3

wow, it has been an incredibly long time since I have posted anything.  with the arrival of little brother Bennett any day now, I realized that I haven't posted anything about Davis this year, and I feel horrible that I haven't done a better job of writing about our life this year.  it has been a big year for us, with ups and downs.  this year, my goal is to write more about our life as a soon-to-be family of four, and document Bennett's first year as carefully as I did with Davis. 

Davis turned 3 on December 15.  He and I "celebrated" by going to the doctor and being diagnosed with the flu.  Not fun!  Thankfully, we both got over the fever and body aches within a few days, but the coughing and congestion lasted a little bit longer.  Adam had literally just gotten back from his Navy Reserves trip to Texas, and was home to take care of us.  He dodged a bullet and didn't end up getting the flu, just a head cold about a week after we got sick. 

We had a great Christmas and got to celebrate with all the grandparents, either before, during, or right after Christmas.  Some of Davis' favorite gifts were his tools & workbench, little people racetrack, tablet, trains, and all the different trucks he accumulated!  He also LOVES his John Deere Gator that he got for his birthday from Adam and I, along with all the grandparents. 

Some milestones from the past few months:

• Since November, has been going to the potty consistently.  Wears underwear during the day, and a pull up at night...no more diapers!  Sometimes still has pee-pee accidents, but is doing very well with going poop.  He tells us that he needs some "privacy"  when he is going poop now, which is hilarious, because then he will barge in the bathroom when we are in there and say, "you need some privacy?", but then NOT leave us alone. 
• After all the worrying I did about his speech and not really talking until he turned 2, he has really blossomed this past year.  His vocabulary is incredible and he usually only needs to hear a new word or new concept one time before he remembers it.  He has a fantastic memory, and remembers events, people, etc. in very good detail.
• Has his own way of saying certain words.  His "f's" are "s", so "fire truck" becomes "sire truck", "phone" is "sone", and so on.  He also says his "l's" like "w" or "d", so "pillow" is "piddow", "log" is "wog", and "loader" is "woader".  If you figure out his couple of little quirks when he talks, he is pretty easy to understand.   
• Some of my favorite words that he says in his own Davis way, or has said in the past year are: "motorsauce" for motorcycle, "traror" for tractor, and what sounds like "oh sh**" for elephant...whoops! ;)
• Is very curious, and one of his new favorite things to ask is "What's that mean?".  He loves to learn and find out more about things that interest him, like trains, trucks, etc.
• Knows all his colors, can count to 20 (skipping 13 and 15), and can say his ABC's with just a couple errors.  Call me a proud mommy, but I think this is very good for his age, especially for a child who doesn't attend pre-school yet. 
• Recognizes the letter D everywhere and says, "That says D for Davis!" and has also started recognizing B, because of Bennett's name. 
• Can orally spell his name, but doesn't always do so on command.
• Can recognize the numbers 1-6 pretty consistently, and knows how to count with 1-to-1 correspondence up to 10, but doesn't always do it. 
• Can recognize and name these shapes: circle, square, triangle, heart, diamond, star.
• Still loves to read.  Some of his favorite books are: any train books, non-fiction books about trucks, trains, cars, etc., Curious George, Thomas and Friends, and his new daily devotion book he got for Christmas that we just started in January.
• Loves to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Thomas and Friends, Curious George, Super Why, and has recently gotten into Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood.  Still doesn't really like to watch full length movies, but we did enjoy watching Rudolph and a Charlie Brown Christmas with hot chocolate during the holidays. 
• Has a sweet tooth and would eat sweets every meal if we'd let him. 
• Is a very picky eater, and his favorite foods include: yogurt, granola bars, boiled eggs, biscuits, "putter & jeddy samiches" (peanut butter & jelly sandwiches), applesauce, mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, sometimes strawberries and blueberries, "shruit schmoothies", butternut squash soup, and ANY kind of bread.  Loves milk, and also likes juice, which he doesn't get that often.  Really does love to drink water, which is something to be excited about, even if he is such a picky eater. 
• Favorite junk food is "nil' nafers" which are Nilla Wafers.  I love the way he says it!
• Has very good manners most of the time, but can be a little hateful when he is not in a good mood.  Says "No, please." if he doesn't want something, instead of "No, thank you."  Says "Thank you very, very much." if he is being extra polite. 
• His temper definitely gets him in trouble sometimes, but we are working on making better choices when he's angry.  We started reading a daily kid's devotion, which he calls his "debotion", and he really enjoys reading it every day.  He always asks, "What day we on in my debotion, Mommy?" Hoping that this, along with our prayers, will help him to think about his words and actions more. 
• When you say to him "I think you need to ____", and he doesn't want to, he will stomp his foot and say, "Sink (Think) I not!"
• For the past year, has started randomly coming up to Adam, me, and the rest of his family and telling us he loves us.  When he's really sweet, he'll put his hands on either side of your face and say it.  It is precious the way he does this, and I love that he can be so loving and affectionate, without being prompted.