William

Our little boy is growing up so much.  He is my big cuddler, with a quick, easy smile that melts my heart.  He brings such joy to our family that I can't even describe it.  For example, today at breakfast he was just giggling away while he ate his muffin.  He would bring the muffin to his mouth, kiss it, then beam at me with his big toothy grin and start to laugh.  I couldn't help but laugh along with him.  He probably understands Spanish just as well as English, and will give you the biggest kiss on the cheek when you say "Besito" (little kiss).  He also says "Afuera!" (outside) all day long while pointing at the window.  He can be quite opinionated at times and will whine loudly if you don't do what he wants (like changing his diaper first thing in the morning instead of feeding him right away).  His whining drives David crazy, but for some reason I have a soft spot in my heart for my little baby boy, so he gets away with a lot.  His favorite activities are playing ball, taking things out and putting things into containers, reading his dinosaur book (thanks Uncle Michael!) and his construction books, and playing in the sandbox.  He crawls quite quickly, but loves to walk holding on to your hand or the furniture.  He has taken a few steps but usually just plops down on the floor and cries if you let go of his hand.  However, even though he can't quite walk, he loves to climb!  He will race up the stairs (which scares me) or the steps at the playground.  He loves to climb on his stroller and one day I found him dangling from the handle bar crying out for help.  How does my nonwalker climb up there?

We recently found out that William has a milk intolerance.  For about a month, William had diarrhea and his eczema was much much worse.  This happen to coincide with when we were starting to switch over to cow's milk.  So the pediatrician recommended cutting out milk from his diet.  Within a week, William's diapers were back to normal and his eczema was nearly gone.  First went whole milk, and now we have had to also cut out cheese.  It is quite hard finding food to prepare for the family since cheese is a staple in Eliana's diet.  Almost all food is better accepted by her if it is covered in a layer of cheese.  I have offered William almond milk, which he is starting to like better.  Hopefully this is something he will grow out of.

Here are some pictures of my little boy from this summer.

Visiting my friend Morgan with her daughter Caroline.  While we were playing outside a little lost kitten wandered over to play.  The kids all loved her!  William was much more interested in her than this picture shows.  Don't worry, Morgan found a home for the lost kitty a couple of days later.

Crawling around the splash pad in Powell.

We got tired of the splash pad and had a little picnic in the grass.  Eliana and her friends rad around the field playing with sticks and leaves.  And William climbed up and down this hill.  See, isn't he crazy?  Why does he do this but not walk??

Eating cream of wheat.  I don't know why I find high chair picture so adorable, but I probably have a million in my phone of William eating an assortment of foods.

So much for eating the food...

Playing on the tractor at my grandparents farm.  Look at those overalls!  The cuteness!