Well, I'll start by apologizing for being so late with this month's update, but we have been super busy doing lots of fun stuff! We have been doing as many outdoor activities as possible to take advantage of the beautiful weather. In October, we went to Barnhill Farms Corn Maze in Loxely. Tristan had a great time running around the hay maze, playing in the corn, and going on a hay ride. He also rode in the cow train, but I ended up riding with him because I was afraid that he was going to jump out. We got a little lost in the corn maze, but eventually found our way out. Tristan also like playing with the pumpkins and picked one out for us to bring home. We went to the Jackson County Fair with my Mom and Grandmother. Tristan had a blast looking at all the animals and walking around. The last weekend in October, Tristan and I went to Gulf Shores for lunch with a few of my coworkers and the family of one of our NICU graduates. Kind of hard to believe it was 80 degrees outside in October! It was our first beach trip of the year and Tristan wasn't too fond of the waves, but he loved splashing in the little puddles of water in the sand. For Halloween, Tristan was Diego, one of his favorite Nick Jr. characters. I ended up making his vest, but I think it turned out pretty good, and a lot of the kids recognized who he was. Instead of Trick or Treating, we went to the Fall Festival at Fairhope Baptist Church, and had a great time. It took a little bit for Tristan to warm up to the games. At first he would cheer and clap for the other kids, but didn't want to play himself. But when he figured out that he got candy for playing, he didn't want to stop! Justin and Tristan had a fun boy's day and went to see the Blue Angels in Pensacola. Tristan has a slight obsession with airplanes, so Justin thought he would enjoy the Blue Angels, and he was right. Tristan loved all of it except for when the planes would do nose dives. Then he would say "Come on Daddy, let's go!" We have also been going to the park as much as possible, and Tristan loves it! There must be a small airport somewhere near the park, because we usually spend at least half of our time there looking at the airplanes flying above us. That kid must have some good hearing because he can pick out the sound of an airplane or helicopter even from inside the house.
At Tristan's two year checkup, he weighed 30 pounds and was three feet tall, which is the 80th percentile. I was used to him being on the small side, so this shocked me a little. I guess I can quit worrying so much about him eating enough! Otherwise the doctor said he checked out just perfect. He only had to get one shot, luckily. He also got the flu vaccine, but it was the kind they squirt up your nose. He did really good and sniffed it up. And luckily this year he did not get the flu from his well checkup! Tristan has been doing much better with getting his hair cut lately. We went right before his birthday party, and he did awesome. He sat in the chair all by himself and didn't fuss at all. He didn't even seem to mind the trimmer. This last time, he insisted on sitting in my lap, but otherwise did great. As far as eating goes, he is doing better about trying new things and realizing that they actually are good. He's doing a little better about eating big boy veggies, especially if they are in something like a casserole. The other night he ate his weight in corn. I thought Justin was crazy for even putting it on his plate. I didn't even realize that he had eaten all of his until he started eating mine off of my plate. We may end up having to rearrange the refrigerator because Tristan can open it and open the drawer that has all of his food in it. And when he decides that there is something that he wants, he will go and get it and also get a spoon. Its mostly just yogurt, cheese, and applesauce, but he doesn't need ten a day!
About a month ago, we took the front off of Tristan's bed and put a safety rail up to make it into a toddler bed. There is about a foot at the end that he can get in and out himself. The reason we did it was to get him ready for a big bed because Anna Kate will be getting his crib, but we were terrified that we were going to have a huge battle on our hands. Lucky for us, we couldn't have been more wrong. He has done way better than could be expected, and so far has not gotten out of bed without one of us coming in his room to get him up. Sometimes he wakes up a little earlier than I want to, so he will lay in bed and look at books and talk to himself for about 15 minutes or so until I come into his room. Then he hops out of bed and runs over and gives me a huge hug. There have even been a few times when he never falls asleep at nap, but he doesn't get out of bed. I hope it stays this way, and I hope transitioning into a twin size bed goes just as smoothly!
I know every mom thinks that their kid is the cutest and smartest, and that's exactly the way I feel about Tristan! Tristan knows his left from his right, which has become convenient at bath time. Now he is quite proud to hand me the correct appendage instead of fighting me to wash him off. He also know the meaning of the colors on the traffic lights and he has become quite the backseat driver. He can sing the alphabet perfectly, but never on request. He will sing along with you, but you just have to be lucky enough to catch him singing it by himself. He can sing along with quite few songs, too. We rented Toy Story 3 when it came out and he loved it, so then we rented Toy Story 2. He has seen it more times than I would like to admit, and will recite some of the lines with the characters. He especially likes the part where the puppy licks Woody and then at the end during the credits when it shows the Prospector in the box. If you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about.
Tristan loves to color at home and they also do a lot of artwork at school, which is great because it helps him develop his fine motor skills. I especially like the hand and footprint art. One of his projects was his name spelled out in cheerios. I had to hang it high on the fridge though, because he kept picking the cheerios off and eating them! Tristan is finally starting to acknowledge that there is a baby in Mommy's tummy and if you ask him her name, it sounds like "Manna." Quite adorable. The potty training would probably be making more progress if I would actually push it a little more. He will usually tell me after the fact if his diaper is wet or dirty, and unfortunately for me, he has gotten picky about who changes his dirty diaper. Justin usually talks him into saying that I have to change it. The other night after bath when he was about to get dressed for bed, he told me that he had to go pee, so we ran to the bathroom. He refused to sit on his little seat and ended up standing on the seat and squatting down. But to my surprise, he actually went! He is obviously showing interest, so we really need to start pushing it more.
playing in the hay maze
picking out a pumpkin
checking out the pretty flowers
having fun on the hay ride with Daddy
getting lost in the corn maze
cow train
Mommy and Diego
going fishing
playing more games
lunch at the beach
playing in the water
splashing in the puddles
fun in the sun
riding the fire truck at Toy's R Us
big boy slide
at the fair
petting a cow
petting a bunny
he loves riding his bike
checking out the airplanes
youngest crew member
little monkey
peek-a-boo!
Tristan and Mommy on the slide
left and right
watching Toy Story 2
such a tiny little pig :)
feeding chestnuts to Roxy
chasing spike around with a water bottle
Farmer Tristan
petting a bunny
petting some more animals
at the park (he picked out his clothes that day)
nothing like a cold capri sun after a hot day on the playground
Tristan and Mommy
cutie pie!
"Hmmm, are those presents for me?"
