Speech Evaluation

Today Gunnar had his speech evaluation. I wasn't nervous until the results came. Since he is under 2,  both his language and his motor skills were tested (each one done by a separate person but done at the same time). The way they evaluated him was pretty neat to watch. It was all done with play, instruction following, and trying to talk to him. They tested him for about 45 minutes before going back to another room and scoring their sheets. I don't have a copy of those yet (I will in about a week), so I don't know everything specifically, nor do I remember exactly what they said about it all, but I'll do my best to reiterate what I do recall.

First, his gross motor skills (bigger movements like walking, throwing a ball, etc) is that of an 18 month old and his fine motor skills (drawing, feeding self, etc) are that of a 16-18 month old. Christine, the woman who was testing his motor skills, said that those still fall in the range for him. He's 20 months old right now so he's not too far behind and they're not concerned with that aspect. The things that he had a harder time with, or didn't do at all, were things that toddlers usually do around 2 years, not 1 1/2. She also said that she thinks the test tends to score a little lower than it should. As far as he is physically, I'm not concerned at all. The language is where I am worried though...

As of right now, Gunnar says two words: ball and go. He does not say words spontaneously; you have to prompt him. For instance, if he's hungry, he won't tell you. You have to ask him if he wants a bite, and he will go ahead and sign "bite". When he says ball it's not because he wants a ball, but because you've asked him what it is or because he's already playing with it. Based on just the amount of words he says and how he communicates, he's at the 9-12 month range. I expected that. What I didn't expect, though, would be that he has a range of a 6-9 month old when it comes to imitating sounds and trying  to verbalize. At this point, he should very well be able to say "nana" when he wants a banana... but he doesn't. The main reason why he is so incredibly far behind is because he doesn't say words (or sounds) spontaneously. The goal is to get him to communicate on his own, not to have us prompt him and play the guessing game.

I'm still a little shocked (for lack of a better word) at the results but I know that he will be ok because God has a plan for him and will take care of this and anything else that may come our way. I worry a little bit about what may happen and how this may affect him when he gets to be school-aged, but that's something I'll have to tackle when and if it actually happens. For now, I'll wait to get a phone call from the regional center to go through the speech therapy options and then we'll take it one day at a time. When I get the official scoring sheets in the mail I'll be sure to post more specifics from that and clarify/correct anything I may not have touched on in this post.

The ultimate result: Gunnar will be having speech therapy once a week until who knows when.

Prayers and good wishes are greatly appreciated =)

18 Months & 1 Week

He's officially closer to 2 than he is to 1... *sobs*. How the heck does this happen so fast? Time is just flying by!

Gunnar is now in the 45th percentile for both weight and height! It's amazing! He has NEVER been that high on the growth chart and his pediatrician is absolutely astonished and overjoyed and how far he has come. After having quite a few months of him not even on the growth chart for weight, for him to be at 45% is a BIG deal. Of course, he still has a huge noggin and is staying nicely at the 95th percentile. In addition to his awesome all boy bigness, he also finally had his anemia test done and I'm proud to say that his level was at 11.5 so he is not anemic! Hallelujah! I won't lie, I was very nervous and thought he might be since he hardly ever never eats red meat. He does occasionally eat beans though so I guess he gets enough iron from those and his veggies that he loves to much.

Unfortunately, Gunnar still isn't actively talking. He occasionally says things such as ya, wow, woah, oooh, and the very rare ball, but it's not on any regular basis. Therefore, I hardly would call it talking. Because of that, the doctor is a little bit worried, but not a ton... yet. In 3 months (so when he's 21 months for those math inept people), if his speech has hardly improved or not improved at all, I will be calling his doctor and getting him set up for a speech evaluation. Typically, speech therapy is not started until 24 months, but the process can take a while to actually get going as well as show any results. Because of that, his pediatrician starts the process at 21 months if needed. I'm hoping and praying that he won't need to go. There isn't anything wrong with speech therapy at all; it's actually very common these days. However, it would just be an extra thing that's going to be on my mind. Gunnar is in daycare full time now so I'm hopeful and have faith that being there and around all those kids will encourage his speech to pick up. This is something that I have to put in God's hands, though. He ultimately knows what will happen. Either way, my son will be fine and will, in his own time, talk.

Lastly, there were no vaccines today because silly me didn't realize that his shot record wasn't in the diaper bag. When I got home, I couldn't find it so now I have to go on a hunt to find the lovely yellow booklet that I just had in my hands on Sunday.

Oh and for those wanting numbers... he's 25 lbs 9 oz, 32 inches tall, and 19.75 in head circumference.

Stream of Consciousness

I'm sitting here at work (except now that I'm typing this I'm actually at home), writing this post in order to pass by the time. Yeah, my job is that exciting and I love it that much. In all reality though, I do thank God daily for blessing me with a job and, ultimately, a way out of my current situation. I may complain to a few select people every so often about it, but I'm always reminded that it's temporary and, soon enough, I'll be able to work where I want. For those that don't know, I work for a health care directory company. My dad actually got my this job; he's been working here for 8 years. I'm a research associate (RA) and I make calls to physician offices to collect and verify information. Since I started on July 6, I've been working on the same project, collecting email addresses. It's very repetitive. It gets old; fast. Thankfully, my hours are awesome (if, you know, you don't mind getting up at 4:45 am) because I get off at 1:55pm daily. It gives me plenty of time to be with my little stud muffin.

Speaking of my super cute stud, he's growing like a weed these days! For a 17 1/2 month old, I have to admit that he is an excellent listener and takes directions so well. He says "ball", "wow", "woah", and "oh yeah" on occasion, but I wouldn't call him a talker by any means. He just babbles and makes loud noises... all the time. I used to be very worried about his lack of talking (and still am to some degree) but the fact that he's been able to understand me, take directions, point out items in books and around the house, and point to body parts since he was 12 months has definitely put my mind at ease. G has his 18 month well visit next and his pedi wanted him saying 15 words by then which he isn't, so I'm sure we'll talk about it at that time. Other than the [lack of] talking, G Man is doing fantastic.

In other news, I really... and I mean really want to blog and gush about something, but unfortunately I just led y'all on with that because I can't. Well, I could, but I won't. Not now at least. Maybe in a month or so? But trust me, if I could talk about it right now... on my blog... I would. It's just too soon... and possibly inappropriate. Just know that what is is, is make me very happy... which is why I'm still going on about this even though I shouldn't have said anything in the first place. But hey, this is a stream of consciousness post. If I think of it, I write it. When you write, and not plan, it's amazing what you'll come up with. Not only are you seeing your thoughts written down, but I find that I surprise myself by not realizing what I was thinking about or how much it was on my mind.

I found out the other day that G's dad is for sure deploying. He activates Aug 2. I'm not going to lie, but part (or a lot, rather) of me is excited and relieved. It's going to be so nice to not have him and all his drama he brings around me. I make a conscious effort to keep any drama away from myself and my son. It's not always easy when S is around. In fact, it's very difficult. So due to that, I'm relieved that he's leaving. I also have a heart, though, and I'm sad my son is going to have to go 7 months without seeing his dad. I'm also not thrilled about having to seriously do the whole single parent thing. For the most part, I am a single mom and have been for quite some time, but I do get a lot of help from S's mom. She's always willing to babysit. Come November though, that's not going to be a readily available option. G won't spend every other weekend and occasional days with his dad. I'll have to have him all the time (which I don't mind... but a break is also nice since I am single and all). There's a very good chance I'll be living on my "own" (w/ a room mate) by then so I won't have the luxury of the built-in grandparent babysitter. I've been very spoiled as of late when it comes to wanting to go out and having a (free) babysitter right at my fingertips. Thankfully, G has an Opa who loves him very dearly and enjoys spending time on the weekends with him so I'm sure I'll get a break that way. I know it won't be easy though. Having to do the whole parenting thing alone is already hard and lonely, but it's doable, just not always enjoyable.

And scene =)

Water Bottles

Do you ever just stand (or sit) and watch your child play? Like really, truly, and intensely watch him/her? I find myself doing that more and more these days because each time I do, I'm amazed. The things G is learning by playing awes me. You can tell SO much about the type of person he is and is becoming even though he's a mere 16 months. It's incredible.

He's independent

... as much as a 16 month can be, that is

He's organized

He's fastidious about cups, bottles, and anything of the like.

They must all be properly stood up, not to be lying down.

He's strong

Both physically and mentally

He's curious

He's creative

He's my sweet baby little boy

and I love him so much. 




A Child's Mind

It's a wonderful thing; a child's mind. 
A special gift that we as adults need to enter in to at various points during our day.
Children see the world differently; children see the world as a good, pure place.
They play, all day, everyday. For them, playing is learning

They learn how things work

Where things belong

... or where, in their minds, they believe they belong.


Because everything has a place. 
And for a child, that place may not be the same one you or I may think of,
but some place better...
some place only a child would imagine.
Some place that requires ingenuity.

Some place fun.






Sunday Lists!

Real quick.. here's a picture of my list.. because I was too lazy to type it out yet that probably would have been a heck of a lot faster lol.

*that says hummus after grapes. apparently my pen ran out of ink mid 'm'

And I'm not sure if I've mentioned this, so forgive me if I'm repeating, but I thought I'd throw it out there since I've had people ask. Under no circumstance does my child ever get (store bought) juice. I say store bought because he obviously gets juice from fruits and I've made him smoothies before. He loves water and milk so that's what we stick with.

If your child (or even you!) is anything like mine, he can't seem to get enough dried fruit. I love giving it to G because not only is it relatively healthy (I only buy organic, sugar free) but it's so convenient and easy to take with you for a snack on the go. The only problem? Stuff is expensive for such a small package, especially when its organic. I decided the other day that my new DIY project would be to make my own dried fruit. I made about 90% of G's baby food and about 98% of the food he currently eats is not processed so why not? I did some research and found this page as my how to: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-to-make-dried-fruit/

I'm pretty darn excited about it because it doesn't seem too difficult at all! The only thing is that now I need to get an electric food dehydrator (http://www.ronco.com/rco_prodinfo.aspx?pid=FD1005WHGEN&color=&active=ascry) because it would make this process so much faster and easier. While I could save the money and just put the fruit in the oven, having to keep an oven on all day with the door partially open is not an ideal situation when you have a 15 month old walking around getting into everything. So the dehydrator it is! I can't wait to be able to get this and start on it. I plan on making all the dried fruit I possibly can! Are you interested in trying it too? I think you should try it =)

Sunday Lists!

(As promised!) Here's my current list for this week's food for Gunnar. I'm thinking some things will probably change or be added but for now this is what I have:


"Main Dish"
Pita Bread
Peanut butter
Grilled Chicken
Noodles w/ Olive Oil
Veggies:
Soybeans
Green beans
Squash
Fruits:
Dried Mangos
Dates
Banana
Blueberries
Tomatoes
Snacks:
Yogurt
Dried Fruit
Goldfish
Veggies Fries (they're basically 'chips' but made from veggies)

I Admit It...

I've been slacking on making (and posting) Gunnar's meal lists. Things have been SO hectic the last couple weeks that lunch time has been rushed almost every day. He's still been eating healthy though, except for that one day we had Chick-fil-a. And there's those times where he had to eat lunch in the car because we had to be somewhere so it was a quesadilla or pb sandwich and some goldfish. This week has been a little less busy, but we have had days where we've needed to run around a lot. Today though, we won't be in any rush and he can eat his nice healthy lunch. I haven't planned out what he's having completely yet but I'm thinking some of the left over chili from last night plus some soybeans. On Sunday I WILL remember to post my list for the following week!

Green Fingers

Most moms would use crayons....


we use highlighters....


and green markers...


because it creates this response...


and a slight mess on the face...


but still beautiful scribbles pictures



*if you know anything about me, you know that I have an obsession with highlighters and highlighting things off of my to-do lists (instead of crossing them out... that just looks messy). I'm assuming he's developed a love for highlighters like his mama <3



Gunnar's Growth *Updated!

Birth- 7 lbs 14 oz & 19 in
3 Days - 7 lbs 8.5 oz
5 Days- 7 lbs 4 oz & 19 in
2 Weeks- 7 lbs 15 oz & 19 3/4 in
4 Weeks 6 Days- 9 lbs 9 oz & 21 1/4 in
5 Weeks 5 Days- 9 lbs 7 oz
6 Weeks 3 Days- 9 lbs 1 oz
8 Weeks 5 Days- 9 lbs 8 oz & 22 in
12 Weeks- 10 lbs 1 oz & 23 in
4 months 3 days- 9 lbs 13 oz & 23 3/4 in 

6 months-  11 lbs 14 oz & 25 in
9 months-  14 lbs 2 oz & 26.5 in
12 months- 18 lbs 6 oz & 28.5 in
13 months - 19 lbs 9 oz & 28.5 in
15 months- 22 lbs 9 oz & 30.25 in
18 months- 25 lbs 9 oz & 32 in
2 years- 28.5 lbs & 34.5 in
2 1/2 years-  35.25in
2 years, 7 months- 30.1 lbs 

Hey May Not Speak Words....

but he sure is smart! My son that is, in case you didn't catch that. He has yet to say any words that we can understand, but he "talks" a lot now. All through out the day you will hear "ahh da!" and "ya ya ya ya" and "muh ma muh ma muh ma" and my favorite "mmmm" (which means yummy). Since I made this post, Gunnar has learned so much more! In addition to being able to point to one body part (his head) he now knows where his belly is and will lift up his shirt and show you when you ask.


Isn't that just adorable?  I was so happy to actually get a good video of it the first time around (score!). Gunnar now knows the following and will go get them when I ask/perform the action:


Puppy= his green puppy toy, Scout
Mr. Penguin= toy penguin that goes "wooo hooo" when you hit it haha
diaper. he won't always actually bring me a diaper, but he walks over to where they are
"get out of bed"
"throw the ball"


He also knows when I say "snack time" it means I'll be going into the kitchen to get him some food and he follows and tries to open the pantry. And finally.... he learned how to drink from a straw today! He did it once, and then had some trouble after that, but he does know now that he has to suck in order to get it out. I found an excellent technique online and it seems to really work. We just have to keep practicing so he remembers! 


Days are getting better and I find myself saying "don't touch that please" and "gunnar get out of there" less frequently, if at all. His listening skills are certainly improving and he's well aware of what he is and isn't allowed to do. 

Happy Mother's Day to all Mommies and Mommies 


to be! May your day be filled with joy and gratitude 


for the beautiful blessing God has blessed you with

New Blog!

I finally set up my blog dedicated solely to my photography.

I'm pretty darn excited.

So much so, that I've decided to type that this because it seems fitting.

You should go visit it.

And tell everyone you know.

If you want to,  of course.

=)

www.twoelevenphotography.com

All Aboard the Photography Train

Just like over half the blogs I follow, I too stalk the amazing Drew B. at Mom*Tog and amazing doesn't even describe her talent! Everyday this week she's giving away something special. And today, well today is something EXTRA special! It's her UnManual. Oh my oh my how I'd love to get my hands on that! Seeing as I'm still an amateur photographer, I love any and all tips, tricks, and suggestions I can get. I also like re-reading how things work with my camera so using it is second nature. 


Haven't read Mom*Tog before? Well you should! Even if you're not into photography, her blog may sway you towards it =)

On that note, I have some photos of the beautiful Miss.T to post soon!

Fun in the Yard!

This morning Gunnar got to "help" grandma with the gardening. And by help, I mean he grabbed his shovel and "shoveled" anything he could and walked around picking at plants.











Sunday Lists!

(I'm still working on a creative title for this weekly post)
Have you come up with your toddler's list of foods for this week? If so, post a comment with it! If not, maybe you can get some ideas from mine:

walnuts
bell pepper
whole wheat pasta
banana
blueberries
grapes
string cheese
quesadilla (whole wheat)
peanut butter
dates
zucchini 
carrots
yogurt

My original list had some other things on it, but after this week I've found some additional foods that Gunnar doesn't like. Watermelon, oranges (except the juice), cucumber, and hamburgers are all "I'm going to toss this on the floor because it's gross" foods. 

Something New

Today for lunch I decided to throw in something new... walnuts! G has had more peanut butter than I can measure, but he's never actually had any kind of nuts. I don't like them, so it's not something I reach for to give. Since he has his 4 molars in though, I decided it's something he could probably handle. Sure enough, he gobbled them right up!


(sorry for the disgusting quality, I took it with my phone) 

Today's lunch:
pineapple (gotta use it up before it goes bad!)
avocado
tomatos
oranges
red bell pepper
dates
walnuts

New Backdrop!

I went and got a new backdrop yesterday (well... 3 yds of fabric to use as a pseudo-backdrop) and I'm in love with it! I went right upstairs and ironed out the crease so I could take a few pictures of Gunnar using it. Unfortunately, at that time of the day, the only place that had good natural lighting was my in law's bathroom.... which is tiny. I had to work in a very small space and the shots aren't wide at all. I also wasn't able to get a really good depiction of the detail on the backdrop. I do have a newborn photo shoot on Monday that I'm excited about and definitely plan do use then so you'll get better pictures at that time. Until then, here's some of the adorable little creature I call my son.



What's on the Menu?

What's cookin' at your home today for lunch? Or what did you have? What did your little one have? I have yet to eat and honestly, I'll probably be unhealthy and pick something up while we're out running errands since that's the easiest thing to do. Gunnar on the other hand, is currently enjoying a very healthy and tasty lunch consisting of:
string cheese
spoonful of peanut butter
pineapple chunks
handful of dried berries
1/2 of a hard boiled egg


I wish I could feed myself the way I feed him. And I should! It all looks so delicious. I did steal  ask to have the other half of his egg so it wouldn't be sitting in the fridge and get gross. I took the silence as a yes =)

Did I mention that my child doesn't eat meat? I'm not sure I did, but I might have. In any case, unless it's a certain type of chicken with a certain flavor (haven't figured out what exactly those flavors are) he won't touch it. And meat? Forget about it. Steak is out of the question, hot dogs are out, and so is ground beef. That's why you won't be seeing any of those on my lists. Plus, the idea of hot dogs just grosses me out so I really wouldn't want to feed them to my child (albeit, he has had hot dogs before and ended up throwing them up which is why I think he doesn't like them anymore... can't say I blame him). You'll notice a lot of the things I give him are chalk full of protein (peanut butter, eggs) and that's to make up for the lack of chicken he eats. I also try and provide a lot of things that are high in iron since he ONLY gets those from the fruits,veggies, and lentils. Beans are a BIG hit with the little man. They might not make for the nicest diapers, but they're full of iron and a perfect finger food! Also, betcha didn't know, but dates are high in iron as well. Yes they're a sweet fruit, but they have a lot of iron in them so Gunnar eats those frequently as well. Some of our big "iron" foods are: dates, beans, green beans, whole wheat foods, peas, watermelon, and sweet potato!

Done!

I finally fixed the second link's title! I realized that when I was prompted to keep my widgets, it deleted that entire section of the layout code... while still actually keeping them (just not visibly). Thankfully that was a quick 5 minute fix! Now y'all can go ahead and check out what's under the "Workin' Mama" tab!

Thanks for bearing with me!

Breakfast!

Meggan brought to my attention that I didn't write anything about what I feed Gunnar for breakfast. I tend to get so preoccupied with lunch and snacks and I didn't think breakfast foods were something y'all were curious about as well! I don't go to the same lengths for breakfast as I do for lunch, but they're still healthy choices. Like any other mom, I just don't have the energy in the morning to give breakfast a lot of thought. Here's a sample of some of this typical breakfasts:

YoBaby Yogurt w/ fresh fruit & granola
Handful of cereal & fresh fruit
Homemade wheat waffles (1/4) & fresh fruit
Deconstructed Omelet (scrambled egg, bell pepper slices, slice of cheese)
Hard boiled egg, fresh fruit
Oatmeal
Toast, scrambled egg

Like I said, I really don't put too much thought into any of it and half the time I'm tempted to just do the cereal and fruit because it's quick and easy, but that would get boring (and I'll admit I've done it before for almost a week and then he refused to eat the cereal). I'm sure there's other things I'm forgetting so if I remember I'll add them to the list!

Bear With Me.

It's quite obvious that I'm making some blog changes. Unfortunately, I can't seem to get the second link (the one right up there ^) to change what it says because that piece of the code disappeared... yet it still shows up. So bear with me as I try to get this all perfect. The links work, just the title of link #2 doesn't depict where it's taking you to. So sit tight, and don't fret (okay okay, it's me that needs to worry about that, not you). Explore the new layout and familiarize yourself while I get this all in tip top shape.

Until then.....


Start making your weekly food lists for your child(ren)! After reading the comments left on my last post, I realized that I ended up being a lot more helpful than I thought. That makes me excited... happy... thrilled that I could help! I noticed that y'all planned on writing down some of the things, if not all, from my list. Because my list changes each week (some of it, but not all), I've decided to post Gunnar's food list every Sunday! Hopefully this will help those of you who are in a creative rut to explore new foods and realize there's so much more out there to feed your child! This is still a learning process for me and I'm discovered new tips and tricks that make toddler feeding easy so I'll be sharing those with you. Please please please feel free to leave your lists too! I'm sure that y'all feed your children stuff that I haven't even thought of! I'd love to hear what they are!

Happy eating!

Feeding My Toddler

In the past several months I've had several people (ok maybe only 2 or 3, but still...) ask me how I come up with so many different things to feed my child for lunch and snacks, as well as asking what some of those things are. I was going to write about this a while ago, but completely forgot. Thankfully, I read MckMama's post today and it reminded me so I thought I'd go ahead! Plus, today was my "prepare and store 'bites'" day.

If you're not familiar with what that means, I'll tell you. 2-3 times a week (usually 3), during nap time, I spend a good 30 minutes in the kitchen going through the things in the pantry and fridge and pulling out stuff that I plan on feeding G. With those, I cut them up/ slice them/ whatever and store them in tupperware that way, when lunch or snack time comes, I already have everything prepared and ready to serve. Just grab out of the pantry or fridge and put on a plate! I've discovered this not only keeps me sane, but it also keeps my child happy. See, G isn't one to wait for food. When he sees it being prepared he wants it immediately and will throw a fit if not given any. Doing this makes it so I can quickly feed him and shut him up  keep him happy. If you've never thought to do something like this, or even thought about it but haven't, I urge you to try it! It really saves me a lot of time and I don't even have to really think about what I'm going to feed him. This technique (if you want to call it that) is especially helpful for moms like myself that hardly feed their child(ren) processed or packaged food. Yes, my child gets graham crackers and goldfish but these are on occasion. He really only eats fresh food that require preparation. It makes me feel better about what's going into his tiny little body.




Now... how exactly do I come up with all the different things to feed him? Well, it's all about browsing! Luckily, I don't have a picky eater. Ok, so he doesn't like meat, but I wouldn't call that picky. He will gladly eat any veggie you put in front of him. Because of that, it's not too hard for me to find stuff to feed him. Going back to a previous point I made, I try to only feed him fresh food and healthy food. I never quite know what he's going to feel like eating that particular day, but I try it anyways. On Sundays, I prepare a list, like the one below, of foods that are quick, easy, healthy for him to eat, and that I know he likes. I keep this list with me and throughout the week if I get any ideas of other things to feed him I add them to the list for future use. There's so much food out there and you can't be afraid to let your child try them (unless of course there is an allergy or chance of an allergy). Your child might surprise you with what he'll eat!

Here's the things on my list this week:
raisins (or any dried fruit)
hard boiled eggs
grapes
oranges
pineapple
peanut butter
macaroni (organic)
tomatoes
lettuce
bell pepper
avocado
veggie fries
cucumber
zucchini
string cheese
dates
yogurt + granola

Keep in mind that these aren't the only things my child will eat this week. He'll probably get some goldfish or other crackers and dinner will be whatever my mother in law prepares. He ALWAYS eats what we eat (unless it's fish, I choose not to feed him any fish) for dinner.


This is what he had for lunch today: 1/2 hard boiled egg, a few grapes, several gold fish, oranges, lettuce and tomatoes, avocado, and ranch to dip.

Just get creative with it! It's actually kind of fun!

Shakin' It Up Sunday

Today we did things a little bit different here at home. Typically, Gunnar wakes up around 8 and we play in the room for a half hour, eat breakfast and play some more. By 10:30 he's ready for his morning nap. However, today was different. I decided it was time to try something called room time. I learned about this from Kassi who learned it from Diana. It's an excellent idea and a great way to keep a mommy sane! Up until now, Gunnar has just been too young for me to be ok with letting him stay in the bedroom by himself. Plus, he just wasn't a huge fan of me not being around him. I decided to let him play in the room for about 25 minutes (with the door open and a baby gate across the door) while I went downstairs to make myself breakfast and eat it in peace. Because, you know, as a mom of a toddler, you absolutely cannot eat any food without your child whining and wanting to have a bite off your plate. I go through it every morning and it's far too annoying. So I decided to shake it up. This morning, after I took a shower, I put Gunnar in his room and put Clifford on to make sure he'd be ok with me not being present and I scooted myself downstairs to make breakfast and eat in peace. It was delightful. I needed it so much. He was absolutely perfect just keeping himself busy with Clifford and his toys upstairs all by himself while I was downstairs eating my yummy breakfast. This will now become part of our morning routine and possibly afternoon as well. It'll give me a few extra minutes to do my homework in peace which is always wonderful and needed.

In an upcoming post... I'll show you Gunnar's new sleeping arrangements and tell you how it's working out for us.

Did He Just Do That?

It seems like everyday Gunnar does something that completely catches me off guard. Not something bad, but something that I had no idea he could do. It amazes me the more and more he does it. I can't get over how much he learns just by watching and listening. It's almost scary... almost. I guess since he doesn't talk yet I didn't really expect him to communicate in other ways, even though every book and website says that late talkers get pretty creative with finding other ways to communicate their wants. Crying, whining, and fussing was all I saw... but there's more than that. He can certainly show and tell me in his own way what he wants and I didn't even realize it. Today was one of those "wow" days for me. I kept noticing little things that he does that I hadn't noticed before, or did notice but didn't think too much of it. I'm so incredibly proud of him and love him more and more each day. He's such a good little boy even though I have to tell him several many, times a day to not climb onto the fireplace.

So what was it that I noticed today, you ask?

Well let me tell you!

It all started with me asking him "Where's the birdie?" to which he responded by walking over to the bird's cage and pointing to it! I tried doggie but I guess were not quite there yet. He loves the bird more lol. I also asked him "Where are the planes?" and he pointed to the 3 plans that are hanging above his crib in his room. This one really amazed me because he just recently (last week maybe?) noticed them and started pointing to them. Every time he wakes up he has to point to them now lol. I also asked him where the fan is, and he pointed to the ceiling fan. He knows what his sippy cup is and will go get it when I ask among other "commands" such as these:
"Sit on your bottom"
"Lay down"
"Stand up"
"Bring me _____ (insert object here)" (this one is tricky as he doesn't always know what the object is)
"Close the cabinet" ... something I say at least 10 times a day
"Put that back"
"Gunnar, dance!"

All of these commands are followed by a "please" and "thank you" ... always. I can't even think of a time when I haven't said please or thank you. In addition to these he can point to his head, sometimes his belly (if you catch him when he's not distracted), he "helps" me get himself dressed and undressed by making whatever arm I need available and free of a toy, stepping in or out of pant legs, and giving me the foot I need to put on socks or shoes, and when I say "All done? Would you like out?" he'll start to get out of where ever he is (high chair he'll pull up and the tub he'll try to climb out).

I'm sure there's a ton more but these are the ones that came to my mind instantly. It's just crazy how much he's learned even though he isn't using words to talk; he's still able to fully understand everything that I say! It's mind blowing.

Baby H

I love newborns. So so so much! They're absolutely precious; so peaceful; so natural. I want a newborn again, but that'll just have to wait.

It was my privilege to photograph the oh so cute Hunter Samuel for my friend Megan and her husband. I've known Megan since my freshman year of high school and now she's married and has a son as well! Gunnar came along with me and had a blast playing with Megan's husband and just exploring their home and making a mess. I told them he was just preparing them for what's to come =)











There will be more to come as we didn't get to finish the photo shoot. 3 O'clock came fast and Gunnar needed to nap so we had to pack up and go home. I can't wait to finish what we started though, I had a blast!



Obsessed.

I'm most definitely liking obsessed  with this picture. I didn't even think twice about it when I took it, thinking it was just going to be another picture taken from behind. When I opened up my SD card and took a look at it I was delightfully wrong. That pose. So cute! Such a little model if I do say so. I can't stop staring at it. I hope that's not a bad thing. I did take the picture and edit it after all.



Battle Wound.

Like any typical toddler, the bumps and bruises are common. In our house, they're VERY common. Almost a weekly occurrence. This time, little man, disobeying the rules, went to play with the dogs's water pails. One pail has edges that stick up and sure enough, he slipped and cut his cheek on the pail. He's fine now, but it looks like it might leave a scar (even though I'm putting neosporin on it frequently). If you look about his eyebrow you'll notice a slight purple color... yep, that bruise came from today. He had a good run with no bruises but that is no longer. He's a tough little guy and get's over it pretty quickly, but it's still not pretty to look at. 

We Love....

walking....


more walking....


touching...


observing...


exploring...


reaching...


and smiling... 

at the park.