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

Evan's 1st haircut

Well we finally decided to do it. We got Evan's hair cut! Isaac and I have been going back and forth about it for a few months but kept saying no when looking at his curls.

We went to a barbershop for the experience and that it was. We didn't have an appointment so we waited about 45 minutes. Evan did amazing. He was having fun and laughing. Then it was his turn.

Evan was weary the second they put the smock on Isaac who was holding him. Evan cried and screamed through most of it :) I don't have a great "after" picture yet but will post it once I can take one.

Here is some pictures of the big day:

before

hey lady what do you think you are going to do with those?

this is where it turned ugly

bribing with snacks

noooooooooooooo

this is the "after"

September 2010

Well another busy month for Evan. 14 months, wow!

We have started up our Mommy and Me class again and now in the 1 year old class. This has been such a great resource for me and Evan. We love all the mom's and babies that we have known for over 6 months, but the instructor is great. We look forward to our Tuesday mornings.

Evan now has 7 teeth (that we can see) his top 2 molars and top front teeth have broken through and boy did we all hear about it.

This month he can now:
walk with a push toy
stand up holding onto something
says "nigh, nigh" for going to bed, yea or yes, hi, tries to say big bird sounds like bir, Elmo sounds a little like mo, Daddy, bye bye, baby
signs for shoes and when you ask him where shoes go he will show you his foot.
Evan now also knows touchdown but of course doesn't do it when the touchdown is actually scored.

Evan's new thing this past month has been shaking his head no for EVERYTHING! Anything you ask him he will shake his head no.

He also signs all done a lot more then when he actually means it. This makes some meals a little more challenging. But when Evan is hungry he signs for "eat".

Evan is so much fun, his personality comes out more and more each day. He is a ham and knows it. Loves making faces in the mirror and getting me, Isaac and anyone who looks at him to smile. He waves at anyone and anything. We were actually crossing the street to get into a store and a car stopped to let us cross. I am not sure if I raised my hand to say thank you but Evan waved and said hi. She was nice and waved back.

 Evan is starting to learn how to play pretend which is so much fun. He will pretend a puzzle piece is food and then hand it to whoever he is playing with to to the same. Evan also has a game where he will get his doll or lovey and put his head down like he is going to sleep so we say nigh nigh and he then sits up and smiles as we say good morning. This can go on for a long time.

Evan loves loves loves music and has shown us he can shake his grove thang. Anytime music is on or you start singing to him he will start bouncing and shaking his tush and smiling of course. It always makes us smile.

We are excited that fall is here and looking forward to the month ahead. We have Evan's Grandpa Stan coming to visit from Florida. And then his BeBe will be here for Halloween. Evan will have more attention then he will know what to do with.

Evan and Daddy playing in a big box, Isaac just looks a little cramped

                        

Playing in the fort

                                                            

Evan's new favorite place in the house, shoe bench

Evan coming to get me or probably the camera