Thankful for SO Much

It's been 4 months (minus the mini-post at 15 months that I forgot about until today). The longer I wait to post, the harder it is to get back into it. Cullen is 18 months old.

Cullen is so much fun lately. He is obsessed with footballs. I mean, completely obsessed. If he is at home, he has a football in his hands and he's throwing it. He's got quite an arm. He can catch pretty well if we throw it underhanded to him. He screams "Go SAINTS" many times a day. One morning, I heard him screaming it from his crib as he was waking up. What have we done to him? He also loves to scream touchdown, especially after one of his throws is caught by mom or dad.

He's a pretty good eater and his favorite foods are still yogurt and berries. He eats them every day. He likes his PB&J sandwiches as well.

He likes to imitate his dad and the tennis players on TV, so he swings his arm like he's hitting a forehand or a backhand while grunting. It's pretty hilarious. He still loves his baths and to 'slam dunk' the basketballs into his bathtub goal (while screaming slam dunk). And he loves reading. He favorite book right now is "Good Night NOLA".

He's prone to temper tantrums, especially if we won't let him go outside or if we make him come inside after being outside. The boy likes his outdoors...except when it's cold. The daycare told us last week, on one of the coldest days so far this year, that Cullen kept walking up to the teacher on the playground and saying 'poo poo'. Finally they decided to go change him, only to find out his diaper was completely clean. Because of his normal obsession with being outside, they decided this was his tactic to get out of the cold. Manipulative little boy :)

He's pretty shy in a situation until he gets comfortable. It doesn't take him too long to get comfortable, but until he is, he completely ignores everyone who tries to talk to him. Once he's ready, he hams it up. He can repeat almost anything we say.

He's also a big dancer. His teachers say he dances constantly. At the first sound of music, he's grooving. He did not get this from his mom.

We are so thankful to have you in our lives, Cullen! You make everyday so much fun (and a lot of work :)).

Happy Halloween

Cullen was a Tiger for Halloween. He wasn't into trick-or-treating but he loved running around outside at night.

And he loved throwing candy around the house.

We got to enjoy Halloween with Devin Britton (or 'Dev Dev' as Cullen calls him), a professional tennis player we hosted for the Boars Head Challenger Tennis Tournament. We loved having him here and Cullen loved him as well. Happy Halloween!

Cullen: Fifteen Months Old

Loves: Trucks and CARS

Words he can say and identify: Banana ("Nana"), Truck, Car, Balloon, Shoes, Cup, Dog

Cullen: Fourteen Months Old

It's been too long. My baby boy has grown up so much these past 2 months. He's a little troublemaker, getting into anything and everything he can get his hands on. He's now running, not walking, around. He still loves darting up the stairs; if we forget to put the gate at the bottom of the stairs, he's halfway up before we can turn around. He knows what he wants and he is not too happy when he doesn't get it. He points constantly to let us know what he wants and says "THAT". If "THAT" is something he shouldn't have, God help us, he throws a mini fit. He also throws a fit every time we try to put on his pajamas after a bath. He is always bruised because he's completely fearless and bonks his head a lot.

He's also a total sweetheart. He's still a big cuddler (for a few seconds at a time) and gives us hugs constantly. He also gives real kisses and blows kisses as well. And he gives high fives (when he feels like it).

He just stopped taking a bottle. Up until this week, we would give him cups of milk all day but a bottle before bed. He started rejecting the bottle at night, so now it's gone for good. He's a great eater and likes almost everything. Spaghetti, turkey, cheese, and he loves fruit...we're still working on veggies.

Favorites:
Balloons
Hats
Dogs
His animal figurines
Making the horse sound
Swimming
Tennis raquet
Chucking the tennis ball across the room (his arm is actually pretty impressive)
Reading books
Stacking rings

Words:
Mama
Dada
Shoes
Balloon (Ba'woon')
Hat
That
Dog
Cow Moooo
Kitty Cat
Good job (accompanied by clapping)

He's enjoying day care. Here is a picture of him on 'sports day'. They also have PJ day, water day, popsicle day, etc.

We had a 13 month photo shoot with Sarah Cramer. She did an amazing job. Here are some of my favorite pics from the shoot.

Cullen: First Haircut

Cullen got his first haircut on June 25th. He sat still for the 3 minutes it took. He looked very handsome and mature afterwards :)

My Little Cuddle Bug

Cullen is finally starting to cuddle! He was not at all into hugs before, but in the past week, he's started walking over to us and hugging! He lays his little head on me, wraps his arms around, and my heart melts. I don't know how long this will last, but I'm savoring each hug for now!

Bye-bye Nannies, Hello Daycare

Monday was Justine's last day to watch Cullen. She bought him a toolbox for his birthday which was super sweet. She's been with him since I returned to work last August, so we really appreciate all she's done for us the past 9 months. She was very reliable and kept Cullen safe, happy and fed.

Tuesday was Brea's last day with Cullen. She started in January when our other nanny, Kali, quit. She has been absolutely wonderful with Cullen and took him on walks and to the park daily. We'll miss them both!

Cullen went to a trial run of daycare today. It was much harder for mommy and daddy than it was for Cullen. He jumped right in and started playing with the other kids...no tears and seemed fine when we left. I called 2 hours into his day to check on him, and the director said the teachers could not believe this was his first time in a daycare. Apparently he is adjusting well and has been very easy going. It was totally chaotic when we dropped him off, which made me a little uneasy, but Andrew kept reminding me that they're professionals and that he'll be taken care of!

Cullen: One Year Old

Cullen is full on walking. He took his first steps on April 20th and has gotten better and better each day. He still stumbles a good bit, but he can walk circles around the entire house now.

We spent Easter weekend with my family in DC April 22nd to 24th. It was great to see everybody and we ate some good meals. Cullen swam in the indoor pool for the first time and absolutely LOVED it.

We enjoyed a fun crawfish boil at the Bottas' house May 7th.

We had a really fun visit with Mimi and Pampaw May 4th to 8th. 

Besides walking, Cullen is eating pretty much all foods. He still loves his cheese and turkey the best. And cake. He is now drinking out of his straw cup which he really prefers to his sippy cup. He points a lot and claps constantly, especially if we say 'good job'. He's such a big boy! We love you so much Mr. Cullen Benjamin!