Category: Uncategorized (Page 31 of 40)

Are here!

When Dashiell was born, Chris Bennett sent the adorable sailor outfit you see in the first shot (thanks again Chris!). I wanted him to wear it for Easter, but I don’t know if it will fit him then. So at least it’s documented in this sweet portrait. It’s nice to see him in something that makes him look younger!

So all in all, these shots aren’t as good as the ones from this Fall, but I think they are still darn special.

When we re-organized the playroom at Christmas, Jeff got D a specially-sized mini “Poäng” chair at Ikea, thinking it would be a good place for Dashiell to read quietly by himself. He’s been slow to use it, being one to pace a lot between book sessions, but I think he’s got the hang of it now–at least for a page or two!

Here he is reading an old favorite, find the sheep (baaa), cow (moooo)…etc.

We had quite a few treats come our way on this otherwise dreary gray February day.

Jeff brightened my day by getting me a beautiful glass terrarium containing an “airplant.”

I have long-admired these at our local New Seasons grocery store. You wouldn’t expect this, but this Tillandsia gives off an enchanting scent.

Somebody else at our house received several cards (and brought home one for us). Here he is perusing a card from Grandma Lori & Grandpa Don.

Here is a special Valentine!

At home we’re working on more and more independent play. I’ve noticed Dash won’t sit and play with toys for very long, much less alone, but bring a broom or rag his way and he can play for quite awhile.

Here’s the proof!

As my friend Jannine once said: “Sometime’s a girl’s gotta buy retail.”

Last week, as I was preparing for Dash to have his portrait taken, I realized we were lacking matching shoes for his picture outfits. Shoes are not easy to buy second-hand (as we buy most of his clothes, that is, when we’re not wearing Otto’s hand-me-downs), so I found myself at Nordstrom’s browsing the vast array of eye-catching infant shoes. And I caved, and bought some trendy Toms, because they’re just so darn cute. They didn’t have D’s size (6 and growing), so I had to special order. They didn’t arrive in time to make it into the portrait, but at least we’ll get a few weeks out of them before his feet burst the seams…

I’ve been packing away Dashiell’s old clothes, jammies and shoes. For months I was putting the things I knew I wanted to save in a giant pile in his closet. I finally went through the pile and moved more things to the “Goodwill” pile. Still, I had lots of things to keep…probably too many, but there were things I just couldn’t part with. And then there was one item I couldn’t even bear to put away in a dark closet, so they’re sitting on my desk instead:

These fluffy wonders were knit by my Mom, and I think Dash wore them once. When they fit him, it was all I could do to simply get him dressed, much less put something special on him. I sure wish I had taken the time then.

(this is a couple months old, but too prefect to not post).

Dashiell is now stringing together 2 and 3 word phrases, and incorporating signing also. A couple weeks ago, on the way upstairs to start the bedtime routine, he said “I go…” and then did the sign for “sleep.” He recognizes when the cat is sleeping (and often tries to lay down on top of her) and I’ve also noticed in the past couple of months that he understands illustrations more as more (as opposed to photos, which are easier to comprehend). He can look at a drawn image of a sleeping animal and recognize the act of “sleep.”

We often watch the trailer for the film Chimpanzee, and Dashiell loves the bit at the very end where the baby chimp is sleeping on his poppa.

We’ve also heard: “I turn on light” (said as if 1 giant word, when reaching for light switch–still a big favorite!).

He’ll pretty much imitiate anything you say now, without necessarily knowing the meaning of the words. But he’s also got new words that he knows the meanings of, like: broom, school, blueberries, milk (surprisingly difficult to say), Grandma (he’s saying this clearer now), pig, polar bear, hide, plane, and once or twice: sky. When we say and sign “friend,” he says the name of a friend at school.

We are keeping up with signing, and Dash is practicing signing “bird.” New signs he has mastered (but sometimes lazy about) “Daddy”, “Mommy” and “milk” (milk came very late; most kids learn this one early on).

Even though he has so many vocabulary words, it still makes me smile when he points and grunts. And everyday I am amazed all over again about his level of comprehension. He has responded to commands like “throw this in the trash” for several months, but I marvel at how he understands when I say something he’s only heard maybe once, like, “Let’s go get the mail,” and he trots down the driveway. Another funny thing is that when he hears a word mentioned in another context, he related is it to his world. Last night, Jeff asked Lisa if we needed to buy tennis balls for her new sport. Dash headed into his toy room and fetched some of his own balls…

Lisa plays with me, listens to me babble and sing, plays “push the carts” 100 times a day, and hides with me in nooks and crannies. Thanks for being my big sister, Lisa!