Friday, June 25, 2010

14 Month Milestones

Last Saturday Will turned 14 months!  It's funny because I seriously think he changed overnight.  It's like he woke up one morning and decided he was going to be a big boy.  He started so many new things and just seems more like a toddler.  All of a sudden he understands so much more.  When I ask him to bring me his shoes, toys, etc. he knows what I'm saying and will do it.   Here are some updates:

Sleeping
This area has not been good lately.  When he was sick a couple of weeks ago I didn't let him cry to sleep at all.  I laid down with him for every nap and bedtime and then most nights let him sleep with me (on me) because of his coughing.  Anyway, he began waking up every night at like 1:00 am and just screaming his head off.  He would point to the door and want out of the room.  We had to let him cry and it's going better, but I still hear him wake up a couple of times.  Most mornings he still gets up around 6:00.

Eating
Still great!  He's such a good eater- maybe too good of an eater.  He will try anything and eats a lot.  Last night he wanted all of the olives off my pizza.  He still asks for crackers and cook-cooks (cookies)  ALL of the time.  He's learned to get into the pantry and bring me whatever he can get his hands on- a box of pasta, bag of rice, etc.  He rubs his little chest (please) and nods his head while saying, "Yeah, yeah." He shoves the food in so frantically though that sometimes I worry he's going to eat his fingers off.
One of his favorites is peanut butter!  He's definitely my boy!

Signing
Mostly he just signs please.  Sometimes he'll do 'all done'.  He never does more anymore.  He'll just let us know he wants more by saying "yeah" and signing 'please'.  Pointing isn't really happening, not with just the pointer finger anyway.  He puts his pointer and thumb together and gestures toward what he wants.  I try to not worry about it, but it does bother me.  We're working on that one!

Talking
He says about 10-15 words.  Some are very understandable and a couple I only know what he's saying because of what he's doing.  For instance when he says "ta" he's throwing something in the trash, so I know he's saying ''trash".   I'm counting it!  He does a few animal sounds, but not many- cow, duck, puppy, and sometimes a monkey sound
His words:  mama, dada or daddy, Pop Pop, car, ball, cracker, cookie, hi, bye, trash,  quack-quack (for duck), moo,  boo (which is peek-a-boo or boom!), yeah, and uh oh... I can't think of any more, hopefully we'll get a new one today!

New Accomplishments or Tricks as I call them
-Throwing things in the trash for Mama.  I have to be careful with this b/c he likes it so much that he's thrown away things that are not trash.  (my make-up for instance).
-Helping with laundry.  If I give him the clothes, he will throw them in the washer or dryer for me.
- Stacking blocks.  We have some of those big cardboard ones and he's getting better and more interested in it everyday.
-Playing chase.  He likes to chase and loves to be chased.
-Combing his hair.  He actually needs a cut right now, but will comb his hair or at least try to.
-Using a spoon.  We started this a couple months ago and he still prefers his fingers, but he's getting much better.
-Climbing.  He can't get on the couch all by himself yet, but if there is something close he can step on then he'll be up there.
-Pulling, dragging, and lifting.  He is trying to lift and drag all kinds of things are a way too heavy for him.  He gets very frustrated and it's hard not to laugh at him.
-Running.  He's still kind of a clumsy kid sometimes, but he's getting pretty fast.
-Being a comedian.  He's learned to do things that he knows will make us laugh.  At dinner he shakes his head back and forth and then waits for the laughter.

Not-so-goods
This month also brought some attitude changes.  He's been getting frustrated very easily when he can't do something.  He's also been disobedient at times, doing things we've told him not to do- repeatedly.  We've started doing time out for a minute at a time.  He HATES it.  Impatient- he can hardly wait for his snack, drink, meal without crying and yelling at us. And testing limits- it's actually funny b/c when we tell him "no touch" he will immediately go find five other things to touch and look at us each time.  He's such a stinker.

It's hard not to share every little thing he's doing.  (You're thinking, I'm pretty sure you just did)  We just love him so much and are so proud of him.

Have a good weekend!  The Lentz's will be very busy!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Fun Day with a friend!

Yesterday Will and I got to spend the day with our little friend Cooper. They had so much fun together and cracked me up all day. Cooper is 18 months and Will is 14 months. They really got along pretty great and even their fighting over toys was super cute. Here are a few pictures from the day. (I'm actually missing a few pictures though- the boys had edible playdough in the morning- Will played & Coop just ate it! Hilarious! Later in the day the boys painted a picture. They are adorable!)

"Seriously Cooper, you'll get used to the water faster this way!"

My love
I love this little guy quite a bit too, such a sweet boy!
This video is great! Both of the boys liked going down the slide into the pool. Adorable!
"Just a minute, I missed a spot."



Then it was time for a nap. I thought I'd see if they'd lay down in the same crib. I know, I know- I'm an idiot- but let me tell you- this was HILARIOUS! I was seriously cracking up the whole time and snapping away with the camera. First of all, let me just say that Cooper is amazing. He just laid down- no crying, no whining, or pulling on my shirt, or throwing his paci- the kid just laid down. But NO, Will was not having that. He was bound and determined to keep the kid awake.
"C'mon buddy. You can't let her win. This is not how we do things around here!"

"Okay, I'll just step on your back."
Honestly, I thought we were about to have a wrestling match.
Will finally resigned to trying to pick Cooper up! I'm telling you, it was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. THat's when I decided to give our friend a break and put him in the pack and play. Both of the boys slept for over two hours!

Hopefully we'll get to do it all again soon! These two are destined to be great pals!

As long as Will stops spraying his buddy in the face with the water hose, stepping on him, and trying to manhandle him. Boys!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

The Bachelorette Review

So I've missed a couple weeks of my Bachelorette review.  I have been watching of course.  Of course.  Anyway, I thought last night was a good episode.  Ali seems to be making good decisions.  I'm happy with the guys she has left.

THANK YOU to Ali for sending home Kacey.  He became too creepy and if I felt my eyes automatically roll every time he mentioned wanting to wear his heart on his sleeve, wanting to be a man for her, or wanting to "protect and guard her heart".  Heeby jeebies.

Justin needs to go next.  It's just a competition for him and he's super cheesy.  Also, the previews for next week showed Ali getting a call about one of the guys having a girlfriend- I'm pretty sure it's him.

The other guy she sent home was a good choice too.  I only know him as "the other guy" b/c he was not even really on the show.  Too quiet and timid.  Probably a sweet guy, but not much of a personality.  If someone asks you how you like to be silly and crazy and you reply, "I like Mexican food"- you need to get out more.

To go home next:  Chris L and Craig.

My prediction for the final four:  Frank, Kirk, Roberto, and Ty.

Final three:  Frank, Kirk, Roberto

Final two: Frank & Roberto or Kirk or Roberto... Can't make up my mind.

I know this post solidifies my standing as a complete nerd.  I okay with that.

Friday, June 18, 2010

Today

The lack of recent posting is due to a variety of reasons.
1.  I didn't have access to our computer because it died and because my husband snapped the cable we couldn't charge it.  (Cable is replaced now, thank goodness!)
2.  I stayed at my parents' house for a couple of days because my Grandma was in the hospital.  She fell and broke three ribs. (Now she has stage 4 lung cancer, tumors on her spine, a detached chest muscle, and three broken ribs)  Last night she was discharged and moved into a nursing home.  This is very sad and a difficult transition for my family.
3.  I don't feel well.  Probably a sinus infection.  
4.  I'm tired.  My kid has decided to start waking up around 12:30am to talk and play and then once he's gone back to sleep he only sleeps until like 5:30!  I'll get him for this some day.


On the upside we had an awesome lunch.  Grilled flank steak, steamed spinach, roasted squash, & a strawberry walnut salad.  MMMMMM!


Also, we have like three birthday parties this weekend and on Sunday I'm going to see Wicked! I can't even tell you how excited I am.  If you haven't read the book, do it now.  So good.  The wicked witch is completely misunderstood.  Poor gal.


The only bad part of that is that Sunday is Father's Day.  So Steven gets to spend it being a father.  


Ok, I'd better get off the computer and play with my boy.  He's grabbing my hands and trying to shut the computer.  He's been playing wrestling, chase, and hide and seek with Steven, but is now aware that I'm not paying attention to him. 


Happy Friday,

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

San Diego in our future

In July Steven and I are taking a trip to San Diego to visit my brother Jason and his wife Johanna.  Steven and I are super excited b/c neither of us has been to California before.  We've booked flights- I can't back out again.  The only thing that makes me nervous about the trip is the tiny gremlin tearing up tissue paper in my living room right now.  How are we going to survive a three hour flight with this kid?  I know we'll be fine, he will be fine, but I'm sorry for the peeps around us.  

Oh, now he's kicking blocks and shaking a maraca. 
picture stolen from www.steelberryclones.wordpress.com
If any of you moms out there in blog land have tips for flying with rambunctious toddlers I'd be happy to hear them!


... rolling on the floor... no, running into the kitchen putting magnet letters on the fridge... back to the living room... did he sit in grape jelly?


 

Also- is anyone else seeing all the amazing updates blogger has added?!   Love this!  The new picture uploading system is so much better!  Now, if they'd get some better fonts and let us arrange the pictures it will be even better!

Monday, June 7, 2010

We're alive!

I'm coming out of my very short blogging hiatus. Will got sick and that makes us all very tired around here. A lot of kids sleep more when they're tired- not necessarily mine. He is tired, but he fights it harder when he's sick. I noticed him not feeling well on Tuesday morning and ended up taking him in on Wednesday. He had an ear infection, a slight sinus infection, and croup. Yuck! He was such a miserable little guy for a few days. That croup cough just kept waking him up every time he finally fell asleep. So for three nights I let him sleep with me. I also wanted to keep an I eye on him. I don't get much sleep at all when he sleeps with me- he rolls, tugs, grabs, and then every time he'd cough & wake up he would then immediately try to stand up and fight me to get off the bed. Needless to say I'm glad he's back in his own bed again.

I've been trying to keep him a bit sequestered b/c I doubt other moms would appreciate us spreading croup! He's doing much better, so we may try to meet some friends this week. We're going a bit stir crazy in here.

Anyway, here's a sad little video of my pitiful little guy the other day. You can just see it in his red eyes how miserable he was.



Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Memorial Day Weekend 2010

We had a great Memorial Day weekend! Here are a few pics from the weekend. These are not in any particular order, which drives me a bit crazy, but with a toddler I don't have time to devote to chronologically organizing the pics.

On Monday we went with a few other families to the Granbury City Beach. It is awesome! It's beautiful and clean and you really almost feel like you're at the beach. Luckily it wasn't too crowded. Will had such a good time playing the sand.

We tried to get a picture of all the kids together at the end of the day...
Cooper is done...

Will is done...

..and Abby is done. Maybe we should have tried this earlier in the day.


Kisses for Daddy
Kisses for Mama too!

Lunch break- Will kept dipping his sandwich in the pasta salad. Goofy kid.

We need a bigger umbrella.

He had a really good time playing in the sand and patting it into the bucket.

My boys

View of the beach
He was so tuckered out! I am really happy b/c he didn't burn. I try to be good about coating him in a blanket of sunblock!


Another view of the beach. There was a blow up slide and a splash park too. I'm tellin ya, it's a great place!
On Saturday we went to a housewarming/retirement party for some relatives of mine. They have a pool, so Will did some more swimming. This is his pink raft. I thought it would be red. It was the only one left. Sorry buddy.
My Grandma, she loves sitting outside!
On Friday night we had dinner with some friends and then took a walk around the block. We put the littles in the wagon. I love the expression on Will's face, "Are you kidding me?"

The girls were swimming, that's where the adorable crazy hair is from!

I love summer.