My New Room

Happy Thanksgiving! We had a non-traditional Thanksgiving this year, or so I am told. Instead of turkey, mashed potatoes, etc, we had Chinese food. Apparently this is a tradition that my mom's family would partake in once in a while when they didn't have the big family traditional Thanksgiving. I particularly enjoyed the yee yu noodles and chicken in black bean sauce.

We stayed home because we had lots of projects going on this weekend. First, the big one - I moved from the nursery into a big boy room (previously the guest room, also known as the blue room because of the two-toned blue walls). I am still in my crib for now, but will eventually move into a big boy bed. One thing at a time though. I did pretty well with the change. I babbled for the first hour of my nap yesterday (my first time in my new room) presumably because I was so intrigued with my new surroundings. Also, when it's bath or nap time, I will go to the stairs when asked if I'm ready and last night once I got up the stairs, I went straight to my new room instead of my old room. Because this move required mommy and daddy to move all of my stuff into my new room and move lots of stuff (including a book case and queen sized bed) out of the blue room, it was a several day project. My room is all done now, but the nursery now needs to be reorganized. I helped mommy put away clothes for the baby last night so now all that needs to be done is some cleaning and rearranging.

The other big project this weekend was decorating the house for Christmas. Because Thanksgiving is mommy's favorite holiday, she wouldn't let us put up Christmas stuff until yesterday, but since mommy and daddy were both tired from getting up super early to shop, we started today. Daddy got the tree out this morning and I helped him put it up and if I'm lucky, mommy will let me help decorate the tree. So far I have been pretty good about not playing with the tree. We will see how long I can curb my curiosity.

Last weekend I visited my cousin Caroline and Uncle Keith and Aunt Maribel. Their dog Jordan loved giving me kisses. I didn't love it as much, but I didn't protest either. For the most part I played well with Caroline and shared her toys, but at one point I did try to push her out of the way (the picture is proof so I can't deny it). Just practicing my big brother skills.

I also got to meet Santa last weekend. I didn't cry, but I had my worried look the whole time I was in his lap. But I got to wear my new suit which was pretty snazzy.

Overall, I am a very busy boy who is learning new things every day. Though crawling is still my preferred mode of transportation (that or being carried), I walk a lot now. I will carry things while walking and sometimes I walk fast enough that it looks like I'm going to start running.

I am still not talking, but I get my point across. For example, when I want something to drink, I snap and if I can see my cup, I will point to it. I point to the dining room when I want fruit as that is where the fruit bowl is now kept. It used to be in the kitchen, but I would whine incessantly at every meal if I didn't get fruit because I could see it.

What else have I been up to? I like to help daddy groom the doggy by pulling out loose hair and handing it to mommy or daddy. In fact, I'm a good helper. I constantly pick dog hair or other things off of the floor and give it to mommy or daddy to throw away. I even pick my own toe fuzz when I have it.

I love imitating people. My new favorite imitation is that of a gorilla. When reading a book to me with a gorilla in it, mommy and daddy would pound their chests so now when I hear the word gorilla, I pound other people's chests so watch out!

Dancing is another favorite activity of mine. I love music, whether it's listening to the radio, playing with the ringtones on my cell phone, or people singing songs to me, I can't get enough. And now I will dance (either shake my arms or twist my torso) when I hear music.

Another favorite of mine is playing on the sofa. I love diving head first into the pillows and crawling down (feet first of course) and then unsuccessfully trying to crawl back up. I also enjoy looking out the window from our living room sofa or pacing between the bookshelf and end table on our family room sofa.

One thing I do not like is car washes. Daddy and I went to a car wash today while running errands and I was scared and tried to get daddy to hold me, which of course he couldn't because we were in the car. Hopefully I will get over this fear like I did my fear of the vacuum. The vacuum and I are now buddies and I enjoy playing with it when it's off and don't mind watching it while it's on.

Finally, I had some fun playdates this month, most of which involved kids younger than me so it was good practice for being a big brother. I am very curious about babies who are around 6-months old. I'm indifferent with newborns which might be a good thing because then I won't be all up in my baby sister or brother's face when they are super tiny. When Calan (6 months - see picture of me w/ Calan) and Alex (also 6 months) were over, I tried sharing my toys with them. With Alex though, it was more trying to throw my toys at her. With Calan, I was interested in his toys so I had no problem letting him play with mine. Mom hopes that with more exposure to younger kids, I will pick up some good big brother skills. I am a bit more social with other kids than I used to be so hopefully that trend continues.

Enjoy the holiday season - I'm off to Atlanta and South Carolina next month so that will be a fun start to the Christmas holidays!

Love,
Cameron