Playing in the leaves

For some unknown reason (not an ear infection!), John Harrison enjoys covering his ears or pulling his ears...he has done this for a long time now. I guess if he had an ear infection, he would be pulling on his ears AND acting fussy at the same time.

We have enjoyed the warm weather the past few days! John Harrison had fun playing in the leaves outside this afternoon and I managed to get a few cute (although somewhat blurry) pictures.

John Harrison's new words include: "that," "there," "this," "stairs," (indicates that he wants to go "upstairs"), "bark" (as in tree bark), "buckle," and "get"....we also think we hear him say something that sounds like "mine" or "my." He refers to grapes, strawberries, and cranberries as "berries." He makes a "moo" sound when he spots his cow puzzle piece. John Harrison has gotten pretty good at placing the correct shape in the shapes sorter and we have also noticed a lot of progress in his overall fine motor coordination. As I think is very common at his age, John Harrison loves trying to get buckles together (such as on his changing pad, high chair, etc.). This past week, I let him play with a suitcase I was about to give away and it became one of his new favorite toys......he LOVED pulling the handle up and down and wheeling the suitcase around the kitchen and living room. David even gave John Harrison "suitcase rides" where John Harrison would grab onto the outside of the suitcase and David would pull him around the room. David and I may have get John Harrison a toddler-sized suitcase for his birthday. Our little guy never seems to stop moving....except when asleep and he definitely keeps us busy. I am so thankful that since about 14 weeks, my energy level has gotten much better.....that definitely helps when trying to take care of an energetic toddler. Also, John Harrison has finally transitioned to one nap a day and takes an afternoon nap now instead of a morning nap....for a while when he was in between 1 and 2 naps, if he took 1 nap, it would be in the morning. Most naps last 1.5-2.5 hours so it is wonderful having the time to clean up around the house, take a shower, or occassionally, take a nap myself. We love our little guy so much and can't wait to welcome Elise into the family in 4 months!!