The Picture Says it All

Yep, that's Grayson sleeping in the pool. It has been a busy, busy few days. Including playgroup on Friday, a playdate and an afternoon party on Saturday, brunch with friends on Sunday, playgroup again on Monday, all day in the pool at Aunt Lisa's on Tuesday, and then another playdate in Baltimore today. It looks like things finally caught up with Grayson yesterday when he fell asleep in the pool. Up to this point, he had been rather grumpy about being in the water, but once he took his power nap, he was ready to go. He spent another hour and a half in the pool after he awoke and just loved it.

This picture was from Monday's playgroup. The kids had a blast on Griffin's new playset. Grayson especially loved the slide.

Going down slides is one of his favorite things to do, which thanks to our AFF friends who happily gave us some of their gently used items, he is able to do it at home now as well. He loves going up and down the slide we have in our backyard. We also want to thank our AFF friends for Grayson's sandbox and other outdoor toys. He now continually asks to go outside so he can play with them. We can't say thank you enough. We're so glad we can be a part of such a wonderful group!!

My Kid Still Loves to Eat

When Grayson was a baby, I was actually once told by one of the doctors at his pediatrician's office that he was eating too much formula. I had never heard of such a thing and didn't change how much I fed him.

Things really haven't changed much, even though people keep saying they will. When he was a baby "they" said he would slow down because no baby needs that much formula. When he turned 12 months old, the doctor said not to be alarmed if he didn't eat as much as he had been. It was perfectly normal for a toddler at that age to eat a lot less. Now everyone - including family and friends - say it will change when he turns two. We'll see.

What has prompted this post? Well, today at lunch Grayson ate an entire adult serving of macaroni and cheese with ham and peas. He then proceeded to drink two cups of V8 and eat a ton of blueberries. This evening for dinner he has eaten leftovers from last night - a cheesy chicken casserole. So far he has had two full servings of it, plus squash prepared with basil and garlic, plus Maryland Crab bagel chips. Hello?? Does this sound like a kid who is showing any signs of slowing down? No wonder my grocery bill is so high! That's okay, though, he's a very active kid who is already able to throw a mean football, so I'm definitely not complaining.

Here's a picture of him enjoying his dinner (this is after the two helpings):
On a different note, we went to visit my parents earlier in the week for Father's Day (we weren't actually able to make it there on Sunday) and try as I might, I really couldn't get a great picture of Grayson with my Dad. Remember the "active kid" comment above?? But, this one isn't too bad:
Happy Belated Father's Day to you dads out there!!

Three Glorious Hours!!!

Not too much to report at this point, but I just had to share that Grayson took a three hour nap yesterday!! I can't even explain how glorious it truly was. Don't get me wrong, I love spending time with him, but entertaining an 18 month old all day long since he usually doesn't take a nap can be pretty rough. We tend to keep pretty busy, but last week was his last day at The Little Gym until the fall which means we're home a little more often than usual and that can take its toll on both of us. He doesn't like to be stuck in the house and neither do I.

I have no idea why he decided to sleep so much, but I'm certainly not going to allow myself to get used to it because I'm sure it's not going to happen again any time soon. At least I now know what it feels like to have a toddler who takes a nap!! And I will continue to be jealous of all you Moms who get that every day.

Looking Good

Grayson had his 18 month check-up last Friday. I couldn't do an update at the time because our internet was out, but thanks to the miracle of tree and brush clearing our satellite is now up and running!! But, back to the point...

Grayson is now 34 inches tall and at least 28 pounds. I say "at least" because he wouldn't sit still to get a good weight so we had to estimate. I would guess he weighs somewhere between 28 and 30 pounds. He is in the 90th percentile for height and the 75th percentile for weight, so he's still a really big boy!

I also get to brag a little and say he is a bit advanced when it comes to his milestones. At each appointment, I have to complete a checklist of what he is able to do and according to the Nurse, I completed the 18 month list at his 15 month appointment so she had to give me the two-year old's checklist (and from what I can tell, that list seems to go fairly far up in age). By the way, the Nurse said "advanced" so those aren't actually my words but I'll happily take it!

The really neat part was that he was able to do a lot of the things listed on the two-year sheet as well. We obviously didn't get incredibly far, but he's able to put two words together like "no more," "one more," and "get it." He was also able to name all the animals pictured on the sheet and to be able to circle yes, he only had to name one. And he can also point to my body parts when I ask him. He actually says the body parts as well, but that wasn't part of the question.

Since his appointment we have been very, very busy. On Saturday we went to see a kid's band called Milkshake. I had never heard of them before but I had received an email from Enkore Kids which told me about the concert so Grayson and his friends got together to watch the show. They really enjoyed themselves and it was fun to watch them dance to the music. That night we went to visit an old friend of mine and he played with her two sons. He proceeded to dump sand all over himself so I had to hose him down before we went back inside. And finally on Sunday we got together we our local adoption group for a family dance party. Grayson was more interested in the piano at the hall rather than the dancing, but I think he enjoyed himself.

The Great Boonsboro Carnival!

When I was a kid, one of the highlights of the year was going to the carnival in Boonsboro and riding the rides and playing all the games. This year we decided to take Grayson because they had some baby animals the kids were allowed to pet and hold. Unfortunately it must have been too hot for the animals because they weren't out when we were there, but Grayson did get to play one game - the one where you take the huge sledge hammer and try to ring the bell. They had a child's version and I helped him pick up the hammer as we brought it down on the mark to ring the bell. Of course he wanted to keep doing it, but we only paid for one try. The good news is that all little children win a prize and he got a very large, blow-up hammer that he now loves. Here's a picture of him with it at the carnival: