danish duck

Kristen and John sent us a great package of goodies from Denmark, mostly of the candy variety except for this stylish hood for Cole. Kris has told me how they bundle the kids up over there with such efficient layers that they are practically waterproof. The hood she sent is a size larger than the one that Olivia, the 3-year old who she watches during the week, but it still barely contains Mr. Cole's cheeks!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Cole turned 17 months old yesterday, and taking photos of him is not as easy as it used to be. I'll share some of the outtakes next time. I'm exhausted!

king of the jungle

Cole's vocabulary has more than doubled in the past two weeks. Granted his vocabulary consisted of only one word (Bath), but still he has made substantial progress recently. He can now say "cheese", "boo!" and today he added "RAAAARRR." I know RAAAARRR is more of a sound effect than a word, but he knows that it's the sound the a lion makes.

We were playing with his Little People Noah's Ark this afternoon, and we play a game with the alligator/crocodile where I put my hands together to make a mouth and I chase him around saying "chomp, chomp" and he feeds my hands the alligator, his own hands and feet, and anything else within arm's reach. Giggles ensue... The rhino also chases him while pushing his horns into Cole's belly...more giggles. Then he reached for the lion and I made my best roar and then Cole copied me. This time I laughed too. His roar is more like a newborn lion cub, but then again, mine isn't very intimidating either.

dancing baby

Here's a shot from last week's trip to Culpeper. This is Cole in a "Footloose" moment in the one of the empty model homes.

He's got a few new moves. The other night he was working on a head bob while he had one hand in his pocket, very hip-hop. Mostly, he still favors a Riverdance, high stepping style. In fact he rarely walks, his gait has become more of a hoppy and happy jog. I can't wait to see what he does when he has more room to move and a clear path to pick up speed.

egg

Cole got an early Easter egg today---right on his forehead. He ran full speed into the front panel of the couch when he took the turn too wide. There's a pile of pillows next to the couch that has been his crash pad since he started walking. Now that he runs, he loves to dive into the pile and "hide."

His egg is blue and purple and the swelling is already going down, but the doctor told me not to let him take his afternoon nap as a precaution. Of course, today of all days, he woke up 3 hours earlier than usual, so he was already sleepy. The doc also told me to watch him if he starts stumbling---but of course, he's stumbling, he's exhausted. The best I could do was delay his nap by 2 hours and then I laid down next to him so I could watch him. We both woke up feeling better.

We made a drawing together of his egg, and I promise to scan it tomorrow.