Dear Connor: Month 22

Dear Connor,

This month has been a challenging one for your Mommy and Daddy, full of poop and puke and tantrums. But it’s also been full of songs and words and and a visit with Grammy, so it almost balances out.

Almost.



First, the good things. You’ve had another word-splosion this month: you not only ask for bed and pillow, but you say please and thank you and “otay” and all better. You recognize yourself in photos now, and know your name.

You sing more songs, like London Bridge and Row Your Boat and Sing (from Sesame Street). One day, you started singing The Wheels On The Bus, and that’s one you definitely got from school. You were doing the hand signals, too, which was cute. You also know most of the signs to Twinkle Twinkle and some signs for Sing.

You’re better at eating now — last month I forgot to mention that you were taking bites out of food, instead of trying to shove giant pieces into your mouth. The only time you’ll ask Mommy or Daddy to help you is when you’re down to The Last Bite, and you need us to scrape the bottom and sides of your bowl. You’ve also started climbing into your high chair (and the grown-up dining room chairs) all by yourself — which is not entirely a good thing, but we’ll chalk it up as a positive for now.

Climbed Up Onto The Kitchen Chair

Another thing that may or may not be a good thing is your new penchant/obsession for television. You’ve moved on from Curious George (although you do still like George) and are now watching Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and the Sesame Street Math Is Everywhere DVD that Daddy picked up from PNC Bank over a year ago. You were counting before watching the DVD, but now you count along with The Count, and you point out triangles, and other fun math-y things like that. We’re trying to get you to move on to other programming, like the Classic Sesame Street episodes that are on Netflix, and you seem to enjoy them well enough so far.

As for the definitely not-so-good things…. Number one on the list is your discovery of your poop. If you hang out in your crib long enough in the morning, you get bored, and you start taking off your pants and playing with your diaper.

How I Found Connor After Naptime

If your diaper has poopy in it, the poopy gets all over your hands and your legs and your arms and your feet and your sheets and your crib and sometimes even your face. Then Daddy (or Mommy, if it’s a weekend) comes in and finds you all covered in poo, and then it’s time to strip your bed and give you a morning bath — which you do NOT usually enjoy. You’ve done this enough that you know when your sheets need changed and when you’re probably going to need a bath.

Luckily, we’ve been about a week without a poopapalooza, so let’s try to keep it that way.

Another not-so-nice thing that’s not your fault at all is your allergies. And maybe your two-year molars, which may be coming in. (We’re just guessing that the chewing on the fingers and the drool together mean more teeth.) Together, those things made you mighty miserable while Grammy came to visit last weekend. Your allergies also make you all snotty, and it drains funny and makes you sick to your stomach. Then, when we go out to eat, your food doesn’t sit well and you throw up. In the restaurant. It’s happened more than once this month, and we’re hoping that resuming your daily dose of Claritin will fix at least part of your problem.

(Daddy’s having allergy problems, too, so you’re not alone. At least Daddy doesn’t throw up from sinus drainage, though.)

Also in the realm of cute-but-not is your obsession with pictures. You like to look at them on Mommy’s phone and Daddy’s phone, and you like to take them with Mommy’s phone when she lets you, although you don’t quite get the concept yet. At least now Mommy can ask you to let her take your picture, and you’ll let her take one before running back around to look at it.

Mommy gave you one of her old plastic cameras to play with, and you absolutely love it. The first morning after Mommy gave it to you, Daddy said you beelined right for your toybox, saying, “Camera? Camera?”

Connor and his Camera

Connor, Camera, and Mommy

So, where have you been and who have you seen this month? Well, “Uncle” Mark came over with Harper a couple of times, and you two played together. You know who Harper is, and you know her name, and sometimes you’ll ask for her when she’s not around, which is super cute.

Mark, Harper, and Connor

Grammy came to visit this month, too! She used to live in Texas with Granddad (or, as Mommy thinks of him, Grandpa Gary) and his family. Since he died earlier this year, though, Grammy decided to move back up north and be closer to you! She lives about two hours away now, kind of near where Uncle Pete and Aunt Dee and their kids live, so you’ll get to see her more often than once a year now.

Looking At Grammy's Nook

Grammy spent a few days here, and we did some fun things together. We went out to eat several times, and we went to the Butterfly House

…and we went to the park to play on the playground and take a walk. You loved swings last year, but you don’t seem to like them very much now. Once we let you push the stroller and promised you a cookie when we got to the car, you went from cranky to not so bad.

Connor and Grammy at Wildwood

I think that about covers it for this month. Good things, not-so-good things, and always new things — for you and for us. Soon you’ll be climbing out of your crib and who knows what else… but, for now, you’re still our cute little dude. Don’t grow up too quick.

Coloring

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