Whew!

Whew, it has been a while!  I have so sorely neglected this blog that I love.  Life has happened, at the pace of a million miles per hour-- and I've always written when I FEEL like writing.  Not that we haven't been up to a lot, but in my down time, I chose to do other things....like laundry, or cleaning, or play time with Parker, or a bazillion hours of therapy with him, or just sitting and reading a horribly cheesy romance novel.  I know there will be a day when I read through this blog and wish I had written more, but again....life happens.  So, I will slowly recap the summer through flashback posts and pictures, and keep loving on my little boy as he gets bigger and bigger.

For a quick update-- Parker at 21 months:

Major Milestone:  Parker is walking more and more fluently every day! He is at the point this week where he is consciously choosing to walk instead of crawl, even when crawling might be faster.

Major Milestone: We have been working tirelessly for months on basic sign language.  Repetition and contacts for vision have been a huge support in this.  Each addition of a new sign is a bit tough, and causes Parker to jumble his repertoire for a week or so, but at this point, he is getting better at using "more," "all done," "eat," and "dog."  We are currently working on "milk," "Mommy" and "Daddy."  We are so thrilled!  Finding things he REALLY loves and shows preference for is so important to us.  Oatmeal and Daddy's smoothies currently top the charts!

Love: Parker still LOVES water play.  Baths are huge favorite, and he enjoyed fun summer dips in various baby pools and water tables.  

Love: Baby Signing Time! This DVD series has become a major favorite.  We have an iPad with a baby-proof case that we put in the playroom with P in the evenings while we get dinner ready and change from work.  I love the fact that it has real kids, some with special needs, the songs are easy to sing along to, and the songs cover daily routines.  This Mama stinks at making up her own songs :)

Love: Daddy's Guitar!  Matt will start playing the guitar in the living room, and Parker will rush over from wherever he is playing to listen and touch the guitar strings.  My heart melts every time I see it. 

Hate:  Surprisingly, Parker is NOT a fan of chicken, or most meat for that matter.  Every time we are out with friends or family, someone tries to give him some, and every time, he spits it right back out.  He does like meatballs and ground turkey in tomato sauce, but so far, meat is not his favorite.

Hate: Contacts getting stuck.  Last night, Matt and I were up until midnight driving around the neighborhood trying to get P to fall asleep deeply enough that we could take his contacts out.  One had been stuck for a full day.  I LOATHE these days, especially after working for 15 hours, but overall, the contacts are SO worth it.  

Working on: We are constantly working on sign language and communication!  Another part of speech is getting Parker off of bottles.  At this point, he still doesn't understand this sippy cup/honey bear straw cup business.  This is a BIG deal for us, as he isn't getting fluids any other way right now, he is the only one in his pre-toddler room still using bottles, and the next room up will be a struggle if we can't learn the sippy way.

Working on: Body awareness-- eye contact when playing with someone or interacting, wearing a SPIO compression vest and shorts for some sensory input, and core strengthening.