Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Mother's Day and 18 Months

The end of the school year is flying by, which I am so excited about! It means that soon I will get to spend a lot more time with Nolan. I can't wait to be able to go on more walks, go to the Splash Pad, the park, play outside, etc. Nolan absolutely loves the outdoors, so it better be a sunny summer!

Mother's Day was great! On the day before, we went to Jason's parents' house for an early Mother's Day with his family. They gave me a pretty rain gauge for the garden (which I don't have, so I put it in our flower bed), and some pretty potted flowers. It was a fun day. Nolan loved playing with Brunson! They are going to be good friends.

On Mother's Day, Jason let me sleep in and he got up with Nolan. After we were all ready for the day, Jason gave me a present - a new Coach purse and the movie Silver Linings Playbook! I was super excited about both. Then the three of us went to the MN Zoo. Nolan LOVED the penguins again and this time also the monkeys. He grinned and waved at them. The grizzly bears were very active. Nolan got a front row spot in front of their water. They were right in front of him (seriously on the other side of the glass) play fighting. It scared Nolan and he started crying. Poor guy! He also loved the farm at the zoo. He was a little intimidated of larger animals after the bear experience, so he wasn't too fond of the cows. But he loved the goats and the sheep! He kept trying to touch the goats, who were looking for food handouts.

After the zoo we went to my parents' house for dinner, which was also nice. Nolan got to play at the park across the street. My parents gave me an Ulta gift card which will be put to good use soon! Overall it was an awesome day/weekend spent with family and of course Nolan, who is the reason I'm a mother. :)

I can't believe that Nolan is 1.5 now! He turned 18 months on the 7th. Time goes so fast. He is a full blown toddler now, complete with tantrums, independent thinking, and being able to communicate more and more. His doctor appointment was an interesting experience. Nolan did not want to be there and kept trying to escape. Only whoever designed the doctors' office was smart and put the door handles about 4 feet high, so kids like Nolan can't escape. This made Nolan angry and he threw a tantrum for almost the entire time the doctor was in there! Little stinker! Besides the tantrum, Nolan's appointment went really well. Jason and I had filled out an Autism screener and a developmental form, and Nolan did well with all areas. He is now 34.75" tall (97th %) and 27 lb 13 oz (88th %). Big guy!! We tried taking some 18 month photos, but they didn't turn out well so we're going to try again sometime this weekend. Hopefully he'll cooperate! He isn't loving the camera right now.

New things for Nolan:
*His little baby goes EVERYWHERE he goes! It now goes to Mamie and Papa's every day, Target, walks, you name it, baby goes. We had to get a new baby and put on the old baby's clothes so he couldn't tell the difference.
*I caught Nolan digging into Keegan's supply of dog food and feeding Keegan handfuls of food. Both were pretty pleased with themselves.
*Raising his hands up by his shoulders as if asking a question and saying, "Baby?" when he can't find baby.
*Brave boy loves to go down the biggest slide at the park all by himself!

New "sentences" for Nolan: "Bye Mamie, my Mamie", "bye bye Baby", "door night night" (he wanted to go upstairs and take his nap), "more cookie", "oh ______" (insert mama, dada, mamie, papa, baby, said with a giggle), and "light on".

In other news, baby #2 is doing well! He/she flips so much! Nolan was more of a stay in one position and kick like crazy baby, but this one would rather twist and turn. I had my 24 week appt last week and the baby was moving the entire time we listened to his/her heartbeat, so the heartbeat wasn't steady. It was a strong heartbeat though, so the nurse practitioner wasn't concerned. I had my diabetes test and haven't heard any news, which is good news! This is my last 4 week stretch between doctor appts. I go back at 28 weeks and then every 2 weeks after that. This little baby will be here before we know it! :)

Here are some recent Nolan pictures.

Looking dapper on Easter

Family pic :)

Love the bow tie/cardigan!

Got him to smile!

MN Zoo on Mother's Day - looking at the penguins!


Little bear was smiling at a kid next to him, not at the big bears :)

Watching the bears, before he started crying. Poor guy

Leopard! 

Loving the goat

He thought they were so fun

I asked him if he wanted to go to the park. He started running toward it!

Big boy going down the biggest slide!
Pushing bear and baby in the stroller :)

Letting me know the neighbors' garage door is opening

Getting over being sick, tired, but still smiley

24 weeks! Squeezing into my school shirt :)

Ready to go run errands with Dada!

Errands wore him out. He passed out on our bed like this. 

Grinning when he heard a train whistle. 

Pretty proud of himself for brushing off our steps. 

Love him!!!

Cool kids!

Sunglasses and baby, ready for the walk!