Well I Never...

...thought I would find my toddler in the dryer! As I was cooking dinner last night, I noticed the kitchen had become very quiet - too quiet. I looked up from my simmering pot of chicken unable to find Colin anywhere in the kitchen, dining room, living room or bedrooms. So I started looking in all the unlikely places - bathrooms, closets, pantry, and finally found the little guy in the utility room inside the dryer.

Yes indeed, he had climbed up into the dryer (all on his own, I swear) and closed the door to hide. I quickly opened the door to try and rescue my fearless explorer, but he started shaking his head, no, no, no. He was evidently perfectly content in his new spot and very proud of himself for evading me for quite some time. I immediately ran for the camera although I was laughing so hard the pictures may be a bit blurry.

This is a First

Colin actually fell asleep while eating lunch. He was about to put a fry in his mouth when he dozed off. I fact, it was a Chick-fil-A fry. Who sleeps through a delicious lunch like that!?! Not mommy.

Colin is 16 Months

It is fun to see all the changes in Colin's development. David and I can't stop talking about all the new things Colin does or says. For example, Colin recently grabbed the stud finder from the utility room cabinet and ran it along the wall. I immediately called David to ask if he had taught him that. David laughed and said yes.

Last night at Maudies, Colin watched as we dipped our chips in the queso bowl. He immediately grabbed a chip from the basket and dipped his whole hand (up to his wrist) in the queso. What a yummy mess!

He can point to my car in a crowded parking lot as well as point to our mail box (out of about 20 seemingly identical boxes). That really surprised me. Every day there is something new...

- He says a few words now: dada, mama, dog, ball, juice, trash, treat, and bottle
- He points to parts of his body when we call them out: ears, eyes, teeth, head, hair, mouth, toes, belly button, and tee tee (he learned this first and has NEVER forgotten (typical boy)).
- He understands simple things we tell him to do: throw garbage in the trash, take a bath, go upstairs, go outside, change diapers, give Monster a treat, read books, get in the high chair, watch tv/dvds, answer the door, and many more!
- He imitates everything we do: brushes his teeth with us, brushes his hair, uses the phone and the remote control, starts David's car (push button start) and grabs the steering wheel to drive, drinks out of cups, carries purses on his shoulder and gives my credit card to sales people (my personal favorite)
- He can use a fork and spoon and loves the new feeling of independence
- He throws and kicks balls and is excellent in playing fetch with Monster
- He rides in his Cozy Coupe and on his tricycle
- Oh, and he has starting running down hills while saying "weeeee"

Colin's 16 month doc appointment:
Weight = 21 lbs 6 oz. (5%-10%)
Height = 31.75 in. (50%)
Head = 48.6 cm. (75%-90%)

Santa's Little Helpers

As I write this post, I'm sipping my coffee and rubbing my eyes trying to wake up after a busy night of assembly. Santa was SO generous this year - Colin is the proud owner of several super cool new toys. All of which came in compact boxes with the evil words, "assembly required." David and I shoved these off to the side for a few days trying to get Colin interested in the new books, tinker toys, games, etc. However, yesterday Colin began climbing on the corner boxes and knocking on them...translation..."Open my new toys, I know they're in there!!!" David and I nodded, it was going to be a long night. We had to become Santa's little elves equipped with power tools and PAGES and PAGES of directions.

My approach to assembly is to jump right in and get as much done as humanly possible in a given time frame. David's approach is quite different. He will read the instructions cover to cover, then organize his parts and tools in perfect little piles, and finally he will begin the project (which will take several hours but it will be flawless construction). Me, on the other hand, I will end up making a couple mistakes, but I'll overlook them in a "it's good enough for a 1 year old" kind of way. Actually, I have to brag bc this time I only made 2 mistakes that required disassembly and a scolding from David on how I need to read the directions more carefully.

Ultimately, David and I will finish projects in about the same amount of time (I'm faster but will back track a few times vs. David is slow and steady but never ends up with the legs on upside down at step 35.) I'm sure that toy companies keep the "assembly required" a dirty little industry secret just to put marriages to the test and make you understand your partner on a whole new level. What doesn't break a marriage only makes it stronger, right? Because the alternative is even worse, I could NEVER put these things together as a single parent. :)

Here are the fruits of our labor that will hopefully keep our toddler VERY busy.

Morning Fun with the Potty

Time for a bath!

Top 5 Things

I love my son to death, but he has recently developed typical toddler habits that drive me nuts. Here are the top 5 things Colin does that drive me crazy:

1. The Whine: You know the whine! The sound that I compare to Jim Carry's line in Dumb and Dumber, "You want to hear the most annoying sound in the whole world"? I am liable to give him anything he wants to put the wine to put a stop to the wining. Want my diamond ring to play with? How about daddy's power tools?

2. The Fit: Outta' no where comes the fit. Because I take too long to prepare his meals, or I want to change a dirty diaper, or I want him to get in his car seat, or I stop him from throwing the iphone in the trash (or the toilet). BTW, Christmas morning he threw his monitor in the toilet at 5 am while we were trying to get "5 more minutes" of rest after our 4 hours of sleep the night before.

3. The Food Toss: Sadly this happens nearly every day, at every meal. He's done eating but there is one more thing to do - toss the plate, throw the vegetables and my favorite "look at mommy while I slowly push my sippy cup over the side of the high chair". Now I have a dirty floor, a messy baby, and a dog who might vomit blueberries and pancakes in the bed tonight. Awesome!

4. The Destroyer: Magazines, important mail, anything within reach that is fragile enough to be torn by little fingers. The best is the destruction of the cabinets or the clearing of the coffee table or the continuous throwing of the dog food/water bowls.

5. The Dare Devil: Dare Devils have no sense of gravity and neither does Colin. The saying, "What goes up must come down" has NO meaning to Colin. David and I feel a drop our stomachs every time Colin climbs on the couch, jumps on the bed or stands on objects that are not made for standing. This usually results in a huge wine (see #1) and a fit (see #2).

Can anyone relate? I'm being brutally honest, I LOVE him, but he does drive me nuts sometimes - especially today!

Christmas 2010

What's different about holidays now? The fact that we have changed our traditions to make them flexible for toddlers and babies! Unwrapping gifts is now organized around nap time, and we now attend the children's church service. Holiday dinner was moved to lunch and there was no time for eggnog or socializing.

Keep in mind that the average attention span of a toddler is around 3 minutes and our families buy a lot of presents. David and I had to keep a constant eye on Colin to be sure he wasn't eating paper or trying to pull down the tree.


When you are 16 mos., every Christmas tree looks about 30 feet tall!



Colin opening his first gift...we should have practiced!