16 months old!

Little Parker is 16 months old today! And my oh my is he ever an active toddler!! Just ten minutes ago he figured out how to pull himself up on top of the coffee table. (Yikes!) Two days before he learned how to pull up into the rocking chair. Luckily he can get down from the chair easily but I'm afraid he'll just crawl right off of the coffee table and hurt himself.

I mentioned in my last "month old" post that he was still in 12 month old clothes. About four days later I had to eat my words and he began wearing his 18 month wardrobe. Now that he's becoming such a big boy I'm finding myself wishing I would have held him more as an infant. I know people kept telling me to enjoy him as a baby and to not worry so much about other things. I think I used his swing way too much and am now wishing I could turn back time. But, I digress....

Parker's vocabulary expanded quite a bit this past month. He knows several words, although he may not say the entire word. So, as of now, here are all the words Parker says (if he doesn't say the word right I'll write next to it how he pronounces it).

1. DaDa
2. MaMa
3. Uh-Oh
4. All Done
5. Dog (daa)
6. Ball (Baa)
7. Baby
8. C'Mon (mon...complete with the finger motion!)
9. Outside (ahh saa)
10. Book (buh)
11. No
12. Pretty (preh)
13. Nose (No)
14. Eye
15. Belly button (ba ba)
16. Cheerios (O) (And his mouth forms the cutest little "O" you've ever seen!)
17. Hi
18. Bye
19. Bug (buh)
20. Bubble (bub bub)

He has not learned any new signs but I'm still doing a few different words with hopes that he'll catch on.

I wrote above that he is saying nose, eye, and belly button. We have been teaching him body parts. What's amazing is he knows where they are, both on him, or on Greg or myself. If you ask where his belly button is, he'll lift his shirt and point at his belly button. If you ask where his nose is, he sticks his finger up his nose and says nose. Ha, ha! He knows what ears are as well but he doesn't say it. One day he had a bug bite on his knee and I pointed at it and said, "Boo-boo." He found that super hilarious and laughed and pointed at his knee and repeated the word, "boo-boo". I continued to do it a couple more times, but figured I'd better stop because I didn't want him referring to knees as "boo-boo's".

He has taken a great interest in learning how to use a spoon or fork (or my favorite, a spork!) to feed himself. I hate to admit it, but this is something that drives me crazy! Although I know he needs to learn how to use those utensils, it tends to slow down the eating process and now he wants to eat only if he's holding on to his silverware and half the time he wants mine, too. I'm sure this is common but normally when he's feeding himself he turns the spoon or spork over before it makes it into his mouth. As long as he's eating yogurt or applesauce it tends to stay on the spoon until he puts it in his mouth. I've also begun using plastic plates with him and he does a pretty good job about not picking the plate up and tossing it to the ground or dumping his food. His favorite foods include: cheerios, fruit, goldfish, yogurt, vanilla wafers, cheetos, macaroni and cheese, meatloaf (a man after my own heart!), corn, and peas.

Parker's favorite things are:

* playing outside
* watching Baby Einstein ( I only let him watch about 2 episodes a week )
* being chased around the living room furniture
* taking a bath
* dogs
* He loves it when I sit on the floor and he runs in circles around me
* When I make the bed. He thinks it's a game.
* dancing
* bubbles

This is proof that he is a growing boy! He surprised me by being able to reach this off of the bathroom sink.


He can also open drawers and pull things out, and he's bugun reaching onto tables and pulling things off. Another favorite activity is to dig in the trash. Which means the trash cans are placed on top of tables (haven't you heard, that's the new "in" centerpiece), and tables and countertops are either empty or everything is pushed to the center so he can't reach it.

Shhh....


I've reduced Parker down to one nap a day and it's after lunch. When I was giving him two naps a day he was always cranky after his second nap (which usually only lasted 30 mintues) so I decided to eliminate it. Now he typically wakes up happy and stays that way for the remainder of the day.

He was so focused on his Baby Einstein video it surprised me when he looked up and gave me this adorable grin.


He loves being outside!


I am 16 months old! When mommy weighed me last weekend I was 24 pounds and was 25 inches long!

13 Months Old!

Considering the fact that Parker is now almost two weeks into his thirteenth month, this post is obviously over-due. However, so much happened in Parkers twelfth month that I couldn't just over look it!

First and foremost, he began WALKING!!!




As odd as it seemed since he's over a year old, Parker got to celebrate his first Easter! We spent it at the lake, and unfortunately we didn't get to go to church because yours truly forgot to pack Greg's church clothes. Opps! There's always next year!



His favorite Easter treat was this metallic egg from his Grams. He was so excited when he opened it and discovered....CHEERIOS!



Next, Parker finally began using some of the baby sign language I've been using! His first sign was "more" as in, "I want more food". He also began doing the sign for "milk" although I think he uses it when he wants a drink in general. He began signing the word "eat". Unfortunately, he doesn't do that one correctly! The sign language is to tap some of your fingers on your mouth and it took me awhile to realize that he does this sign, but instead of tapping his mouth, he taps the side of his head! (Think, Winnie the Pooh!) I know what he's trying to say though, so that's all that matters to me! Last but not least, he began signing AND saying "All Done" when he finishes his meal. It is ADORABLE! However, he generally follows up "all done" with the "more" sign! LOL! It's also pretty cute if we are in the car for a long period of time he will start saying and signing "all done" which we interpret as: get me out of here!

Parker loves being outside! I recently began letting him walk outside. The uneven terrain is a little challenging for him, but I think he's about got it mastered now. Being the over protective mom though, I usually let Greg take him out! I would probably hold him back from exploring too much, where Greg just keeps a watchful eye on him and lets him be free!

Speaking of Greg, Parkers favorite person is his DADA! Which is also a word I hear all day long. I'm pretty lucky if he says the word "mama" once a week.

I am 13 months old!!! I weigh 22 pounds and am 30" long!