growing so fast...

Wow! Post #150! I haven't really posted an update on Charlie's growing and development other than a few little tidbits here and there so for this momentous post, I'll write about that. Surprised? It's what this blog is all about anyways, isn't it?

In a few days, Charlie will be 17 months old. He learns something new every day. Well, it seems like every minute. His vocabulary is showing some progress. He will say "duh" when he sees his rubber duck or a duck in a book. That's his most recent "word". I'm sure he has more but we just can't tell what they are yet. He is, however, learning signs through our sad attempt to teach him sign language. We have really only taught him a few signs. I got frustrated because he wasn't showing any progress but over the last month or so, he is really making strides and surprising us with signs that we haven't used in a while but he apparently learned many months ago and remembers. Wow! What a memory! Recently, he has accomplished the signs "all done/all gone" and "eat".

As for walking, he's still hanging on by one hand. He's gotten very quick on his feet as well as steady. Steady enough that he has enough balance to turn his walker around. You'll see this in the video. We did have a development on Sunday. Charlie was holding on to the coffee table and wanted to go to the ottoman which had one of his toy cars sitting on it. He let go of the coffee table and stood there for a few seconds. You could tell he wanted to walk to it so badly. He finally sat down and crawled to it. I don't think Daniel or I took a breath the whole time he was just standing there. We didn't move a muscle just waiting to see if he would take a step. It was still an exciting moment even though he didn't make that first step. We hadn't seen him stand that long before.

Charlie still has 6 teeth but has cut a molar and another regular tooth in the front on the bottom. I thought he cut a molar on top but I can't see it anymore. I'm thinking the gums have just swollen up around it. It will appear again in a few days. So, really, I think he has two molars that have cut - one on the bottom and one on the top. Also, he loves to use these teeth to bite his mama - mainly on the knees!

Charlie still loves his books. "Pat the Bunny" is still a favorite and is usually our bedtime book. Some of his other favorites are "Where is Baby's Belly Button?", "Noah's Crew, Two by Two", "Puppy Love", "Charlie Monkey" and "I Can Sign! Playtime". This last book is a sign language book and he has learned the signs for hat and book. The others to learn are car, ball, bubbles and swing. He makes an effort to do ball but hasn't quite gotten the sign yet. One book that he loves is an Elmo Look and Find book. It is one of those books that has a ton of things on each page. He has amazed us at what objects he can learn/remember. Things like duck, kitty, cow, frog, airplane, and Elmo. Daniel recently taught him pizza! You just ask him where the "whatever" is and he points right to it!

Charlie is at the age where putting things in and taking them out is a favorite pasttime and has been for a while. He loves to pull his toys out of his toy box. He will only put a few back in though! He loves to pull anything out of his changing table. I pick up many diapers, sheets, washcloths, and clothes during the day.

Charlie is obsessed with his train. He got this battery operated train for Christmas and has recently taken to it more. He has learned which switch makes it move when you push the stack. It apparently doesn't go fast enough for him though because he likes to push it while it's moving. He has also taken to wanting to carry it around except that it is a little too heavy for him to carry very far. Charlie also loves to play with his toy cars. We can sit for hours pushing cars back and forth to each other. This has also become my distraction when I need to deter him from a fit or anything else. I just go, "Charlie, where is your car? Can you find your car?" He will usually stop whatever he is doing, including pitching a fit, and look for and go after one of his cars. He's getting smart to my tricks though and won't always look for them anymore. He will still stop whatever he is doing though if I mention finding a car.

Charlie's other obsession is his fridge DJ. This has almost become what a TV is to most of us. For example, I gave Charlie his snack and juice today in the kitchen and walked into the other room to do something else. When I came back into the kitchen, Charlie was just sitting there, eating his snack, drinking his juice, all sweet and calm and, of course, watching/listening to his fridge DJ. If he is anywhere near the thing, it must be on. He will turn it on and crawl over to play in his Tupperware cabinet. When that song is finished, he will drop whatever he's playing with, crawl over to it and turn it back on.

It just amazes me what he understands. Even just the little things like telling him to go get in his chair because his food is ready. He'll crawl right over there to it, stand up next to it and wait for you to come put him in it. He has started going to it when he's hungry or when he sees me fixing his plate on the counter in the kitchen.

Well, there's a million things I could tell you about Charlie. I've posted a few pictures and a video. I have started putting Charlie in the "car" buggy at Publix. He seems to really like riding there and will even play with the steering wheel. It is just a tank to maneuver. (Tide, you can send me free coupons for the free advertising!)



The other pictures are of Charlie playing behind the curtains on our sliding glass door. He likes to watch Khaki. He will usually just lay on his belly and watch her and talk to her but I couldn't get a picture fast enough before Charlie was up on his knees after the camera.




The video is a good compilation of the developments of Charlie. From walking to screaming, pulling things in and out, eating, his fridge DJ, and, of course, him being a camera hog.



If you made it all the way through this post, you are a dedicated reader! Whew! I really packed in some info! Guess I need to post more often! Well, hope you enjoyed learning many of Charlie's quirks!