Alphabits

First, sorry for our long post.  We've been so busy enjoying the beautiful fall weather, we forgot to make updates earlier this month and a lot has happened. Pictures will also be posted once we find the camera.

Mom went back to work right after Labor Day.  Gabrial (who watched me, Cameron, before Nathan was born) is watching both of us.  It's a nice balance for all of us.  We also have a high school girl, Natalie, come over on Monday nights so mom and dad can play volleyball.  Nathan is usually in bed when Natalie comes over, but I get to play with her most weeks.  In fact one of the last times she was here, I (Cameron) insisted she read me my bedtime book instead of mommy.  And the next morning when I woke up and Natalie was gone, my first words of the morning were "Natalie bye bye" instead of "eat" or "play".

We also got to spend lots of time with our grandparents in October.  Mom was in a wedding last weekend so one of the times she went to a dress fitting, we got to hang out with Grandpa Jim, Grandma Barb, and our Great Grandma Theisen.  Then during the rehearsal dinner, Grandpa Jim and Grandma Barb came down to our house and we got to play with them that night.  So much fun!  Grandma Linda was in town the day of the wedding so she watched us and Grandpa Brian got in late that night so we saw him the next day.  We are so fortunate that we get to spend time with all of our wonderful grandparents.

Another highlight of the last month or two were various family outings.  First, we went to Cheese Days in Monroe in late September.  I (Cameron) got to play in a cornbox (think a sandbox full of corn instead of sand), tour a brewery with daddy while mommy and Nathan hung out elsewhere, watch my first parade, and of course eat cheese.  We also went to Apple Holler in Sturtevant where we had apple pancakes, fed goats, and went through a corn maze. Then later in October, we went on a family trip to the Green Meadows Petting Farm in Waterford.  There we fed goats (but this time we got to be in the pen with them instead of feeding them through a fence), fed sheep from outside a fence, milked a cow, played with pigs, held a chick and a duck, went on a bumpy tractor hayride, and picked pumpkins.  What a lot of fall fun!

CAMERON

I now use 2-3 word sentences.  Some of my first sentences were "Milk please daddy" "Mama new ball" (I wanted mom to get a new tennis ball out for Jesse so I could play fetch with him) and "ball stuck" when my basketball was stuck in my train.  I also repeat lots of words I hear so watch what you say around me!

Mom and dad have been working with me on my numbers.  I have "1" down pat and sometimes will say "2" after "1". I also point and "count" (aka babble, some of which sound like numbers) pictures in my book.

Mom and I have been taking advantage of the beautiful fall weather and many nights we will walk to the park before or after dinner.  Most of the time I walk the whole way there and even sometime run part of the way.  Mom still brings the stroller because once in a while I don't want to walk the whole way home.  I enjoy climbing the plastic "rock wall", swinging (I even pump my legs sometimes) and going down the slides.  I still don't like to go down the big, covered windy tube slide; mom has to go with me on that one.  I also enjoy walking past the house on the way to the park that goes all out decorating for holidays.  Right now they have at least 4 inflatable pumpkins, 3 inflatable spiders, an inflatable cat, and lots of non-inflatable Halloween decorations.  I always point out the pumpkins (one of my favorite words right now) and linger.  And I always want to walk home the same way so I can see them again.
 
We went and visited a preschool last week.  As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, I said "Abby" since it is Abby Burie's preschool.  Mom had to explain to me that even though it was Abby's school, she wasn't there (it was late in the afternoon when we were there).  Mom thinks I have a little crush on Abby since I ask about her regularly and whenever we go to the Burie's, I always say "Abby".  She was my first kiss after all!

Keeping busy sure takes its toll.  I have actually been sleeping better at night; many nights I don't wake up at all now.  One day I was so exhausted (because I refused to nap), that I fell asleep right on the family room floor.  I slept there for about 30-45 mins.

Some current faves:
- reading the Toys R Us ad or Lego catalog
- being read to
- going to the library
- my Wacker Neuson (dad's work) matchbox truck; I used to sleep with it every night until I lost it
- blankie (aka a cloth diaper/burp cloth I carry everywhere with me and sleep with it too)
- chips and salsa or crackers and salsa or even spinach and salsa (ok, the last one is not a fave, but I will eat a bite or two of spinach if I can dip it in salsa)
- cinnamon on anything, especially applesauce or toast
- any breakfast cereal
- going to the park
- playing in the leaves
- playing hide-n-seek and asking mom or dad "are you"? for where are you

Finally, I am a celebrity!  My picture was included in a recent issue of Metroparent, a local magazine for parents.  The issue featured kids in the kitchen and mom submitted a picture of me helping with the dishes.  Granted it was taken over a year ago, but I'm still very helpful with the dishes.  In fact, I put away the Tupperware containers and lids, cutting boards and measuring cubs and help unload the rest of the dishes.


NATHAN

I am now up to 1/2 cup of rice cereal in the morning and again in the evening.  My first "real" food was avocado in mid-September.  I made plenty of faces while eating it, but now I eat it willingly.  Since then I have also enjoyed mama's homemade pears and apples, bananas, mangos, papaya, green beans (ok maybe I didn't really enjoyed these as mama's had too much texture for me), peas, yogurt, prunes, carrots, sweet potatoes, white potatoes and zucchini.

I still don't roll over unless someone nudges me over.  I do enjoy tummy time much more now, especially if there is a toy in front of me to grab at.  Some of my favorite toys include rings, plastic keys, my doggy that vibrates when you pull on it (doggy travels with me everywhere as it is attached to my car seat), burp cloths (I have watched Cameron carry his around so now I want to have one too), anything hanging from my playmat, my play piano, and my elephant toy.  But my favorite toy of all is a person.  I will smile at anyone and enjoy just hanging out with people.

One of my newest "tricks" is I say "dada".  Well it's actually more like "dadadadada" but I say it a lot.  I laugh when mommy repeats it to me or says "mamamamama" in her attempts to get me to say her name.

I am quite a good sleeper at night, but not so good during the day.  I go to bed around 6:30 each night and usually don't wake up until 6:30 in the morning.  Once in a while I will wake up in the middle of the night or the early morning, but I go back to sleep pretty easily.  Naps are a different picture.  I rarely take a morning nap in my crib for mommy.  If I do, it's usually a short one.  So if she doesn't want to fight me over it (and I usually win), we will run errands during my nap time so I can sleep in the car.  I will take an afternoon nap, usually around 12:30pm-3:30pm.  However, these past two days my mouth has really been bugging me and I wouldn't nap yesterday until I fell asleep in daddy's arms around 5pm.  I also woke up in the middle of the night very fussy which is not my usual sleep pattern.  Hopefully I pop a tooth soon and all of this is worth it.

Some current faves:
- reading before bedtime (unlike Cameron did at this age, I actually sit still for books)
- being held by just about anybody
- smiling
- fruit and multigrain cereal
- my elephant toy, rattle, and the star stacker that lights up; those toys will get me to move around and crane my neck while on my blanket
- and my favorite of all is my big brother Cameron; I sure light up when I see him!

Finally, my stats from this month:
Height: 25 3/4 in (same as Cameron @ his 6 month)
Weight: 16lbs 8oz (almost 3 lbs more than C @ his 6 month)
We are growing boys!

Love,
Cameron & Nathan