19 Months

So happy to see my little man tapping into his creative skills. :)

RUNNING. Always. And most of the time away from Mom and Dad.

D found the golden egg (with $5!). I believe he had a little help from Nana.

D rocked the Easter Egg hunt this year. He so enjoyed looking for eggs.

The Allen crew on Easter.

Our underwear model. Gotta fund the college education somehow, right? ;)

Our little fam. <3

Here we are at the 19 month mark. Dawson's vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds each day as he learns new words, phrases, expressions. His sentences are also growing as well with "Thank you Mommy", "Dawson's ____ (cup, shirt, shoes, etc.)", "Hi Seni", " Bye Truck", "Wanna get out!", Want snack", etc.

He is also ALWAYS running. It never fails that when we set him down (outside, at the park, a store, etc.), he sprints away from Mom or Dad as fast as he can in the opposite direction. Daryn and I were talking the other night about how nice it will be when we play outside with Dawson (or go anywhere for that matter!) and he understands boundaries and stays in one place. I'm all about running around, but in the general area would be nice. ;)

We are outside as much as possible. Well on spring days when it isn't below freezing, hailing, snowing, raining or sleeting. Which unfortunately has greatly limited our time outdoors. But when we DO get outside it's running, walking in the stroller with his hands perched on the tray, at the park, blowing bubbles, etc. He doesn't through tantrums much (yet?), but you can almost always count on one when we can't go outside due to weather or when we have to come in. (Spring, if you are reading this, help a mom out and please stick around for a bit?)

Dawson was really fun for Easter this year. He LOVED dying eggs and looking for them as well. It was fun to see him get so excited. He didn't mind the candy that came along with Easter too. :)

At 19 months...
- Dawson weighs (to be determined at his apt next week, but I am guessing 27 or 28lbs?)
- Has 16 teeth. His eye teeth are through the gums but still in the process of coming up
- It showing some interest in potty training. I think he mostly likes to request to sit on the potty chair and read books. :)
- Feeds him self really well with spoons and forks
- Loves to push his trucks back and forth on the table
- Looks out the front window for hours each day (literally) calling out "Seni!", "Flatbed!", "Truck!", "Car!", "Buddy!". ("Buddy" started off as the garbage man that waves to him each Friday, but now it somehow became all UPS trucks, FedEx trucks and mailman)
- LOVES his Nana (my mom), Papa (my dad), Grandma (Alice) and Grandpa (Dan). And most certainly GG (my Mom's mom, Grandma Judy).
- Sleeps 7:30pm-7:30am (give or take) each night
- Naps 12:30 - 3:00 (give or take) each day
- Loves to "help" unload and load the dishwasher, sweep the floors, throw things away, etc.
- Is a little OCD about having doors open. Any time he catches a closet door, cabinet door, dishwasher door, bedroom door, refrigerator door open, he MUST close it. This is also an instance that he does a little angry dance if he can't close them because they are being used.
- Plays really well by himself. Looking at books, playing and setting up his train set, driving cars around. He is really independent.
- Will repeat anything you ask him too...this can be fun. And also dangerous.

18 months of Awesome

My little heart breaker turned 18 months old yesterday. I don't know about you, but that sort of seems like a big deal...

Grandpa Dan taught D how to put his hands in his pockets. :)

What can I say, the boy loves wagon rides?

At the Children's Museum...

And surprise, surprise, we found come cars!

The last six months have meant huge changes for D, mainly with his speech and communication growing leaps and bounds. I can't even count the words in his vocabulary any more...everything is pretty much fair game, sentences and expressing preferences too! He also recognizes people and will remember their names after they've left.

Last night Daryn and I were looking back at photos and videos since his first birthday and I can't even believe how much he's grown out of a baby face and into a little toddler. His voice isn't so high pitched and he has thinned out and shot up. Makes me want to cling to every single moment because they are all flying by too fast.

I can't wait for this summer. Running outside, parks, swimming. Each season for the next few years will be an entirely new experience as Dawson grows, and what fun to watch it unfold through his eyes.

At 18 months, Dawson...

- Spends his days playing with his train set, reading books or watching the cars, trucks, "seni-trucks", tankers, buses, flat beds, "Humma" pass by on the highway out our front window. With each visit with GG, his vehicle vocabulary expands.

- Will sleep in a bit later if he stays up a bit later at night. It used to be the later past his bedtime, the earlier he would get up. But the switch has been made. What a great tool for a parent to use at will... :)

- Loves to put all his cars, trucks, trains, etc. up on the kitchen table to display. It doesn't matter how many times we correct him to not, he still does. I am tossing the towel in on this one!

- Drives his cars through his legs too. It's darn cute...

- Sleeps 12-13 hours at night and naps 3 hours in the afternoon

- Tries to escape to the outdoors any chance he gets. Literally. We have to keep the doors locked so he doesn't go out without us. Doesn't matter that spring has decided to stick around yet, this boy knows what and where he want to be.

- Never stays in the same place for more than 30 seconds unless he's sleeping, food is involved or Cars, Sesame Street or Mickey Mouse is on.

- Loves, I'm talking LOVES juice.

Potty Chair

 
I can't even believe I'm typing this right now, but Dawson has been expressing an interest in potty training lately. He says "potty" and "poop" when he goes (not every time, but sometimes) and is very interested when Daryn and I are using the bathroom too. So after doing some research and consulting with Nikki :), I bought a potty chair last night at Target. My plan was to have him sit on it once or twice a day with no pressure and just see what happens. Well tonight I put him on the chair and he went! He received an insane amout of praise and a spoon full of ice cream to celebrate. So we'll see what becomes of this, but we are off to a great start!

Aren't Dad's the best?

17 Months

Helping Daddy join the clean plate club.

Dawson and his GG. And he loves his GG.

Obsession.

Superbowl Champs. Goooo Pack!

Second obsession: the movie Cars.

Modeling his duck towel Na-Na made for Valentine's Day.

Out for a winter walk.

Watching Cars (again) with his buddy Jackson.

At 17 months, Dawson...

- Is able to express his preferences. One day I went to get him up from his nap and he said "Cars, Mommy. Please?" "Snack?". So we did just that. :) He is also able to tell us what he would like to have for a meal or snack, etc. Such a huge milestone for us. It's so special that he has the words to communicate, but also the knowledge of when to use them.

- Has two huge obsessions. Trains and the movie Cars. And I am talking addiction type obsession...but in a healthy way of course! :) My Uncle Paul was kind enough to lend us my cousin Grants Brio train set from when he was a little man. Delighted doesn't even cover how D feels about it. He literally runs to the train set first thing in the morning or after a nap. I'm talking B-line to the train set. Honestly, I bet we play with the train set 4 hours a day...and he has some killer sound effects to go with the train. No joke. Thanks Paul! :)

- And Cars, the movie. It is requested multiple times a day. "Queen? Cars? Please Mommy?" Trying saying no to a cute kid, signing please and asking oh so nicely. He knows how to work the system! Grandma Alice gave him a Lightning McQueen car for Valentine's day, one of those color changing cars. Well he carries it around all day, his hot little hands are enough to change the colors. I can say that we don't watch it every day, but a lot of days. This movie keeps his attention span for the entire hour and 45 minutes. And for anything to keep a 17 month old's entertained for the amount of time is saying something. And the best part, he'll snuggle with you the entire time...

- Is definitely becoming more of a lover. He'll walk over and plant a kiss on you or ask to be held and he'll lay his head down in the nook of your neck/shoulder. Or if you're sitting on the couch or a chair, he'll walk over and lay his head in your lap (this is a hint I've discovered for a back rub). This lovey trait of his that is being development is most definitely a favorite.

- Manners are also actually quite good. He appropriately signs/says "Please" and says "Welcome" at the right time. However we can't get the "Thank you" down yet. He says "Welcome instead of "Thank You". In fact he is so used to saying "Welcome" that when he gives us a kiss we would always say "Oh thank you Dawson!" that he doesn't even wait for that, just spits out "Welcome". It's cute.

- Started putting a few words together to form sentences. Just in the last few days. He'll say: "What doing?", "Getting Me!" (for when we chase him around), "More _____", "Love you", etc. What a small thing that makes such a huge difference.


- Has four molars...and others just about through.

- Remembers people's names and will ask for them. Especially his buddies Jack(son), Veda and Averi. Well and Sammy (my parent's dog). It' been fun over the last month to see how much he enjoys playing with other kiddos. It's still a lot of playing along side each other, but there is more and more interaction each time. He loves to have Jackson chase him. He'll laugh at almost everything Veda says or does. Averi and Dawson don't interact quite as much since they both are younger, but they do give each other hugs and she is most definitely requested to be seen.

!6 Months

Dawson loves to be read to as we all know. But now he will bring a book up to you and say/sign "please". It's stinkin' adorable. Now he has to be sitting in your lap. Not in front of you, or beside you, or on the ground between your legs. He has to be on your lap. Cutie.

Quick + Curious = This photo.

Pure. Joy.

I love so many things about this photo. Daryn took it while I wasn't home so it gives some insight to what goes on while the boys are in charge. You can also see Dawson's new obsession in the background: trains. Or "Choo-Choo" as D calls it.

Don't think this one needs a caption...

Hard at work...

The boy is a boy. A little man. A small human. And darn cute in all three categories.

What a fun age. I say that each month I think, but it really gets better each month. He is (most of the time!) a joy to be around. I love being his mom. :)

D is talking SO much and is picking up on so many things. He repeats everything and has an insanely great memory. My new favorite word of his "bum-bah bee". To be able to communicate with your child is so much fun. Something I've looked forward since the moment he was born.

At 16 months, Dawson...
- Sleeps (usually) from 7pm to 7:30am
- Naps for (roughly) 3 hours in the afternoon
- Knows all Abc's and can count to 10 (but starts at 2 because he used to us starting him off at 1)
- If he could be pushed around in his Cozy Coupe Car in the house all day he would be the happiest little man around.
- Can shoot baskets all on his own in his basketball hoop from Christmas
- Loves to make silly faces and make Mom and Dad laugh
- Doesn't so much like the church nursery...
- Looks out the window to find any moving vehicle: cars, trucks, snow plow, garbage trucks, mail man...
- Considers Mickey Mouse (Mowse) and Elmo (Mel-mo) his buddies
- Every morning when Dawson wakes up and we go in his room to get him up he has to introduce us to all of his stuffed animals in his crib. "Beh-awr", "Bow Wow", "Mooose", "Ooh, Ooh, Ahh, Ahh".
- Requests to climb up and down the (all) stairs
- Remembers peoples names and faces when we see them
- Holds his hands together when we pray and says "Men" at the end.

A-B-C's