"YAY! I CAN TALK!!!"
Grant said a few more words today. This morning, he said "mama" when we asked him to repeat it, and he said "down" (which actually sounded pretty close!) when we asked him if he wanted to go downstairs this morning. He also said "ball" this afternoon when we were playing out in the yard and I gave him one of his balls to throw.

He still doesn't say them on his own without being prompted, but I think that will just take time (although he did say "ju" for juice when I took his sippy cup out of the refrigerator this morning).

For most people who are reading this, these posts I'm sure are very uninteresting! The only reason I'm putting them on the blog is for posterity....it's easier to get on the computer and type it than to try to write it down somewhere.....and I want to make sure I write them before I forget!

Dean has had another bad turn of events at work. He was called at 1:30am on Sunday morning, and now one of the boilers has blown (requiring 3-4 days of downtime to fix). So he was at work all day yesterday (Sunday) and he's still gone tonight (at 10:40pm!). Until a month ago, I can't remember a time he had to stay late at this company.....I guess when it rains, it really does pour!

Our child speaks!

Well, more than blabbering, that is. He blabbers all the time in his own language, but has yet to repeat words that we say, until this week. Until now, he's said a few words here and there like "ti" (kitty), "vroom" (car noise), and "wo wo wo" (dog barking). But when we ask him to say even those words, he hasn't been able to (or wanted to) repeat them.

This past Monday, I went to give Grant his lunch and asked if he wanted cheese. He responded with "eh!" (his sound for "yeah"), and I asked if he could say cheese. Sure enough, he said, "chee!" He doesn't say the "s" sound, but I know that's what he's saying. On Tuesday he said juice ("ju"), and on Friday he said "da da!" I've always hesitated to say that he even says "mama" and "dada" the right way, because he doesn't look at either of us and say those words. Sometimes in his crib when he's crying, he'll make the "ma" sound over and over, but I'm not sure he's really calling for me in particular.

But now when I ask him to say any of those three words, he'll usually repeat them. Dean thinks he said "truck" while they were driving yesterday, but we couldn't get him to say it again today.

So it's very rewarding to see him finally repeating things, and then to see him act so proud of himself when he does it!

A fun mess

Grant loves the pantry.
I know that, and I know that it's easier to just keep the door closed to avoid all kinds of messes! We've had busted coke cans, baskets spilled over and random food carried all over the house (there was a jello box in his room for the longest time, before I finally took it back downstairs).

But inevitably, I'll grab something quickly and forget to completely shut the door. The other day, he pulled out a box of Rice Krispies, and I noticed it but figured he couldn't do much with it. The next thing I knew, I heard him shaking the bag inside.....he had opened it, pulled out the bag, and before I could get to him, Rice Krispies were flying everywhere! I just had to laugh, though....what would toddlerhood (is that a word?) be if there weren't messes like that to clean up every once in a while? Of course there have been some days in recent weeks when I wouldn't have reacted as well!

I think he felt proud to get to help me clean up.....of course he kept walking back into the pile of cereal on the floor as I tried to sweep it up, but it didn't take too long. And he loves to play with the broom, so I let him sweep up a few of the pieces too. It's funny how I get frustrated when he throws his sippy cup and milk drips on the floor (multiple times per meal), but I can laugh at a huge mess like that.

Recent pictures

It's definitely spring! We stopped by a bluebonnet field this weekend while we were out doing errands. Trying to get Grant to sit down in the grass and patiently have his picture taken is impossible....the moment he got out of the car, he started running around and didn't stop until we left! Dean tried a few times to sit him in the middle of some flowers, but to no avail. But we still got a few good pictures....He picked one of the white flowers to give to me. He likes bringing me flowers from our backyard, so he picked one for me while we were there. What a sweetie....


On Sunday, we played in the backyard, and Grant loved drinking water from the hose! He didn't mind getting all wet either!


Here he's putting my cell phone up to my ear so I could talk. He loves to walk around with his phones, and he'll hold them to his ear and blabber. He even nods his head and takes breaks while he's talking, just like we do! Last week, we were at Target and I was looking for half-price Easter candy (a few days after Easter). He kept reaching for stuff, so I gave him a SpongeBob candy holder. I guess he thought it was shaped like a phone, because he put that up to his ear and did the same thing in the shopping cart!
I'm getting better at letting him eat messy things, knowing that it will make a mess and it's not that big of a deal in the scheme of things. I gave him applesauce in a bowl, and he had a good time playing with it. It's hard to tell from the picture, but it was all over his face, shirt, hands, and tray. But it kept him occupied for a few extra minutes so I could get stuff done in the kitchen!
The previous owners of our house left this little rocking chair for him (it's still the only furniture on our porch, so I sit in it too!). On Monday he climbed up into it and actually started rocking himself!
Riding on the little toy he got from Uncle Steve for his birthday. He's learned how to push himself backwards on it, but still can't go forward. Also, I got these little red water shoes at the Children's Place recently, and this was the first time he wore them. I think they'll be so good for the summer.....they're easy to slip on when we go to the backyard, and I think they even look fine for going out (plus they're so much cooler than his tennis shoes!).
Our child has become quite the climber (like I'm sure all 16 month old boys!). Last week Dean and I were sitting on the couches talking, and we looked over to the kitchen table to see Grant standing on one of the chairs, pulling the napkins out of the napkin holder! Of course he was being very quiet about it, not wanting to draw our attention (until we saw him....then he screamed loudly and threw them everywhere!). He climbs on couches and our coffee table all the time.....of course it worries me and I wonder if it's something I should forbid him to do, but Dean isn't worried about it. I DO forbid him from standing on the chairs or climbing onto the kitchen table, though!

13 weeks!

This pregnancy is flying by fast! As of last Friday, I was 13 weeks along. I'm still feeling VERY tired, but hopefully it will start to subside soon. I like being a morning person, and I used to wake up around the same time as Dean. While he got ready for work, I'd make his lunch and get things done that are hard to do when Grant's awake. But over the last 6 weeks or so, I've had to drag myself out of bed, and I can't seem to even do that until I hear Grant awake in his crib (around 7am)! This leaves me feeling a little behind all morning, because I don't really have any free time before he wakes up. And of course every afternoon, I'm just dying for Grant to take a nap so I can lay down! So like I said, hopefully I'll start having more energy soon. I have noticed that the nausea is subsiding a little.....I realized that I never felt nauseous yesterday! It's never too bad, but I'll just have a few short waves of nausea throughout the day. So although it's not too bad, hopefully it will subside altogether soon.

Last Wednesday, Dean and I (and Grant) went to my OB for my monthly appointment. We also had an ultrasound, as part of a three-part test to screen for certain birth defects. Almost immediately after the technician began the ultrasound, we heard the heartbeat on her doppler monitor.....it was very loud and unexpected! But it was very reassuring to hear that, especially when we didn't even know she was looking for it! We saw the baby moving around a lot....it only measured 66mm (from crown to rump), so it's still so small, but it was amazing how much it was squirming around in there! She couldn't make a good guess about the sex, but she pointed to "something," as she referred to it. She said she couldn't guess what that might turn into, but it makes me think we may be having another boy.

We had to go back to the waiting room again after the ultrasound, to wait for my normal appt with my doctor. Grant had a great time.....he walked all over the place and played peek-a-boo with people. As long as he's not confined, he tends to do okay in public!