18 months old

Stats:

Weight: 25 pounds - 40%
Height: 34 inches - 90%
Head Circumference: 18 3/4 inches - 25%

Again...my boy is tall and skinny with a tiny head.
Looking at pictures of Chad as a baby and seeing home movies of him as baby is just like watching Brooks. Brooks may look like me in the face (or so people tell me), but he has Chad's body FOR SURE!
Brooks turning 18 months old brings more curiosity, more independence, more communication and more time-outs.
Here are some pictures we took in Corpus at The Hoffman Co. to show off my adorable 18 month old:

Christmas Wreath Craft

It's never too late to create a Christmas craft. Although I think you could do this craft for any holiday or any occasion really. I found it on-line and thought I would give it a try. Here's what it looks like:

I used some red string to hang it up, and it looks pretty darn cute. I love pictures, so I thought this was a perfect craft for me. And it was actually fun and easy. Here are the official instructions in case you want to give it a try:

Merry Christmas Y'all

From Blue Bell to Whataburger...there is a lot that Texas has to offer. Here are some pictures that didn't make the Christmas card cut, but they are too cute not to share.

Thanksgiving (yeah I know it's almost Christmas)

I am realizing that I have no time...working full-time and being a mom/wife/friend/house cleaner/cook. So, I realize that this post is a tad bit late considering Christmas is right around the corner, but I would still like to document the event. This Thanksgiving we spent the day with my dad, step-mom, Aunt and Uncle. My Aunt lives in Mansfield in a great house kind of "out in the country". They have horses, and so do their neighbors. Brooks would stand at the back door and look out begging to go out and see the horses. He loved petting and feeding the horses:


We ate tons of fun and played a lot. It was so great celebrating with my dad and step-mom. I hope that we'll get to spend more time with them now that we're in Texas and they are just a state over in Louisiana. Here are some pictures of the family:


After Thanksgiving, we spent the weekend with my sister-in-law and her family in Carrolton. Brooks and Brodie (Bobo) were at it again...playing baseball in the backyard, reading together, playing at the park together, and running around the house like two crazy kids.

First Haircut

I totally forgot to mention that Brooks got his first haircut. We went all out for the first one. We went to one of those kiddie places. Brooks had his own flat screen TV to watch a movie of his choice. It was so great! He sat still...kind of. He was a little confused why he had a cape on and where his hands went. But he did great overall. Now my little baby is no longer a little baby, but a little boy (someone should count how many times I mention that in my blogs). His haircut makes him look so much older, which is why I was putting it off. But after a couple of people saying, "Oh, she's so cute!" and after noticing a bit of a rattail growing...I thought it was time.
Before:

During:


After:

Birdie and Brooks

This is the kind of fun that happens when Birdie is in town:

17 months old

Brooks-man is 17 months old...and counting. So much is changing and he is officially turning into a little boy. I think I say that every month, but every month he does something that looks more and more like a little boy and less like a baby. While in Denver I definitely noticed a difference between Brooks and his girlfriend, Tenley. Brooks is so loud and doesn't really sit still...unless he is reading a book. He is constantly running around the house like a crazy guy screaming and throwing his body into pieces of furniture. There are also few moments when he isn't babbling/talking. In the car, in the grocery store, eating dinner...noises are always coming out of his mouth. Some of the things we hear him say the most:
Dada
Momma
Scoop
"Papa" for "Grandpa"
"Gaga" for Gammy
Pops
Birdie
Bobo
"nack" is what he says for "snack"
yes
book
ball
"wawa" for "water"
"milk" which is usually followed by him going to the fridge
apple
moon
home
"octpu" for "octopus"
duck and quack, quack
dog and woof, woof
He seems to be catching onto words a lot more lately. Sometimes we'll say something and he'll try his hardest to repeat it. If he can't say the sounds he at least tries to copy the speech pattern...it's pretty cute. When we're reading books (which is ALL the time) he can point and find almost everything on the page. He has his favorites, of course, but most of the time he just grabs a book to sit and read. He now thinks he's a big kid by climbing up on the rocking chair in his room to room books. He can even nicely turn the pages to read paperback books...

...And, my favorite, he brings a book and plops himself down in my lap for me to read to him. The kid LOVES books. This age is so fun because there is so much understanding and communication between us. Unfortunately, with the age also comes discipline. I am not a big fan of discipline. I do it. But I don't like it. The new thing I'm trying is to put him in a corner when he is fussing for no reason or when he does something he's not supposed to. It took some practice, but now I just say, "Go sit in your corner!" He stops fussing almost immediately and goes and puts his back up against the wall and slides his butt down in the corner. I let him sit there for a minute and then go over to him and say, "You all done? Now come give mommy a hug and say sorry." He'll run over and give me a hug and then he gets to go play. It's actually really funny to watch. Overall he is a very sweet boy who loves to give hugs. Right now I am trying to soak up every "momma" and every time he runs into my arms. I feel like I'm just going to turn around one day and he's going to be walking into kindergarten or playing in his first t-ball game. 17 months came too fast and I'm worried it's going to pass by just as fast.