Andrew

Because I print a yearly blog book, I wanted to start this year's book off with some updates on my boys.  I will write about Andrew tonight and Joey later this week.  I am able to post pictures from my phone to my blog, so I do that frequently.  I rarely open up my laptop and sit down to write anymore, and I will regret that one day.  So, here is all about Andrew!

About 27 pounds
Clothes 2T or 3T-just depends
Diapers-Size 5, but in pull ups and underwear (some) now, too
Favorite foods=oatmeal, sausage biscuits, Earth's Best fruit bars, rice, any meat, strawberries, corn on the cob

Andrew really likes to dip his food right now as well.  He does not care what he dips his food in, as long as he has dip.  He does pretty well feeding himself, but he gets jealous when he sees me feeding Joey so he will ask for help. He is now able to tell me that he is hungry, and he will go and get what he wants to eat a lot of the time.  For example, he goes to the pantry and gets oatmeal and hands it to me.

He loves his brother more than I ever thought possible.  He always thinks of him.  In the oatmeal example above, he would have 2 packs of oatmeal because he would be telling me to feed Brother.  Last night, I was holding Joey when he started crying.  Andrew got up from playing trains, walked over and started rubbing his back gently.  He said, "It's okay, Brother.  Andrew's here" over and over again.  It was so sweet.  We have a picture framed in our foyer of my boys riding in a shopping cart.  Andrew is holding a cookie, but Joey is not because he had already eaten his free Publix cookie.  When Andrew passes that picture, he stops and says, "No, Andrew.  Share cookie Brother.  Brother want some."  I think it is so funny that he fusses at himself in a picture.

Of course, my boys do fight over toys.  Andrew is quick to say "mines."  He does do a really good job sharing most of the time and will go get Joey a toy and say, "Here, Brother."  It is always a gamble when they are playing if I will hear a "mines" or a "Here, Brother." 

I cannot remember what I have posted about Andrew's physical and speech therapy.  He has been cleared from physical therapy for months now and has no delays.  We still have him in speech therapy several times a month.  He is making tremendous progress, but his articulation is not to a point that I am satisfied.  His vocabulary is growing rapidly, but sometimes it is difficult for strangers to understand him.  Most of his sentences are 4-5 words in length.  When he first started talking, he only spoke in nouns.  Now, he uses verbs, prepositions, adjectives and pronouns correctly.

Andrew is a very quirky little guy.  He has things that have to be a certain way and routines that he does not like broken.  We have a bookshelf upstairs, and he likes to touch this bookshelf before going to bed each night???  He still lines things up and likes things to be neat.  Last night, he got a wipe and cleaned all of his toys!  He likes his animals lined up in his crib, and he has a certain way that he likes to be tucked in each night.  When we come downstair each morning, he likes to carry his elephant and he wants the parent getting him to carry his monkey.  He helps me get the laundry out of the dryer, and we always carry it to the couch to fold.  If any part of the clothing is hanging off of the edge of the couch, he must put the entire piece back on the couch. 

His love for books is still going strong.  He is on a Curious George kick right now.  He really likes to read anything, though.  He has also recently discovered the IPAD, so he plays on that as well a lot. 

He knows almost all of his letters, and his numbers to 12.  He can do his letters out of order and can sing his alphabet...well, kind of.  For LMNO he says "Wo Wo Wo Wo."  He also sings most of "Jesus Loves Me."  He really likes the song, "The Wheels on the Bus" as well.   He does all of the motions when he sings. He knows all of his colors and his four basic shapes. 

Mickey Mouse is still (by far) his favorite television show.  It is really all he wants to watch.  He still dances to the Hot Dog song, and I know that one day when I hear that song my heart will be sad thinking of him doing that dance.  When the song comes on, everyone is required to dance.

He is potty training at school.  Actually, he is pretty much trained at school.  He wears big boy underwear all day except for nap.  However, potty training is not as smooth at home.  He does not want to stop playing to go.  At school, they all go as a class.  I am not in a rush for him to be trained.  We do bribe him with M & M's or just M's as he calls them.  They should totally be on the list of favorite foods, by the way.

He is very strong willed.  He wants to do everything by himself, which sounds good but can often be a pain.  When I try to help him, "I got it" is the frustrated reply.  He likes to make deals.  If I want him to do something, sometimes just saying "Deal?" will get him to do it.  When he really has his mind made up, he can pitch a fit! 

Right now, he really likes to act like a lion.  He will roar and stomp his feet almost nightly.  He also likes to do Alabama cheers.  Joey took him to his first Alabama basketball game last week, and he is still talking about it.  I think he liked getting a hotdog and some of Joey's coke more than anything.

He creates his own games and expects everyone to follow the rules of the games, even though we do not know them. It is hilarious and frustrating at the same time.  My favorite game that he made up is called "Hit Door."  He stands on the back of the couch and throws a ball at the front door.  As the ball moves towards the door, he yells "GO GO GO" and pumps his fist.  If the ball hits the door, he says. "Yes" and pumps his fist.  If the ball does not have enough power to reach the door, he says, "Ahh, man."  He gets the ball and repeats.  There is another game where he likes all 4 of us to put our backs against the wall.  When he says, "set, go" (always leaves out the "ready" part) we are all supposed to start running.  After that, the rules are hazy to us.  We are not sure what to do.  He gets frustrated with our performance sometimes and other times seems happy with us. 

He loves to ride his tractor outside and also likes to draw with his sidewalk chalk. He normally draws for only a few minutes and then passes the chalk to a parent because he likes us to write his letters and numbers.  He does the same thing at restaraunts with his crayons.  Speaking of restaraunts, he loves Mexican places because of the chips and salsa.  Also, he is a big fan of beans and rice.

Andrew still seems to really enjoy school. He has a set group of friends, and he talks about them a lot.  He gets along with others and never really gets in trouble.  I really like his teacher, Amber.  She is good to him, and I can tell that he really loves her. 

He holds grudges.  If you ever do anything to Andrew, he will not forget it or let it go.  I hate to admit it, but he gets that from his mama.  One day (2 months ago) a baby in Joey's class grabbed Andrew's backpack off of his back.  Now, EVERY morning, Andrew tells the baby, "No, Andrew's backpack-No take Andrew's backpack."  He also fusses at a little girl who bit him over 6 months ago.  When I mention her name, he says, "No bite, be nice."

I discussed Andrew's jealousy earlier, but my favorite jealous behavior is when he copies Joey's injury. If Joey falls and I scoop him up to love him, Andrew will walk to the exact location of the incident and pretend to hurt himself in the same way. Of course, I scoop him up to love on him.  It is so funny because he is able to copy the original "boo boo" pretty accurately. 

Andrew recognizes and talks about all of his famiy members, including aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins.  He knows which people belong together.  One day, I told him that Su Su (Susan) was at the beach.  He thought for a moment and said, "Marshall beach, too?"  He likes to "talk" on the phone to his family.  He asks me to call them.  He will say "hi" and then he just holds the phone to his ear while grinning. He never asks me to call friends. only family.

Andrew still does not like for his hands to be dirty at all.  If something gets on them, he wants them cleaned immediately.  When things are messy, he wants them cleaned up right away.  He does enjoy helping with the cleaning, though.  Each night, he sweeps the kitchen floor after supper. 

Andrew LOVES to sleep.  When I tell him that it is time for his nap, he cheers.  He says, "HA HOO, I love naps!"  I hope that he never outgrows that because putting him down for nap or the night is so easy.  He only gets his pacifier when he sleeps at home.  He doesn't use it at all at school. Our goal is to take it completely at age 3, but I just dread it.  He really loves it.

One of my very favorite things about Andrew is that he still holds our ears for comfort.  When I feel that little hand on my ear, it makes my heart so happy.  He says, "Mama snussle Andrew in bed?" when he wants me to snuggle with him.  He is just so sweet.  When he gets in the bed with Dada, they only "snussle" for a few minutes before they start playing BOOM.  There are no rules to Boom.  It is pure chaos.  Dada lays on the bed, and Andrew jumps all over him.  The game is over when Dada hurts too badly to play anymore.  Then, Andrew likes for all of us to hide under the covers.  He loves hide and seek, but he likes everyone to always hide together.  We have tried to explain to him that no one is looking for us when we are all hiding together, but that doesn't seem to bother him. 

We love our little buddy so much.  Actually, love doesn't even seem like a strong enough word to describe how Joey and I feel about Andrew.  I can't really remember life without him now.  I love the sound of his voice, the way he smells, the crinkle in his nose when he laughs, his dances, and list goes on forever.  God gave us the perfect little boy, and he fills our hearts with joy each day.