Wednesdays With Weston

Weston is a busy little man. I think 16 1/2 months is the best age yet. He's still a cuddly little baby some times and other times he's a full fledged little boy getting into messes and mischief.  This week he has learned that the kitchen drawers open - that dish soap is not a sippy cup - that knives are sharp and should not be used as a teething toy. Now let's just hope he retains this new information! =D

Something cute that Weston has started doing is whenever Weston drops something on the floor (or sometimes throws something on the floor - seriously, this kid loves to throw things) he will pick it up and either hand it to me to throw away, or he will reach up and try to put it in the sink (I think he's seen me do it once or twice - or like a hundred times a day). He isn't quite tall enough to reach the sink, so it's actually just the ledge right by the sink. Regardless, it's adorable - and it amazes me how quickly he's caught on that the sink is where we put the food we can't/won't eat.

Things I noticed this week that Weston can now do (and probably has been doing for a while and I'm just not observant):
goes down the stairs on his own (backwards, of course)
can put the rings on his stacking ring toy all on his own
puts on the oven mits and says "ha" (hot)
knows what the words, 'walk' and 'outside' mean, and you better be ready to take leave if he hears you say those words.

His recent words are:
"Shu" - shoes
"Ha" - hot
On
Off
Out

Some phone pictures from this week:

Weston has some amazing blue eyes - especially in the sun.

Being a good little passenger in the back seat.

Cheese!!!

This week we were able to go pick some more raspberries. The original plan was for me and my sister to go pick the berries and then my mom would watch the kiddos. Well, things changed and my sister wasn't able to go, so my mom and I loaded Weston up and we all headed over to Tyler's grandparents' to pick some berries. I was really nervous to take Weston with us - he likes to destroy things and I knew that if my mom and I were busy picking berries that would leave him free to go and pull up all their plants or step on tomatoes or something else terrible.

To my surprise Weston sat peacefully in his umbrella stroller with a couple toys and a few fresh raspberries for a solid hour and a half while we picked. Occasionally he would panic a bit when he couldn't see us through the raspberry bushes, but once he could see us again he quieted right down. I was so impressed. Love that little guy!

Weston has become so imaginative and creative. I don't know how boys instinctively know, but sound effects are in full force around our house these days. Trucks, planes, and even bouncy balls all get sound effects.

Just a happy kid.

Especially when his molars aren't bothering him.

Such a goof.

This face lights up the room!

Weston loves his books. He is getting really good at turning the pages - and takes special care to not miss any pages (he used to just flip through his books really fast - often skipping several pages).

I don't know how, but somehow this night he managed to get 4 different blankets into his crib. And by the looks of it, he used them all during the night - he must take after his momma.

On Sunday the Di Bartolo's had us over for brunch and to watch the morning session of conference. Weston did really well considering it was technically during the time he takes a morning nap. I think he really liked their dog - and I was really glad they had indestructible Pergo floors cause Weston likes to throw things - like really hard. (He does have a pretty good arm... can you say football scholarship?!?! =D)

Weston getting a bit stuck under the chair... he's much better at getting out of those tight situations than he was even a few weeks ago.

So happy to be free to run around. (And check out that adorable sweater vest!! And those blonde little baby curls!!)

With daddy holding him, Weston felt brave enough to pet the puppy...

Weston is fascinated with shoes. He even says 'shoe' - well, it's actually "shu", but he means shoe. He tries to wear Tyler's shoes - and when I get his shoes out he instantly sits down and points to his feet. This past week I've noticed several times that he is even trying to get his shoes on. It's so cute to see his brow furrow as he's trying to figure out how the shoes go on.

Mommy double knots his shoe laces (he may not know how to get his shoes on yet, but he certainly knows how to get them off!!) so he was trying to get them untied.

Trying to get his shoe on... too bad it's backwards.

After a few unsuccessful attempts, he's over it and quickly gives up and is off to more important things - like throwing toys and making noise.

Weston loves the outdoors. I think he would live out there if we let him. I was trying to distract him from wanting to go outside since it was rainy and a bit chilly, but he wasn't having it. So I slipped on some sandals and a jacket and let the boy run around for a bit (my ulterior motive was hoping it would wear him out and he'd be ready for bed once we went back in).

So happy to be in his natural habitat - surrounded by dirt, mud, and rocks. Every little boys dream!

I don't know how little boys know - but Weston instinctively knew that those little round things on the ground are rocks - and they need to be picked up and thrown - as hard as possible... at the house. Boys.

(Also, this picture makes it look like it was midnight out side... it was barely 6:45pm).

Running around in the leaves. Took Weston a little bit to realize he had run out of leaves to run through... We need to take him to a park where there will be a lot more leaves to plow through cause he really enjoyed crunching them.

He kept trying to put the leaves back on the branches. How cute is that?! He'd pick up a fallen leave and then reach up as high as he could to try and put it back on. It's the same thing he does when I drop something and he tries to put it back on the counter, only he's not quite tall enough.

It's been a very fulfilling week. With conference this past weekend we were able to spend a lot of time all together this weekend since we hadn't made any outside plans. We are enjoying the cooler weather and the opportunity it gives us to take Weston on longer walks (since it isn't 100 degrees any more).

Last night as Weston laid on me, all curled up, and had fallen asleep, I couldn't help but think of how lucky I was to be his mom. Some days are harder than others and some days I'm really worn out - BUT I wouldn't trade a single moment, and I know Tyler wouldn't either. Weston is growing up faster than I could have ever imagined, and no matter how trying the moment is, I'm thankful that I get to experience it at all.

We love you Weston!! To the moon and back!