Holy moly, February FLEW by and it was eventful!
Of course, we celebrated Valentine's Day. Dane and I outdid ourselves this year, I must say.
We actually got snow- twice in one day! I'm told it hasn't snowed here for around a decade. The kids went out with buckets to "catch" the snow (and were pretty disappointed when it melted). We made sure to dress them warmly, which was totally unnecessary, ha ha.
But one of the most newsworthy changes of this month is for Hinckley! He finally started walking on Feb. 25 (just a few days short of being 16 months). He took a few steps that evening and the next day walked across our playroom. He still has plenty of practicing to do but we are so proud (and relieved that he beat 18 months!)
Of course, living with Atticus, our wolf lover, Hinckley has learned to howl with the best of them. It's funny, he also howls whenever he puts on a mask or a hat. He seems to think that one should howl when dressing up.
Oh, this little charmer. He had his 15 month appointment at the beginning of the month and I'm happy to report that he's back up in size (45th percentile in height, 29th in weight and 59th in head).
Man, that doctor appointment was hard. He remembered the doctor's office and put up the FIGHT of his life. We actually had three of us adults hold him down so that the doctor could check his ear. Dr. Tenby joked that he should be a wrestler with all that strength and use of leverage.
We see this strength of will more and more. He and Atticus literally butt heads all the time. He loves coloring and has already colored on two of our doors. And he doesn't just use the crayons for drawing. He loves to sneak them in his mouth and chew on them. Bleh!
He also is the culprit in many, many missing items in our house. For example, I couldn't find my hairbrush for a few days. It turned up behind Atticus' chair- all the way across the house (along with several other bathroom items!)
I think our favorite thing he does, however, is singing. He is singing ALL the time. He has a really sweet voice and his favorite song is now "I am a Child of God." Of course, he's not saying the words yet (though some of his sounds are similar) but it's really recognizable: "Lead me, guide me, walk beside me..." He also loves "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," but that's the only other song, so far, that we can recognize.
He still LOVES "Shoes" (he says it with the cutest voice!) and socks ("Sah") and often surprises us with new words (If I say, "Ready," he'll say, "Set," and sometimes even, "Go!") He has said, "Hi Mom!" and I'm pretty sure he's been saying or repeating, "Sorry" ("Sah-dah"-Atticus and I have plenty of chances to say that one!) He goes around saying, "Dis" and "Wha-dis?" all the time.
Atticus continues to go back and forth between his inner Jekyll and Hyde. You'll see in the quotes below that he has some mean ones (I've blocked out the worst ones) but he also shows such depth in his questions and comments. One of my favorite moments came when we saw a sweet widow from our ward at the store. She's probably in her 80s and Atticus, instead of being afraid like I would have, gave her a great big hug. Absolutely melted my heart.
He is sounding out words more and more. He often reads the letters backwards but gets almost all of the sounds correct and is getting better at putting them together.
Another favorite day was when he decided his favorite superhero was the Flash. He ran around and around (to the point that he said his legs were hurting after a couple hours). But he was helpful and kind all day- because the Flash is kind (? I know nothing about the Flash!) It was a lovely, lovely day.
Well, Atticus didn't earn a sticker for every day of the month, but he really did do his best and did lots of extra chores to make up for missed days. (Annnnd we had already put down a deposit on our little puppy...) Soooo, I'd like to introduce our family's newest member:
Max (born 12/28/2018)
He has such a sweet disposition! We are all in love. We were worried about Hinckley being too rough with him (his first interaction involved him wacking the puppy while saying, "Soft!" again and again) but now that the novelty has worn off, the two of them get along just fine. It's actually really adorable to see them side by side (especially when they both have a chew toy sticking out of their mouths).
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Here's to many more hours of cuddling with our little snuggle bunny. And wish us luck with potty training! Yikes.
Atticusisms:
- Hinckley and me are gonna beat you up cause were on a team! Come on Hinckley! Let's escape!
- I want to fast for Nana.
- Daddy doesn't like green for the Grinch, he just likes guns.
- Mommy, I have a quesion! I want to whisper it in your ear...
- Why did Jesus have to go in Gethsemane?
- Daddy, you need to say sorry to Mommy! Now Mommy, you need to say I forgive you.
- I want a green smoovly.
- I can see Heaven through the clouds
- This is my house! (mouthing off to a grown up)
- How can I change? How can I put what I learn in my heart? (during one of our many discussions about changing his behavior)
- Mom, does the Flash get sweaty (while running)?
