Bennett--21 Months (May 7-June 6)

Silence is Golden!  Well, not at our house anymore!  You are a talking machine—and most of it is actually something we can understand….if we pay attention!

Your vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds.  You will repeat almost anything if we ask (depending on your mood of course!) and we’re definitely hearing more 2-3 word phrases!  This is so exciting because just a few months ago we were on the edge of getting worried about your speech.  From what you’re showing us now though, I think our problem will be the lack of silence!  I love listening to how sweet your voice sounds and can’t wait to hear it more and more.  I’ve got to remember to take some videos so you can hear your tiny self later on down the road!

New words/phrases:  light, yeah (we miss the famous “Yessss”), right there, that one, the letters n and t (working on the letters in your name!), No mama, No dada, Thank you mama, Thank you dada, he’s crying (pointing to Riley), huh?  I know there are more, but I’ve forgotten!

You love trying to hold Riley’s bottle for him and will sometimes do it without us asking while we’re just doing something else.  You honestly love your brother and enjoy having him sit with you in any chair as well as lie beside him on the floor, saying Night, night.

I feed!

With your new turtle friend that lived in our yard for a while--you LOVED throwing him in the pool!

You started swimming lessons this month.  They’re more infant survival lessons where you work on going under water, closing your mouth (our biggest problem!), holding your breath, kicking, and floating on your back (the part you hate most!).  It’s so important that we do this with you since we have a pool and you love the water.  You’ve been a little more afraid of it lately, but I think it’s because you’re learning what to do and sometimes you’d just rather play and splash—or throw things in!  We’re taking you to Texas Swim Academy and we really love the way they work with you.  You do love Miss Amelia, your teacher!

You are becoming quite the expert at using your eyes to do things!  You certainly know how to give us sneaky looks, sly looks, etc—and the problem is that it’s just too cute!  The other problem is that I probably taught you!  Oh well…look like your daddy, act like me!  You’re such a ham and truly enjoy laughing, trying out new ways to use a toy, etc. One of your teachers said it best:  "Bennett is a rule breaker, but he's sneaky about how he does it.  If you tell him to not touch something with his finger, he'll touch it with his toe!"  That sums it up perfectly!

"Breaking a rule" by not grabbing anything in the fridge...but simply refusing to get out!

• Cars are one of your favorite toys right now.  Well, anything with wheels really!  
• You love driving around town because we see SO MANY diggers!  I try to call out their real names, but you insist they’re all just diggers!

Favorite spot to watch Thomas!