Teachable Moments

So I've been thinking about this new stage that Peter has begun and how I can use it to my advantage. Peter is very bright, and he's really starting to understand and follow verbal commands. Ok, he follows them when he wants to. He wants to be so independent and do everything on his own. His favorite words right now are "no" and "mine".

As soon as I undo the buckle on his car seat, he is practically climbing out of the car himself. If I try to hold him at all, he twists and turns until I'm practically forced to let him down. If we're at home, his first steps are to the grass to find treasures (leaves, rocks, bugs, etc). I'm working on teaching him to go straight to the door.

Yesterday I asked him to go to the door. He walked from the grass to the little sidewalk that leads to the door. He followed me to the porch. He even stepped onto the porch on his own (another new skill!). Then came the hard part.

There were treasures on the table that were left from the day before. They were very tempting to a toddler, so he had to stop and play with them. By this time, I had unlocked the door and stepped inside. I thought he would follow me, but he was too entranced by his treasures to worry about where Mommy was going. I called for him to come inside, but he stayed on the porch. As I walked further into the house, I noticed that he finally started to come a little closer to the door. However, when I walked back to help him over the step to get inside, he turned around to go look at something on the porch.

I gave him a couple of warnings before I had to just take him by the hand and bring him (screaming) into the house. It would have been so much easier had he done it alone, and I know that one day he'll learn that. Until that time, though, I'll enjoy his curiosity and use it to teach him obedience with a happy heart. :)

FYI - Once he was inside, all he wanted to do was nurse. Apparently he hasn't figured out that breastfeeding isn't a part of being independent. As I see him learning new things and growing up before my eyes, it is definitely a good reminder to me that he is still my baby boy.

This Too Shall Pass

This is the phrase that I keep repeating to myself every time we hit a rough stage. This too shall pass - the stage that we are currently in won't be the stage we are in forever.

For the first 4 months, Peter would only sleep in bed with me.

This too shall pass.

4 stomach viruses in 16 months.

This too shall pass.

Around 9 months, Peter started waking up every 1.5-2 hours in the middle of the night to eat.

This too shall pass.

A couple of months ago, Peter would only sleep in our arms because he was so sick.

This too shall pass.

At 15 months, Peter decided that he no longer wanted to sit in his highchair. He didn't want to sit in the booster seat either.

This too shall pass.

Peter is now well.

He sleeps through the night.

He eats every meal in his highchair.

Apparently at 18 months (in 1 more week!!), you no longer need to be held. You also no longer need to hold hands when you are walking, especially in parking lots and streets. You should also get to just play outside all day, and you should not have to go anywhere that you don't want to.

This too shall pass.

One day, I'll miss all of these sweet little stages. I'll miss chasing a crazy toddler around the block because he has started running and won't come back when called. I'll miss the relaxing nursing sessions where he slows down enough to sit in my lap (yes, I'm still nursing...that's another story for another blog...). I'll miss reminding him to put the bite of chicken he wants so badly to chunk across the room in his mouth, chew it, and swallow it. I'll miss holding him in my lap to eat when he refuses to sit anywhere else. I'll miss every stage...but for now, I just keep reminding myself...

This Too Shall Pass!

Busy Boy

This is our busy boy doing what he does best - staying busy! This morning, I took his jammies off downstairs. He decided that running around in a diaper was way more fun than getting dressed and going to the park. If you listen carefully at the end, you'll hear Peter say "dog". He is getting quite the vocabulary!

In case you are wondering, we did finally make it to the park. The weather was perfect, and Peter had the best time picking up treasures and chasing birds. :)

Family Walk

The weather has been perfect recently. Cool mornings, warm afternoons, and perfect evenings. Andrew got off work early today. :) Before bath time, we took a walk around the block. Peter loves to walk, but he kept trying to go in the street today. I told him that we would have to go home if he couldn't stay on the sidewalk. Here was his response when I asked him if he wanted to go home...

We finally had to pick him up to bring him home for a bath. I think he would have walked the entire neighborhood if we would have let him!

Happy Pi Day (AKA Only a Math Nerd...)!!!

Pi is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi = 3.1415926535... Pi Day is celebrated by math enthusiasts around the world on March 14th. Peter and I spent the day finding circles!

We ate circular pancakes and circular sausage for breakfast...

Some friends came over, and we had circular pizza and circular cookies for lunch.


Peter and Sara crawled through the circular tunnel, and then they played in the circular pots and pans!

My mom came to visit for a few days, so she and Peter talked about how he had celebrated this very important day. We hope you can celebrate with us next year!

I can't sleep...

so enjoy a few pictures. :)

Peter got a new table and chairs last week. He LOVES it! He can get on and off the chair by himself with no problems. He is getting quite independent.

He also rediscovered his exersaucer this weekend. We need to put it away (or convert it into the "step 3" that basically spreads out the toys and removes the seat). He used to sit it in all the time as a baby. Then one day he decided he was too big for it. I thought he would want out right away after I put him in it yesterday, but he actually played in it for a while.

5 months

17 months

Now that being on the computer has made me tired, I'm off to bed. Goodnight! :)

Happy Square Root Day!!

Peter and I celebrated Square Root Day today! For those of you trying to figure out why today is Square Root Day, look at the date in this way.

3-3-09

Square Root Day is celebrated when both the day of the month and the month are the square root of the last two digits of the year. If you missed it today, it won't happen again until April 4, 2016!!

Peter and I celebrated by going to HEB and finding root vegetables. Peter was very proud to find the potatoes!

Happy Square Root Day!