July 21, 2015 (3 Years, 5 Months)

Andrew celebrated the Fourth of July by doing art projects and going to our neighborhood celebration which included a kids fun run, bike parade, carnival games, and ice cream. He is still very afraid of loud noises and did not enjoy the fireworks let off all around our neighborhood. It was a rough night!

 

Andrew LOVES sweet corn on the cob! But then again, who doesn't?!?

 

Andrew is often resistant to go play outside complaining that it is too hot or the sun is too bright. Once we are outside he usually has fun and is even starting to have fun running through the sprinkler.

 

Andrew really likes to go the beach and play in the sand. There is a park close to our house on the lake that is stocked with sand toys. As an added bonus it is right across the street from an ice cream shop!

 

 

We also like to visit Governor Nelson State Park.

 

 

Andrew has started his 2nd round of swim lessons. He is getting more confident now and will jump off the side of the pool and is willing to put his face into the water.

 

Andrew loves to go to the zoo and see all the animals; his favorites are the giraffes and the seals. He loved riding the zoo train last year but this year is happy just to watch it go past.

 

Andrew is often resistant at bedtime claiming that he isn't tired. If we ignore him he usually lays in the hall outside his bedroom door and falls asleep quickly.

 

 

June 21, 215 (3 years, 4 months)

Andrew has really enjoyed raising our chickens so far. he loves to pick grass for them to eat, chase them around the yard to try and pet them, and feed them mealworms out of his hands.

Andrew is destined to be the class clown, he is always being silly and trying to make other children laugh. He makes friends easily and is not afraid to introduce himself to other kids at the park and ask if they want to play with him.

Andrew is Daddy's big helper. He loves to be right by Daddy's side helping or imitating him while he works.

Andrew dresses himself most days. He is getting better at matching his outfits although we sometimes disagree about the definition of "matching." He likes to wear his shirts backwards.

Andrew takes really good care of his stuffies especially his favorite puppy named "puppy." He likes to read them stories, makes sure to get them snacks when they are hungry, and puts them down for naps when they get sleepy. He even makes sure they have a toy to play with while they fall asleep! :)

Andrew is a chatterbox and talks to everyone. He is very curious and inquisitive and not afraid to speak up and ask questions even to people he doesn't know such as a server at a restaurant ("Excuse me mister, can I have chocolate milk?") or employee at the grocery store ("Why are you putting those boxes there?") He is very interested in learning how things work, one recent topic of interest is where water comes from and where it goes and he likes to get down under the sink to look at the pipes.

Andrew loves to paint, here he is hard at work painting a train bank with Daddy at Fired Up Pottery.

Andrew has developed a dislike for the smoke detector in his bedroom. He often asks us to take it down and sometimes even cries about it and hides under his blankets.

 

There are few things Andrew enjoys more than a popcorn and movie night. He insists on holding his own bowl of popcorn but is usually willing to share.

Andrew prefers pants over shorts even on really hot days. He hates to wear socks and takes them off immediately upon entering the house. He likes to be barefoot even outside and is constantly taking his shoes off.

 

Andrew went to his first Brewer's game. At first he hated it, the loud noise from the crowd, announcer, and fireworks overwhelmed and scared him. He covered his ears and cried that he wanted to go home, even sitting by his big cousins didn't make him feel better. After taking him out and walking around the stadium for a bit we convinced him to go back in and watch the rest of the game but he was not a fan :(.

Andrew is afraid of loud noises. He loves to look at big trucks and tractors from a distance but will not get close if they are running. He hides when Mommy uses the food processor, blender, or carpet shampooer but is used to the vacuum. He doesn't like fireworks. He avoids public bathrooms due to loud flushes and hand dryers.

Andrew is often hesitant to go play outside complaining that it is too hot or the sun is too bright. He does get excited to go to the park or play with water. He had a ton of fun playing car wash and also loves to launch his rocket.

April 21, 2015 (3 Years, 2 Month)

Andrew loves our new baby chicks! When we first got them he was vey concerned about where they were going to poop and if they might poop on him. When deciding on names his top picks were train, bus, and tractor. He also suggested fan, owl, and plate.

 

 

Andrew had a very happy Easter! When we decorated eggs he dyed all of his green, which is now his favorite color (blue has been downgraded to second favorite color).

 

 

Andrew had fun finding eggs at our neighborhood egg hunt and even met he Easter bunny. He was reluctant to get his picture taken with the Easter bunny but later kept trying to touch his tail.

 

 

 

Andrew found a special Easter basket that the Easter Bunny hid under his bed. It was filled with all kinds of fun things (Thomas the Train hat, kite, bubbles) but he was most excited about the jellybeans!

 

 

During Easter Sunday service Andrew had fun coloring, eating snacks, crawling under the chairs, and trying to run away from Mom and Dad.

 

On Alex's birthday, Andrew was more than happy to help Alex play with his balloons, eat his cake, and open his presents.

 

 

 

 

Andrew loves sensory exploration and can play happily for hours with scoops and trucks. We have used rice, oats. cloud dough, lentils, mixed dry beans and of course sand.

 

 

 

Andrew continues to crack us up with his choice of sleep positions. He always takes his blue blankey and lots of toys to bed with him such as his gray engine, bus, puppy, Thomas the train, lego trains, matchbox cars, and other stuffies. He usually parks his trains and cars in their shed (i.e. under his pillow) or in the crack between his mattress and the wall.

 

 

 

 

 Andrew is becoming very social, he loves having his little friends come over for daycare and always gets excited to meet new friends at the park. He is learning to greet other kids with "Hi, I'm Andrew, what's your name?" Instead of "What's your name? What's your name???" And then refusing to tell them his name.

 

Andrew often reenacts scenes from books, shows, real life, or his imagination when playing with his toys. Some of my recent favorites are: "Are you going to eat me?" "No, I'm not going to eat you." "Okay  good, lets play." and "Poop." "Why did say you poop? Do you have to go potty?" "No I just like to say it." "Yucky!"

 

Andrew picks out his own clothes and dresses himself most days. His outfits don't usually match but he is getting better. He almost always wears sweat pants and refers to regular pants as "church clothes."

 

Andrew likes to make up silly games to play with his friends. Some favorites are "Monster Hide" (run down the hall and pretend you are hiding from a monster), "Monster Dark" (similar to monster hide but with the addition of hiding in a dark room), "That Chasing Game" (run around and chase each other then roll around on the floor giggling), "That Flying Game" (throw stuffies in the air and pretend they are flying), and "That Jellybean Game" (drive cars or trucks around and pretend they are stuck in jellybeans, other variations include mud and peanut butter)

 

To Andrew, anything that happened in the past happened yesterday. This can get confusing when he is talking about something that happened several weeks or months ago. His memory is quite good!

 

February 21, 2015 (3 Years!)

Andrew is 3 years old!!! How did that happen?? He had an awesome birthday that started with waking up to a decorated living room filled with balloons. He had a really fun party visiting with his family, playing with his cousins, eating a Thomas the Train themed cake, and of course opening presents.

Andrew has been experiencing intense emotions. He isn't just hungry, he is "Sooooo hungry." He isn't just thirsty, he is "Sooooo thirsty." He doesn't just want to watch TV, he is "Sooooo TV." He doesn't just want to eat a muffin, he is "Sooooo muffin."

Andrew has broadened his horizons, television-wise. In addition to watching Thomas the Train, now also likes to watch Dinosaur Train and Chuggington. Okay so I guess he hasn't broadened his horizons too much!

Andrew uses, possibly overuses, the phrases "oopsie daisy" and thanks to Chuggington, "oh bumper!"

In addition to scribbling, Andrew likes to trace his hand and draw circles, the letter H, and rainbows.

Andrew likes to give you an end of his blankey to hold while he leads you around the house to pretend to visit various family members. Grandma lives in his bedroom, Aunt Rachel lives in Mommy and Daddy's bedroom, Aunt Mary lives in the kitchen, etc.

Andrew likes to have Mommy and Daddy close their eyes and pretend to be asleep so he can wake us up by making a loud noise either with a shaker bottle or any other noisy toy.

January 21, 2015 (2 Years, 11 months)

 

The stomach flu hit our family hard over Christmas and Andrew by far had the worst of it; he was sick for 2 and half weeks straight. In an effort to cheer him up from being sick and stuck at home under quarantine we tried a new activity: painting in the tub. It was a HUGE hit!

 

Being sick definitely put a damper on Christmas this year but we still enjoyed our family time together rand exchanged gifts. Andrew received Tinker Toys, play pots and pans, bath tub ABCs, and Thomas the Train PJs.

 

Andrew can now open the gate that blocks off the kitchen and tries to sneak food from the fridge and cupboards without getting caught. Unfortunately for him the chair he has to drag over to the counter from the kitchen table is less than quiet and always gives him away. He is especially obsessed with yogurt lately.

 

After recovering from the stomach flu, Andrew's appetite came back with a vengeance. Every morning at 4am we woke up to the sounds of him raiding the kitchen. Throughout the day he would plead in a sad voice that he is "sooooooo hungry" even if he just finished a meal or snack.

 

Andrew loves movie nights with Daddy because it usually means popcorn. If Daddy accidentally drops a piece of popcorn on its way to his mouth Andrew is quick to snatch it up, not wanting to waste even a kernel. Daddy thought it was a funny game. :)

 

Andrew has been putting up a fight against naptime which either means an unexpected nap in a strange place or a really early bedtime.

 

Andrew's favorite toys is still his old beat up gray engine and he continues to take it everywhere. Someday I will make a collage of all the pictures we have of him with it.

 

It turns out couch cushions on the floor can make for a fun filled day. When Andrew threw his beanie baby kangaroo up in the air and it got stuck up on the curtain rod he decided to build a tower of cushions so he could reach it and get it down.

 

When Daddy came home he helped the boys to make a cushion fort.

 

Then they used them to make a bed on the floor for a movie night.

Andrew loves playing in the snow when we get a chance to get outside. We took him sledding on a hill at the neighborhood park which was pretty small and slow but Andrew loved it and thought it was really exciting.

 



Is anyone surprised that Andrew wanted to make a snow train? Here is the Polar Express right in our front yard!

Now that Andrew is taller he is getting really good at pedaling his trike. He is still working on steering.