We have finally somewhat moved on from DORA and our TIVO is officially full of ELMO! I got Ryder LOTS of Elmo things for Christmas but he never really seemed interested in them until I turned on Elmo's World one day. Ryder has now run down the batteries in Rock-N-Roll Elmo, lost ELMO'S microphone twice, received 2 other Elmo dolls from Grandparents, beaten his Elmo Drums to a pulp AND I have memorized the whole ABC Elmo DVD that repeatedly gets played in our car. ELMO, ELMO, ELMO.......
One good thing about his ABC DVD is I have caught him several times this week point out A, E, O and W correctly. I HATE letting him watch TV in the car since I let him watch a little in the morning when I'm getting ready for work and at night when we are making dinner but now that my new car has a built-in DVD player he KNOWS it's there. He whines and reaches his arms out and says, "ELLMMOOOO!" Kinda hard to get away from that......
At least it's educational, right?!?!?!?
Oh, and the cutest part is a W is pronounced just DOUBLE! AH, SO SWEET!
We have also FINALLY started giving hugs and kisses. Not sure why this took so long but I LOVE IT now that he understands it! We taught him how to hug and say AWWW from showing him with PHOEBE. He will lay his head down on you and say AWWW with this sweet little voice that will just melt your heart. To give kisses we have to say MUAH! He, of course, gives ELMO all our hugs and kisses!
My absolute FAV thing about Ryder right now is his OBSESSION with Planes, Big Trucks and Tractors. He has a Truck book that he LOVES reading and has learned to recognize all his big trucks and tractors when we are on the road. When we go to DayCare in the mornings there is a spot with construction and I always slow down and scream "LOOK, LOOK" so he can see. This has become a daily thing now. If I'm daydreaming or not paying attention he will be sure to let me know we are coming up on the tractors and bulldozers. I'll hear a huge "LOOK" and "WHOA" in the backseat! He is ALL BOY!
He learned about planes a while back from staying with his Nana and PawPaw. Mr. Wayne would always show him the planes fly over and now that he can speak, it's all about PLAAAAAANES. <--- how he actually says it, very drawn out......
Planes are another way we pass time in the car! He can spot them a mile away. Since I have to have my daily morning Starbuck's we will see SO many in the Airway's area. On Sunday's when we go to Hope I always take Airway's to the Interstate so he can see the planes land and takeoff. He just gets so excited and freaks out. I wish we wouldn't take the chance of getting shot near the Airport because we would LOVE to park in that huge field across the street so he could watch the planes for a while. Gotta love Memphis!The funniest thing Ryder is doing lately is getting the Air Conditioner confused with planes flying over our house. Trav got in late one night from work and Ryder was crying so he went in to rock him and spend time with him. I was listening in the monitor as Trav was trying to calm him down and the air came on. Ryder screamed "LOOK, PLAAAAAAANE" loud and started laughing. HAHA, not sure what it is but he is fascinated. Thinking about a PLANE themed Birthday Party!
Something we have started new is SOCCERTOTS. We have only been to 2 classes and it's definitely interesting. The 1st class I had to miss since I was in Dallas but received plenty of pics while I was there, some frightening and others made me smile. He is in the class with his BF, Preston which I'm so glad about since they have been around each other since their birth. They seriously LOVE each other!
Trying not to take the class TOOOO serious since he is only 21 months but it's hard not to get frustrated. Ryder is very independent, he doesn't want help and he will do things when he is ready! I can't say, "Ryder, go kick the ball in the net" if he wants to THROW the ball or run into the goal like a maniac. He is the type that will do it 5 minutes later when we have moved onto another activity. It's humorous but annoying at the same time. He is stubborn and hard-headed which makes sense, he is my child. The teacher keeps saying his behavior is common and it will get so much better as the weeks go by. We have 6 more weeks and I'm really interested to see him learn some soccer skills and learn to take direction. Love that he is taking his first sports class and it makes me SO excited about the future. Hope I have a little athlete on my hands, minus the meltdowns!
Easter is coming up this week and I'm BUSTING AT THE SEAMS! I'll be sure to post TONS of pics and update my blog afterwards. We have a jam-packed week of Easter fun! CAN'T WAIT!
