Blast Off!

Reed loves his new Radio Flyer Flying Saucer from Uncle Rob and Aunt B!

Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel

Who knew a falling dreidel could be so funny? 

Thankful

Thanksgiving has never been my favorite holiday.  Yes, the food is yummy, but it's always had the feeling of the "also ran" holiday for me - a few weeks before Christmas/Hanukkah, a four day break instead of two weeks, no gifts (and let's be honest - I've always LOVED the gifts, both giving and receiving!) . . .  I've been much more apt to look at it as the precursor to my beloved winter celebrations.  I've definitely been guilty of not really honoring the spirit of the day, not really taking time to be thankful for all of the blessings in my life.

But this year was different.  It was a Thanksgiving of firsts for me.  It was the first time Jeff and I hosted Thanksgiving.  It was the first holiday celebration in our new house.  It was the first time Rob and Brie visited our new home.  It was the first holiday we've spent with both our Sherwin and Lang families.  And it was our first holiday with a full-blown toddler!  There was so much to thankful for - a beautiful home, stable jobs, a precocious, adorable, healthy child, our four and a half year marriage, and most of all, our family.  While we missed all of our family members who couldn't travel out to MD for the long weekend, Jeff and I felt so grateful for the ones who did and treasured every moment they were here.  We loved watching Reed play with both sets of grandparents and his aunt and uncle.  We savored every meal, every laugh.  While technology that allows Skype and Facetime is fantastic, it's not a substitute for the real thing.  Living far away from family is hard, and this Thanksgiving, we were thankful to have ours here, in the flesh. 

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the weekend, along with a fun video of Reed calling the Redskins game with the fam.

Reed teaches Uncle Robby and Aunt Brie a thing or two about Angry Birds

Pre-Thanksgiving Thai

Reed's favorite uncle Robby

Our little basketball star

Thanksgiving tablescape

My sweet buddy

Rob and Brie

My helper in the kitchen!

The chef with his first bird

Thanksgiving dinner

Putting up the Hanukkah lights!

Reed helps Mommy with abs

Fall Fun

Fall is in full force here in MD.  In fact, the cold temperatures this weekend make it feel closer to winter!  In late October (the weekend just before Hurricane Sandy swept the East Coast), we enjoyed a trip out to Homestead Farm, where we picked out pumpkins and Reed enjoyed petting all the farm animals.  Later that weekend, all three of us helped rake the massive amount of leaves strewn about our front yard.  We love the front of our house, but the two huge trees that make it so pretty also drop A LOT of leaves!  After a few weeks of letting them fall, we finally succombed to the raking.  Reed adored sitting in the huge piles, and was Daddy's little helper with the rake towards the end. 

Of course, we also celebrated Reed's 2nd Halloween with a stroll around our neighborhood.  Reed, aka Gerald the Giraffe, charmed all of our neighbors and asked to "knock" on all the doors.  While couldn't quite master "Trick or Treat" or "Halloween", he had "Happy" down really well!  He also enjoyed his very first piece of candy: a Reece's Peanut Butter Cup.  I think he died and went to heaven. 

I've also tagged on a little bonus video at the end: Reed "singing" "Apples and Bananas."  He's got a ways to go, but we're counting this as his first song!

Peeking through the pumpkin photo op at Homestead Farm

Playing in the leaves

Lovin' it!

Earning his keep!

The only shot we could get of him with the giraffe head on!

Much happier sans hat

Enjoying that candy!

A little fruit pack before bed

Found a Peanut

As I've mentioned in recent posts, Reed LOVES music.  One of his favorite CDs the last couple of months is this Lisa Loeb children's album (Jeff is also a huge fan, given that Lisa Loeb was his pre-teen crush!), and he has memorized all of the songs on it.  While he can't yet actually sing all the lyrics, he can fill in the last words of every line.  See Exhibit A below, in which he helps me sing "Found a Peanut".  I particularly like how he busies himself around the room as we sing, chiming in with the appropriate word when necessary.  He kills me.

**Disclosure: this song -- and video -- is a bit on the long side.  You were warned!

Reed is 18 Months!

Okay, so I fudged the truth just a bit in my last post, saying that I was all caught up.  Not completely caught up!  Reed had his 18-month check-up on October 11, so I'm a couple weeks behind there!  But after this, I really will be ALL caught up.  A few fun videos to post tomorrow, along with some cute fall and Halloween pics, and then we'll be primed to head into the holiday season, with Thanksgiving, Hanukah, and Christmas just around the corner.

I'm continually amazed at how much Reed changes from check-up to check-up.  At 15 months, he was a new toddler, still finding his walking legs.  His vocabulary was growing, but even my speech pathologist aunt said that many of his words, while words, were approximations.  What a difference three months makes!  Reed has gone from wobbling to running (and attempting to jump), and we've lost count of the number of words he can say - and say clearly!.  Without further ado, here's a snapshot of Reed Alexander at 18 months:

• Weighing in at 24 lbs and 11 ounces and measuring 32 1/2 inches long, Reed is in the 37th percentile for weight and the 57th percentile for height.  Our little chubber has leaned out!
• He's down to one nap a day, from 1 p.m. to anywhere between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m.  While I sometimes think he could still use the two naps, the new schedule is so much easier to work around!
• While Reed is still finnicky about food, he's branched out a bit.  He now enjoys chicken nuggets and french fries, fish sticks (are we seeing a trend here?), veggie burgers, nearly any kind of fruit, peanut butter Ritz crackers, cereal bars, and cottage cheese.  We're keeping our fingers crossed that some day soon he might let a vegetable cross his lips!
• He's much more adept at feeding himself now.  He's great with a spoon (see video below) and he loves the control and independence of eating on his own.
• His fascination with music continues.  We played Reed his first CD in August - a Lisa Loeb children's album - and he now has all the songs memorized.  He can recite the last word of every line.  He's also become enamored of my childhood favorite, Free to Be You and Me, and requests it every day with "Me!" or "Be!".  At daycare, the multiple CD players around the room are his entertainment centers of choice.  During the weekends, we love having family dance parties to the Muppets station on Pandora!
• Reed also continues to love books.  We're told that at daycare he can often be found by himself, reading, and at home, his favorite spot is in Jeff's or my lap, reading a book.  Like with his CDs, he has most of his books memorized.  Some of his new favorites are Go Dog, Go, Rumble in the Jungle, Counting Kisses, Green Eggs and Ham, and Are You My Mother?
• He know and can verbalize all of his body parts, as well as most animals.
• Some of his cute baby phrases have disappeared.  "Mama" has become "Mommy" and "pappy" (for pacifier) has become "paci".  My heart broke a little with the paci.  I loved how he sounded when he said pappy! 
• Some of my favorite new words are "curlers", earrings, and "uic-ic" (music), and I love hearing him use phrases now too, like "I want", "I see you", and my personal favorite, "I love you" (which he said on my birthday!).

As promised, here are a few cute videos of our sweet boy. 

Hiatus: Part III (Late Summer/Early Fall)

I'm nearly all caught up!  Not as much to report from August and September, although they seemed so busy at the time!  Some highlights are below, including our first family trip to the Montgomery County Fair in August, Reed's first encounter with bubbles, and a visit from Grammy, timed perfectly with my 32nd birthday!

Daddy and Reed at the Montgomery County Fair

Petting the rabbit in the rabbit display

Bubbles are AMAZING!

I can almost get one!

Dear friends help celebrate the big 3-2!

My favorite guy

Precious at 17 months

Hiatus: Part II (July and August)

My last post left off in mid-July, with Reed's 15-month update.  The rest of July and August were quite busy for the Lang family, with a quick trip to Williamsburg with Paul, Felicia, Rachael, and Alex, the first big party at our house for TCU freshmen, and a fun-filled visit from my parents and Karen and Jim.  We so enjoyed having room for everyone to stay!  Here are some photos of the fun, plus a cute video of Reed playing with his music table (still a favorite toy after eight months!).

Enjoying the mini fountains at the pool in Williamsburg

Reed's first water slide!

Fun on the basketball court

I got the ball, Daddy!

Foul!

New Horned Frogs descend on 15541 Ambiance Drive

Old friend, colleague, and classmate John-Mark Day

Chancellor Boschini watches the boys shoot hoops

Dinner on the lawn

So many Frogs!

Nats game in D.C.

Reed loved his visit with Auntie Karen!

He loves chocolate chip cookies

Family portrait

iPad time with Grammy

In his big boy chair

Hiatus: Part I (Reed is 15 Months!)

Yesterday morning I awoke to the sound of Reed in his crib, saying "pig" repeatedly and then giggling hysterically.  While "pig" is merely one word in a seemingly endless stream of words and phrases these days, I was struck by how much has changed since my last blog post in mid-June.  Our baby has become a little boy!

I've been meaning to post all summer, yet each day got away from me.  Now I find myself, on October 30, four months past my last post, with so much to record.  On this rainy, blustery fall day at home, as we wait for Hurricane Sandy to blow through our town, I'm determined to catch up - at least until the power goes out!

My last post showed Reed beginning to walk, right around fourteen months.  But the three months between April 11 and July 11 (his 15-month check-up) were huge for our little fella in all kinds of ways.  Here were some of the highlights:

• At his 15-month appointment, he weighed 23 pounds and 11 ounces (36th percentile) and was 31 3/4 inches long (65th percentile)
• He got his two front top teeth (although they still don't really show when he smiles).
• On his own, he climbed the stairs and went down the slide at daycare.
• He began learning his body parts and, when asked, could point to his eyes, mouth, nose, head and feet.
• Reed learned to give eskimo kisses.
• He began talking, including the following words/phrases: bye bye, "all done", ipad, mama, daddy, bread, Ari, apple, dog, and a few others that I'm now having a hard time remembering!
• As mentioned above, Reed started walking at 14 months (almost exactly when his daddy started walking too!).
• He learned to correctly identify all of the animals in Brown Bear, Brown Bear.  For example, when we asked him where the yellow duck was, he could point to it.
• Reed began drinking only out of sippy cups.  The transition was a bit painful, but Jeff really helped with this one!
• Our little guy fell in love with the iPad.  Peekaboo Barn was an early favorite, but he soon became enamored with Animal Hide and Seek.  He amazed us with his ability to find all the animals hiding in the screen shots - with no assistance - and he would play it as long as we'd let him!
• Reed became quite adept at puzzles in this 3-month time period.  He was excellent at putting the pieces in the right places, showing his memory, fine motor skills, and persistence.
• He identified "Mommy" and "Daddy" when looking at us in pictures, and delighted in pointing us out in all of the photos around the house.
• Reed's favorite toys were the Fisher Price house, his puzzles, drum, VTech alphabet train, and his Learn and Groove table (still!).
• He really began loving books this month.  Faves included The Grandma Book, Don't Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late, Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, Kisses, Happy Birthday, Little Pookie, Good Night, Moon, and Brown Bear, Brown Bear.
• Food continued to be difficult with Reed in this three month period.  Most meals were a struggle, although he would usually eat some type of bread, cereal, cheese, or beef.  He drank around 18-24 ounces of milk a day.
• He napped twice a day, from around 9:45 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 3:00.

Below are some fun pictures from June (I think I was with it enough to post some cute ones from May in an earlier post!).

Playing on a rocking horse at the daycare graduation party.

Our future lifeguard.

Walking with Daddy on the basketball court.

Snacking on blueberries!

Our little Angel.

Cuteness.

Loving the swings!

Three Little Monkeys with Grammy.

Our water baby.