Do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?

Even though Evan's vocabulary isn't that big, I am amazed at how much he understands. I can ask or tell him to do about anything and he does it. This may not seem like a big deal to most people, but for me watching my little baby grow into a little boy it just blows me away!
For instance, last night I asked him if he could put his dish in the dishwasher and throw away a napkin (note the two different tasks here) and watched in bewilderment as he walked over to the dishwasher, set the napkin down, put his cup in the upper rack (YES, he even put it in the right rack), shut the dishwasher door, and then picked up his napkin and walked over to the trash to throw it away. I realized I did indeed ask him to do this, but the fact that he comprehended everything I said and did it in the right order and everything just blew me away.
I've also found that Evan actually listens better if I ask him to do something or task him with a chore. He wants to help, even if it means simple chores take that much longer (which they often do), and that in itself leaves me a little baffled. I'm glad he wants to help and to see his cute little peanut head as he is cleaning up his toys or trying to clear or set the dinner table is a total cuteness overload that I never expected. For some reason I thought the unwillingness to help that you often hear about with pre-teen and teenage kids started at a very young age, but boy was I wrong. Don't get me wrong, there are times that I ask Evan to help clean up or to do something and he won't but for the most part he's momma's little helper and the cutest one I've ever seen at that!

The UPs and downs of living with a toddler

As any mom can contest too, having a toddler in the house means never having a dull moment. Each day is different than the last and you never know what will make your toddler smile or rage into a full blown temper tantrum. One day they will love having fruit and cheese for a snack and the next they will act like you have ended their life by even offering it to them. I must say it has been a whirlwind of excitement; tears, laughter, frustration, and love having Evan turn from a baby to a toddler.
For the most part Evan is very laid back and has been since he's been a baby. He'll usually go with the flow as long as John or I are around, and generally likes trying new things. Some of my fondest memories or experiences with Evan come from the simple things in life. For example, if I need to see what pure joy looks like all I have to do is take Evan to the park. He lives and breathes for the park it seems like. We took our yearly family bonding trip to Broken Bow a week ago and visited not one, not two, but four parks in one day. At the last park as Evan was running from the slide to the stairs to slide down the slide for the 50th time, he looked at me with a huge grin on his face and squealed a shout for joy that I will never forget and will bring a smile to my face every time I replay it back in my head. His love for being outdoors and playgrounds has taken me back to my childhood several times.
Evan also has a big heart and loves to love. I can't count the number of times he's stopped playing or doing something to get up and give me a hug or kiss for no reason at all. And every time he does that my heart skips a beat. It's those types of moments that make being a mom the most rewarding thing in the world.
As with every up, there is always a downside. By downside I mean the temper tantrums that come with being a toddler, and wanting to figure out the world your way. When Evan has his temper tantrums, time almost seems like it stands still and they go on forever. Half the time I have no idea what he is so upset about, and since you can't talk any logic into a toddler in the throes of a tantrum I wind up standing there staring at him in bewilderment or putting him in time out until he can calm down and show me what he's so upset about. The other downside to having a very opinionated 21 month old is when it comes to food. I've mentioned it before, but Evan is the pickiest eater I've ever known. He turns his nose up to everything from mashed potatoes to mac and cheese to Jell-O. This has led to many power struggles in our house and usually ends in me giving in and making him pizza, hot dogs, or grilled cheese. And before you say anything, yes, I am aware that none of those things are very nutritional. I have been saved by the fact that Evan loves fruit and I can trick him into eating pureed vegetables, so he's at least getting some of his nutrition that way.
Having a boy in the house also means unlimited amounts of energy that I somehow have to figure out how to burn during the day. It also means that there is no rest for the weary on days that I'm feeling absolutely exhausted. All I can say is thank goodness I live in Texas where the weather is descent 10 months out of the year. I can't imagine living in Chicago again and dealing with the grueling winter months with Evan. Being outdoors is my life saver most days.
While most days I do love being a mom and all its ups and downs, there are days that I wish I could escape from the madness. For those days I'm thankful I have John, who seems to take everything in stride and understands when I need some "me time" away from it all. And for the other days that I can't escape I just have to keep telling myself to take it all in stride and remind myself of one of my favorite country songs by Tracy Adkins, "Your Gonna Miss This" which says:

Your gonna miss this
Your gonna want this back
Your gonna wish these days
Hadn't gone by so fast

These are some good times
So take a good look around
You may not know it now
But your gonna miss this

Every time I see this picture I can hear Evan's squeel of joy!

Learnign to swing like a big boy

Let the Merriment Begin!

Now that the holidays have come and gone, I've had a chance to sit back and reflect on them and I can't seem to wipe this goofy smile off of my face! Why, you might ask? For some reason the holidays seemed to hold a little bit more magic this year and were a bit merrier than normal. Is merrier a word? Heck if I know, but if it isn't I just made it one!

I think one of the main reasons the holidays were so great was Evan's reaction and involvement with them. He was more cognizant of what was going on and loved every moment, experience, and wonder that came with them. We would go out driving looking at Christmas lights at least once a week and he would point at the lights and say "more!" There is a house a couple streets down from me that really goes all out with Christmas lights and even puts them to music. We went by there at least 4 times so he could watch the lights dance to music and I would watch him and his eyes light up. In fact, I got more enjoyment watching him enjoy the lights then watching them myself. He would bounce up and down in his seat and try to sing along to the Christmas songs and it warmed my heart.
And speaking of Christmas songs, he LOVED them! One of the rules I have at Christmas time is that whenever I'm doing anything Christmassy (again another word I'm sure I made up) I put on Christmas carols to get everyone in the Christmas spirit. Putting up the tree, making sugar cookies, wrapping presents, sending out Christmas cards whatever it may be Christmas carols have to be on. Evan would dance around the living room and sing in his own gibberish language and I just loved it! I even started putting on Christmas music at night just to see him do this.
When Christmas morning finally rolled around and he got up, the way his eyes lit up when he saw the presents under the tree was fantastic! And he was actually into opening gifts this year. Although he didn't quite get the concept that after you open one present you have more to open. He wanted to play with the gift he just opened so we had to bribe him with the newly opened gift to get him to open another.
I guess what it comes down to is I got to be a kid again myself and see Christmas through a child's eyes for the first time. I loved that view and that peek into childhood again. I also loved seeing Evan so happy which in turn made me happy.
And as New Year's came around it made me stop and thank the man upstairs for all that he has blessed me with this past year and number one on that list was my family, followed by friends. We were lucky to celebrate New Year's with our closest friends and couldn't help getting a warm feeling inside that I've only read about in books.
I can't wait to see what 2012 brings and I'm thankful for what 2011 left me with. Love, merriment, and contentment!

Evan and I getting ready to go into the ICE exhibit at the Gaylord. Another Christmas tradition we started years ago, that was even better this year with Evan.

You can see in this pic that we bribed him to open the soccer ball with his drawing board

Evan's first Christmas gift he wanted to open