Our Little Brainiac

Dylan=Little Einstein Lover

Here's the proof

(turn your volume way down-sorry it's so loud)

He's so into the closing scene of this show that I can sing the first few lines over and over again, and he does the actions with me every time. Then of course he signs for 'more'.

{Just in case you were wondering, Dylan shakes his head because at that point in the song the little Rocket ship shakes as it's form of a bow}

Remember Us?

We're back! Man, I've seriously neglected this blog. It's time to play catch-up. Here are some of the little highlights along with some great pictures of the little man and sometimes us, the parents!

Unlimited pancakes-Both my dudes scarfed them down.

{January}

He's had lemons before, but this one he seriously took a bite of. He hasn't had one since!

{February}

The blizzard had us all home in p.j.'s for most of the week. This was also about the time Dylan developed a love for the movie Cars, Mater especially.

{February}

We got these ears a few weeks before Easter and he wore them non-stop for weeks. By the time Easter rolled around, he was done with them. He moved to wearing them around his tummy!

{March}

After hitting the Hershey Factory, we were off to Sonic. The little man turns into a super stud whenever he wears Andrew's sunglasses!

{March}

This year's Egg Hunt was too fun. Dylan still has a bit of an issue with grass, hence the little pinching fingers. Things got a bit crazy once he learned they opened. Fun!

{April}I love my dudes!

{April}

Memorial day was the first swim of the year! He's turning out just like his Dad-Go Sox!
{May} After a much needed haircut a few days ago, this is the little man today!

The mini-trampoline we borrowed from my Mom has been one of his favorites lately. It's better than jumping off the couches onto the floor!

Within the last few days Dylan has gotten into the habit of climbing up behind me when I'm sitting on a chair and throwing his arms around my neck. That's his silent cue for a piggy-back ride, but I just love how it feels!

We've been quite the busy little family lately, and I hope to get more info up soon.
We love you!

It's Update Time!

It's been a little while since I posted about Dylan's speech progress, so I'm here to remedy that. He hasn't had a session in 3 weeks because he's been all kinds of sick, but yesterday things clicked for him. He's still not using words, but he is now signing the word 'more', which is huge. Now Andrew and I have some kind of communication going with him. It's been awesome. A few days from now we're going to try introducing another word and we hope to continue in that way until real words are in play.

Now onto some of the fun things he's been doing. After months and months of wondering why Dylan climbs all over everything but still wouldn't climb out of his crib, he finally did it. Amazingly a week or two later, the awesome Katie offered us her son's toddler bed. Thank you! It's gorgeous and I love it, and so does the little dude.

That didn't stop him from saying goodbye to his crib in his own way. One last climb in and out.

He's also learned that the process for getting out of his eating chair is pretty much the same for getting back in. No clue why, but he keeps getting in it and just sitting there, even when he doesn't want anything to eat. Good thing we keep his chair on the floor.

Now for something Andrew and I have learned. Putting Cake Bites up on the counter does not mean they are safe from the grabby fingers of Dylan.

The toddler-proof latch on the fridge is also getting a ton of use. Dylan's all about getting the condiments and putting them in the dining room.

Now onto Wheel of Fortune. I'm gonna let you in on a very well kept secret. Any idea who trained Vanna White to be such the wonderful button pusher that she is? That's right. Dylan did.

Along with Wheel of Fortune, we've found out that Dylan absolutely loves the third Ice Age movie. Thanks for that fun gift Gramish! Something about the squirrely Scrat character just makes him smile every time.

Things with Andrew and I have been good. He's having a harder time at work because of the colder weather, but he braves it like a macho manly man and I love him for it. My little business is really taking off and I'm loving it. *Snickety Snacks* has been the perfect solution to my need to feel productive and meet new people. I'm loving it! All in all, our little family is doing wonderfully. Thanks so much to all the friends and family who love us. We love you too!

Our Little Growed Up Dude

Dylan turned 2 on Sunday and Andrew and I are still amazed that he's grown so quickly. Even though he's not really talking yet, this little kid has amazing facial expressions that let us know that he totally gets it. He keeps us on our toes, especially with his quick as lightning moves when it comes to grabbing snacks and treats. Here's proof.

I'm completely good with sacrificing cupcakes and such to make the little dude smile. As much as I loved the year just after he was born, I think this last year has been better, just in different ways. The hand holding, smiles, funky noises, headstands, carpet burns, slide riding, nugget eating, circle spinning and hugging days just can't be beat. Excuse me now while I go hug and squeeze on him!

Dancer Boy, Dancer Boy

Dylan does this little dance thing randomly which looks pretty darn close to river-dancing, minus the high kicks. He usually does it when he's excited about something or when he's try to get claps and 'Yeeeaaaa's from us. Well he has a new thing to be excited about I guess. Seeing as how I haven't been able to catch this on video for the last 6+ months, having one full minute is like being able to pet the Loch Ness monster. Amazing.

He's Almost Two!!

Wow, he's such a big dude! Less than a month and he'll be 2.

Yeeaaa For Puzzles!

Dylan had another session with his 'Speech Teacher' today and it went really well. Thank goodness she brought a puzzle! The little man is a whiz with those. Here's what she had to say:

"Dylan followed familiar request/commands, when he was asked to sit down he sat promptly. He engaged in play with a puzzle for 10 minutes. He completed a nine piece large knob puzzle. Dylan was encouraged to imitate animal sounds as he placed the piece into the appropriate slot. We worked with pop beads to increase using hands together, eye hand coordination and wrist rotation. Initially he needed support to connect the beads, by the end of the activity he was able to connect the beads with minimal assistance. Dylan communicated mostly with pointing, reaching and sounds."

The biggest change I've noticed is that he's making more sounds. When we would repeat a word to him, he'd always revert back to 'da-da' for some reason, but now it seems like he's listening more and he's picked up on saying 'mmmmm' when I say the word more. I still maintain that he's just going to talk when he wants to. The cute little content kid is happy with how things are.