he wants to sing/hear and if you are wrong he will let you know. 

We are about to get on a plane and go to Colorado to visit my brother and his family. Our little niece is turning 1 and there was no way I was going to miss that! It will be nice to get away for awhile and celebrate Thanksgiving with family. 

Here are some other great pictures from the past 2 months. 

They just look a little alike

Chillin with everything he needs while watching TV. Elmo I am sure

Loving the smoothie (with spinach)

Playing with the pumpkins

Found the perfect size pumpkin

Going apple and pumpkin picking

Driving his first John Deere

Until next time