dedicated to our firstborn

I'm realizing that it might be a while until Silas gets a blog post featuring just him.  I have been having some sad moments lately as I think of the fact that things will never be the same after Baby L comes along.  I have so enjoyed these 22 months with my little buddy.  What a blessing to never feel lonely or unloved...to him, I am the greatest thing in the whole world!  I have been stealing more than my share of kisses and hugs lately due to my nostalgia.  Here is what our little guy has been into lately:

• Plaque-fighting.  He loves to brush his teeth and asks for it several times a day.  I've been trying to teach him to sit down while brushing rather than wander all over the house with a toothbrush hanging out of his mouth (dangerous!), but it is tricky.  Lately, he's been roping me into his hygenic ways; he loves it when I sit on the floor next to him and brush my teeth with him.  My teeth are so clean! :)
• Favorite toys- anything that involves stacking, sorting, or fitting together somehow.  Puzzles, stacking rings, shape sorters, and blocks are big winners.  He is also obsessed with his Schleich animals and brings them to me frequently to set them up in a row and imitate their noises together.
• Books.  All day long, he is bringing us books to read.  We are trying to teach him not to be demanding and often say, "I can't read that to you right now; can you read it by yourself?", but it is so hard to resist his happy little face and his frantic signing (book book please).  His favorite books are Big Red Barn, Goodnight Moon, the Learn About God series by Carine Mackenzie, and anything by Sandra Boynton.  He also loves books with flaps or things to feel/do and has destroyed all of them.  (Megan, he loved Pat the Bunny but it bit the dust a few weeks ago...all the pages started falling out haha!)  I can't tell you how many times I have used packing tape to "fix" his books.
• Music.  He asks for it all the time.  Favorites: Praise Factory music (it's free to download!), Sandra Boynton's Philadelphia Chickens and Blue Moo albums.
• Going bye-bye.  He gets so excited to put on his hat and coat and go...doesn't matter what the destination is!
• Fruit snacks and bananas.  The loves of his life.
• Walking.  Everywhere!  He's doing so well!  He still doesn't try to stand up on his own but always pulls up on something else.  But he's getting so good at squatting to pick things up and carrying things.  He still does PT every week, and will continue to do so for several more months at least...
• Signing.  But not talking.  At least, not much.  He says probably like 8-10 words/sounds that we can decipher.  He gets speech therapy every other week, but honestly, I don't know how much it's really doing.
• Washing his hands.  Something about soap and water is just so fascinating...
• Tickling and being tickled.
• "Helping."  Silas is so entertained by me cooking or cleaning...it's hard not to be constantly tripping over him/knocking him over! 

That's our sweet boy in a nutshell!