Haircuts, Happy Visits, Halloween, and other Hilarious Happenings

This is Riley getting his 3rd haircut.  Despite the look on his face, he actually does enjoy the attention! He especially likes ClipperDoodles (which he's gone to twice now) because he gets to watch cartoons on his own personal TV and eat animal crackers (or just hold them in his hands the whole time until they turn into a soggy mess like he did last time!).  After the haircut, we went to our church's Fall Festival to eat some BBQ chicken and check out the vender booths.  The picture here was taken in the sanctuary of Philadelphia United Methodist.

My Precious Pumpkin

Today was what fall fun is all about! We went to Black's Fall Festival in York, SC with some of our dear friends (Jess, Ronnie, and their kids-Jackson and Eliza; Brandy and David and their daughter Callie; Alice, Kevin, and their children Blake and Delaney; Susan and Ben and their sons, Benjamin and Tommy).

Besides all the cute little photo-ops, we got to pet the 3 Little Pigs and go through a hay house, check out a miniature hay maze, check out a petting zoo, and go on a for-real hayride through the nearby corn field/woods (it was quite a bumpy adventure).  We were able to grab a bite to eat in their country store and our $5 entrance fee included a cup of icecream. 

Riley loved walking through the different stations (though he had some difficulty navigating the uneven terrain)! He also took a special interest in the tractor and had a great time playing with his friends and clapping whenever we took his picture and asked him to say "cheese".

  Now, after he wakes up from his nap, we're off to go play at the Davis' house and watch some college football.  I'm so excited to have a child to be able to share these family moments with!  And what a blessing to have great friends to join our fun as well!

Walking Tall

• Riley just turned 17 months this week and as of Monday, he can now push himself up from the floor and walk tall and proud! He is movin' and cruisin' every time we turn around! What an amazing transition to watch from just going short distances to walking laps around our couch.  It sure helped when we moved our coffee table out of the way to create a wide open space in the living room like he has at school.  He feels much more comfortable walking now and while he still wobbles and falls, he is able to quickly assume a tri-pod stance and push himself up into a standing position.  Of course, sometimes he likes to just look at things upside down while he has his head on the floor and laugh when he sees Mommy and Daddy looking at him.  Silly goose!
• Speaking of silliness, our little ham has now taken to carrying objects around in his mouth like a dog.  He especially likes to put soft balls in his mouth and walk around with them, but today he decided to transport a book the same way back and forth between our couches. We think this may have to do with his teething as he now has almost all of his back molars in and 1-2 smaller ones are starting to break through now too.  
• Last weekend, Riley got to spend some extra time with Grandma and Papa while Mom and Dad spent a day together watching the USC game, going through a corn maze in Mint Hill, and grabbing a drink at Waldhorn's Oktoberfest.  Meanwhile, Riley went to a pumpkin patch and picked out his very own miniature pumpkin that has a "handle" so he can carry it around. He loved watching the ponies too and then spent the rest of the afternoon playing at their house and riding his truck back and forth on the sidewalk.  
• Our tenacious toddler is becoming very opinionated about exactly what foods he will and will not eat and has resorted to throwing food off his highchair again in a very deliberate manner.  SO, as much as we'd hoped it was just a phase, we've decided to start using time out to help Riley refine his table manners.  We always start by giving a warning but in 9 out of 10 cases we have to follow-through with the actual act of placing Riley in the corner by the door.  He has tried to escape many times and we have to be diligent about putting him back.  We're following the "1 minute for every year of their age" rule for right now and I've gotta say...it's the slowest minute in the world! 
• Also earlier this week, Chris discovered that Riley now knows how to "shush" him by putting his finger to his lips and making the "sh" sound.  We found out he learned this from singing "The Wheels on the Bus" song at school. His teacher, Miss Ashley, said that Riley loves doing all the motions especially for the verses "The mommies on the bus, go sh, sh, sh" and "The wipers on the bus go swish, swish, swish." What fun! It's so neat to see his little mind absorbing so much at such a young age!

Nose, Toes, and Uh-Ohs

Our little man sure does keep us entertained with his quirky antics!  Here are just a few of his latest memorable moments:

• We have a bookworm in our house and he is devouring books of all sizes, shapes, and subjects!  No sooner does he let you finish reading one book before he's climbing out of your lap or vehemently pointing to get another one.  It's really quite cute.  He'll even go and pick out just the right book he wants to read and bring it to you and then hold his hands up or turn his body around so he can sit in our laps.  He loves to turn the pages and point to different pictures while saying "dees" or "dat". He loves participating in the different actions, especially when reading Elmo Says. What a joy to watch!
• For many months now whenever we would ask Riley where his nose is, he would immediately reach up and touch his ear!  It happened every time, no matter how many silly noises or touching our noses or his nose we did.  It's the only body part that he seemed genuinely confused about.  He has been able to locate his head, hair, eyes, ears, toes, tummy, hand, and feet with little to no problems at all.  Well, as of this week, I'm happy to report that Riley now knows where his nose is! Now instead of touching his ear, he pretty much shoves one finger up his nostril! Silly boy!
• On the note of body parts, each night we let Riley help brush his teeth with his Elmo toothpaste and green toothbrush.  He takes a few swipes inside his mouth while he's lying on his back on the changing table before promptly deciding that his toes also need a good brushing!  He thinks it's hilarious when we try to explain that his toes really don't need to be cleaned and pretty much refuses to stop brushing them until we take the toothbrush away.  I guess he'll have the whitest, shiniest, best-smelling toes in town!
• Riley's walking skills have really taken off lately.  He can now walk easily 8-10 steps before plopping down on his bottom.  We've seen a major shift in his confidence level these past few weeks and now our cautious little cruiser is a terrifying teetering toddler!  He no longer thinks he needs to hold on to anything and begins to set off for a destination before fully gaining his balance.  Chris and I are on edge all the time now as he walks around the living room.  We try to prevent as many spills as we can, but there's just no way to stop them all and we've had quite a few uh-ohs recently.  Luckily, nothing that has caused bloodshed or broken bones, but there have been some bruises, bumps, and nasty marks.  Maybe we'll just bubble-wrap Riley for the next month or two until he gets his land-legs. :0)
• Have I ever mentioned how great Riley is about taking medicine?  This sweet little boy will open his mouth wide and guzzle down any flavor of liquid concoction the doctor has prescribed with no problem at all and then act a little disappointed when it's all gone. Now this does not apply to eye drops as we learned recently when Riley was diagnosed with pink eye.
• His vocabulary is steadily increasing.  He can now say "hoosh" for "house", "tees" for "trees", and "tuck" for "truck" when riding in the car and looking out the window.  He knows how to say his version of please and thank you.  He will also ramble on and on in his own babble language while playing and that's always fun to hear!

Wonderful Weekends and Great Growth

As a family, we all look forward to the weekend! And we have had so many wonderful moments these last few weeks.  Here's a quick recap:

• Riley certainly has a love for the outdoors! One of his favorite things to do on the weekends is to go outside and rock in his rocking chair or in one of Mom and Dad's big chairs.  He feels so proud of himself and gets a big smile on his face the moment he starts moving.  

• Aug. 27th Riley attended a Pool Party for our friend Taylor Warren.  He loved eating fruit and cake and watching all the action.  He finally warmed up to the pool and liked putting his face in the water and playing with all the floating beach balls.  While Riley and I were away, Lonnie and Kristin (Riley's birthparents) texted Chris to check on us and make sure we were okay from the recent Hurricane Irene and earthquake tremor.  We assured them that we were all doing fine and appreciated their concern. They were at Kristin's parents house and were about to go out on their boat for the day. It was great to hear from them and so glad to know that they were thinking of us! 
• Sept. 3rd Riley stayed with his grandparents (Gmama and Papa) while we went to watch the USC game in Charlotte with our friends David and Brandy, Jeremy and Ann, and Ronnie and Jess. Some of us decided not to buy tickets to the game because they would be so expensive, so we opted to watch the game at Wild Wings in the Epicenter instead.  It was a good game and we had a great time hanging out somewhere else besides our usual porches in the QCP. 
• Sept. 9th was Papa's 55th birthday and we went over to their house to celebrate with a delicious dinner of steak, potatoes, salad, and Cherry Yum Yum for dessert (which was one of my dad's favorites when he was growing up).  Afterwords, we enjoyed some quality family time talking and laughing outside on the patio.  The next day, we had our HOA cookout at 4 in the park.  Riley grinned from ear to ear as he rode on Blake's tractor toy and Delaney's car.  We found out this weekend that he now knows how to push himself forward using his feet (previously he only knew how to go backwards). We had a lot of fun visiting with all the other kids in the neighborhood (Callahan, Blake, Delaney, Liam, and Donna) and thanks to Alice and Kevin's clever engineering we were able to watch the USC/Georgia game outside as well! Riley is such a good sleeper that we're able to put him down in just about any Pack 'N Play and after crying for just a minute or two, he settles down and goes right to sleep.  He spent both of these nights in a bed other than his own and we're so thankful that he adjusts so well.  
• Next weekend we're looking forward to going to Homecoming at church with the Casons and eating some delicious chicken and covered dish luncheon afterwards.  Then Riley is going to have a babysitter (Taylor who is our neighborhood babysitter) come over while we go to Camp Canaan for a Canopy Zipline tour. 

In addition to our action-packed weekends, we are loving how much Riley is growing and changing! He had a doctor's appointment Sept. 6th and he weighed 25.8 pounds and was 34 1/2 inches long.  That puts him at the top of the curve for his height and in the 60th percentile for his weight! He loves Dr. Cook and puts his hands out for him to hold him each time he sees him! Dr. Cook  is proud of his walking progress (Riley can now take 5 or 6 steps in a row and even bend down and pick up objects without losing his balance sometimes) and thinks he has a very good temperment (which we think is true too, except when he doesn't get his way and resorts to head banging or throwing himself down on the floor in a fit of tears).  We've been assured this is just a stage and will improve as Riley learns how to communicate more.

Speaking of which, our little babbling boy has learned even more words. Chris said just this week Riley pointed to his sandals and said shoes "clear as a bell".  Riley loves to sit on our laps and then stand up while saying "up" (more like "dup") and "down" (which sounds like "dow")over and over again with his motions.  He also narrates his walks with his alligator push toy in which he says "dop" for "stop" and "go" (which I think is one of his favorite words to say).  We've heard him say his version of thank you and please (which sounds like "eez" to me).  We love how fast he's picking up on words and love to him him sing in his carseat or just sit on the floor and yak away in his very own language.  It never ceases to amaze us how much he can change in just a few short weeks!

First Steps and Words

Well, it's official! Our bouncing baby boy is now a walking, talking toddler!  On August 17th (our first day back to school with students), Riley was cruising around our coffee table and I put my hands out to signal to him to come to me.  He purposefully let go of the table and took 1 1/2 steps on his own before falling into my arms with a big "I'm proud of myself" smile on his face!  Mom and Dad sure were proud of him too!  Now he doesn't have to resort to pushing chairs around the house as his main means of transportation!

In addition to his first steps, Riley has become a babbling pro with all kinds of new words mixed in to his very unique Riley-ese language.  He is back to saying "uh oh" very clearly (he used to say this a few months ago, but dropped the "oh" part).  He now has his own version of the word "ball" which is more like "ba" and dog which is "dough". However, there is no mistaking when he says "Daddy" as clear as a bell.  We're still working diligently on the word Mama, but it comes out more like "nanana". He can say "no" now (instead of "bo").

What continues to amaze me though, is how much Riley understands! His receptive language skills are developing so fast!  He knows what going bye-bye means, where his head is, how to ask nicely for food using his sign for "please", how to clean up and put things in their container, how to turn his crocodile walker toy when we encourage him, what it means to blow kisses or give his stuffed animals a kiss, and he can point out a lot of pictures when we say the words in his ABC books (like dog, baby, elephant, banana, bear, boat, train, duck, bear, and cat).

Riley had the opportunity to meet his second-cousins (Elaina-11 months and Sarah-9 months) on Aug. 9th.  We drove to Union for a daytime visit and he got a chance to play with all kinds of fun toys as he watched and played with the girls.  Elaina and Riley share a special adoption connection and Kristie and I had a great time swapping stories.  Great-grandparents Mommaw and Poppaw were in heaven having so many great-grandbabies in one place!  

He has grown so much over the summer and these last few weeks.  I can only imagine what else is in store for our little tyke!

10 Things I'll Miss Most About Summer

10) Starting a Netflix video at 9:00 on a Sunday night
9) Sleeping in past 6:00 AM
8) Staying in my pjs until I feel like it!
7) Watching morning news shows like Regis and Kelly and GMA
6) Going for a walk in the park with my sweet son and silly dog
5) Reading a book just for fun in the middle of the day
4) Eating lunch together with Riley and listening to his funny noises
3) Going on random afternoon adventures
2) Going to the bathroom whenever I need to
1) Just about EVERYTHING!

It sure has been wonderful to spend the summer at home with Chris and Riley! We accomplished most of the things on our to-do list and managed to have a great time on our trips to Charleston and Indiana as well as enjoying lazy laid-back days of summer.  School started back today and it's been an adjustment to say the least.  Oh well, we'll start the countdown until next summer....just 189 days to go!