He's growing and learning so much every day. We've known he has a love for balls since he was little, but his love only seems to grow with each passing day. He calls my stomach a ball. He ran towards the neighbor's basketball goal twice now with our mothers too. He needs all the balls out at the same time so he can play with them and doesn't understand that he can't hold all of them in his hands at once. He's even learning how to shoot a basketball so he goes around the house practicing with the ball in the air. One day he threw a ball into a door and towards the washing machine and realized he could make sounds by doing this. Now he loves to throw balls at things to make it go "boom"- that's his new thing! (end of May 2016-20 months)
We climbed up Stone Mountain again (On Jeremy's b-day). He did much better getting into the pack this time. I think he remembered how much attention he got riding up the mountain on Jeremy's back. Man, the struggle last time was AWFUL, so this was a lot better. He loves waving at everyone on the way up and causes lots of people to look at him because of his nice ride/friendly face.
Jeremy and I headed to Scotland for 10 days in June (6th-16th). L got to stay with the grandparents. He got a little sick (cough and runny nose) while we were gone and had to take some Tylenol and Benadryl (Momma called our pediatrician). There were nights he had a hard time sleeping because of being sick, but the grandparents never complained. We FaceTimed him at night. He went through different phases: first he'd talk, then he ignored us and went on playing, then he cried when we stopped talking. We were glad to get home to him. We peeked in on him while he was sleeping and just smiled. His face was priceless the next morning when he woke up and we went to get him. He looked at us with a concerned look as if he were thinking about if we were real or not. Then he got so excited and couldn't stop smiling and being silly.
He's getting really good at putting clothes from the hamper into the washing machine. He will help drag the hamper into the laundry room too. Some days he will empty out the whole basket and pretty much do his entire laundry (except for turning on the machine and putting soap in it). It shocked me the first day he just came along side me and did it. He tries to help vacuum, sweep and mop too. However, if he gets out the swiffer with the wet cleaning pads, he slides all around the floor and doesn't care too much for that.
We practiced lots of new words in June and July. He can say baby and rests his head on my stomach now (middle/end of June when we got home from our trip). He is starting to repeat more and more words we say and he recognizes things and people a lot more.
I think he's a lot like me because one day I told him we were going to the pool (July 6th) and then it started thundering so we couldn't go. He immediately broke into tears when I said we weren't going anymore. I think he gets his hopes up and then they shatter when the plans change. I may have to watch what I tell him from now on. He just always seems to know when we are going somewhere. He runs to the door or runs to get his shoes. Sometimes he will drag his bag down the hallway too. He's gotten really good about closing his bedroom door when we leave too which is super cute. He doesn't want me to close it even if he has things in his hands. He likes things to be organized (shoes and books) and straightens things and closes drawers/doors as needed too.
L fell down the stairs July 10 at Mam-ma and Pam-pa's house. We all heard the bump bump bump of something coming down the stairs and then a bigger thump when he hit the bottom. He was playing with Patton upstairs and apparently he wanted a pig that was at the bottom of the stairs so he went after it. They took off the stair-rail in order to paint so he didn't have anything to hold. He cried a bit but then seemed fine. He got a little carpet burn on his forehead.
His dark patch on his forehead seems like it's getting bigger. It's down his right side of the forehead all the way to his eye now. -July
Lincoln was eating a banana and there was a bruise on it. He said "boo boo!" I said actually it's called a bruise. He then ate it off the banana. Weird! -July 13
Jeremy got put some blackened turkey and Lincoln wanted some. The only meat he will eat on a semi-regular basis come from fish sticks and hotdogs. Well, Jeremy decided if L wanted some turkey, why not?! L ate two pieces and seemed to enjoy it but after he ate it he kept pointing to his tongue. Jeremy knew it was spicy and told him to drink his water over and over to try to help out. He felt so bad about it but was so shocked that L even wanted some. Usually he turns his nose up at anything that is meat-like.
I was making dinner one night and L was playing in the kitchen. Some days he empties all the K-cups out of the drawer. Other days he explores the cabinets and pulls out his old bottles or puts the strainer on his head. One day (July 20), he opened the drawer with the chargers and cloth napkins. He pulled them out and took them into the dining room and decided he was going to set the table. I wondered what he was doing but when I went in there he had the plates next to other plates that were already on the table. It was so cute! It amazes me at the things he does. He has been getting into the cabinet with all the baby stuff too, which makes him ask for "ice" and water in the bottles. Yeah, he walks around with ice water in his old bottles. When ice falls out of the ice maker, he always wants to be a big helper and pick it up but sometimes he says, "oooot"-- his word for "hot" with his hand out over it, but he means cold. It slips out of his hand most of the time, but other times he can pick it up and take it to the sink which makes it wonderful for me because that's one less time I have to bend down!
One day he saw his old food/activity seat in the closet and wanted it out. He sat in it for the longest time and was upset when we made him get out. Then he wanted to eat in it a few days later. He's too funny.
July 17- learned to jump. We had a moonwalk for an event (production/music) gathering at our house. He wouldn't get in it at all. The next day we cleaned it and taught him more about bouncing. The other times he's gotten into a moonwalk there were other kids/adults. This time it was just L and his daddy and he did well. Now he jumps up and down all the time. He loves to go from a jump to a position where his head is on the ground as if he's ready to flip over. Sometimes he will flip over, while other times he just stays there on his head for a minute.
I was making dinner one night and L was playing in the kitchen. Some days he empties all the K-cups out of the drawer. Other days he explores the cabinets and pulls out his old bottles or puts the strainer on his head. One day (July 20), he opened the drawer with the chargers and cloth napkins. He pulled them out and took them into the dining room and decided he was going to set the table. I wondered what he was doing but when I went in there he had the plates next to other plates that were already on the table. It was so cute! It amazes me at the things he does. He has been getting into the cabinet with all the baby stuff too, which makes him ask for "ice" and water in the bottles. Yeah, he walks around with ice water in his old bottles. When ice falls out of the ice maker, he always wants to be a big helper and pick it up but sometimes he says, "oooot"-- his word for "hot" with his hand out over it, but he means cold. It slips out of his hand most of the time, but other times he can pick it up and take it to the sink which makes it wonderful for me because that's one less time I have to bend down!
One day he saw his old food/activity seat in the closet and wanted it out. He sat in it for the longest time and was upset when we made him get out. Then he wanted to eat in it a few days later. He's too funny.
July 17- learned to jump. We had a moonwalk for an event (production/music) gathering at our house. He wouldn't get in it at all. The next day we cleaned it and taught him more about bouncing. The other times he's gotten into a moonwalk there were other kids/adults. This time it was just L and his daddy and he did well. Now he jumps up and down all the time. He loves to go from a jump to a position where his head is on the ground as if he's ready to flip over. Sometimes he will flip over, while other times he just stays there on his head for a minute.
He loves closets. He loves to close himself in them too. He doesn't mind the dark. He thinks it's a game. If there are balls in the closet, he will sit on them in the dark. The pantry is one of his favorite places too. He always finds food (containers/bottles/bags) to carry around, eat, or spill/break open. He even likes to grab out the honey and siracha bottles and put them inside the cheese dome. His P's sound like B's still. He says something like "Bicka-Bicka" a lot but I think he's trying to say pick-a-boo. That's the hard thing about his language right now. He talks but trying to decipher what he is saying is not always the easiest thing to do.
July 30- We moved him into his new room. He did a great job with the transition. I mean, he didn't even have any problem at all and loves his new room. It's longer so he runs from the door all the way to the windows and can flip around with much more space. We didn't move his chair/ottoman at first but he missed it and kept going into the nursery to rock, so we decided we needed to move it. He has a blue wall and the others are gray and we've hung some more artwork. He's proud of it and constantly points at the camera that is tilted sideways and says "uh-oh. Daddy." and I have to explain that yes, daddy needs to fix the camera with velcro. We got some black out curtains too since that room gets pretty bright and they make the room extra dark which is perfect for a boy who likes to sleep.
Everyone's belly has a baby now- "Be-be". He loves to touch bellies and so I've tried to help him understand not everyone has a baby. At least people get a laugh out of it. He hasn't done it to anyone outside the family yet though (without us making a comment about it), that's the part I'm worried about. He will often lay his head on my belly and say "awe" when we talk about loving on his sister.
He loves keys and says, "beep-beep" when he sees them. He knows exactly which button to press to make the car alarm go off too. While he was sitting in his rocker/glider he decided it was important to pull the quilt off the back of the chair. He saw the buttons and I told him they were buttons. He started saying, "beep-beep" which impressed me because although they are different buttons that the ones on my keys, they indeed are buttons. I told them these buttons were to hold things together (like clothing/cloth). Although he may not talk in full sentences or say a "ton" of words, you can tell he understands everything and is paying attention to everything we do.
We went to the Georgia Aquarium on August 12th. I never know how he will do with new things, but oh he loved it. He would walk up to the tanks and just sit down and watch all the fish. He was amazed. There were times we had to pull him away (tears were shed) because we knew there was so much more to see. I'm so glad we went.
He moved up to a new class at church on August 14th. This class is made up of 2+ year olds who aren't potty-trained. I was so nervous about it because he often whined when we dropped him off in his other class. This time he went straight to the lady and was so happy. They said he did great too. He got to make his first craft in this class too (Paper figures of Jonathan and David holding hands-on sticks). He was so proud of it.
He loves keys and says, "beep-beep" when he sees them. He knows exactly which button to press to make the car alarm go off too. While he was sitting in his rocker/glider he decided it was important to pull the quilt off the back of the chair. He saw the buttons and I told him they were buttons. He started saying, "beep-beep" which impressed me because although they are different buttons that the ones on my keys, they indeed are buttons. I told them these buttons were to hold things together (like clothing/cloth). Although he may not talk in full sentences or say a "ton" of words, you can tell he understands everything and is paying attention to everything we do.
We went to the Georgia Aquarium on August 12th. I never know how he will do with new things, but oh he loved it. He would walk up to the tanks and just sit down and watch all the fish. He was amazed. There were times we had to pull him away (tears were shed) because we knew there was so much more to see. I'm so glad we went.
He moved up to a new class at church on August 14th. This class is made up of 2+ year olds who aren't potty-trained. I was so nervous about it because he often whined when we dropped him off in his other class. This time he went straight to the lady and was so happy. They said he did great too. He got to make his first craft in this class too (Paper figures of Jonathan and David holding hands-on sticks). He was so proud of it.
August 15- I was going to the bathroom in preparation to leave to go to the park. I asked L to get my flip flops. He brought me some silver dress sandals! It was so cute! He handed them to me and said his word for flip flops.
We've had a few friends/family members over recently and L loves to show off the nursery. His favorite part is showing people his sister's shoes (furry boots). He's so proud of them.
There are some nights he is SOOOO wild. I don't know if it's what he eats, although I probably should track his wildness, but sometimes I can't believe his energy right before bed. He must be going through another growth spurt too because he's been eating non-stop this week (Aug 14-20). He's getting tall.
We went to the pool (Monday, August 22) and L pulled up some grass and stuck it through the fence towards the butterflies on the butterfly bush. I had to tell him that they didn't eat grass like the goats!
Like I mentioned earlier, he loves to get into the pantry and pull out food. Well, he also likes things clean. On August 23rd, he decided he wanted some goldfish while I was making dinner. He got his highchair tray and poured the whole bag onto the tray while sitting in the floor. Of course it made a mess because all of them didn't land on the tray. Once they were on there he didn't even want to eat them, instead he was more concerned about cleaning up the mess. I got the broom, while he decided we really needed the swiffer and wipes to go with it. We can't leave the house without him wanting to get the broom out of the garage and tidy up a bit either.
We went to our first story time on Wednesday, August 24th. I had been informed that the library closest to our house didn't have a great story time, but we decided to check it out anyway since he loves books and music. Well, it didn't go as well as I had planned or hoped. He wasn't interested in the least bit. There were about 7 other kids there (many were around his age) and he was not on his best behavior. There was only about a minute or two that we were able to participate in what everyone else was doing. I had to hold him. He whined. He said, "no!" He wanted to run around and look around the library/play with the toys/show me all the balls that were painted and hanging around, but he wasn't interested in doing the motions with the songs, listening to the story or playing with the egg shakers. I don't know if it was because the lady wasn't engaging to him or if it was because he was tired (we are transitioning to 1 nap-because he thinks he can do it) but it's killing us to stay awake. Either way, we didn't have the best experience so we may not be going back anytime soon. Oh well.
We've had a few friends/family members over recently and L loves to show off the nursery. His favorite part is showing people his sister's shoes (furry boots). He's so proud of them.
There are some nights he is SOOOO wild. I don't know if it's what he eats, although I probably should track his wildness, but sometimes I can't believe his energy right before bed. He must be going through another growth spurt too because he's been eating non-stop this week (Aug 14-20). He's getting tall.
We went to the pool (Monday, August 22) and L pulled up some grass and stuck it through the fence towards the butterflies on the butterfly bush. I had to tell him that they didn't eat grass like the goats!
Like I mentioned earlier, he loves to get into the pantry and pull out food. Well, he also likes things clean. On August 23rd, he decided he wanted some goldfish while I was making dinner. He got his highchair tray and poured the whole bag onto the tray while sitting in the floor. Of course it made a mess because all of them didn't land on the tray. Once they were on there he didn't even want to eat them, instead he was more concerned about cleaning up the mess. I got the broom, while he decided we really needed the swiffer and wipes to go with it. We can't leave the house without him wanting to get the broom out of the garage and tidy up a bit either.
We went to our first story time on Wednesday, August 24th. I had been informed that the library closest to our house didn't have a great story time, but we decided to check it out anyway since he loves books and music. Well, it didn't go as well as I had planned or hoped. He wasn't interested in the least bit. There were about 7 other kids there (many were around his age) and he was not on his best behavior. There was only about a minute or two that we were able to participate in what everyone else was doing. I had to hold him. He whined. He said, "no!" He wanted to run around and look around the library/play with the toys/show me all the balls that were painted and hanging around, but he wasn't interested in doing the motions with the songs, listening to the story or playing with the egg shakers. I don't know if it was because the lady wasn't engaging to him or if it was because he was tired (we are transitioning to 1 nap-because he thinks he can do it) but it's killing us to stay awake. Either way, we didn't have the best experience so we may not be going back anytime soon. Oh well.
Now I'll get even more real. There are days where he gets into everything and where listening is a struggle. He thinks it's okay to stand up on the couch after countless times of being reminded that we don't stand on the couch. He gets up there and just smiles. He throws things when asked not to do so. He's even swung his arm and hit me a few times out of frustration for not getting what he wants. Time outs and conversations/removal from the situation have been a mode of discipline/redirection but then he's back at it 1 minute later. His hand will often come up to hit and it will rest behind his head as if he's preparing but then he must be learning because he will leave it there a minute and then let it relax by his side while I remind him we don't hit. It's so exhausting for this pregnant mum! The temper tantrums have gotten a little crazy too. I'm not going to give him everything he wants or thinks he needs because that's just plain crazy, however sometimes I'm at the end of my rope on what to do. It's during some of these times I know he's probably tired from a long day or hungry so I try to be understanding but my temper grows short (which is probably due to my pregnant state) when he's not doing what he "should" be doing. I'm hoping we can work on these things before the baby gets here because it may be even more challenging then. I have often wondered if he knows something is about to change and is just seeking attention in any way he can get it so I'll focus on giving him positive attention and affirmation from things I want him to do and see how that goes.
Labor Day is definitely one to remember. We were swimming when L woke up from his nap. Daddy brought him out to the pool. L said "poo-poo" but I just thought he might have been saying he wanted to get in the pool. We got his pool stuff and I was just going to change him outside at the pool when the craziness happened. I took off his diaper and sat him on my leg and immediately noticed the diaper I just laid on the chair. It was indeed a POOPY diaper therefore the poop that was still on him now transferred to my leg. Yep. That was fun. I ran in the house and cleaned him up, then washed my leg before I put him in his swim clothes. I'm glad it was before he got in the pool and before he ruined the swim diaper too because I've dreaded that all summer. He only had one other experience this summer with poop at the pool but he was out of the pool and got really quite by the fence and then came back towards the pool to let me know he went in his swim diaper. It wasn't a bad one like some I've seen so it was easy to clean up.
We've had some better moments together recently where the tantrums have lessened and the minding has gotten better. September 7th was a day with lots of stories. We read "Blue Hat, Green Hat" and he flipped to the page where the turkey jumps in the pool with all his clothes. L was very concerned about this because he knows you need your swimsuit on in order to get in the pool. He ran over to his drawer and pulled out his swim diaper and tried to hand it to the turkey in the book. It was really neat to see how he doesn't see the difference between real life and a book, but that he was being very thoughtful and share his stuff. We read it again a few days later and he pulled out his entire swimsuit and gave it to the turkey. He also saw Jeremy's scrapes and burns from the wreck and kissed them and says, "awe, boo-boo." He's so empathetic and gets sad when he sees other people/characters in books sad or when he sees they are hurt. He pretty much always says "awe" and usually tries to do something to help (hug, kiss, or give them something). In "Llama Llama Red Pajama" Little Llama wants a drink and L always tries to give his sippy cup of milk to Little Llama. I now think he associates stickers and tape with boo-boos. He has tape on a butterfly because he tore off the wing and Cindy put tape on it. He pointed to the tape on his dropcam cord and said, "boo-boo" which made me laugh. It's as if the sticky thing makes it all better (maybe that comes from his book "All Better" where they clean it, kiss it, put a bandage on it and then say it's all better).
Then we got to welcome a new baby into the family at the end of his 23rd month. He was a bit overwhelmed when he came to visit her at the hospital. He loved on her for a minute or two but when we tried to get a picture of all four of us, he wasn't having it. Actually, he hasn't wanted to get a posed picture with her since then either. We can only get candid pictures of him and her if we are super quick with our camera/phone skills. The first two weeks of H's life, L's been a sweet big brother. He's brought her toys, "read" to her, held her, put her paci back in her mouth (after stealing it for himself quite a few times). He's always concerned about her location and says, "bebe" in a questioning tone when he doesn't see her. We went to the pediatrician twice without him and he cried and cried when we left. If he gets to go somewhere without her riding beside him in the car he also gets concerned. Jeremy got to be at home the first two weeks of her life (so the last two weeks before L turned 2), and spend so much time with L. They played, went grocery shopping, and had lots of fun. He cried when Jeremy had to go back to work. It was so sad to see him get so sad that his daddy was leaving.
Some of the fun words he says right now (it's so cute how he says them):
moonwalk
lawnmower (mahn-mower)
elbow (al-bo)
bubble (boob-el)
eyeball
thank you (nen-ya)
please (peas)
one more (mun-moe)--- sounds a lot like his lawnmower some days
Labor Day is definitely one to remember. We were swimming when L woke up from his nap. Daddy brought him out to the pool. L said "poo-poo" but I just thought he might have been saying he wanted to get in the pool. We got his pool stuff and I was just going to change him outside at the pool when the craziness happened. I took off his diaper and sat him on my leg and immediately noticed the diaper I just laid on the chair. It was indeed a POOPY diaper therefore the poop that was still on him now transferred to my leg. Yep. That was fun. I ran in the house and cleaned him up, then washed my leg before I put him in his swim clothes. I'm glad it was before he got in the pool and before he ruined the swim diaper too because I've dreaded that all summer. He only had one other experience this summer with poop at the pool but he was out of the pool and got really quite by the fence and then came back towards the pool to let me know he went in his swim diaper. It wasn't a bad one like some I've seen so it was easy to clean up.
We've had some better moments together recently where the tantrums have lessened and the minding has gotten better. September 7th was a day with lots of stories. We read "Blue Hat, Green Hat" and he flipped to the page where the turkey jumps in the pool with all his clothes. L was very concerned about this because he knows you need your swimsuit on in order to get in the pool. He ran over to his drawer and pulled out his swim diaper and tried to hand it to the turkey in the book. It was really neat to see how he doesn't see the difference between real life and a book, but that he was being very thoughtful and share his stuff. We read it again a few days later and he pulled out his entire swimsuit and gave it to the turkey. He also saw Jeremy's scrapes and burns from the wreck and kissed them and says, "awe, boo-boo." He's so empathetic and gets sad when he sees other people/characters in books sad or when he sees they are hurt. He pretty much always says "awe" and usually tries to do something to help (hug, kiss, or give them something). In "Llama Llama Red Pajama" Little Llama wants a drink and L always tries to give his sippy cup of milk to Little Llama. I now think he associates stickers and tape with boo-boos. He has tape on a butterfly because he tore off the wing and Cindy put tape on it. He pointed to the tape on his dropcam cord and said, "boo-boo" which made me laugh. It's as if the sticky thing makes it all better (maybe that comes from his book "All Better" where they clean it, kiss it, put a bandage on it and then say it's all better).
Then we got to welcome a new baby into the family at the end of his 23rd month. He was a bit overwhelmed when he came to visit her at the hospital. He loved on her for a minute or two but when we tried to get a picture of all four of us, he wasn't having it. Actually, he hasn't wanted to get a posed picture with her since then either. We can only get candid pictures of him and her if we are super quick with our camera/phone skills. The first two weeks of H's life, L's been a sweet big brother. He's brought her toys, "read" to her, held her, put her paci back in her mouth (after stealing it for himself quite a few times). He's always concerned about her location and says, "bebe" in a questioning tone when he doesn't see her. We went to the pediatrician twice without him and he cried and cried when we left. If he gets to go somewhere without her riding beside him in the car he also gets concerned. Jeremy got to be at home the first two weeks of her life (so the last two weeks before L turned 2), and spend so much time with L. They played, went grocery shopping, and had lots of fun. He cried when Jeremy had to go back to work. It was so sad to see him get so sad that his daddy was leaving.
Some of the fun words he says right now (it's so cute how he says them):
moonwalk
lawnmower (mahn-mower)
elbow (al-bo)
bubble (boob-el)
eyeball
thank you (nen-ya)
please (peas)
one more (mun-moe)--- sounds a lot like his lawnmower some days
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