This child continually astounds me!

It is amazing what Micah is learning and picking up on these days. For about a month now he's been saying a lot more than just ball, although that is still the favorite thing to say and the favorite thing to play with or sleep with. And still the very first thing he says when he wakes up, whether it is in the morning or after his nap - with a very cute and groggy voice. :)

But he's saying "Kee kat" and gets excited about the kitty cats and he YELLS "DADA" when he hears the garage door open and then he goes over to the door so he will be ready to show Daddy what he found (surprise! A ball!). He Meows like the cat when he hears the cat meow, but it sounds like "mum" when he does it. He doesn't really say "mama" yet, but I don't work on it with him either. I don't talk much in the third person to him.

It continually amazes us, too, what he understands. Ever since he could crawl, which was around 5 months, we taught him not to go toward the fireplace and he would shake his head if something rolled near it. He knows not to throw the balls that are hard and he knows not to push his sippy cup around on the floor (but he still does sometimes). I will ask him to put his cup on the table and he does it. A while ago, maybe two months ago, we were getting ready to leave and he had his socks in his hand, so I asked him to bring them over to me so I could put them on his feet. Dave and I were both shocked that he came right over to me with them in his hand. That was at 12 months! It is so easy to underestimate what your child comprehends. He growls like a lion when he sees one in a book. He points out balls or cats in books using his words. He loves his books again now and will constantly bring me a book throughout the day so I will read it to him.
He says "ma" for milk or more, but I know which one he means because he points. He still does sign language for those sometimes, but I think he is realizing that it's quicker just to say it. He signs "eat" at breakfast time or when I ask him if he wants to eat lunch or dinner. He knows to find a ball or two and go to the stairs when I say it's bedtime and he does the sign for "sleep" when he's tired and ready to go to bed. When I smell a stinky diaper, I tell him I need to change his diaper and he giggles and runs away from me (as if it's really comfortable to be running around like that!). He signs help, please and thank you, and he is starting give me kisses... and run away from me when I try to kiss him!

There is a little bit of a downside - he is gaining some independence. He is starting to throw tantrums when I take something away from him. He whines throughout the day if I don't understand what he wants. If he is tired or hungry throughout the day and I don't say the word "sleep" or "eat" for him to sign, he gets a little cranky. He has always been content to play pretty well on his own, but if I don't pay much attention to him, he whines. I have been busy with Christmas baking and (earlier this month) with finishing projects as Christmas presents. But I have found that I need to sit and stack things with him or roll a ball back and forth or read stories to him throughout the day and then he's fine. He really is a lot of fun almost all the time and I'm lucky to be able to spend all day with him.

Funeral

Dave's grandpa passed away recently and the memorial service was on Wednesday. He was a remarkable man. I'm sorry that I didn't hear much of the service because I was chasing a toddler around the foyer and trying to keep him from saying "BAH!" too loudly, but it was a nice service. Dinner was served afterward for the family and friends that came. I had not met most of the extended family before. It was fun meeting Mila, Micah's little second cousin (Dave's cousin Kelly's little girl), who is only a month older than Micah. I'll post pictures soon.

Hawaii may not be a pretty picture come February

I have been trying to avoid doing any holiday baking because I don't want to eat it all. And that's just what I'll be doing if we have cookies and candy and fudge floating around our house. I was doing pretty well up until last weekend. I had only made a couple batches of fudge, which I made so that I could take it to a Christmas cookie exchange and to our home group. But there are just so many things going on right now. Dave went to a friend's house on Saturday to play video games and he invited some friends, so the wife of one of the friends came over to my house so we could play with our babies and bake Christmas cookies. If I'm going to do Christmas baking I try to make sure that at least I'll have somewhere to take them, otherwise I will seriously eat them all. All Day Long. Which is not so healthy.

So, my friend Kara came over on Saturday and we made shortbread cookies, sugar cookies, and chocolate drops (or haystacks). I made her take half of them home with her so she could share them with her husband and the rest of her family. Sunday I got together with my book club friends for a gift exchange and what do you know? Part of the gift I received was Christmas cookies! I left some with my friends, but the majority came home with me. So I went to the Mom's Group meeting at the nursing home on Monday to deliver cookies and hang out with the elderly people and brought a plate of cookies with me. I also brought a plate of Christmas cookies with me to our home group meeting tonight. I have frozen some of the sugar cookies and the shortbread cookies, so at least at this point I haven't gotten into that.

I had made a couple more batches today because apparently they've been running out. I'm trying not to eat them all the time, but somehow they are diminishing. I have been giving a lot away, but still! Something has snapped inside me. I was trying NOT to do holiday baking! But then Dave thanked me the other day for making Christmas cookies because he is really enjoying them. And that made me want to make more! That was nice, I'm glad he's enjoying them. I know I am. But I looked at the calendar for the new year and realize that after all holiday-related events are over (aka, Jan. 1), I will have no more than 6.5 weeks to kick myself into high gear to prepare for Hawaii.

No Sleep

Micah and I are both a little sick right now. I am surprised Dave's not sick too because he's been staying up late and getting up early these last couple of days. I had a busy weekend, so that might have had something to do with me getting sick. I was asked to sub for one of the singers in the worship band at church on Sunday, so I had practice on Thursday night. Friday night I went to a cookie exchange with some moms from Mom's Group. Saturday afternoon I went to a play at a friend's church and Sunday I had to be at worship practice at 8am. Our church had the Christmas concert that evening, and Dave was playing guitar in the band so I went to that too.

I don't know if it's because of the congestion or because he's just not feeling well, but Micah is NOT napping for me. He seems tired, so I put him in his crib and at first he cries because he doesn't like being behind bars, but then he calms down and just plays with whatever is there in his crib - reading books, pushing balls around, or throwing things out of his crib. Then, when there's nothing left, he starts making more noise and doesn't fall asleep. I don't get it. When I'm not feeling well, I would LOVE to lay down on a mattress and nap. I especially would NOT like to jibber-jabber or scream when my throat is not feeling so well. Yesterday we had an appointment for Christmas pictures at 1:45, so I was hoping he would nap late-morning, have some lunch, and be happy for the pictures. Wishful thinking. He didn't sleep at all and he missed his lunch, but he was still very pleasant during the pictures even though he was tired. However, he wasn't very impressed with any of our sillies and only smiled nice for, mmm, one of the photos.

Any ideas on how to get a toddler to sleep during the day?!! This afternoon we went to the post office to mail our packages and on the way home he was pretty much asleep in the car. Often I will park the car in the garage, turn it off, and let him stay asleep and I'll just keep checking on him now and then and get him when he wakes up. But it is kind of cold outside now. So on the way home from the post office I tried to keep him awake and then I took him straight up to his crib when we got home. He was quiet for a little bit, but 40 minutes later (after I had tried to nap too) I realized it wasn't going to happen because he was starting to make louder noises and seemed to be getting cranky. So, I am assuming there will be no nap today. It's hard when I'm sick too because I don't feel like playing and having energy, but what is especially hard is understanding why he doesn't sleep knowing he NEEDS to in order to get rid of his cold.

Most kids like something soft and cuddly...

Micah, however, finds that the soft teddy bears or plush blankets are for wimps. He likes him a good hard baseball or a huge Scooby-Doo ball to cuddle with all night. I guess it's not so bad. It's cool to bring a ball to kindergarten, but not so cool to bring a blankie or to be sucking your thumb.