Gerret Turned One

Somehow a year has already passed since the arrival of the Pook.  He sure has taken our family for a ride.  We feel blessed each day to have this smiley, bouncy, wild little thing in our lives.  He is the cause of so much laughter and unbelievable moments in our home.  Here's to a year of Gerret!  In my journal on his birthday, I wrote a list of things I love about Gerret and I thought I would include some of it here:

Things I Love about Gerret

The way he watches and copies everyone -- especially Nolan.  

How he holds on and bounces up and down and yells "dja, dja" (for jump, jump).  

He looks like a little bird when he drinks from a sippy cup.  

He bobs his head & shakes his body to any kind of music.  

How he always seems to be looking for adventure.  

He likes to play peek-a-boo and laughs like crazy when someone will take a moment to participate.  

How he is cutely chubby but not so fat I have to clean between any rolls.  

When he falls asleep on car rides.  

He can climb onto the couch, up the stairs, on Nolan's bed, and would probably climb on everything else in the house too if I allowed it.  

He responds to "Pooka" over any other name we call him.  

He smiles big and often and goofy.  

How he yells "Ah! Ah! Ah!" and screams if you don't shovel food into his mouth fast enough. 

 Those dimples make his smile pretty killer.  

He likes toys better when someone else is playing with them (his imagination hasn't quite kicked in).  

He tends to be fairly high strung.  

He rubs food in his hair at every meal.  

How he sleeps 12 hours every night and is mostly good at taking 2 naps every day.  

How his hair gets really curly after a bath.  

He is intent on standing in the tub.  

Those big dark brown eyes.  

How absolutely disgusting his high chair gets (if I don't take it apart frequently to clean it, it starts to grow mold).  

How he sleeps through inordinate amounts of noise at 6:00 each morning when the rest of the house gets going (This includes hair dryers, squeaky faucets, microwaves, doors slamming, and often, yelling right outside his door).  

He is so cute as he inches his way (quickly) around a room from one piece of furniture to the next.  

The way he loves his grandma above almost everyone else.  

How patient and forgiving he is with Nolan.  

How resilient his little body is.  

How he could, in all honesty, use 4 baths a day.  

The way he cuddles and makes kisses.

Nine Months Fly By

when you're not pregnant.  

I can't believe that Gerret was born nine months ago.  If it's possible, I think he is the cutest he's ever been.  Especially because he has outgrown the high pitched screaming.   He is, for the most part, down to two naps a day, so he is now a pretty constant part of my days.  I don't mind that so much.  Neither does Nolan.  We all really love Gerret and feel blessed to have him in our family.  He's a fun-loving little kid and he knows how to get what he wants.  He is very eager to learn and is always surprising me with the new things he picks up on.  

He recently caught on to how Nolan plays with matchbox cars.  I heard a little "vvvvv-vvvvv-vvvvv" behind me, similar to the sounds Nolan makes for the cars and turned around to find Gerret sitting there, pushing a car back and forth on the floor, making perfectly adorable car noises.    

Last week we went shopping at Lowes where they help every little boy's dream come true by providing car carts. (By the way, if

 you are interested in trying to maneuver a bus through Lowes, this could also be every parent's dream.)  They were two seaters, complete with two steering wheels, and seat belts.  At first, we just put Nolan in, thinking Gerret was too small, but Gerret kept watching Nolan intently, so I finally gave in and strapped him in.  He knew exactly what to do.  I wish I had had my camera.  He had a big goofy grin on his face as he "steered" his way through Lowes.  When we were done, Patrick and Nolan unloaded while Gerret stayed in so we could go park the cart.  As we drove away, he turned his head to follow Patrick as I pushed him in the opposite direction and when Patrick made eye contact, Gerret got that goofy grin on his face, stretched his hand up above the top of the car, and waved.  I started laughing and clapping and Patrick waved back.  That excited him so much that he waved again and again.   What a smarty pants.

He can crawl, walk along furniture, speak his own special language, do crazy tricks with his tongue, sleep 12 hours at night, drool incredible amounts, elicit a wide variety of responses from his brother, climb, and snuggle.  He currently has four teeth, asymmetrically placed in his mouth.  What a goober.  I just love being his mom (most of the time).  Here's to nine months of the Pook!

Gerret and Another Milestone

And that is his half-birthday. That's rights, folks, it's already been six months since the birth of this sweet little Pooka Pooka. He is definitely a light in our family and Nolan's favorite person. He is just too cute for words.