23 months, the month before 2

How did this happen? How did Eddie go from a baby to almost 2 years old? It's one of those rehtorical questions, but one I'm asking almost daily.

Ed is starting to eat at his little table--I kind of use it as a treat and he usually does quite well. Here he did a great job at b-fast, even barely spilling a drop as he drank from his cereal bowl in his glow-in-the-dark dino PJs. They come in all different sizes, but I think stop short before my size.

Auntie M and Uncle K gave Eddie some pots and pans for xmas, and now I'm going to have to get him some fake food. He likes putting his crackers in the pots and pans and eating from them--good habits like eating straight from the pan have to be cultivated early in life lest he waits until college.

This is our TiVo remote. Den came in from getting Ed's meds together to find Ed as you see him.

Below, we got our first accumulating snow of the season on Sun. By the end, we had maybe 1.5 inches and then some freezing rain on top of that. Den swears we have had flurries in the last month or so, but this was the first time I'd noticed anything white. This was also the first time since last year (not in Ed's memory banks) that Ed had seen snow.

At first he didn't want to go out, then he decided if he had his favorite outdoor balls it would be okay, and finally, he cried big crocodille tears when Den brought him in. I think they would have stayed out longer if Den had been wearing more than a thin pair of running shorts and a fleece.

Ed got his first 2 cups of hot chocolate, one after each snowy outdoor adventure--I think I've created a monster. He tilts his head back and in less time than I am able to make my own cup is able to drain the cup and ask for more. I just give him a half-cup of Ovaltine each time, slightly heated. He watches me drink hot tea and chocolate and always wants to drink from my cup. I tell him its hot, but occassionally he is so persistent I let him touch the mug and then put it to his lips. Recently that hasn't stopped his interest.

Note: He does have snow boots, but they don't seem to fit--or be a good design for a toddler--the velcro keeps coming undone--and they are Land's End. They are about his size, so I don't quite understand. I think I need to leave the snowboots and hat and glove purchases to g'ma Wisc.--I think she's got a little more experience than I in preparing kids for wintry environs.

Den and I have been marveling lately at how much Eddie is learning. It is impossible to keep track, as I have in the past of all the new things he learns each day. It used to be that it would take days or weeks of working on something before it was mastered/accomplished--like sitting up or lifting his head. He is also experiecing so many 'firsts' I can't keep up with that either.

It's fun to watch and patriciapte in his learning. As Den said the other day, he now knows more words than we could count--many of them recognizable to anyone in earshot. Next time you talk to him, ask him to say 'appitizer'--I guarentee you'll chuckle. He has added the 'happy birthday' song to his songlist and in general seems to be thriving. I'll be interested in what the doctor says next month at his next check up.