17 Months Old

Simon is 17 months old, how is that possible? He is such a little person now, we are seeing new skills and development every day, it seems. His motor skills are so impressive, he climbs, dances, runs...he is a confident, adventurous little guy.

He is learning his body parts, and one of his favorite things to point out is his belly! He roars like a lion and moos like a cow and is starting to understand what we are saying more and more. This morning we were playing before he went to daycare and I asked if he wanted a banana--he jumped up and trotted off to his high chair, pointing up at the bananas. When we say it's time for bed, he heads off to the bedroom. It's so much fun to watch him learn and grow.

We have stopped taking one official picture per month, it's just gotten too hard to "pose" him. Instead, here are a few pictures from the last month.

Scooting

Simon got a very cool toy from Aunt Donna and Uncle Paul for Christmas--it's a riding toy that can also be used as a scooter. We found out that he loves being pushed back and forth on the hardwood floors...here he is:

Christmas!

Finally, here are some pictures from Christmas!

Overall, we had a great holiday. First, we got a package of great gifts from Nana, Papa and Great-Papa from Atlanta. Simon got a really fun activity cube and loves playing with all the cool things on it. Matt and I didn't do so badly either--among other things, Matt got a new coat and I got to go pick out some great new shoes!

Then it was off to NJ. Simon was awesome on the plane, he spent most of the time watching baby developmental TV on Direct TV with his cute little headphones on. Not a tear the whole way!

We got to see so many people in NJ and Simon had a million new fun experiences. At Dad's house, he spent hours (and hours) climbing up and down the stairs (thanks to Grandpa and Aunt Karyn for help chasing him up and down!). He also quickly located the cabinet with the pots and pans in it and carried them all around the house. We visited Grandpa's office and spent some time at GG's house where Simon got one of his favorite new toys, a guitar! Of course we had our big Secret Santa extravaganza at Brian and Heather's house, and we all got to spend some time with Peyton and Emerson, who are both so sweet and cute.

Our time with Grandma and Papa was just as much fun. We brought Simon over to my old high school to surprise Grandma and we got to spend a really fun evening with the Ruggiero, Gray and Gilpin families. On Christmas Eve Simon got all dressed up and we had dinner with the Welland/Horowitz crew, and Neville joined us as well. A few of Simon's favorite discoveries at Grandma's house included turning on and off the ceiling fans with a remote control, learning to flush the toilet and playing with magnets on the dishwasher. Christmas morning was lots of fun, with lots of great gifts, of course!

We did end up getting stuck for a couple of extra days because of the snow storm, but we settled in and Simon even got to check out the snow, which he thought was pretty awesome. He was great again on the flight back, and we got back safe and sound.

Thanks to everyone for the great gifts, the fun visits and helping make a big trip with Simon a little easier. To Aunt Karyn in particular, thanks for playing 3rd parent for the week. Love you all!

Also, check out our shutterfly page for a bunch more pictures, and thanks to all of the grandparents for sharing the pictures you took!

Rocking Out

I'll post more about Christmas once I get all the pictures together, but one gift that Simon is loving is the guitar that GG gave him. Now he fancies himself a total rock star...