After writing several blogs in a row about the things we're currently going through with Hartley, I felt like I should come on here and talk about the good, everyday stuff going on with the kids. It's been very helpful for me to turn this blog as a healthy outlet as I navigate what is uncharted territory for me.
Before I start talking about the babes, I did want to come on here and say that I'm sorry that my last post wasn't very optimistic. I'll be honest, I think, in general, I have a pretty positive outlook on life. I also know that in the grand scheme of things, I am very blessed and lucky. I have a hard-working, helpful husband, two healthy kids and a roof over our heads. I know there are families out there going through much tougher things, and we're lucky that our biggest qualms are fretting over when our child's early intervention will start. I wrote my blog on a day where everything came to a head; I was extremely frustrated and had no where else to turn to with that other then my safe writing place.
I would also like to clarify that I haven't completely lost faith. Also, I think that my daughter is intelligent, gorgeous, sweet, creative and very talented. All of these reports I've referenced will never highlight that so I will state that. She is absolutely wonderful and perfect - her brain just works a little differently than most. It's really as simple as that.
Also, last little sidebar, so many people have reached out to me privately (and publicly on Facebook, too), and from the very bottom of my heart, thank you all. I think many people shy away from talking about things like this thinking there's some kind of stigma. There shouldn't be, so I appreciate when people are awesome enough to have talked so openly about this with me and extend their kind words and support. A huge shout out to a few girls I went to school with ages ago who work in various school systems who've offered help and support. You ladies have truly found your life's calling and should be very proud of what you do.
All of those things said, I'd like to update on the kiddos a little. Let's start with Patrick first since that poor guy hasn't had a blog entry in a while!
Patrick continues to be a very big baby. I keep wondering when he'll slow down. Brian actually told me if he continues on his current trajectory that he will be taller than me when he turns 10 years old, so that's a little scary!! At 13 months old he wears size 6 diapers and either 2T or 3T clothing. I trimmed his bangs a little bit ago but he's already due for another trim. And he has at least 10 teeth. His size, hair and teeth always make strangers assume he's older than he is, which kills me. The irony is that he's still very baby-like. He still has plenty of baby rolls and loves to snuggle. When I feed him a bottle he just melts right into my arms.
He loves getting kisses and tickles. He's starting to love books. He just graduated from the "I'm not going to let you turn that pages and read to me because I want to eat the book" stage. He loves touch and feel books. He really loves to pet the soft textures. Which has carried over to petting Winnie and petting the animals at the petting zoo!
He isn't walking yet but he speed crawls, cruises and stands without holding on to things. His big physical milestone that happened shortly after his first birthday - he can climb the stairs! His gross motor skills have come in later than Hartley's (she was an early walker), but I think he actually beat her to the punch on climbing stairs. Though I could be totally wrong - mom brain!
He says "Mama" and "Dada" completely purposefully. Both of my children say mama a conservative minimum of 50 times a day each. It's crazy. We've also heard him say "bye" and "hi" but definitely not consistently yet. He claps. He loves to bounce and is starting to dance. He has started biting when he gets jealous. It sometimes happens on accident but he's bitten me if I'm holding Hartley and not him.
He eats an insane amount of food. People have joked about what our grocery bill will look like when's a teen but I swear, it's already starting. We've literally discussed buying a second fridge because we seem to be running out to the store every 2-3 days to load up on milk, fruit and eggs. Unfortunately he doesn't always get what's food and what's not so he truly tries to eat everything. We never had this issue with Hartley so I'm learning what a tough trait this is. He's eaten crayons, marker tips and dog food. He'll lick and gnaw on chalk. It's hard because Hartley loves to use her art supplies and Winnie needs her food on the ground. So he's a bit of a terror when it comes to getting in the girls' way!
He's still a pretty happy baby but you can see that he's turning into a toddler mood-wise. I think he's been frustrated lately because he still isn't walking so he's kind of climbing the walls a little. He literally climbed on top of the kids' little white table the other day, and you can see he's starting to test his limits. This stage is a little tough honestly but it's inevitable so we'll just embrace the craziness that it is.
I'll haphazardly throw his favorite foods on here. He likes all food pretty much but his very favorite things are blueberries, strawberries, bananas and veggie straws. He eats pizza, lasagna, chicken nuggets, hotdogs, Mac n cheese, all fruits, green beans, broccoli, yogurt, cheese, cereal, waffles, most dishes or casseroles I make (ego stroke).
He just started swimming lessons last week. He went with Brian (during that time I take Hartley to ballet). Brian said he did well! No tears. He was a little unsure at first but he warmed up toward the end.
His current favorite toys are a little sports center baby toy my sister got him for his birthday. He likes to use it to shoot hoops. He's already very interested in sports; he loves watching the older boys play ball at the park. He loves his little people toys - specifically his barn and camper. He loves the trucks he got for his birthday. He pushes them around. And he loves to play peak a boo in this ridiculous box fort I slapped together for the kids. He also loves to make music with his maracas and likes to drum on things.
Okay, this was all a lot to write and honestly, I thought this would be a fun thing to do while I'm not feeling well but it turns out it's making my headache worse! Damn screen - oops! So I will update on Hartley soon but at least the world knows what's up with Patrick. Poor guy is often so easy-going that he doesn't always end up on the blog! But he's doing great and has had a wonderful summer. Maybe the next time I do a Patty post I'll be able to write about first steps!
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