Just a Tuesday

I've posted three times today but I'm just playing catch-up. Amazing how much there is to say when you have a near-toddler! Adam is able to "walk" on his knees with his new Stride to Ride Dinosaur, he's able to go from standing to sitting/crawling and sit up easily by himself. He falls about the normal amount, I guess, but he's also pretty graceful.

He's become a fast crawler and a speedy pull-upper. He sees Shannon when Shannon comes home from work and smiles, squeals and makes a bee-line towards him, and when Shannon picks him up he immediately tries to steal Shannon's glasses. He can stand up in his crib and yell for someone to get him (and when you do, he's all smiles when he sees you). He fights sleep, and when he "wins," he lets you know with a big smile.

He's working on standing up without having to hold onto anything and is very happy when you hold his hands and help him walk from one place to another. He's also practicing moving from one object to another without help (no steps, but turning from the couch to the coffee table, the coffee table to the toy table).

He LOVES to do things on his own. Mr. Independent, Mr. Athletic, Mr. Blue Eyes, Mr. Smiles.

He's doing better at playing by himself for longer periods of time. He likes people so much that it's actually torturous not having someone to watch, or talk to, or play with... and at 7 months, it really is "play with"... I've walked into daycare in the last month to see him next to a "friend" and playing with a toy together a couple of times.

We've noticed that when he's upset or frustrated, he does his chewbacca growl (very gutteral, and sounds like a growl). It comes out the most when you make him stay still for a diaper or clothes change. He's learning the word "no," although usually when I say it he stops and looks at me, then grins really big and goes back at it. His smile is contagious so it's hard not to smile back. When I mean it, though, he listens. Whenever Shannon says it, he knows he means it. But Mr. Charming doesn't know what it means to be "in trouble" (yet). He also can "pat" like they teach on "Little Einsteins," which is amazing because we don't really play it that much, and when we do, he's only half paying attention. And he only "pats" (pats the table, his legs, the floor, in rythym with the beat), when Mom does, not when the show tells him to.

And this evening, when Shannon was vacuuming, he chased the vacuum until there was no room to chase, and I picked him up into my lap, when I lifted my legs to let Shannon vacuum the floor beneath me, Adam lifted his legs too. Too cute. How do they learn so fast?

He's also eating Cheerio's and soft table food, and is almost begging for it. We are still in the bad habit of feeding him "his food," then eating ours an hour or two later while sitting on the couch watching TV (while he's playing). It looks like that habit will have to change soon because he sees our plates and comes looking for a bite, opening his mouth while holding onto the couch and standing at our knees. Today we had an argument on whether the red beans and rice (w/sausage) that I was eating was actually "Mom's Lunch," or "Adam's snack." I won, but it was a long, well-fought battle on his part. He is a worthy opponent.