Driving

One of Mr. Mister's new favorite things to do is to drive. He loves to sit in the driver's seat of our cars and pretend to drive. He even knows where to put the keys and he loves playing with all the buttons and gadgets.

So I decided that I wanted to find some kind of toy with a steering wheel for him so he could drive a little more safely on his own! I didn't want one of those big cars he could sit in because we don't have room for something like that. So I looked around a couple of places and didn't see what I wanted.

Then, last night, we were at my parents' house and Mr. Mister was playing with their steering wheel toy. I said, "I have been looking for something like this for him." All of a sudden, Daddy said, "He has a toy like that." As he described it to me, I realized that I had put some toys in a box in the basement months ago, planning to rotate them so they seemed like new toys for Mr. Mister. But of course, I forgot I put them there and even forgot what was in the box. Sure enough, this toy was in that box! Good thing I didn't buy one!

P.S. Mr. Mister has gotten a hair cut since those pictures were taken!

Eak.

This is the word Mr. Mister is using for eat. When he says it, I say "eat.t.t.t.t.t." emphasizing the t at the end. So the other day he was sitting in his booster chair at the table (no more high chair!) saying, "eak. t.t.t.t.t." We're getting there!

Yep.

This is Mr. Mister's new affirmative answer. Yes turned into Yeah which recently turned into Yep. It's so funny to hear yep come out of a toddler's mouth.

a little love.

Mr. Mister must have read my thoughts because when I went to get him after his nap, he greeted me with a smile and a "Mama. Hi!" That made my day :)

Daddy Only

Mr. Mister is going through a Daddy Only stage. He wants Daddy to be the one to clean his hands after he eats, to change his diaper, to give him his bath, to put his pajamas on, etc. I love that he adores his daddy so much...they have a very special relationship that a lot of dad's don't have with their kids. And I am SO thankful for how involved Daddy is in Mr. Mister's life. He loves spending time with him (like last night when they had Guy's Night while I was gone...an outdoor pizza party and lots of fun playing!).

But, it can be hard when I'm the one home with him during the day because if Daddy's not here to rock him before his nap, he gets upset. So it feels like I'm fighting through a lot of resistance these days, which can be tiring. So far I'm not letting it upset me because I know Mr. Mister loves his mommy too. But this morning was kind of hard when I walked in to his room when he woke up and I was greeted with a scowl and "No. Daddy." But I know it's a stage and I know he loves us both!

Squeeze!

Here is a funny video from the other day when Mr. Mister learned how to use the hose! His facial expressions make us laugh so hard. By the way, here is a Mr. Mister translation: when he says nen he is saying again.

Catching Up

• We had a very fun visit from Grandma and Grandpa T this weekend. I'll post some pictures later. It's always too short, but always fun.
• We also had a fun birthday dinner for my mom and Uncle N on Friday night, although I got really sick that night and we ended up spending the night there. But Mr. Mister had a great time playing with cousin Ney Ney as they literally ran in circles around the house in just their diapers. So cute.
• Mr. Mister has a new enjoyment of his winter boots and his stroller. Whenever he wants to go outside, he asks for his boots. It's funny to see him walking around on a warm day in winter boots, but if he likes it, it's fine with me!
• The stroller thing is kind of random. When Grandma and Papa were here, he wanted to be pushed around the family room in the stroller. Now he loves it, which is a big change for him. So we go on lots of walks with the stroller, both inside and outside!
• The other day we were outside and he heard some ducks quacking. He said, "duck" and then pointed to his ear. How does he know that he hears with his ear?
  
• The other night he said his name outloud while he was sleeping. It was adorable.

Well there's a brief update. More posts and pictures to come!

Outside Fun

It was in the 70s the last two days and it was so nice to get outside! Mr. Mister would stay outside all day if we let him. Here are some fun pictures from our afternoon.

A Big Weekend

This weekend was big for our family. We were away from Mr. Mister for the entire weekend! We attended a marriage conference downtown from Friday night through Sunday afternoon. On Friday night, my younger sister and her husband stayed at our house with Mr. Mister and then brought him to my parents' house on Saturday afternoon. He spent Saturday night there and we came back this afternoon to get him.

He did very well the whole weekend and only asked for us a couple times. We missed him a lot, but really enjoyed our weekend at the hotel without him! I think that's okay. By the time we were heading to my parents' house to pick him up, I was very antsy and excited to see him. He's just so cute and so much fun (and so much work...but I'm refreshed and ready to go again!).

So after three weekends in a row with nights away from him, I'm ready to just be home and be together. And we are excited for a visit from Grandma and Grandpa T this weekend!

By the way, did you know that the greatest gift parents can give their children is to love each other? Kids find tremendous security in knowing that their parents are in love. I love that.

Birthday Parties

Mr. Mister was busy celebrating birthdays last weekend. On Friday morning, he and I went to my sister's for Cousin Ney Ney's birthday playdate. It was such a fun time with 5 little kids playing with play dough, making masks, dancing, playing with the parachute, and of course, eating cupcakes.

Then, Saturday morning, Daddy took Mr. Mister back to Ney Ney's house for his family birthday party (I had spent the night at a women's overnight with women from church). They had a fun time eating cake and celebrating his 2nd birthday.

Then, Saturday afternoon after I got home, the three of us went to Pey Pey's house for his first birthday party. Mr. Mister helped Pey Pey open his presents and was excited for all the new toys since he knew he'd get to play with them when he goes there on Tuesdays. During the cupcake eating time, I gave him canteloupe instead, seeing as this was his third birthday party in two days!

I don't have pictures from all three parties, but here are some from the birthday playdate.

Evidence of a good birthday party!

Cute Video

Here is a funny video from January when Grandma T was in town for the night. I just found it and thought it would be fun to share!

18 months

Mr. Mister was 18 months on February 22nd and since then it seems like he has turned a big corner in his development, especially with his words. He picks up new words so quickly now, sometimes after I've only said them once.

The other day he was doing a Mickey Mouse puzzle at my parents' house and I told him "That's Mickey." And he repeated Mickey like he had said it a hundred times. Then today, we were reading a Baby Einstein book that has pictures of real animals in their habitats. We were flipping through the pages as he named every animal. We came to the mole, which I had said in the past when we read this book, but I've never heard him say it. I said, "What's this?" And he said, "mole." It caught me so off guard! I couldn't believe he remembered that word and said it so well.

Another thing that I love is when he starts saying the names of all the people he knows out of the blue. He will just sit there naming all his friends and family without any prompting. I would love to know what's going on in his head!