our big boy.

before i forget...stetson has decided he's ready to start using the potty...now, i seriously wasn't planning on even thinking about potty training until maybe next spring when he turns 3...however, apparently, he is ready now. for months he has been letting me know when he goes in his diaper...he would just make eye contact with me and pat the front of his diaper...even occasionally saying tee-tee or poop. and then for the past month or so he has been pulling on his diaper alot acting like it bothers him. and then last weekend there were a couple of days that every time he wet his diaper in the least, he would pull on it, say "biper" and want a new one....even yelling "biper" before we can get to him when he wakes up in the morning. so after a couple of conversations with some of my clients who have done this several times, they all informed me that he is most definitely ready. tuesday night after i got home from work and he was about to go to bed, i asked him if wanted to sit on the potty and he was more than happy to...and after about 15 minutes of sitting, he tee-teed...lots of clapping and an m&m. the next night after i got home from work, same thing but it happened a lot faster...he only sat there for a few minutes. then yesterday when i was here all day with him, i sat him on the potty a couple of times and nothing happened. but before his nap i took him to the potty again and, lo and behold, he tee-teed AND pooped!! what???!!! LOTS AND LOTS of clapping and 2 m&ms. so far today, he has tee-teed once on the potty (and immediately starting saying yay and clapping himself)....but i am in shock...because i've been coming up with a plan to start officially potty training in a couple of weeks...when we can be at home for a good week and just put him in underwear, take him to the potty all day, etc....i just can't believe he's done any of this without much effort on my part. i have to admit, i'm a little scared. i keep having visions of him soaking everything everywhere we go. but maybe it won't be as bad as i'm picturing. he seems to be catching on pretty quickly and is definitely encouraged when m&ms are in sight. nevertheless, this has been a monumental week at the duke household. here goes nothing...

2 years old!

wow...where to begin...stetson turned 2 a few weeks ago...may 27th to be exact...and it seems that he is blossoming overnight...everyday there's a new word...a couple of weeks ago, he could just all of the sudden name 9 colors(!!!)...it's been amazing to watch...he had his 2 year well-check last week...he's doing great...doing everything he's supposed to...he had grown over 4 inches in the last 6 months...35 1/4 inches (75th percentile) and 25 lbs, 8 1/2 oz (still 10-25th percentile)...we've got a little string bean on our hands...i had to get him new shoes last week...every 3 months rolls around right regular...he's wearing size 6 now...he's just turning more and more into a little boy and not a baby...and of course, because he's talking more now, the communication makes a lot of things a lot easier...for instance, if i'm trying to figure out what he will eat for a meal (eating has been our struggle...he's a bit picky to say the least...he won't even eat a ritz bitz if the crackers aren't lined up perfectly) and i name different foods, he will let me know which one he wants...this has been most helpful so that i'm not constantly making him food he won't eat....but since he is off whole milk now, his appetite has increased dramatically...he's still not a big fan of anything red, yellow, or orange...(although he has eaten a few strawberries in the last couple of months and he will drink orange juice)...but he will eat things that are green...so some of his current faves are cucumber, green bell pepper, celery, green beans, black beans, RICE---#1 fave, chicken, cheese (just tried orange cheese for the first time this week), yogurt, toast, peanut butter sandwich....and he's starting to try more things, which is wonderful...he is finally not afraid of balloons anymore, but he is now obsessed with wanting them when he sees them...thankfully the grocery store (& chick-fil-a) gives them away for free...he still LOVES to be outside--and we have the mosquito bites to prove it!...he loves to eat breakfast on the screened porch (pursh) and rock in the rocking chairs out there...he still loves his legos...he plays with them every day...best $15 i think we ever spent...he got a lot of toys for his birthday so i've been trying to go through and make room for his new things...he actually ate 2 bites of birthday cake (last year he gagged when he tasted it) but had to have a fork...he doesn't like his hands to be sticky...we just had a little party at our house...he seemed pretty oblivious that it was for him...he was just happy to be carrying around balloons...this has been a crazy month for our little family...james has been traveling for almost a month...he left may 22nd and will be home june 17th...this has been quite a stretch for us...we're down to the last few days and i am ready to have him back in our everyday life...stetson has changed so much since he left...i can't wait to have him home so he can hear all the new words...i have had a lot of help from family while he's been away (shout-out to mama, dan & marti, aunt holly, and sunni & kate for all their help)...it has been great to have help for all the days i have had to work...the summer is just going by so fast and i know it will be september before we know it and he'll be going to his little school 2 days a week...but i think he is definitely ready...he is very interested in playing with other kids now and i'm sure he's gonna love it....for now, i'm trying to enjoy every moment i have with him.

time keeps passing.

too much catching up to do....i keep putting this off 'til i can get the photos on here but i'm gonna forget how fast stetson is changing. he will be 2 next month...can't believe it! he is still such a joy...such a fun age...unfortunately coincides with meltdowns. he is trying to say new words every day. it's so weird and awesome when they all of the sudden say a word you can understand. he sings ALOT. mainly twinkle, twinkle. he is a busy little bee to say the least. loves to play outside. loves to play with his legos...he's getting really good at building things. starting to get into coloring...he holds a crayon like an adult holds a pen and knows how to hold the paper so it won't move when he's scribbling. no more high chair. he wants to sit at the table like a big boy. no more laying down to drink his milk before naptime and bedtime...is getting really interested in books...he picks one or two out to read before bed. he no longer cries when we leave him in the nursery or with babysitters (there was a 3 or 4 month span where it was terrible). he gets bored more often at home...some mornings even while eating breakfast he starts saying "bye bye". but last spring/summer/fall he wasn't walking so we couldn't really go to parks and whatnot. looking forward to letting him run wild and play this year. we also go to discovery place on a regular basis to let him play in the "kidscience" room...he absolutely loves it! another cute moment...his easter basket is a horse and when he saw it easter morning, he kissed it on the nose! so precious! he loved getting a piece of candy out of each egg. he is so sweet, precious, funny, stubborn, strong-willed, busy, and delightful. it still rips my heart out every time i have to be away from him. we lost our 2nd little one 6 weeks ago and it helped my heart so much to have stetson around. it's hard not to be happy when you're with him (that is, unless he's pitching a fit). hoping for another little one to come our way soon.

winter wonderland.

it started snowing yesterday afternoon, so this is what we woke up to today. i love it! i always hope we'll see snow at least once a winter. and charlotte basically shuts down so everyone gets to stay home and enjoy it. (i was supposed to work today.) stetson, of course, LOVED going outside and pitched quite a fit when we had to come in...but it was freezing out there and his poor little cheeks were getting redder by the minute.

big brother.

things are getting interesting around here....stetson has reached a whole new level of getting into everything. we have been amazed. and now we must baby proof the kitchen cabinets. all this time and he never even tried to open any cabinets or drawers. not so much anymore. his favorite cabinet, of course, is the one with all the cleaning supplies. he loves those spray bottles. and can only spray it on himself. (which he did with anti-bacterial counter spray the other day when james was home with him...luckily it was all on his shirt and not his face or mouth....we have since turned the nozzles to "off".) and today i tied the cabinet doors together with a scarf.

this is only the beginning, i know...it should make for an interesting year...toddlerhood, potty training (at some point), mother's morning out (in the fall), and another baby in september. all of this is exciting/overwhelming.

the adorable culprit (excuse the runny nose)

the loves of my life.

little gentleman.

we went to amelie's (a really cute and delish bakery) on monday with james' parents and friend mark. a little post birthday lunch. (james' bday was sunday) stetson was really good and loved sitting in this chair-it spinned around.

christmas.

he just figured out he can blink voluntarily & he was super happy about getting this little car!

thanks mimi & big daddy!

we got him this little tent...he loves it! he stayed in it all christmas morning...he wasn't interested in anything else so i had to open the rest of his gifts and hand them to him. he goes in the tent and says please for you to close the doors.

cutie pie

we tried to not go overboard with presents but between us and all of our family he was very blessed! he got his little cozy coupe car, the tent, a little armchair that has cowboys on it, books, a banjo, a stacking tree, a bowling set, clothes, legos, and more. needless to say, we had to clean out his room and pack up all the baby things he doesn't need or play with anymore to make room.

more photos.

daddy's first album is here!

at a chuckecheese bday party...too busy to look up!

eating chicken nuggets with a fork!

daddy's laundry helper

just chillin' with a snack & tv

the last couple of months in photos.

playing in the kitchen is one of his favorite things

my two handsome fellas

at the doctor

hectic holidays.

the holidays were crazy to say the least. lots of work, driving, family, & friends. i worked way more than usual because james had the whole month off so he could be home with stetson. and december is the busiest month of the year at the salon. so james was mr. mom for the month of december and i missed being with my boys and being at home. hence the lack of blogging.

stetson started officially walking the week after thanksgiving (right at 18 months---i think he must've known his doctor appt was coming up & i was getting nervous!) his 18 month check-up went well...i think he's figured out the nurse is the one who gives the shots because he was still scared of her but not the doctor this time. dr. dorsey was happy with his progress (walking!) and said everything looks great. his weight percentile was between the 10th & 25th so i was glad to see it go up a little. he weighs 23 lbs 1 oz. he is still talking alot (mainly babbling) but his words have slowed down a little bit since he started walking. he is eating with a fork and spoon sometimes (the sight of this made me want to cry as i realized he is officially a toddler and not a baby). it's still a novelty to us to see him walking around. and it has brought on a whole new intolerance to the stroller. he wants to walk everywhere now in public but doesn't want you to hold his hand or guide him. he screams in protest. so i have resorted to the occasional m&m while he's in the stroller to keep him happy while he's in there. christmas shopping with him was all but fun and relaxing. he was acting so crazy the day we went to the mall to take a photo with santa that we decided to skip it. maybe next year.

aside from his momentary acts of independence, he is still so good and sweet most of the time. still a daddy's boy all the way. still LOVES music and dances to every kind of sound. he has started singing, too, and it will break your heart. it's so precious. he's starting to be able to identify more body parts, soft & hard textures, and will act like he's fixing his hair. we've been working on asking for help instead of getting frustrated when he can't get something to work like he wants it to...so we now hear "beebee" (please) ALL the time. but i'd rather hear that than screaming.

so the holidays were good...but every year i wish i could slow everything down enough to really enjoy it all. i so wanted a day at home in my pj's to bake christmas cookies and feel festive. but there's always next year i guess. and next christmas stetson will probably be able to help me make cookies so that will be more fun anyway.