Carson Anthony: 20 Months

How is it possible that there are only 4 more months until my BABY is 2?!  I honestly can't believe it and as much as I hate him getting older, it is SO fun to watch him grow and develop!

  

What Carson Loves Right Now: 
-Carson still loves balls.  (Will I ever stop writing this?)  He loves playing and watching basketball ("buh-ball").  He even will bring me the TV remote and say "buh-ball!"  He's obsessed!  I'm so glad my mom got him this basketball hoop for his first birthday, it's definitely one of his most used toys!  He loves when Daddy "blocks" his shots!

-Carson loves magnets.  I keep a baggie of magnetic letters as well as those cheap company magnets you get free at your dentist or vet.  Carson LOVES to pull out the bag and stick them on the fridge or dishwasher.  He has even learned a lot of his letters by playing with the magnets!
-Carson has really gotten into coloring!  Last month he had fun exploring with his crayons but he has now started to get his crayons out of my desk and ask to "cuh...pay" (color please)!  At first he was just into breaking his crayons but now he really enjoys seeing the colors he puts onto the paper.  Sometimes we color on plain paper but he also has a coloring book with puppies that he loves.  He likes to give me a crayon so we can color at the same time.

Coloring some Christmas pictures for his Grandmas!

-Carson still loves books and has quite a few favorites.  He loves his bedtime stories and there are a few we read every night (see pictures below...you can click on the book to see more info!).  He also has a basket of books in the playroom and loves reading throughout the day.  I love that he reads independently but also loves to sit on my lap while I read him stories.  :)

   
-Carson also loves music.  Nick uploaded a bunch of kids' music onto one of our old phones so we can use it like an ipod.  We have a blue tooth speaker in the playroom and Carson is always getting the phone and asking me to turn on the music.  He has learned the movements to so many songs by listening to his music every day (London Bridge, Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider, Ring Around the Rosie, etc.)

-Carson's favorite foods haven't changed a ton.  He still loves peanut butter sandwiches and would probably eat them for every meal if I let him!  He gets really excited about any food pouch but will specifically ask for "mm-bah" (apple) if I open the cabinet where we keep his food.  He still loves cheese and will chow down on grilled cheese or Annie's mac'n'cheese!  I've tried a few new things for snacks including dried apricots and he loves them!  He's also obsessed with cookies.  I let him have bites of real cookies very now and then but he loves his Annie's bunny grahams too!  Thanks to his Daddy he's also addicted to marshmallows but he gets SO hyper after eating them!

Carson tried ranch and ketchup on his chicken nuggets!  

What I Love Right Now: My favorite thing in the world is hearing him call me "Mama".  I waited SO long to hear him say it and every time I hear it, my heart melts.  It's seriously my favorite!  I also love that he's a Momma's boy but he isn't afraid of new people.  We had a few friends over the other day that he hadn't seen for a long time and he was a bit shy at first but after adjusting he was climbing on them, giving them high fives, and bringing them books and toys.  I have a feeling he'll take after his Daddy and have tons of friends!

Some of our Biggest Struggles: Carson is still picky about eating but I've decided if I stop forcing it, it's a lot less stressful for both of us.  As much as I hate making two meals every night, it's easier for everyone.  Especially since Nick doesn't get home until about an hour after Carson's dinner anyway!  Carson has quite a few foods that he really enjoys and I'm happy about that.  I still let him try new things but if he doesn't like it, I don't stress about it.  Another struggle is that he's getting quite attached to Mommy.  I'm not going to lie, I LOVE it!  However, the one time we run into a problem is bedtime.  He ONLY wants me to put him to bed.  I've done this ever since he was born and I love it, but I wanted to start taking turns with Nick so that when Mason arrives Carson won't feel a sudden change in his strict routine.  We have tried this a few times and Carson does not approve!  He cries and yells for "Mama" which breaks my heart.  It's funny because he's totally fine being alone with Nick for other routines like dinner, bath, etc.  Right now we have started doing the bedtime routine together and eventually we'll make it just Nick...a slow transition!  :)

The cutest sad face I've ever seen!

Exciting Milestones & Physical Changes: Carson has finally had his language explosion!  It is so much fun hearing him say so many new words.  He looks so proud when he sees something and can tell me the word for it!  I feel like we're on the cusp of sentences because he occasionally puts two words together (cookie please, bye-bye Dada, etc.).  He also learned how to say his name! 

Right before Carson turned 20 months he got his 8th haircut!  He hadn't had one in almost 2 months so he was long overdue but I'm a sucker for that shaggy look on little boys!  He did a great job until the stylist turned on the blow dryer to blow the hair off of his neck.  You would have thought she had a chainsaw...poor Carson looked so scared and tried to jump out of his cute little fire truck seat!  

20 Month Word List:

• "all gone"/"gone" (always with upturned hands and a shrug)
• "done" He hasn't been using this word anymore, he usually just says "gone"
• "up" (sometimes sounds like "uhhhh")
• "Ma"/"Mama"!!! Carson FINALLY started calling me "Ma" instead of "Bah" right before the new year.  I am thrilled he finally calls me something and it melts my heart EVERY time!
• "Dada" and "Daddy" 
• "duh" (dog)
• "bird"
• "book"
• "ball"
• "vroom vroom"
• "duck"
• "wawa" (water)
• "shoooos" (shoes)
• "puh" (pillow)
• "tuh" (truck)
• "trsssh" (trash)
• "mm-bah" (apple)  Not sure where he got that pronunciation!
• "yea"
• "boo!" (are you surprised he learned this around Halloween?!)
• "whoa!"
• "cah" (car...with a Bostonian accent, haha!) 
• "Ho Ho" (he loves Santa in books but not in real life!)
• "bah-beh" (baby)
• "cook" (cookie)
• "pleh" (please)
• "daank-dee" (Thank You)
• bum (always said as a 2-syllable word: "bum-muh" and points to his bum each time)
• "puh" (pillow) Carson has been saying this for a long time but I forgot to put it on the list!
• "brrr!" whenever we talk about something cold
• "caw" (clock) - He uses this word for watch too.  :)
• moon
• "/k/" (yuck)
• "paw" (potty)
• Hi
• Bye-bye
• Pa/PaPa (Grandpa)
• "buh-ball" (Basketball/Football)
• "Cah-dah" (Carson) - it's so cute he finally learned his name!
• "co" (coat) - sometimes he says "co-uh"
• "wee-wee" (while pointing to his boy parts...gosh, I'm so proud!)
• "coo" (cool)

**This past month Carson started saying "Ma" when he sees me or needs me.  I LOVE it!  I've been waiting for this day for SO long, I seriously cried.  (Don't make fun!)  He finally had his word explosion this month and as you can see, he added TONS of new words! :)

Animal Sounds (14): Cow, Elephant, Pig, Fish, Duck (although it doesn't sound like a quack...more like "duck! duck! duck!"), Sheep, Chicken (which really sounds like he's clearing his throat for some odd reason!), Snake, Dog ("bow-wow!"), Owl, Cat (sort of sounds like he's saying "awww" in a high pitched voice, haha!), Monkey ("ha-ha!"), Lion/Tiger ("rah!"), Goat.


Body Parts He Can Identify (20): Head, Hair, Ears, Eyes, Nose, Cheeks, Mouth, Tongue, Hands, Fingers, Feet, Toes, Tummy, Belly Button, Knees (he usually thinks I say "sneeze" so he'll give me a fake sneeze and giggle!), Shoulders, Bum, Wee-Wee, Legs, Arms
*We're practicing elbows but it's very confusing!

Signs Carson Uses: eat, more, milk, all gone, help, "I love you" <--- TOO CUTE!
*We haven't been teaching new signs since he's starting to verbalize more!

Things We're Looking Forward To: Carson is currently enrolled in a gymnastics class and I'm excited to see how he interacts with the other kiddos and if he learns any new large motor skills.  We're also so excited to see how his vocabulary grows this next month!