Airplanes and other quirks

This is apparently an airplane:

Carter makes these little contraptions out of his Duplos and flies them around the house before giving them to me. At least they are tested and approved before I get them. He can also correctly identify the sound of an airplane flying over our house. This morning during breakfast he heard one. He told me very matter-of-factly that he heard an airplane. He can also identify an airplane in a book. Pretty impressive because I don't remember teaching him that.

Carter likes to move all the handles on my dresser in the up position. He will come over to it, and change all the handles: 

It is really cute, because he can barely reach the top ones.

He has always shown preference for his left hand. He grabs things with it, he reaches with it, and he holds his fork or spoon with it. We were at a friend's house last weekend. He found a little kid's laptop in their daughters' room. He also found a little chair. He dragged them both out and set them up like this. I found him with the mouse on the left side and the chair pulled up to the make-shift desk here:

Church this Sunday went pretty smooth, especially considering David wasn't home to go with us. Carter was pretty cooperative. We were even 15 minutes early. I had potluck sign-ups, singing time props, and bulletin board pictures and papers to put up. He stayed quiet during the main meeting, even trying to get the man in front of us to pray with him. He went to nursery without a fuss!! I was substituting for the lady that does the singing time, and had to go in the nursery for 15 minutes. He didn't beg to sit in my lap. He participated with the other kids in doing the actions to the songs. He even let me go back out to sing with the big kids without a fight or a whine!!

On a side note, I got this little suit for $2.73. I had a coupon for JC Penney's, and I found all the pieces strewn about the store. They literally had no two pieces together. The tie was in the older boys section with the socks on the floor in a pile of other ties. The pants were in the older boys section too on a rack with other pants that were sold by themselves. The shirt and the vest were on different racks in the girl's clearance section. They were marked down because they were not a complete set. The store employees were too lazy to look for the rest of the set. I pieced it back together, and got to keep the discount. I got a deal like that at Sears before. I got a shirt/vest/tie set for $1.83. No pants. The pants were truly gone. However, I had another set with the same pants. I like finding deals like that.

This is Carter's first beach experience:

I love all his funny faces.

Car Insurance

Carter loves to go pay our car insurance. They always have fun toys for him. Yesterday, he found their pedal car. He was in heaven. He cries when it is time to leave.

He was pretending to be a baby. It was cute!

Carter has his hands in EVERYTHING!! He wanted to help me garden. It took me twice as long to plant last weekend as it should have.

Forceful Prayers:

Carter was randomly saying a prayer, rather often. He would stop me from doing something that he didn't want to do, or even just to do it. That's good, he sees us praying right? Well, I was trying to be respectful and being quiet with my head bowed and my arms folded while he prayed. Now, he wants me to be actively participating. He runs up to me yelling "PAIR PAIR". He has to grab my hand, and fold my arms. I have taken the initiative to say the "Amen" because it seems like his prayers go on forever are very involved with the Lord. He is even respectful enough to remove his hat. Today at the doctor's office, he would shout "PAIR", throw his hat on the floor, and reach for my hand. Then, I would pick his hat up just in time for him to throw it back down. One lady at the pharmacy thought it was so cute - she said he's going to be a preacher when he grows up. She folded her arms and bowed her head, and she gave the spirited "Amen" along with him. It was kind of funny.

My those head wounds bleed.

Yesterday Carter was playing in the yard, and I was cleaning out the car. He falls A LOT. He is a boy, and a very uncoordinated toddler at that. He fell on who knows what!! Whatever it was left a gouge, that he can't keep a bandaid on! There is not a scrape on his forehead around the wound, but there is a dent. I ration it by saying it is not so much as a dent, but a big bump. However, it is a dent. It will probably bruise pretty bad.

He cried at first, but as you can see, he was back to his normal self before we were even able to wipe his face off. No crying during the cleaning even!!

"I love you"

Carter told me he loved me for the first time on Saturday. It was completely unprompted. He WILL not repeat me if I tell him I love him. He has said it a couple times. He doesn't say many recognizable words, although he is trying to repeat everything we say to him. He won't repeat "I love you". He has to say it on his own. It is really cute, and really quiet. If you aren't paying attention, you will miss it.

He is also getting an imagination. I went to pick him up from bed time the other day, and he had this ball wrapped up in his blanket. He said it was a baby. I asked him if he meant "Ball". He said "BABY". He even kissed and snuggled with his baby. Until I suggested breakfast, and he threw it down and shouted "NANA". He does love his bananas.

He is very good at finding a way to get something he wants. He will usually ask for help "Hoo Hoo" and making the sign. The signs have turned out to be very helpful - mostly because help and phone sound exactly the same!! However, if he sees something he wants, he will often times just figure out a way to get it on his own. We went to the park on Thursday and he came running to me asking for help. I got up and started walking towards him. He turned around and ran to the other side of the playground. He had found a riding toy, and it was stuck in the bark. He wanted help getting it unstuck. After we got it to the concrete, he said "Thank You" and rode away. He is so polite.

So, on to the next set of pictures. He wanted a drink. He saw his cups drying on the counter, and he found a stool to get one. They were not put together, so he decided to put them together himself. He is so clever:

 Unfortunately, his cleverness has its limits - namely his skill level. He put the spout part on the cup, but didn't have the ring to secure it down.

We had some boys from church come over and help me with my garden. I tried to do it while Carter was sleeping, and I didn't get very far. I tried to do it with him awake, and it caused more damage. I gave up. Until a wonderful lady from church offered her boys to come and help. They were so great to have!! I made them cookies. SOMEBODY snuck one off the cooling rack and stole a bite!!

I decided to let him finish the cookie, since I can't stop eating a cookie at one bite either. I made him sit in his seat. He LOVED it.

I asked him if I could get a picture of him eating his cookie. He thought I was trying to take it away. This is him holding it up to where I "can't" reach it. I love his "NO!!!" face.

At this age, they always have time to stop and smell the flowers.

He is obsessed with "Nigh Night" time. We can't go to Target without him trying to climb into the cribs in the baby isle. Every time we go to a friend's house, he climbs in their bed, or uses their couch pillows. I don't know where he got this notion that he needs a pillow. He has never had a pillow in his own bed. He has never seen us sleep in our bed. Nor do we have a television that he could have seen it on.

When we went to The Old Cannery he climbed up on their display beds and went "Nigh Night". Lydia had to join him. It was pretty cute.

Here he is on my bed:

Going "Nigh Night" in the car. Why he likes to do that, I'll never know.

He is so much fun. I am so glad that I am able to stay home now and watch him learn and grow!!

"Oh WOW!! No Way! Oh WOW. NO WAY!!!"

Carter got his big boy bed. I have it all set up, but he gets out of it and plays instead of going to sleep. However, it was only a matter of time. . . .He fell out of the crib on Saturday.

He loves his Fire Truck bed. When it was all set up he got on the bed, bouncing up and down, saying "Oh WOW!! No Way! Oh WOW. NO WAY!!!"

It was super cute. Too bad I didn't get a video.

He is such a good helper. His new favorite thing is to help me empty the dishwasher:

He is also very active. Here is his first skinned knee, but not his last. It was also his first time wearing shorts, that was his last for a while. He scraped both knees, and then turned around and scraped all the way down to his ankles.

Then we went to the park and he fell off a toy onto the concrete - onto his face. The picture doesn't do it justice:

Carter has also not wanted to nap. 4 days in a row - NO NAP. I put him in his crib, and he sits and plays. I leave him in for 3 hours for "quiet time". Usually he ends up soiling himself - so bad it ends in a bath. He had his first shower this week also. I got a picture. Then, I realized that you can see how badly he has pooped himself and I decided not to put up the picture. I think he is having allergies to something else. Grrrrr. I have to now eliminate foods to see what it is that is causing his nastiness. When I get him out of bed, he is not rested, he is now cranky because he is tired. Grrrrr again. Today was his first nap in 5 days. YAY!!!

Happy Father's Day

Father's Day is coming up and I had a big surprise for David. We were going to take a ride on the Centralia-Chehalis Steam Train. Then on Thursday, David tells me that he is going to be out of town for Father's Day weekend. My plans were crushed. I bought tickets and we were going to use them the Saturday before and go with some friends. Both father's were completely surprised.  Or would have been. A couple quick rearrangements for two days ahead, and we were back on. For those who say you don't have enough time to play something, I say "Of Course You Can!" Together with my friend Bethany, we put it together on Thursday for Saturday.

David turns to me as we are riding in the train (75 minute trip) and says "Did they make an announcement about not sticking your arms out the windows while we're moving?". No they did not. So, out the window he went. He got an awesome picture out of it.

They asked the boys if they wanted to ride in the engine while they moved around and set up for the evening train. You can kind of see "An-new" or Andrew in the corner. He got to ride with the Engineer. Carter just wanted to push buttons, so they rode a little further away. David was talking with the guys on the train while they rode. This train - Engine #15 - is almost 100 years old.  It spent some time taking people around Mount Rainier National Park after semi-retirement, and is now here at this station just doing weekend stints between May and September. One of the guys that the boys met has been with engine #15 for 75 years!

I didn't do anything to bring out Carter's eyes in these pictures, other than coordinate his outfit. He has the most beautiful eyes.

We had a chance to take some cute shots on the tracks:

Cater seemed to enjoy his first date with Emma. He better have, he talked about her all day Friday. We went to Applebee's after the train. I asked them if they had a side of fruit for Carter. The waiter brought me "Bar Fruit". Apparently they have some fruit for the alcoholic beverages laying around. He picked through it and got the good stuff for Carter. He gobbled it down, then he ate some of Emma's cheese sandwich!!

On the way home, Carter sat in the back seat with his Velcro shoes. "Open. . . . Close". Over and over again. I could hear the Velcro fasten and unfasten. It was super cute to see him realize and put into practice the new words he is learning.

This last shot David got while we were on the train. He points out the window and says "Look Lisa, it's Bella's truck". Sure enough it was. David likes to grumble about how the Twilight movie cast the wrong year truck. He wants to make sure I know what a real 1953 Chevy truck looks like and not mistake it for a 1963. 

Perfect postcard picture.

Talking

Carter is a little chatter box. He talks NON-STOP. He doesn't really say anything. He breaks out in song too. Super cute. Last post I mentioned that he remembers his friends' names. I have posted a video of that. I also got video of him making animal noises and naming body parts. I forgot the bunny rabbit, to which he bounces up and down saying "Hop Hop". It is adorable. I also forgot the crocodile - he sticks his arms straight out and claps his hands together. The noise he makes for the dog is the end of "Woof" it is basically him blowing air. My favorite though is the difference between "Head" and "Hair". He points out his head by a flat hand on his head, and his hair by wiggling his fingers like he is grabbing at imaginary hair. Enjoy: