The Potty

We're really working on the potty training, especially now that I'm not working this summer. Whenever we change his diaper, we'll talk to him about how he should use the potty and be a big boy. There are books we read to him, we set him on the potty several times during the day, and sometimes he even pee pees in it for us.

Today I began to smell something that I thought should be in the potty. "Are you poo pooing in your diaper?" I asked. He looked at me with his eyes real wide. "Hurry!" I said. We both ran to the potty. It was a little too late, but he did enjoy sitting there. He was so cute in his big Texas hat (he chose to wear it this morning) that I had to run and get the camera. Well, the potty training session ended up being a photo shoot. . . believe it or not that was Rocco's choosing. He thought it was funny that I was taking his picture on the potty. He'd run to look at the back of the digital camera to see what he looked like. He'd say, "Gin!" and run back to the potty. This continued for a while. Every time I took a picture he wanted to see himself. He'd go back and pose with a different face. And of course, puppy dog was right there beside him the whole time. Those two are big buds!

Even after we put his diaper back on he was still being silly on the potty.

26 Months Old

I can't believe how many new things he's done within just the last month. Though I know Rocco's grandparents are the only ones who will care to read about all the details below, I do this mainly for me so that I can remember the little things he did along the way as he was growing up. One day perhaps Rocco will be interested in reading it, too.

This month I found two back teeth on the top of his mouth. They must be the 2 year molars; this also explains why all of a sudden he has decided he likes to put his hands in his mouth.

He's been throwing balls and rolling them for a while now, but his aim and strength are just amazing to only be 2 years old.

One of his favorite things to do is go to the park where he slides, swings, and explores on the playground equipment.

He now correctly uses the sign for church, shoes, and nana. After he does a sign, he proceeds to use the sign for smart. I always agree. "Yes, Rocco. You are so smart!" His new words are "Guh, guh, go!" and "Boo!" (for blue).

He and Granddaddy have a game where Gary will ask him what something is, knowing that he is wrong. For example, he'll say "You've got a pig," when Rocco is holding a toy cow. Rocco will shake his head, "No," until Granddaddy says the right thing that he is actually holding.

When we're in the car, he thinks he has to watch the Wiggles or Little Einsteins on the TV/DVD player. For a while now he's done the movements with them, but he's even more interactive with the videos now. He flaps his arms like chicken, points his fingers to do the twist, stands on one foot and shakes his hands, turns around, and all other sorts of movements.

His fascination is with tractors, and he can show you with his hands how a hay cutter, fluffer, bailer, trackhoe, and bulldozer work. The latest toy that I bought for him was an excavator.

Working with his toy puzzles, he can correctly identifiy a helicoptor, ambulance, fire truck, plane, boat, car, mototcycle, and train. Using his animal puzzle, he also identifies the correct animal when I make the sound of it (horse, sheep, pig, dog, cat, cow, rooster, and duck).

In the morning when we snuggle, he wants me to count to three. He'll hold up one finger. After I get to three I say, "Faaallll!" With no reservation he'll fall face forward on a stack of pillows that he's collected. When he gets up he'll stretch his arms out in a big circle to tell me the pillows are "all over the place."

I would say that though he is a little behind with his language skills, his cognitive development is excellent. He is above normal on his gross and fine motor skills. Taking a crayon in hand, he will mimic me when I draw a circle, horizontal line, and vertical line. I love watching him hold a pen. He'll get his face really close to the paper and intently try to copy over his name.

It is for sure that we could never have a sweeter child. From time to time he'll reach for my face just to give me kisses. He also pats me on the back when I pick him up. His new thing is what I call spider fingers. He'll quickly tickle me as his fingers move quickly.

His imagination has come to life in the last month or so. He pretends to feed himself from the pots and pans in his play kitchen. He also makes sure that his stuffed puppy dog gets a bite, brushes his teeth, combs his hair, reads the Bible, and gets tucked into bed. Overall he is very sharing with his toys. On one occasion I saw him pretend to feed a toy car.

When anyone in our family is approached by a stranger in conversation, Rocco does NOT like it. He makes an awful face and whines really loud.

Now that the toy room is finished upstairs, he begs us to take him up there in the afternoon. Usually after bath time and before bed Jason or I will play with him and his toys. For some reason he's been afraid of the big construction toys with eyes. We've had to remove them. He remembers them, though, because each time we go upstairs he waves good-bye to where we hid them.

If you want to see him get real excited, just offer him a piece of gum. He'll start shaking his finger NO at you. He's been drilled over and over, "Don't swallow this gum. Chew it."

On Memorial Day weekend, he experienced his second trip to an amusement park. His favorite ride was the Caterpillar Roller Coaster. He'd stomp his feet in excitement, squeel, grin with delight, and say, "Gin!"

The motorcycles were another favorite of his!

Although he hasn't ever been a fan of corn, he had his first experience with corn on the cob and loved it!

As usual he continues to be a very organized little boy. He does really well cleaning up after himself, and he is meticulous when he plays. Just look at how pleased he is after lining his horses up in the high chair at nana's house.

Last Weekend

Rocco at my papaw and nana's house

I didn't get a chance to post about last weekend, so here's a quick recap. My mom, nana, Rocco, and I went out for a Mother's Day lunch and a little shopping. We ate at Red Lobster, which was conveniently located next to the big mall. Here are some pics of the short two days we spent in my ol' hometown.

Mimi, Rocco, and Papaw (Heather's parents)

Getting some sugar from my little boy!

Rocco having the time of his life swingin' with Mimi and Nana Helen. . . Who says shopping can't be fun for a little boy?

Then again. . . maybe it wasn't that much fun. Something about that expression on his face tells me he'd rather be on the farm ridin' the tractor than looking at clothes.

Mimi's Visit

My mom came down for a short weekend visit to see Rocco. And maybe even to see me. . . though I'm not so sure. It's funny when grandkids come along it's not all about you anymore. I wouldn't have it any other way though. Rocco's adoption has done wonders for both sides of our family. God has given us more sunshine in our lives and joy through Rocco. Seeing my parents, grandparents, and Jason's parents' faces light up when they see Rocco brings me such joy and contentment. Their love for him shines through. They want to eat him up with love just like I do.

Today we tried out a new park just fifteen minutes away from our house. By far it is has the best playground of any we've been to. Our favorite part was swinging on the big tire. I guess I'm getting old because I got dizzy from spinning in it. Rocco nearly went to sleep as we swung.

There were steps to climb up into a wooden castle, tunnels to slide down, bridges to stomp and rock on, and boats & trains to steer.

Rocco didn't care too much for the slides, but he loved the swings. Although he can hold on to a big swing by himself, he still easily fits into the baby swing. This playground even had a musical section where you could play a scale on the bells.

Following the playground adventure, the three of us went out for lunch. Then, we got a few items I needed from Wal-mart. It's amazing how much fun a 2 year old can make a trip to Walmart. While I was checking out, I looked over my shoulder and saw my mom and Rocco having a blast at the carousel. Only recently has he decided it's okay to ride on the quarter machines (and he still is choosy about which ones he'll get into). In the past he was always afraid of them. I guess the movement and music was a little too scary and new to him. When he rode it today, he didn't smile. He took it all in with a serious face, but when it was over he started saying, "Gin!" and doing the sign for it.

Today was a big day for Rocco's nana Carolyn. She had a birthday. . . but I'm not telling her age. I'll let her do that in the comment section if she wishes. Happy Birthday Nana!

At the Strawberry Patch

About 40 minutes from our house is a strawberry patch where you can pick your own. Carolyn, Rocco, and I went to gather some of this sweet fruit for ourselves this afternoon. As far as I can remember, this was my first time picking them. I know it was Rocco's first. He got the hang of it real fast. Once he watched me a couple times he was ready to pick some by himself. "Only pick the red ones," I told him. He did very well. Being able to do the "squat" was a big advantage for him. On several occasions he would squeeze them too hard and his hands would get all red and juicy. He does not like to get his hands dirty like this. I had to quickly rid him of the gooey strawberries so that he could go back to picking some more. The best part was the homemade strawberry ice cream that followed our hard work. The people who own the patch had some on sale as we checked out.

Rocco and I love strawberries. He'll eat one in a single big bite. Too bad we don't have any dragon fruit around here. That's one thing I really miss about Vietnam.

Being A Mom

Things I love about being a mom. . .

1) Rocco's sweet kisses he voluntarily gives me on each cheek and on the lips

2) Little shoes beside the front door

3) Cheerios and raisins I find under the seat of the car or in the cracks of the living room couch

4) Laughter on Saturday and Sunday mornings as we cuddle, wrestle, tickle and laugh

5) Cartoons on the TV

6) Wiggles music playing in my car and Rocco's laughter to accompany it

7) Little arms that reach up for me and a little voice that says, "Mama"

8) Bath time and wrapping my little boy in a warm towel as I call him my "Burrito Fonchito"

9) The smell of his sweet head after it's been washed in Johnson's Lavendar shampoo

10) The dirty stinky boy smell after Rocco's been outside playing

11) Bottles lying on the cabinet and sippy cups in the floor

12) A trip to Mimi's and Papaw's house and packing up a weekend bag for Rocco

13) The pats on the back I get from Rocco's sweet hand

14) The pictures I'm able to take as I try to cherish each moment and capture them on film

15) The high chair in my kitchen, car seat in my car, and baby bed in the next room (though it's only been used once or twice)

I could easily go on and on. . . I may even add more later as they come to me. Bottom line is that other than my salvation and getting married to Jason, being a mother has been the most transforming event that has ever happened to me. It has brought out the best in me and shown me how much God truly loves me. It's still hard to comprehend that God could love me more than I love Rocco. I understand now how He loves me, His adopted daughter, and wants what is best for me.

This was my first Mother's Day at church as a mother. Last year I had to stay at home with Rocco because he was sick. At the end of the service, the kids brought carnations to the mothers. Rocco gave me mine. Here we are at the house after church. He's letting me smell how beautiful it is.

Happy Mother's Day! And to those who are mothers-at-heart but whose arms are still empty. . . my prayer is that you won't have to wait much longer. The road may be long but happiness awaits you. I'm living proof.

Ouch!

Tonight Rocco and I were playing around in the bed waiting for Jason to get home from the farm. It was dark and past bedtime, but Rocco was fresh and smelling baby clean from his bath I'd given him. We wrestled, cuddled, laughed, read the Bible together, and finally settled down for some quiet time. I began reading a book when Jason came home. All was well until Rocco climbed over me and headed to reach for something on the nightstand. I told him, "No," and turned back around. In less than a minute I heard, "WHAM!" Yes, he had reached for the nightstand again and didn't make it. Instead he tumbled off the bed and managed to hit his head. Of course he was crying, so I rushed to get a cold puppy dog ice pack (bought just for him in times like these but up until this point was never needed). I rocked him as he took a bottle. He didn't want any part of the cold pack on his head. Jason came and took over from there. I felt like crap. My sweet baby had a big goose egg on his head.

Now that he's two and so busy into everything, I'm sure this is just one of many falls he will take. We've been very blessed not to have any accidents up to this point. I dread all the little bumps and falls Rocco faces along the way.

It's amazing how handsome he still is even with a big bump on his head.

At the Playground

What started out as a rainy day ended up in sunshine and fun time at the playground. Carolyn and Drew met Rocco and me at the elementary school where I teach. We had the entire place to ourselves; the hour we spent there went by so fast.

Rocco is getting bigger and learning how to be a little more independent; he can now hold onto the big boy swing by himself. He still wants to get into our laps when he slides or at least hold our hands. At the playground there is a huge paved lot that gently slopes. We took Rocco's tractor so that he could ride, and boy did he! With a gentle push, he went flying down the hill. Of course I'm yelling, "Hold on tight, Rocco." At one point the little dare devil just put his hands in his lap. Carolyn and I nearly had a cow!

While we were at school we also went into the greenhouse that I take care of. Drew and Carolyn watered the plants, and Rocco and I looked at the spiky cactus. His favorite part was throwing rocks and picking up the dirt and throwing it, too. I looked at his little toddler body, so busy and into everything, and took a snapshot of it in my mind. Before I know it, he will be a big boy and starting school. I cherish every moment we have playing together for I know how quickly time passes away and little ones grow up.