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16 Months

My funny guy just keeps getting funnier! We play this "game" now where I say "Alec, where is Dada?" and you say "Uh, oh" and spread your arms out and sort of shrug your shoulders and look around. Then you point to him and say "There he is". So you've added this whole new dimension of "uh-oh" to our game.

Tonight my computer's power save went on and the screen went black. You got this horrified look on your face and did your "uh-oh" and shrug. Priceless.

You are becoming more interested in how things fit together. Like in your shape sorter, and you are also currently fascinated with how your car seat chest clips lock together. Hopefully you won't be interested in how they come apart for quite awhile yet!

The place we are staying this summer has some ponds with lots and lots of ducks. You love to go walking and feed the ducks. I think you want to pet them though which is not a good idea!

Everytime we see a construction vehicle you say "Ba" which means Bob - for Bob the builder. You love them. You are just such a boy. And you always want more of everything - if we see one truck you say more - you want them all!

I think you are starting to say "more this" - it is some new word and I can't quite figure it out. Oh well! It sounds like "moh moh moh thees"

I think you are also now saying "Who this?" and/or "what this?" It's all sort of slurred together, but you definitely say something that sounds like this when you are pointing to something you want identified.

So we went on another plane ride over the Fourth of July - to Durango via Albuquerque. This was your 6th plane trip! You are quite the traveler! You did pretty well, though you hate being confined to the seat and the narrow row. You loved watching the planes at the airport too, taking off, landing, taxiing - you would make your "ooooh" noise. You still liked playing peek-a-boo with all the passengers so that was a great distraction. Unfortunately you still like to kick the chair in front of you and would freak out everytime we tried to stop you - not fun! We put you in a harness (leash) and you loved walking like a big boy through the terminal - so many people. It must have been a bit daunting to see all those legs coming at you, but you were unphased.

We went to Colorado over the 4th of July to visit your great-grandparents. You had a very good visit and were absolutely thrilled to see your Grammy again who was also out there visiting. You started to show the makings of a true ham on this trip. There was always lot of company at their house and you would run into the living room, yell "Hi" and then run back out yelling "Bye" over and over again in your sweet little voice. You loved getting everyone's attention and would laugh everytime someone said hi or bye back.

You have a bit if a cough and it woke you up while we were in the hotel in Colorado. We were trying something new and had you in a double bed all by yourself surrounded by pillows. You did so well in the big boy bed! Anyway, you had a bad coughing fit and seemed restless so I went and lay down next to you and you just rolled over and saw me and said "Hi" like it was the middle of the day or something, you were just so funny and nonchalant, saying hi to me, your dad and I couldn't help but laugh.

I caught you kissing yourself in the mirror today. You just love to give kisses - even to your smelly feet! I still don't know if you understand that is you in the mirror or not, or if you just thought hey that kid is cute let me kiss him. But then I think you were intrigued by the smoothness of the mirror - you just kept kissing!

You have found a new fascination - and a new word. In Durango they have an old steam train that runs a tourist trip up into the mountains. Well we happened to time it right one night after dinner and took you down to see the train come into town. It was so loud! But you didn't flinch at all, only lying your head on your dad's shoulder a few times when the whistle blew but no crying. You were so fascinated by it. You call it "choo choo". Time to get you a toy train set!

I took pictures of the train and they are on my laptop, so whenever you see me at my computer you run over and go "choo choo? choo choo?" absolutely begging to see pictures of the train. I can't deny you, you are just so sweet the way you ask!

We went to see the fireworks and you were absolutely mesmerized for the first 10 minutes. You just sat in my lap completely still and gazed up at the sky at the beautiful lights. I loved holding you like that, I was sitting indian style and you were in my hollow lap. I love feeling the heavy weight of you, so solid and snuggly against me. I love those quiet moments - you are such a busy boy these days! Of course once the novelty of the fireworks wore off you were up and running once again - so I passed you off to your dad!

You love to sit in your turtle raft to watch TV now. You don't want anything to do with it in the pool, but absolutely love to sit in it at home watching TV. Most bizarre! And your new favorite show is DORA the Explorer! You are pretty obsessed with her and totally space out to the show. But you do laugh and interact and point so I assume you are learning or at least generating brain waves! The other day you woke up late from your nap so could only catch the last 5 minutes of Dora. You had a complete meltdown when you saw the show was ending and you only got 5 minutes of Dora rather than your normal 30 minute fix. Poor guy!

When we go to the grocery store you like to hold my keys and you put them in the metal slots in the cart next to your seat and pretend you are driving the cart - complete with "vroom vroom" noises as well!

You seem to have started to throw things. Of course it started on our plane ride - matchbox cars! Oh well, it was inevitable I guess. It's not too bad yet, just an occasional throw, and more of a let go, than an actual chuck with aim or purpose.

You occasionally bite your dad and I, more of a teeth pressure than bite. I don't want you to be a biter! But I am worried it's my fault because I often "nibble" on you - I just love you so much I have to eat you up! I think you think biting is a sign of affection like kisses. Ooops!

You are sleeping better now, I think you are resigned to your port-a-crib for the summer. Though you do have the occasional night wakings and we can't not get you because you are right in the room with us.

You are too funny the way you nod you rhead very vigorously when we understand what you want. And it is accompanied by a loud and emphatic "UNH HUH!"

You know how a train, cat, cow, dog and sheep go. "choo-choo, mowh, booo, woof, baa"

More this is your favorite expression, or as you say it - "Mow mow mow this!"

You ask for books all the time now - "Boo?" How could I ever say no to that sweet voice?

You are very affectionate lately and gave me a big hug from behind today. My heart melted.

We got you a Radio Flyer tricycle, but it seems a bit big for you still. You really like it though and were so excited when you first saw it - "Bie!" I am sure you will love it even more as you get bigger. In your helmet, I call you my little Lance Armstrong.

There is currently a popular song on the radio by the group Live and the lyrics go "I don't need no one to tell me about heaven. I look at my daughter, and I believe." When I hear them I think about you, how I felt when you were born, the miracle you truly were. How your old man face was so wise, how this miracle came from me, how nothing became something. I still think that - when I watch you with wonder every day, how you are exploring your world, seeing things for the first time, understanding how things work. I am so thankful you are my son Alec, I am so thankful I got to have you as my son, that you made me a mother. I am so happy spending my days with you - I have the best job in he world. I love you sweet boy.

You are so funny now - so demanding of your books, but also that you need to sit just so to read them. You will grab a book and plop yourself down (hard!) on the floor sitting with your legs out like a V before you. If we are in bed, you have to be reclining, either flat or leaning against some pillows. It sounds reasonable, but it is the deliberateness of your actions that makes it so funny - words don't do you justice!

I bought you a plastic Little Tikes slide at a garage sale this weekend for $5 (I was very proud of my bargain!) and you just love it. You were a little uncertain at first on how to climb it, but once you got the hang of it there was no stopping you. You would climb to the top, pause and say "Hiye" to me and then start to slide down. Occasionally you try to stand at the top which is dangerous, but most times you sit and slide. Hopefully this will help you burn some of your constant energy!

Last night we went to Zany Brainy for their family night which was all about Thomas the Train! You loved playing with the trains of course but the line for the craft was too long and we didn't think you could really do it anyway so we didn't do that part, but we did buy you the starter train set to break out on a rainy day since everything was on sale. You love your choo-choos! But on the way home in the car it was late and getting dark. We could see the full moon off to the right and you saw it as well. You got so excited, pointed, and clear as a bell said "moon". It was one of those cool moments when you yet again amazed us with your brilliance!

You really seem to understand a lot. If you point to something (say a banana) and I say, "Alec do you want a banana?" You smile, nod vigorously, and say "anh-ha anh-ha" several times. You are so happy we understand and you have a special "yes" word to acknowledge it. So sweet.

We went to a blues festival downtown today. You loved the water fountains on the plaza and this huge modern sculpture they had - all the kids thought it was a jungle gym. But most of all you loved this little toy train ride they had set up - sort of like a tram ride at a parking lot. We rode it twice and everytime you saw the train you would say "choo choo" in your sweet voice I never tire of hearing!

I would love to start scrapbooking but it's not in the budget right now - but I do have thousands of pictures of you! So, someone suggested digital scrapbooking. Well, that's sort of what I do here I guess, but this would be more specific I guess. Here is my first attempt, using pictures of you on your new slide.

You and your keys. Now when we leave the house, I lock the door and you stand next to me with the car keys and put the car key in a wood knot/hole next to the door and turn them - I guess you are "locking" your door. You can also use the remote car alarm to lock and unlock the car. We walk to the car and you have to hold the keys of course, and when I say "OK Alec, unlock the doors for mom, push the button." Presto, you unlock the car. I do take the keys from you as soon as I put you in your carseat. I am somewhat afraid one day you will lock yourself in the car so I try to limit the key use.

You are so so obsessed with trains. I literally can not be on the computer at all without you running over and saying"choo choo? choo choo?" because you know there are train pictures and mpegs to watch. *sigh*

Today you said another new word - "box" - the UPS truck brought your dad a package with it and you were just fascinated by the truck, the box, everything. Today when you saw the box in the hallway, you went right to it, tapped it and said "box." You have also added the word "map" to your vocabulary thanks to Dora the Explorer "I'm the map, I'm the map, I'm the map!"

You can do your shape sorter now, still some frustration, but you are starting to get that the shapes are different and not every piece fits in the same hole. You can also stack all of your nesting pails. I am so proud :)

Today I killed a huge bug with a shoe that was lying nearby. After I did that, you grabbed another shoe and started hitting the ground where there was a black piece of lint. You really do learn fast!

Tonight I was telling you that your friend Marshall has a new baby brother named Luke, and I asked you if you would like to have a new baby brother or sister and you looked at me very seriously as if you had understood all I had just said and you said "choo choo?" So I guess you would like a train rather than a baby sibling!

You love to name the parts of our faces - eyes, nose, ears, lips, tongue, teeth, etc. Of course it usually involves you poking me in the eye, but it is fun to see you so inquisitive about learning!

We had an incident in the sandbox at the park this morning. You just hate to share! You don't understand and will take things from other kids and freak out if you have to give something back to someone. I think you are starting to understand, but it is a slow process! Hopefully by the time we start going to playgroups again in the fall....we'll see! And then you almost killed yourself by running off the slide! In your excitement you forgot to sit down! Good thing you pretty much ran into my arms, I was right there to catch you. You scared me though!

Paw is here visiting and we went to story hour today - you kept him busy that is for sure, never staying still for a second. You did amaze me though when we pulled up in front of BArnes and Noble and as soon as you saw it you said - "book". Since we had only been to this one once before I was even more impressed! And you were so cute once we were inside, you'd run over to a new book and make this noise like "oooohh aghhhhh" - it seems to be your new excited noise.

You are babbling a lot more now - lots of new sounds all together. I think the language explosion is coming....

We took Pa to the county fair. You loved it! One of your books talks about a fair "The bear and the hare have been to a fair....but no the Hippopotamus!" and I don;t think you understood what fair was. Until now! Oh you had a great time. We saw racing pigs, horses, cows, roosters (you say cuck cuck cuck ooo) and of course a choo choo. You didn't go on any rides, they were a bit old for you and no parents could go ont he kids rides and I don't think you know to stay seated yet. But you still had a blast. There was a toy train set, this huge collector set set up and you just loved watching the trains go round and round. And of course we gorged ourselves on fair food. All in all a pretty good day!

The next day we took Pa to opening day/family day at the local racetrack. You loved watching the horsies, but best of all you like running around the grounds with Pa chasing you. You were laughing and laughing. I tried to get it on video but I missed :( You were just so funny. And I love the way you run - I know you will hate to read this when you are older, but it's just so silly. You wobble and shake, hands in the air half bent and bouncing on your legs. I laugh every time i See you do it.

You are so truck obsessed Alec. Maybe all little boys are. It seems to be inbred - like a nature over nurture thing. I have not foisted "boy" toys on you, yet you are obsessed with them. On the highway, on TV, toy trucks, especially construction vehicles. It's crazy! But so fun to see you get so excited"oooh ooh there it is! bob!" I bought you a bunch of various trucks a t a garage sale recently and you love them. And you like the drivers too - this one firetruck has some firemen you can put on the ladder or in the driver's seat and you are really good at that - obviously a fine motor skill! Legos/putting things in things - like drivers on bus, etc.

You are getting more interested in puzzles now too. Though that maybe because I bought you a firetruck puzzle :) But you often come and grab me and lead me to the puzzle so we can do it together. I love that. It's nice to feel wanted and loved. Usually if I am at the computer you give me a disgusted look and pull on my arm to come play. I agree, playing is more fun!

You are my affectionate boy now. You give me big hugs around the neck now and often put your head on my shoulder. You come looking for affection and "snuggly bugglies" a lot, which just makes me feel so good to know what an affectionate kid you are growing into.

In the morning when we wake up you come in bed and snuggle with me for a bit. Then when you are ready to get up for the day, you get off the bed (feet first!) and then stick your arm out to me, meaning "take my hand mom and come on!" Melts my heart every time.

I guess its a good thing you are so affectionate now, makes up for your tantrums! Oh you can try our patience Alec. When you are good you are so good, but when you are bad....

You love your dad. Every night when he comes home you run to greet him at the door, present yourself for a hug, and then take him by the finger to the couch where you hit the cushion and say "booh" meaning - "Dad, I want you to read me a book, now!"

You made me laugh so hard today. We got the mail and brought it inside. You were playing and I sat on the floor against the wall to read some of the mail while you played. You saw me, grabbed some of the other mail, and came and sat down right next to me, exactly as I was sitting against the wall and proceeded to "read" your mail. It was so cute! You love to be like the big people - I can tell already my baby is in a hurry to grow up. *sigh*

One of your favorite things to do is to watch the construction vehicles at Kohls. Luckily we live in an area with lots of construction - so there is always something being built! So whenever we are out near Kohls I try to drive by so you can watch the bulldozers, backhoes and cranes. You get so quite and then will start yelling "bob! bob!"

Your Mimi knows you like Bob the Builder! She bought you a Bob t-shirt and when you opened the package your reaction was priceless. You picked up the shirt and stared lovingly into Bob's face and said "oooooh, Bob!" So amazed by this simple shirt. I love your sweetness and simplicity Alec.

When you eat something you like you get all excited and say "mmmmm" and give a firm shake of your head. Sometimes if something is really good it gets an "mmmmmhhhhhmm".

Big food night for you Alec! We went out for Vietnamese food - such a treat for me since I haven't had it since we left Boston! And you loved my spring rolls and your dad's spicy pork dish. We could not believe how you put the pork down. It was so spicy. But you loved it! And then the waitress gave you a lollipop and you were in heaven. So yummy, you would not let go of it for anything. And your drool destroyed the stick and it broke and you were so sad :(

Oh Alec, did you have fun today! We went to a local state park this morning. They had the coolest swimming pool complex. You didn't want much to do with the baby pool, and when we did go there the pool ate your shovel! Hmmph. But you just loved the big pool. And it was very cool because you just walked into it like you would walk into the ocean. Perfect for babies! You would crawl around, well you tried to walk but would usually fall, so you crawled and crawled everywhere. You really want to swim! And then you would roll around on your back. So funny. We already decided we are going back next week. Of course it wasn't so fun when you didn't want to leave and threw a huge tantrum, but otherwise, lots of fun!

Boy, have you had a big 16th month! Good grief, look at all the cool stuff you did! Wow. Oh Alec, you are growing so fast. Time is just flying. Though sometimes the days themselves may be long the weeks and months are flying. I've been having such overwhelming feelings of sadness lately, sadness tinged with fear of something happening to you or me. I don't know what they are about and hope they don't mean anything. I want you to live a long and happy life, and I want to be around to see it.

You are in a mom-attachment phase. Seems only mom will do lately, poor dad is sad! Though you do run to him as soon as he comes in the door at night with a book (usually your truck book) to read. But if you are sad or grumpy, look out - you need your mama! I have taught you to answer "Mama" when I say "Who loves Alec?" It's very cute :) (note: you are now being a stinker and will now only answer dada! he has corrupted my game with you!)

You had a new word today, June 27th, your last day of being 16 months. You sneezed and then laughed and kept saying"A-choo, a-choo" and then you'd laugh like crazy when I would answer with "bless you." It really is the simple things! Oh and you can now say "nay" for what a horse says and "cock a doo doo" for what a rooster says.

Oh and I forgot your other new word "takes" - which is your word for thanks! It took us awhile to clue into what you were saying! But it is so cute. You usually do it after I hand you your sippy cup or some food.