Getting Up to Speed

Long time, no post. Even though we took a six-month hiatus from blogging, life has been rolling along. Otis is now 22 months old. He is always on the go, and always wants to be outside running! He loves cars, trucks, trains, tractors, and heavy duty machinery. And he loves hats. And cats. And dirt. And he is very passionate about blueberries. If he thinks something is cool, he says so. He's saying a lot more words now, though many of them are in Otis's secret language that only his dad and I can understand. For example, the color green is "ka-ka." Red is "EHH." Black is "ba-KIE."

There is no way I am going to try to chronicle everything that has happened since the last blog post, but here's a slideshow of a few highlights:



Also, Otis is going to be a big brother in December!

Halloween Fun

We had a picture perfect Halloween this year. Here are some favorite shots of the festivities. You can see all of them at http://tootlefam.shutterfly.com.

Pumpkin carving after church. At first Otis wasn't sure about the "guts"...

...but soon he became very interested in stirring the pumpkin guts and removing and replacing the lid. He loves rhyme right now, so we had a lot of fun saying "Scoop the goop!"

In fact, that's probably how we got this smile out of Otis a little later.

After pumpkin carving, we headed to Aunt Carie's house for Halloween fun with the cousins. Otis played with cousins, looked cute, and did not take a nap.

Later that day (still without nap), Otis kept his skeleton hat on for exactly long enough to snap this picture.

Jack O'Lanterns are funny!

Pre-trick-or-treat silliness over chili and drinks at the Krauter house.

Trick-or-treat with sweet neighbor Mrs. Whiteside.

Otis can carry his pail and walk like a big boy. He's basically grown up.

Otis with cute neighbors Dorothy and Greg.

A connoisseur of fine literature.

Going, going, going!

Quite a lot has changed for Otis and our family since our last post. Otis has been walking (and running) for several weeks now, and he's going from the moment he wakes up until he ends his day by escaping the bathroom after his bath and taking a few naked laps around the house. Otis is interested in everything these days. His love of cats and dogs has deepened, and now he is equally enthralled by trucks and tractors. He loves to read and still brings us book after book to read to him. He is getting better at solo play, which is nice for times when we need to unload the dishwasher or use the bathroom. Otis is saying a handful of words now, or at least making consistent attempts. He says dada, mama, dog, ball, shoes, down, truck, baa (for the sound a sheep makes), moo (for the sound a cow makes). He signs "more" and "all done" at mealtime. He recognizes most common animals and objects and will point to them correctly in books when we quiz him. He also is learning his body parts and can follow basic commands like "Rub your tummy!" or "Pat your head!" Particularly cute is his attempt to flex his muscles. Even though he's a busy, busy boy, he's still lovey toward his mom and dad. He gives lots of kisses, and while I'm rocking him before his naps he scoots down, lifts my shirt, lays his head right on my belly, and falls asleep within a minute.

He's just an all-around sweetcuteloveysmartboy. Steve and I still sit around at night and talk about how much we love him and can't believe he's ours. (This will probably be hilarous when the "terrible twos" set in!)

I made the switch to being a full-time mama when I quit my job at Sequoia Riverlands Trust at the end of July. I was nervous about the decision, but it has been wonderful for all three of us. I'm still working part-time from home on certain projects when they come up--now I'm writing and designing the fall newsletter.

There are newly-uploaded photos at our photo site, http://tootlefam.shutterfly.com.

First haircut at Mom's Salon


The look of the season: shades and slobber.


A visit to the pumpkin patch this morning.

Otis's First Year (You will cry)

11 Months

My baby boy is already 11 months old, and it seems like he is doing new things every day. Here's a quick update: A late teether, he had no teeth until Mother's Day, until two popped through. He now has five and is working on three more. Otis is getting ready to take his first steps. He pulls up on everything, and uses objects like his highchair, a stool, and a laundry hamper to push in front of himself as he walks around the house. (We should get him a real push toy, I guess!) When he gets up the courage, he can stand by himself for a second or two before either slowly and deliberately squatting down or losing his balance and plopping onto his rear. Otis is a big talker now. He babbles all the time and even pretends to read his books to himself. He can say dada, makes a throaty "kkkkkkkk" sound when he sees our cats, and can also say dog. Another sound he often makes is "O-toe", which makes us wonder if he's trying to say his own name. But cutest of all is his fake laugh. He will babble away, and every once in a while add an "aaaahhhh-hahahaha" and then go on babbling. Otis has figured out how to turn on the CD player and stands up, holding onto the shelf, and bounces up and down to the beat. Besides dancing up a storm, Otis's other favorite past time is reading. He can keep himself happily entertained by looking through his books by himself for several minutes, but he also loves being read to. I would guess that we spend a good two hours a day reading to our boy. This week he has started to bring books to us so we'll read them.

We just added pictures to the photo site, http://tootlefam.shutterfly.com. They include Otis's first swim, playtime around the house, and our anniversary/Father's Day trip to the coast. Enjoy!

9 Months

Otis turned 9 months old yesterday, and to celebrate, he learned how to give kisses. I can now say "Otis! Kisses for mama" and he will look at me, open his mouth wide, and press his drooly little mouth on my lips. Then, he figured out how to pull himself up on things. While I was running an errand tonight, he showed Steve how he could pull up on the TV stand, the ottoman, the end table and the couch. It's on! Yikes!

This blog post is so overdue that I'm not sure what else to say. Some biggies: Otis learned how to crawl, celebrated his first Easter, journeyed to Ohio, and took his first trip to the zoo. He is still toothless. For the record, he didn't do any sleeping through the night.

As I write this, photos are uploading to our shutterfly site (http://tootlefam.shutterfly.com) of months seven and eight. I hope the photos will do a good job of keeping you up-to-date on the life of Otis.

Here are some recent favorites:

Otis loves the cats, but hasn't yet learned to pet gently. Here he is tormenting the sweet and patient Sherman kitty on one of this spring's first warm days.

Otis liked his first Easter basket, especially when he figured out there were snacks inside the eggs!

Otis and Grandma Bein putting their heads together.


Otis found a comfortable spot. He loves his Uncle Wade.

Hmm, I wonder if anyone loves Otis?

Here is Otis on his way home from the farmer's market last Saturday morning.

I'm at the park!! Yay!