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!

"I've Got To Write That Down"

I don’t know how many times I’ve already said to myself, “Oh my goodness, that is so cute (or funny or amazing, or ridiculous, etc.), I’ve got to write that down” regarding something that Riley has just started doing.  So without any further delay…here is my first attempt at blogging to keep up with the memorable moments that shape our day to day lives with our precious little boy.  And I know looking back these times will make us remember the small things that made us smile and brought us so much joy!

• Getting Riley to eat solid foods has been quite an adventure! I honestly thought I might have to send him to Kindergarten with Stage 2 Gerber baby food because he quickly spits out any food that has texture or too much thickness.  We tried all kinds of easy beginner foods like bananas, toast, cheese, watermelon, and diced peaches, but all he would eat was Gerber Puffs or Yogurt Melts (aka baby junk food).  It wasn’t until he was about 12 months old that we discovered he would eat edemame if we split it in half and peeled off the outer skin.  Then he began to eat peas (which we discovered one night at Ruby Tuesday’s salad bar), but they had to be the frozen kind, not the mushy can-kind. Next he started eating diced pears that come in snack-sized cups.  We tried countless other finger foods over the next few weeks, but the only other food we were able to successfully get him to eat was kiwi!  Quite a unique sense of culinary cuisine for a 1 year old!  He would simply spit everything else out OR he would turn his head without even tasting or smelling the new food.  I guess he just didn’t like how it looked. In July, at my mom’s birthday dinner which just so happened to be at another Ruby Tuesday’s, Riley ate the most food we have ever seen him devour! He started off with guacamole that came with our chips and then he quickly moved on to Papa’s mashed potatoes, Grandmama’s crab cakes, mom’s cottage cheese, dad’s peas, and of course his favorite food of the night was the Red Velvet cupcake and icecream served for dessert! He had finally turned a corner and didn’t have to eat just pureed fruits and veggies. Thank goodness!

• About a month or two  ago, Riley started throwing any finger foods he didn’t like or even want to try overboard on the side of his highchair.  Over and over again Chris and I would look at him as seriously as we could (because many times it took everything in us not to crack a smile) and tell him “no”.  He quickly caught on to this little game and now just about every time one of us says “no”, he simply looks right back at us with his serious look and says “bo”.  It must be his own version of “no” and lets us know just how much he knows exactly what we’re saying.

• He’ll say the same thing when he sneaks up to the TV console after looking over his shoulder once or twice to see if we notice him.  Then he’ll quickly slide open one of the cabinet doors and start pushing buttons, grabbing remotes, and generally causing chaos as fast as he can before one of us interrupts him.  We pretty much have to physically remove him from the space because everything else (saying no, placing him in the corner for a 1 min. time out…which was completely pointless as Chris tried to block him from escaping, ignoring him, popping his hand, and even growling at him…which is actually an idea suggested in a book I read) have absolutely no effect!  He’s definitely a tenacious little guy who knows exactly what he wants! ;0)

• Our little man is very smart and tech-savvy!  Whenever he hears a phone ring, he puts his hand up to his ear like he’s talking on a cell phone.  And speaking of cell phones, he’s in love with getting his hands on any that he can find and gets quite upset when they are taken away.  As is true with the TV remote.  Chris and I have taken to hiding the remote behind one of the brown side cushions on our couch.  Riley caught on quite quickly to this little trick and now whenever he’s standing on the couch, he’ll cruise down to one of the cushions and take a peek behind them to see if he can find the missing remote. Quite the smartie!

•  Riley loves playing peek-a-boo by placing covers, blankets, or his hoodie towels over his head.  The funniest time recently we caught on video tape is when Riley discovers a dish cloth in the kitchen an decides to put it on his head and crawl around aimlessly on the floor.  Not exactly the safest game as this quickly led to him bumping into quite a few chairs and walls, but he sure got a kick out of it!

• One of Riley’s favorite toys at 14 months old is a chomping gator push walker that my mom and dad got him for his birthday.  His face lights up as he starts to push it from behind with his Frankenstein-type walk with knees that stay straight.  Then when he reaches a wall, he now does his own version of the sign for “help” and this is his way of telling us to please help him turn his gator toy around so he can walk back the other way. He can actually balance now for a few seconds while he signs "help" to one of us.  He has also learned that signing "help" magically opens his toy chest and gets him more of what he wants!

•  Speaking of signing, Riley started signing “more” around 12 months and for awhile it was the only sign he knew.  He would sign “more” all the time at dinner to indicate he wanted more of whatever baby food we were quickly trying to spoon-feed down his open bird-like mouth.  All the while, he’s moaning and groaning with various “mmmm” sounds to show us how much he loves his food!

• Around 13 months, Riley caught on to the sign for “please” which is just rubbing your hand in a circle on your chest.  He quickly forgot the sign for “more” and everything became “please”.  He had also learned the sign for “dog” which is patting your leg with an open palm, but this too easily blended into the sign for “please”.  So now, when he does the sign and we’re not sure what he’s saying we just say it’s “Please, more dog.”

• Riley has been receiving early intervention, physical and occupational therapy services this summer through BabyNet to help facilitate his gross and fine-motor skills. He often has a tendency to “W-sit” which is to have his knees bent, but with both of his legs behind him.  The PT wants him to sit with his legs out in front of him, so she often tapped his legs and asked him “to fix his legs”.  Within a few weeks, whenever one of us asks him to do the same thing without even touching his leg, he quickly scoots them out in front.

• When Riley was first learning how to stand up by himself, he would come over to the couch, get up on his knees, put his hands up on the cushion and try to pull himself up.  He didn’t quite have the upper body strength or confidence he needed, so he would often open his mouth and try to bite the cushion for a little “extra leverage.”

• When Rachel, the occupational therapist, would give Riley 1 small toy to hold in each hand and then would offer him another one (hoping he would transfer the toy to his other hand and reach out and grab it with his free hand), he would often open his mouth as a way to say, “Just put it here!” Silly goose!

•  Riley loves reading books and he now has a few favorites.  His all-time favorite one right now is “First 100 Words”.  Riley loves to point out the dogs, cats, flowers, and duck.  And whenever Chris makes the sound for the elephant, Riley immediately lifts his arm up in the air to signal the elephant’s trunk which he saw his daddy do a time or two.  

So this is the start of our Fisher Family Fun moments to remember! I know that I won't post every day, but I'll try to commit to recording at least one blog a week.  Hope those of you who know us also get a kick out of reading these somewhat silly family stories!