For my memory

There are so many things you are doing at 20 months that are so fun and so precious I never want them to leave my mind. So this is all for a memory.

I love the way you say Big. You say it as if you are lifting something SO HEAVY. With a bit of a grunt and holding your breath sort of way. I smile every.time.

We can't pass a Braum's without you thinking you need I Ceeaam. You say I Ceeaam pease pease pease over and over.

Every time we are in the car we have to listen to your "baby music" lately it's been the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Music on Pandora.

You love to put your toothbrush and toothpaste on top of the hangers in my closet.

Your favorite place to go poop in behind my jeans in my closet. I always know what your doing when your back there.

You think you are such a big boy now that you are sitting with us at the table and no longer in your highchair.

The love for your Daddy grows more and more every single day. You must be at his side at all times

You think it's the greatest thing in the world to take showers with your Daddy.

I love that you kiss me after I'm finished singing He's got the whole world in his hands then you'll lay your head back down on my shoulder and say again or more so I have to sing it again. And I do because I want another kiss from you. This sometimes goes on for 5 or 10 minutes.

I love how concerned you get when a baby is crying.

You no longer cry when we leave you in your bible class or B&S class.

And mostly I love that you laugh all the time.

Learning everyday

I just wanted to jot down some of the things Karter is doing these days. He is now 14 months old and saying and doing so much.
Some things Karter loves are:
Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, hot dogs, grapes, strawberries, watermelon, M&M's (thanks Brandon), milk, water, water bottles, shoes (anyone's shoes), hats, Elmo (he doesn't watch tv he only knows Elmo from his books and the song I sing when we spot Elmo), going bye-bye, dogs from afar, horses and cows, riding on the 4-wheeler with daddy every night, snacks, eating with a fork by himself, his "I can push or pull" (his baby 4-wheeler; he knows it by the song it sings), any ball, pulling things out of the bathroom cabinets, throwing things in the trash that aren't supposed to go in the trash, going outside, vacuuming, sweeping, putting wet clothes in the dryer.

Some things Karter does not like:
getting his diaper changed, getting swats for not obeying Mommy, walking in the grass(but this has changed in the last few days), touching sand, swimming, meeting new people, taking food from anyone other than Mommy sometimes Daddy, Mommy leaving a room, Mommy cooking or even being in the kitchen at all, Daddy going outside without him, loud noises, veggies,

Karter does or says:
dog, Mama, Daddy, Ball (for anything that is circle. We are working on that), boat, book, wall, door, Where'd it go, water bottle, plays basketball outside with daddy can drop ball in hoop, I got him to say "No More Football" 2 times

He can sign: all done, please and more

He follows simple commands such as:
go get your shoes, take one more bite/drink, let's go change your stinky(go to your changing table), time for night night (get in mommy's lap for snack,book and milk), lets go bye-bye(go to laundry room and wait by the door), get the ball, Karter's first Popsicle

He loved it

Playing in the sprinkler. On the sidewalk because he will not step in the grass

Waiting for daddy to get his I can push or pull (4 wheeler)

His newest pose. We call it his down hill skiing pose

Look who's walking

Brush our Teeeef

In February Brandon and I went to the dentist for our 6 month checkup. I asked our dentist about brushing Karter's teeth. She said we could at any time. (Many of you know how obsessed I am with brushing and flossing my teeth) So that day I went to walmart to get his very own tooth brush and tooth paste. We did our normal bedtime routine but this time we added in teeth brushing with a song and all. Karter loved it and still loves it. I just hope this continues for the rest of his life. I tell him often he has to take better care of his teeth than his daddy does.

Our moving baby

Karter stared crawling, pulling up and cruising all in one day. He decided one day that it was time I guess. He was 7 months old. He is an old pro at it now. He loves being mobile. I thought all along our house was pretty baby proof. Well Karter proved me wrong. We spend a good part of our day saying "no, no" and redirecting. But we love watching him explore new places. Karter in his big boy carseat

I can crawl

I go where ever I want to.

First Haircut

Daddy insisted we get Karter's haircut on Jan 8. I didn't want to because that meant he was a big boy. I wanted to wait until he was 1. BUT we made a deal. Karter's car seat goes in backwards until he is 1 like the law says and B can get Karter's hair trimmed. So we made an appointment with Nana (my mom). Karter did really well. B sat in the chair with Karter. Nana put his little cape on and spritzed his hair with water. Karter blinked his eyes alot and tried to lick nana's hand. With every little snip I was right there with my little baggy in hand waiting for the tiny blonde lock to fall in. I think I caught almost every lock that fell from his head. I had to make sure I had enough. Once nana was done she took her gel and made him a little style. First with the front sticking up then a little baby mohawk. We decided to keep the mohawk. It was too cute. After we were done I admitted to B that K really did need that cut and he did look much better. BUT he did look like a big boy. *TEAR*
These pictures are backwards Baby Mohawk

Spiked in the front

Not too sure about it all

He loved his cape

Look how long his bangs were.

Sitting baby

Karter has started sitting up this month. Since November 20th he started sitting up on his own without support. Every once in a while he will lean to one side and get off balance. Can someone tell me where my infant has gone?

Two Teefers

On November 8th Karter got his two bottom teeth. They both came in around the same time. He had been drooling for a month or so. His Dr. said he probably wouldn't get them until he was around 6 to 9 months. He got them a little before that. 5 1/2 months to be exact. He wasn't too fussy but his sleep changed for sure. I think he's working on his top two now. The drooling has begun again.

Rollin' Rollin' Rollin'

On October 20th Karter decided it was time to roll over. Now let me tell you Brandon and I have been working on him rolling over for about a month. That morning I had my good friend Amanda come over with her new little girl Kambri. Karter sees her and decides he will show off. He rolls over as soon as Amanda puts her in his view. Brandon and I think we may be in trouble when he's older if he's already showing off for the girls. Here's a picture of him rolling over for the first time.

Big Changes

Karter had his first "real meal" on Friday October 9th. We started him on organic rice cereal. We talked it up to him, like he knew what we were saying anyways. So after I nursed him we put him in his highchair, which we do every night during dinner, to give him his first taste. He loved it. He kept lunging at the spoon almost gagging himself in the process. I did the recommended 3 Tbsp. and he ate almost all of it. It was like he knew what to do the entire time. After the first bite he blinks really fast and alot. I have video and will try to post it if I can figure it out.
Also on the very same day we started cereal we decided we would try him out in his own room for the very first time. He has slept in his pack n play every night right by my side for the last 4 1/2 months. I was so nervous and kept asking Brandon if he was sure it was time. He was. I was too I was just scared. Karter cried a little bit so we went in his room to put his pacifier in his mouth and comfort him. After about 10 minutes he started crying again. I was about to get out of bed to repeat this step but Brandon said we'll try letting him cry it out. Thankfully B had the monitor on his side of the bed so I turned away from it and started crying. This lasted all of 15 minutes before he was out. I on the other hand took an hour to finally go to sleep because of the crying I did. I was too upset to sleep. I tell you Karter sleeps like a champ in his bed. I think he needed to be in his room and in his bed for good sleep. If I would've known it would only take 15 minutes of tears to get some good sleep for all of us...I would've done it a long time ago. Karter still wakes up at 3 to eat and then again at 6 but this was big progress for us. His Dr. says I can let him go all night without eating at 6 months. Hopefully he'll do it on his own and we won't have to make him cry it out again.