
Good Lord. It is really here. We are just one month away from Abraham’s 18-month birthday! I can barely believe it! He has changed so much and it is so much fun to be his mommy (even on days when it’s not!).
Abraham is so smart. I am sure everyone says that about their kids, but wow. He astounds us daily. He knows SO many animals names and the sounds they make and he now WANTS to answer your questions. Like, what does a dog say? He will reply “woof.” It is simply awesome! He picks up a new word just about every day if not multiple words. We were completely shocked the other night when he started repeating “boog” (which is the nickname for one of our dogs). Aaron tested him and he pointed to the correct dog! Then when asked to go pet Arky, he went to the other dog! Unreal. We have not worked with him on their names at all! It was amazing. He is not quite to parrot stage but I am sure it is right around the corner. I am just so impressed at his little mind and the cognitive ability he is developing.

He absolutely LOVES Cookie Monster. I bought a DVD of Cookie Monster right around Christmas and he will request for it to be played now. I am SO glad I never let him watch much TV before because now whenever he is in the upstairs play area, he wants the TV on. He doesn’t get it most of the time. We explain that the TV is going night-night or that it isn’t time for a show, but every once in awhile, we give and he gets his Cookie Monster. We have actually had to hide the DVD case so he can’t go grab it and bring it to us (it is really hard to say NO then!). I am getting excited about introducing him to Sesame Street (pending they haven’t TOTALLY ruined it with political correctness and what not). We do actually receive that station over the air waves and I was able to find out it comes on at 10:30 am. Maybe just maybe I will treat him to that and see what he thinks.
With all this advancement in speech and recognition, we have had a bit of a back-slide in regards to the pacifier. He is quite capable of going into his room and getting the pacifier out of his bed and taking it wherever he wants it. It was cute at first but it is becoming a bit of a habit. Plus, I know he isn’t dealing well with his molars coming in. They have all broken the skin but I am sure he is still in quite a bit of pain. Usually when he gets really whiny (which is more often than I like), he will run off and get the pacifier. It calms him down and makes him happy. How do I take that away from him? Oh well. The trials of being a parent. You hold fast to some “rules” while others just go right out the door!

Let’s see….what else is new…well, he is quite an accomplished mover and shaker. He has no problem with walking or standing up. He is acting like a pro! The only time he gets clumsy is when he is super tired. He is still napping once a day but that is getting shorter and shorter (3 hours to 2 hours to maybe an hour and a half). It is killing me. But he does sleep very long at night (13-15 hours).
He is starting to exhibit more imaginative play. I will see him actually move his cars around and build towers with his legos. It is really neat to watch him do his thing. He also loves to dance! We have finally found a radio station that I can listen to with Abraham around! 101.5. It is country music (of which I used to absolutely detest) but this stuff is good! Plus, the DJ’s are not jerks and there are no controversial commercials. I think it is a local station to the south of Indy since they mention Columbus and those areas a bunch. But anyway, Abraham gets a joy out of the music and will just wiggle and bounce (dancing). It is really cute! He also has a couple Elmo books that require sing-a-long and he will bring those to me to sing. It is so sweet. He will just bounce away on my lap or if it is during the day, he will stand and dance while I sing. I love these precious moments. Oh, I almost forgot the funniest part!!! Abraham LOVES the Star Trek Next Generation Theme Song! We have been watching episodes for some time now and whenever it starts up, he just starts dancing! It makes our day!
He is also becoming far more interactive with everything. He wants to be a part of any conversation Aaron and I are having. He will actually giggle, laugh, squeal or make some sort of noise/gesture when the TV is on (like he is engaged in the show). He will frequently go over to the dogs and pet them or let them lick his fingers (yuck). He ALWAYS wants to give the dogs biscuits. The dogs love it because they get more biscuits this way:) He is becoming such a little man.
On another note, we have started the BIG MOVE. Yes. Aaron is mostly moved out of his old office and completely displaced. We have stuff EVERYWHERE. I never realized how much STUFF was actually in storage in that room. Oh well. God will provide a solution for us somehow! Anyway, I painted the bottom section of the walls in their new room today (first coat). I am really excited about what we are doing in there. I hope it turns out as good as I have imagined in my mind. We found a perfect wallpaper border at BBRUS on CLEARANCE! I love clearance stuff but usually don’t need it. This was a double bonus because we needed it!!! I will keep you posted on the progress.
