19 Months Old!

Parker Love,

Nineteen months old! You’re creeping closer and closer to that two-year mark. This past month was busy, especially with the holidays. Also, you just keep busy in general. Playing with your meat jars, for example, is a favorite pastime of yours. :)

Quick stats: Not sure about your height and weight, though you’re definitely taller! You can now reach the doorknobs, and instead of opening doors that you’re not supposed to, you are really good at closing all the doors in the hallway (after seeing Mommy and Daddy close doors). You’re still in size 5 diapers. Some of your 18 month old cloths are getting a bit snug.

This month you got to visit lots of family with Thanksgiving and Christmas. You really enjoyed playing with Mia over Thanksgiving break. She adores you, and you are starting to learn how to play and interact with other kids, so the two of you had a nice visit.

Some new things this month...

You had your first taste of ice cream at Leatherby’s! First of all, this month is really the first time we’ve consistently gone out to dinner with you (three times in one month!) and you've really enjoyed it. You like looking around at all the people and decorations. You especially liked Leatherby’s because of the ice cream! When you first took a bite, you weren't quite sure what to think, but after a few seconds, you quickly made the sign for “more!” J

You've learned the “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” song, which makes you laugh. Along with that, you and Daddy have created your own “nose” game:

Just a few days ago, you started saying “Maw-me” for Mommy’s name, instead of “me-me.” Also, you sometimes say “Da-dee” instead of just “Dee” for Daddy’s name. It was super cute hearing you say our names the “right” way, but we’re going to miss the old way too. Just another sign that you’re growing up!

Speaking of talking, you've started speaking in short sentences! You often put together two or three word sentences, which makes communication a lot easier for you and for us.

For an early Christmas gift, Mommy and Daddy bought you an ABC train. You love it, and we are so pleased. It’s a fun new way for you to expolore your letters. On that topic, you continue to LOVE letters and numbers. You are constantly counting and saying your alphabet. You can now count to 20 and say your entire alphabet in correct order. Wow. Slow down, smarty pants!

You've learned how to say "read book" when you want Mommy or Daddy to read to you. Some of your favorites this month "This Old Man," "Dinosaur Numbers," "Peek-a-who?" and "Big and Little." The last two books mentioned are books you can also "read" out loud by yourself! 

A new favorite for you: Blue’s Clues. You could sit and watch Blue and Steve for hours if we let you. You seem to understand the concept of looking for the blue paw prints, and often point out when you see a clue.

Something we've rediscovered this month: you are not a fan of green beans! You never liked the purees but this was the first time you tried whole green beans. Definitely a fail.

You are really good at saying, "hello," "goodbye," "love you," "night night" and giving hugs and kisses. You also can blow kisses too, so you've pretty much mastered all the standard greetings. :o)

You and Jack continue to be buddies! He makes you laugh all the time (though probably not intentionally). 

One BIG thing that happened this month was that we found out you are going to have a little brother! Baby boy #2 arrives in May, and we are so thrilled for you to have a little brother to play with (well, not right away, but eventually he can play with you.) You are going to be such a great big brother, little man!

We love you so much and we're so thankful for the little man that God created you to be. We're very excited to see what God has in store for our family in the New Year!

All our love,

Mommy and Daddy

The big one-eight!

Parker Bubs,

You are 18 months old! Somehow, when we weren't looking, you made it through half of your second year! 

You continue to bring joy to our lives each and every day. You are on the go all the time. As soon as you wake up, you're counting or saying your ABC's in your crib (you can say your ABC's all the way to letter "f" and count to 11). 

Some stats:  at your doctor appointment, you weighed 27 pounds and are 33.5 inches tall. You are still in size 5 diapers, and all of your clothes are 18 months, some even 24 months. 

You LOVE Scout! You've always liked your stuffed animal, but there's also a cartoon and you'd watch it 3 times a day if we let you. 

You and Jack are buddies! He makes you laugh. :) You really enjoy "playing" with him, which, for now, means patting him on the head or back and sitting on him. :)

Here you are, giving Jack a treat. He's so gentle and careful with you. :)

You continue to LOVE letters and numbers. I'd say 75% of your playtime revolves around numbers or letters in some form. 

You also know colors (red. orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, white, brown, black and gray) and some new shapes (besides circle, square, oval and triangle): rectangle, trapezoid, pentagon and octagon!!!!

Here you are saying letters in your crib:

We brought your activity table back out (it's been in the garage since your birthday) and you are enjoying it all over again! You especially like "making music" so you can dance.

Speaking of dancing, you and Mia had fun dancing in front of the tv the other night. :) 

((((video to come!)))

"Me-Mote" (remote)

 You blow kisses now! And you make a cute "mu-wah" sound. ;) You also say "hi" and "bye" and do a little wave with your hand. 

Some more cuteness...

You still have a fascination with hats! 

Little Bubs, we love you so much and we're so proud of the little man you're becoming. You are a sweet boy who loves to learn... we just hope that we can keep up with you! We are so thankful to God for the precious gift of YOU.

Love, Mommy and Daddy

17 Months Old!

Parker Love,

You are 17 Months Old! Mommy missed out on writing your 16-month old post so I’m playing catch up a bit. J

What have you been up to this month? Well, what haven’t you been up to? You are a super busy boy who is always on the go.

Some stats: You are now in size 5 diapers and your shoes are also size 5. You are in your 18 month old or 18-24 month old clothes. Your estimated weight is 26 pounds which is just about the 50^th percentile for weight. Long gone are the days of 1^st percentile!

Your favorite thing right now are numbers and letters. You know all your numbers 0-9 and know most of your letters too. This started with recognizing and knowing numbers 3 and 8. And from there, you quickly learned the rest of the numbers. You discover numbers and letters everywhere, especially outside.

You also enjoy puzzles and you’re really good at them! You have animal puzzles and car puzzles and your new favorite is the shapes puzzles. You know circle, square, triangle and oval!

You are talking more than ever. Some words are more distinguishable than others but for the most part, you are able to communicate with us.

Your love for hats continues! You’ve become very skilled at putting them on by yourself—sometimes 3 or 4 at a time!

You enjoy sitting in the rocker (which you can climb up on all by yourself!) and turning on the fan. 

You have finally given Mommy a name: "Me-Me." Daddy's had his name "Dee" for a long while now, so Mommy's happy to have her own name too. J Speaking of Daddy, you two are quite the pair of silliness. It is so fun to see you play and be silly together. 

We've limited your use of the paci. Now you only use it for naps and that's it. Not during the day and not during bedtime. You've actually done really well with this transition and we're hoping when it's time to take away the paci completely, you'll have an okay time of it. 

Little man, you are the love and joy of our lives (though we could do with a little less tantrums, little mister!). We love you oh so much and are thankful each day that God has given you to us. 

We love you Bubba!

Mommy and Daddy

15 Months Old!

You actually turned 15 months old on August 26^th.

Last month, both Daddy and Mommy went back to work (Mommy is once again teaching Kindergarten ) so the last month has been quite busy. Which is the main reason this post is a week late!

This past month, you’ve spent your weekdays with Grandpa, Grandma, Andrew and Grammy (and sometimes Papa)! You don’t seem to mind the change, and we are thankful you transitioned so well to Mommy and Daddy’s “back to school” schedule.

First off, a few 15-month stats: 

You are in 12-18 month clothes. You can still fit into 12-month shorts, but the 12-month tops are too snug. You are in size 4 shoe. You are also in size 4 diapers. Don't know your weight, as we haven't needed an appointment since your 12-month.

Sadly, because Mommy and Daddy haven’t been home as often, we weren’t able to capture as many pictures. But here’s a few that we do have from this month:

These pictures were taken by Mommy, the day before she had to go back to work. Her last day as a "stay-at-home mommy," something she misses quite a bit.

You love reading, and continue to explore books independently, though you also like it when we read to you.

Your two favorite toys in Mommy and Daddy's room are Legos and balls!

Grandma and Grandpa bought you your very own wagon! Here you are, checking it out for the first time.

You're definitely a fan! You call it a "car" and you seem to be VERY excited to have a 'car' of your own!

Drinking milk out of your big-boy cup. 

Hats! You love wearing multiple hats... and having everyone else wear them too. :)

Some of your "morning babble." You wake up happy and ready to play (after you've had your milk, of course!)

Sportin' the hoodie. 

You've found your love for dancing! Here you are with some of your Parker Dance Moves! 

Snuggly Hat!

this is the first time you've "used" your Elmo chair all by yourself. Though you, apparently, prefer to use it more as a pillow than a chair.

Toes! 

playing with Lillian at church. 

Baby Play Date. :)

Lillian's quite proud of herself! She can get up and down in the rocking chair all by herself! 

Eating O's! (cheerios)

A dapper young lad! We keep this hat in the car. You like to play with it, putting it on your head over and over. 

Another shot of the multiple hat wearing. 

This is generally what a room looks like by the time you're done with it. You are definitely a busy and curious boy! 

This month has been a lot of fun. You are such a happy boy, and in a good mood almost all of the time. You are a curious explorer, who will spend hours in the same room getting your hands on everything within your reach. 

You walk everywhere, all the time. You are more stable on your feet, and have improved your speed. You can almost move at a full-run. Almost. 

Your new tricks: You give high fives now! And your new favorite, is kisses! If we say "Kiss kiss, Mommy" then you'll give Mommy a wet, slobbery kiss on the cheek! Sometimes you even make a kissy sound "mu-wah." It's so super sweet! :)

You are talking more and more, saying new words all the time. Although a lot of your words for things are different than our words. Example: for "light" you say "eh eh eh!"

Also, your general "baby babble" has increased. You say a lot of "b" babble words. "bu bah boo"... it's as if you really are speaking sentences, but in another language.

We are just so enjoying you, each and every day. We don't get to see you as often as we did through the summer, so each moment with you is precious. We love you so much, little bubba, and you bring us so much joy and laughter. We continue to thank God for giving us the gift of you!

Love, Mommy and Daddy