Big Boy

Well, I guess I must admit it. My little baby boy has truly grown up. I can't believe how much Colby has changed, just within the last month or so. Was it really 9 months ago that we came home? Did we really celebrate his birthday 6 months ago? Amazing! Colby often reminds me that he is a big boy, but I always remind him that he will always and forever be my baby boy.

Here are just a few of the big boy things Colby now does:

1)He puts his own pants and shoes on. He still needs help putting his socks and shirt on but he can take his socks off by himself.

2) He also puts on his own "undies". Yes, that's right. No more diapers, although he wears pull-ups to bed. We started potty training in late August but with so many things going on, we weren't very consistent. Now we took the plug and in the past two weeks Colby has only worn undies except to bed and if we are out all day. Still a few accidents but he is quite proud of himself, as am I.

3) He now sleeps in a big boy bed. We converted his crib in August to a toddler bed.

4) He can count to 11 and will say his ABCs with you.

5) He loves to "read" books. We always read together. Mike or I will read the book to Colby and ask him questions. He will answer them all and when we are done, he likes to read the book back to us. He usually remembers everything that happened in the story.

6) He LOVES puzzles. He can put together puzzles with 4-5 pieces. My Aunt Doone just gave him a puzzle with 12 pieces and he loves to put that together too!

7) He is now showing a great imagination. He loves to play with his cars and often uses my flipflops for the "garage". He loves to play with his animals having them go to bed, eat, and play. It is so cute to watch.

8) Colby loves doing chores. He helps dust, sweep, and vaccuum. He also feeds to dog everynight. What a big helper!

9) If at all possible, he is even more outgoing. Colby always was outgoing but now I see him playing with other kids more and holding conversations with others. Amazing! I can't believe that just 8 months ago he wasn't talking at all. His vocabulary is better than many 2 year olds.

10) He is starting to recognize his shapes and colors. He knows a triangle and the color gray.

11) He shows compassion and caring for others. He doesn't like it if other kids cry or fuss and he will give them a hug and say, "It's ok, no cry."

12) I'm sure there are so many other things. Every day brings something new and Colby is always finding new ways to amaze me. Mike and I are quite lucky to have Colby in our lives. What a wonderful, beautiful, smart big boy!

I Think I'm Going Crazy!

This has certainly been a week of changes. Colby has really shown a lot of growth in many areas lately. His oral language development has blossomed and his receptive language still continues to amaze me. He has outgrown most of his shoes. We are just hoping to get through the summer and then I will buy him fall and winter shoes. I guess he'll need winter boots! When we went over to Russia to get him in January we brought 2 pairs of sneakers. They were the same sneakers but in sizes 6 and 7. He has, to my dismay, outgrown the size 6 and they are on a shelf in his closet. I don't think I will ever get rid of them. He has gone through 2 pairs of sandals and the second pair isn't fitting either. Yikes! And according to his charts, he has gained 3 pounds and 3 inches since he came home in late February!

So, with all those changes Mike and I decided it was time for more. Some might think Colby is still young, at only 28 months, but he has shown that he is ready. Last Wednesday, Colby and I went shopping for big boy "undies". He loves saying "Undies" and he looks so darn cute walking around the house in them! We are starting slow with Colby only wearing them when we are home. Thankfully it is summer so he often walks around the house in just his undies. Too cute, I definitely need a photo of that! Since Thursday he has had about 2 accidents each day. He seems to do well for half the day and then he gets forgetful if we go outside or he gets sidetracked by something else. Not bad so far but this Mommy gets frustrated at times. He does understand that he should go pee pee in the potty not in his undies and he gets upset when he is wet. We'll get there. We haven't tried naptime or bedtime. I'm a little worried about that, although during both naptime and last night he woke up and asked for the potty. He had already gone, but that's a start, right?

Undies and reading books. What's better than that?

Other changes. If potty training wasn't enough, Mike and I also decided it was time to change the crib into its big boy bed! Colby had started to try and climb out of the crib and his little legs have grown enough that they were starting to reach over the side of it. Yikes! So we had decided that as of August Colby would be a real big boy and sleep in his toddler bed. The first few nights went well. Colby was so uncertain about the crib on Friday night that he didn't budge and on Saturday we got home late from Lake Warmaug that he just crashed. However, since then, Colby has realized that he can get out of his bed and check on Mommy and Daddy. Naptimes have been the hardest with Colby staying awake and roaming for almost an hour before he crashes. So naptime has gone from 1-3 to more like 2-4.

From crib to big boy bed!

So, many changes. From my baby to my big boy. I love my big boy but I miss my baby at times. We missed so much but we are loving experiencing these changes with Colby. So, enjoy the photos of the changes from my little baby boy to my big boy!