I do have to point out that Drew knows his way around women. He brought Lisa this book, which we don't read all that often, where you have to find the cat on each page. Lisa is a veterinarian and LOVES cats. He plopped it in her lap and started turning pages, pointing, and saying "cat!" (well, "tat") over and over again. What a flirt! (Lisa also happens to love books).
Yeah, I've been neglecting the blog. What else is new? It could have something to do with the 10 books I've read since January. What's that? You say my goal was 4? Guess I got a little carried away...
Seriously, Jason got me a Kindle for Christmas and it's the best thing EVER! I have always said I love to read, but to be honest I don't read as much as I would like to. Time is a factor (especially now that I have a toddler!), internet addiction is sadly also a factor, but a large part is just not having books around that I'd like to read. Yeah, I know I can go to the library, but I just don't. Thanks to the Kindle, new books are always at my fingertips!
Anyways, I have some catching up to do.
First order of business, I am now officially calling myself the pregnancy psychic. Not only did I predict that Stacey was pregnant, then nail her due date (a day off, really, but close enough), I also called the gender. That's right, she's having a girl!! I texted Jason the news and his sarcastic response was "big surprise". Guess he trusted my sixth sense.
Second... well, I guess there's no second order of business, except to get caught up on a missing Monday Minute. This is a video of Drew saying his ABCs! Okay, he's not that talented yet, but repeating is close enough...
As I've said before, I'm a little torn on the "screen time" thing- supposedly not good for children under age 2 (because there is little interaction and mental stimulation), but Drew really enjoys playing games on the iPad from time to time, and is actually starting to "get it". As seen in the video, I couldn't believe Drew was actually hitting the coins and avoiding the pirates and boats (though the boats aren't actually bad)! This isn't my first choice of game on the iPad (though I could claim it's good hand-eye coordination practice), I prefer the animal flashcards and memory cards that teach him new words, but it's still fun to see how he's learning and grasping new concepts. NO, this is not an excuse to say I should let him play iPad all day (15 minutes max is good), nor is it to say iPad is bad, just that it's... well... FUN!
This would be a reason I DON'T want him
playing electronic games
So I was reading this book called "Heart of the Matter" by Emily Giffin that a coworker loaned me. It's a good book... I was not overall thrilled with the theme of adultery, but I was happy with the outcome. It was a good, easy read, which I needed after some intense books that kept me up way too late.
Anyways, all of that is beside the point. In the book a doctor is mentioned in passing; her name was Dr. Wolfenden. I used to see a Dr. Wolfenden at the Emory CF Center here in Atlanta. It struck me as an odd name, and seemed even more interesting that she was a female, like my own doctor. I figured it was kind of a coincidence, until I noticed that the author lives here in Atlanta.
Dr. Wolfenden was head of the Emory CF program until she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She passed away last year, the year the book was published. I just HAD to know if the small mention in the book was a tribute to her... so I decided to be crazy and email the author's website.
Sure enough, I got this response:
Not a silly question at all! Emily was dear friends with Dr. Wolfenden from Atlanta. They have children around the same age that attend the same school. Very observant! :) Thanks for writing!
How about that! I was so surprised (that I even got a response in the first place!), I just had to share!
Thank you Dr. Wolfenden for all you did. We miss you! And thank you Ms. Giffin for recognizing an amazing woman!
I took this video last night during the Super Bowl and was going to postpone this morning's post for another day, but forgot. So, because I am just dying to share this video, you get two posts today!
This is Drew, trying to walk in Daddy's shoes (they are some big shoes to fill!). My favorite part is the end when he hears some music from a Super Bowl ad and decides he just can't hold back and MUST move to the music...
I love how he is just bursting to throw some moves on the dance floor! Too adorable. Enjoy!
At our 18 month check up the doctor asked if Drew can say "at least 10-20" words. I said "yes!" but after the appointment wondered just how many words he can say. Jason and I started listing them off and stopped when we got to 50... my little boy is definitely a chatter box!
Drew's favorite words are...
sun
turtle
flower
kitty
Rico
car ("boom boom" for vroom vroom)
He's had this "First Words" book for a while. We don't read it a lot, so I was shocked to realize he actually knows all the words in the book!
The next step will be making phrases. He has a few memorized phrases like "bless you", "thank you", and "help me" but doesn't really put two words together on his own yet. He did surprise me by pointing to a picture of our friends' baby girl, Avery, and saying "baby Avwee!".
Language teaching being my area of "expertise" I really find it fascinating watching him learn to talk. The most interesting thing is how he learns words that make me wonder where he learned them. Not bad words, or even weird words, but simple, every day words that you say in passing but don't really "teach". Words like pocket or door.
I've heard people say "you spend the first year teaching your kid to walk and talk, then the next 17 teaching them to sit down and shut up". I understand the sentiment, but I am honestly excited to hear what my little boy has to say!
