Merry Christmas Dearest Andrew

Dearest Andrew,

There will be more to follow about your Christmas, but for now can I just say how blessed I am to be your mommy?  You have made every day a dream!  I love you buddy!  Merry Christmas!

 

Love,
Mommy

 

 

Happy (Half) Birthday to Yooou! Andrew the 18 Month Old

Dearest Andrew,

I was just sitting here looking at your blog and realized that you are exactly a year and a half today! Happy Half Birthday little man!!! Wow! With all the holiday hubbub, I didn’t realize it was already here! This past month has gone by at lightning speed with Thanksgiving and travel and Christmas preparation. There is so much to do and to top it all off, we all (you, me and Daddy) were sick! Yuck! You had your 3rd ear infection which meant another round of antibiotics. Oh well, we are beyond thankful that is the worse we have had to deal with! I can’t thank God enough for keeping His hand on you. You are a blessing for sure!

Okay, so what, oh what have you done this past month? Hmmmm, let’s see… Well, we will start with that one. Haha, you love to say “Let’s see”. You got that one from your Daddy. It’s so CUTE! Here are some more in random order. Mommy has to use her, gasp…MEMORY!

• Cold –Repeating us when we say it’s cold outside.

• Wow! – You said this when Daddy first plugged in the lights on the Christmas tree! Holy moly that was cute! I really wish I could have got that on film. You said it all by yourself too! You knew how to use the word correctly.

• Pretty –Mama said isn’t the tree pretty? And you responded with a drawn out “Preeety!”

• Tree –Repeating us again, talking about our Christmas tree.

• Happy –Sounds a lot like how you say “Abby” so we have to really listen close to tell which you are saying.

• Pee-pee –We knew it was coming…sigh… Hehe.

• Hallelujah– I LOVE this one! You said it on a Wednesday night at church!

• You’re welcome – This one is really hard to understand, but we know that is what you are saying, one because you repeat it and two, because you sometimes say it after someone says thank you.

• Help – You are learning to say this when you need help. So sweet!

• I love you– REALLY??? Ahhhhh, you said it and it was SOOO sweet! The best part, you said it to ME!!! Hahaha! When you kissed me the first time I thought that was it, it couldn’t get any better until this! Sigh…

• Diaper –repeating Mama.

• Doctor –You have a little doctor kit Mama got you for Halloween to go with your costume and we call you “Doctor” from time to time. When you say it, you say it like a question. Hehe.

Names you said this month:

• Andrew –You finally said your own name! I LOVE to hear you say it too!
• Sky – Now when you say this, you are not talking about the large expanse above our heads, but rather that cute little cousin of yours.
• Keith –When you say your uncles name, it almost sounds like you are saying “kitty” and you must think so too, because you always meow afterwards. It is SO funny! I love to hear you meow when you say Keith or kitty! Hehe.
• Grandma –I haven’t heard you say this one yet, but Daddy has.
• Grandpa –I heard you say this for the first time the other night. Yay!

Things you have done this month:

• When Mama asks you for a kiss, sometimes you will oblige me, but most of the time you turn your cheek to me so I can give you a kiss! Haha, it always cracks me up!
• You had Thanksgiving number two and thoroughly enjoyed GiGi’s pumpkin pie and dressing.
• You learned to eat with a fork and (kind of ) a spoon. We’re still working on the spoon part.
• When Mommy says it’s time for a bath, you know to run to the bathroom (and yes, you still do the bath dance!!!). When I say it’s time to brush your teeth (or "chicka, chicka" as we call it…the sound of brushing your teeth), you run to the bathroom. When I tell you it’s time to change your diaper, you run to the changing table and when Mommy says it’s time to nap or go to bed, you run to your crib. What a clever little thing you are!
• You walk up to things you know you aren’t supposed to touch and say, “No, no!” This is quite possibly the funniest thing I have ever seen. "No" is also a new word from this month. I can't imagine where/why you have heard that one? Hehe.
• You have started sleeping with a blanket and stuffed animal.
• Mommy and Daddy took all of the barriers down that have been up since you started walking. You have only been allowed in the living room and your room until now, but now you have explored every nook and cranny of this house you possibly could and found most of it shut off or child-proofed! Go Mom and Dad!
• You have the funniest, cutest little happy dance ever!
• You got to meet your new little cousin Marcus! Yay!!! He is precious, but you didn’t seem to really know what to think about him. Hehe.
• You figured out you can reach the top of the counter. Note to self: push everything back from the edge.
• Your favorite game seems to be, “What weird stuff can I bring to Mommy?” You bring me everything from a speck of paper you found on the floor to things like a phone, toy, or things out of a drawer in my room while we are in there. The best part is the look of extreme pride on your face. Oh, and the fact that you clap for yourself afterward! Hahahaha!
• You have really taken a new interest in your toys this month and can focus on one toy for quite a while.
• We took you to Rhema for the second time, but last year you were only 6 months old. This year you were much more interested and loved looking at the“ights” as you call them. Hehe! It was weird though because it was 70 degrees and people were wearing shorts and flip flops. In December. Strange.
• You are learning to color. You are starting to hold your crayons and markers really well. You really seem to enjoy coloring and I love all of your works of art. They are Mommy’s favorite.
• You love your babies (stuffed animals) and hug them making an “Awwww” sound and kiss them like Mommy does to you. Then you hold them up and ask Mommy to hug and kiss your baby. It’s so sweet!
• You had your first ER visit, well other than when we slipped in Nashville when you were 3 months old, and it was no fun at all!!! We took you in the middle of the night because you were coughing so hard it seemed you were having trouble breathing. You got better almost as soon as we got in the car and didn’t have a problem again. We went anyway and waited only to never see the doctor. You were fine. Thank the Lord. It was scary for Mommy and Daddy, but the Lord had His hand on you!

As always, I am sure there is more that you have done/said this past month, but that is a lot right there! You are constantly learning new things and I love being able to witness it all. Well, again, Happy Half Birthday my darling boy. This has been the best 18 months of my life!

Love,
Mommy

Andrew Meets Mr. Fork and Mrs. Spoon

Dearest Andrew,

Tonight was kind of a big deal for you.  Mommy gave you your utensils and let you go at it on your own.  You did an AMAZING job with the fork!  You used it like you were an old pro!  I was so proud of how well you handled it.  The spoon on the other hand...well let's just say it needs some work.  Hehe!  But you still did such a great job.  I have let you play with a spoon and really thick yogurt before, but you were eating baby food green beans and they were messy.  It was so much fun though.  That's what Clorox wipes were made for!  And yes, you still eat baby food vegetables.  You love them for some reason.  That is the only baby food item you eat anymore, but I can't get you to eat other veggies, so I am using these.  Your Aunt Renee gave me some great ideas and I need to try them.  I will try them, but this has just been so easy!  Okay, well here are the pictures to prove what a great time we had eating dinner tonight.  I love you little man!

Love,

Mommy

PS - The middle picture on the first one?  Yep, that's you clapping for yourself.  Hehe, you're so silly!