15 Month Pictures

Austin had his 15 month check up almost two weeks ago. Everything went really well, and he's doing great! He now weighs almost 26 pounds (50th percentile), is 32.5 inches tall (60th percentil), and his head is 19 1/4 (92nd percentile). We think the nurse calculated all of those wrong, and when I checked online, he was in the 67th percentile for weight, the 83rd percentile for height, and the 89th for his head. Not that it matters, but this time, the nurse seemed a little off. We normally have the same one, and this one was different. She kept saying he was 18 months old, so I think she might have been a bit confused! Hopefully she gave him the right shots! He got an additional flu shot this time, as well as an H1N1, and a two others. He cried, as usual, but did pretty well with everything else.

His new favorite word he's adopted is "no". He has no idea what it means, but he says it to just about everything. It's pretty funny! He's starting to do really well with his sleeping, taking between a 2-4 hour nap during the day and sleeping most nights about 12-14 hours. The only bad part about that, he goes to bed around 6:30 pm, and doesn't wake up until normally around 7:30. It makes for a busy evening, so we are very grateful that i'm not working right now. The bad part is that Jared doesn't get to spend a ton of time with him during the evenings, but we know it's what's best for Austin. Austin has started to say kitty and meow, go vroom with his trucks, and even pretends to fly a plain in the air and says vroom. He loves building things with blocks, playing with cars, reading, and throwing balls and watching them bounce.

I recently bought Austin some crayons at the store. We let him go to town the other day with them. He loves it! I can't wait to buy him Play-doh! He knew exactly what to do with them, which amazed me. Last time we tried was when he was about 13 months old, and it didn't go so well. It's amazing how much he has changed in two months. As you can see by his face, he really enjoyed it!

This is a picture that Jared shot of us the other day. I think it was on a day when we just all hung out at home all day, but it's amazing how blue his eyes look in this shot. They are still a really pretty color of blue. I've heard that they can change even at this age, but I hope they stay this color. They are amazing! Not to mention, if he keeps those blue eyes, I think he's going to be a ladies man!

We took Austin's 15 month pictures this past weekend. And here are several shots from it (I can't decide which ones I like the best). We were trying to get pictures of him with his security item, which is what we call his bankie. I had something similar to this when I was growing up, and I thought that Austin needed the same, so I made him one. He carries this thing around all the time, which is really cute. We call him Linus sometimes from Charlie Brown!

This shoot was a bit more difficult than the previous. He was into EVERYTHING! He kept playing with the backdrop, running around, playing with the tripod and flashes. It was cute how fascinated he was by all of it, and Jared figured it's not a bad hobby for Austin to get into. Hopefully he keeps showing interest in this and they'll have something to do together later in life.

I was tickling Austin in this picture. He's actually figured out that if he lays on his back long enough, that's what happens. His giggle brings a smile to my face no matter what kind of day i'm having. It's too precious!

We are also teaching Austin to "blow" on things to cool them off. I blew rasberries on Jared's stomach the other day and was trying to get Austin to do the same. Instead of blowing rasberries, he just blew onto his daddy's tummy like he was cooling soup down! Too cute! And I know how innocent he looks in the black and white picture....don't let him fool you!

And here is our most recent family portrait. Austin wasn't too interested in taking more pictures at this point, so this was the best we could do!

Beginning of 2010

So, it's been a few weeks since i've written an update on Austin, but to say the least, it's been a bit busy around here. Between visiting friends and family, Austin has had a cold or is teething again also. I haven't figured out which of the two it is, because he won't open his mouth for me. That being said, he's had his fingers in his mouth an awful lot, which is why I think it might be more teeth. Who knows, only time will tell.

Austin got to play in the snow for the first time a few weeks ago. He wasn't a big fan of it yet. His mittens wouldn't stay on, and I think he got cold. He got a sled from Grandma and Grandpa for Christmas, so hopefully that will make it a bit more enjoyable for him. At first he thought the snow was kind of fun, but I think he got cold, so we came inside and played.

Austin is getting quite good at feeding himself. He's started using a fork and spoon for mostly everything, and even started to hold his cup by himself a few weeks ago. I remember when he was 4 months old and the doctor told us to start offering water and juice out of a cup, I thought they were crazy. How can a baby drink out of a cup. Well, turns out, it's not that difficult after all. He still spills quite a bit, but he's getting there. Luckily, he still hates all forms of juice, and will only drink water and milk, which makes the clean-up pretty easy. He enjoys putting his food in the cup sometimes, and his forks and spoons also. He thinks that's pretty funny, andI just laugh and try to correct him. He'll catch on at some point, he always does!

Austin painted Christmas ornaments for a few people, but he didn't paint them for everyone. The task was a lot more difficult and expensive than what we thought it would be, but we still had a great time. Austin mostly slapped paint on things, so we helped him out a bit. He also made Cinnamon Scented ornaments for people (since painting the plaster ones were a bit more difficult than we expected), which smelled amazing. This picture still cracks me up though. It pretty much summed up the time at the painting place.....messy! And of course, Jared and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Christmas was such an exciting time this year. Austin got to see his cousins, great grandparents, aunts and uncles, and even his Uncle Ben! It was nice to visit with everyone, and to watch Austin with his cousins. I love watching him interact with other kids. He jumps right in and observes and tries to play right along with them. Around a lot of adults, it takes him time to warm up, but around kids, it's a completely different story. Hopefully this attitude with other kids stays throughout his childhood, because he's bound to be a great playmate for others!

Above is a toy that he got for Christmas from My Aunt Judy and Uncle Jim. At first, this toy scared/made him mad. It vibrates and then takes off. He's recently started to like it a bit more, but it made him cry at first. It was too cute!

This is Austin's first reaction to his second Christmas. Santa came and brought Austin a race car ramp, and a basketball hoop. He loved Christmas this year, and is continuing to love it! He's enjoying all of the wonderful toys that everyone gave him. He's been very occupied and overwhelmed by them, to say the least.

He knew exactly what to do with his new toys from Santa. The basketball hoop, he picked up the ball right away and tried to get it in the hoop. He still needs some help, but I think by the summertime, he'll know exactly what to do. He also enjoys pushing his cars down the racetrack. He also got a guitar, play phone, clothes, books, a PDA, a learning computer, drum set, blocks, even a puppy that says his name and favorite items....so many toys I can't hardly remember what all he got. All I can say, he loves them all and we are so blessed to have so many people in our life that cares so much about Austin. Thanks to everyone!

After Austin opened all of his presents at our house, he had one left. A big bag of books! And of course, he gets all of these wonderful toys from us, and the first thing he goes after, the books. Go figure! When I say the kid loves books, I mean the kid loves books. It's really been one of the first words to come out of his mouth!

This is a car that Austin got from my parents for Christmas. It will be an outside toy, but my mom and Uncle Ben set this up at their house. Austin had a blast pushing and riding around in this thing. Now, if he can just figure out how to get his butt to stay in place on it and his knees not drag on the floor, I think he'll love it even more.

Austin got to see his Aunt Kristin and Uncle Chris this past week also. He had a blast playing with them. He really enjoys being around them, and playing and having them read books to him. Uncle Chris was all over the floor playing, and Aunt Kristin helped feed and change Austin when he needed it. He loves it so much. So far, it hasn't taken Austin much time to warm up around them, which I can only hope that continues. They love him so much! We got to see many of our friends around Christmas time, which makes things crazy! We had so much fun though visiting with everyone, catching up, and playing games with everyone. We even got to play Pictionary Man, Dominos, and Phase 10, and a new game called Quelf with Matt and Drew. It was too much fun! It was so great to see everyone, just like old times. I love how when everyone comes back, we can all pick up from where we left off. That's what it's all about!

Austin also recently started to say a few more words. He calls dogs "oafs" which I think stands for Woof. But if you ask him where and "oaf" is, he points to the dogs. He started saying "Bye Bye" and "hello" and "Kitty" also. Mama, is still his favorite though, in my opinion :) Tomorrow, he has his 15 month checkup, so we get to see how big he is and make sure he's on the right track! Hopefully life starts to slow down soon. As much fun as it is to be in the fast lane, it's always nice to get back on track with things.