Tada! It's an abundance of photos!

I am about to unleash a prolific amount of photographs.  I hope you have your spectacles on because this slideshow is worth seeing!

Cal is very inquisitive about everything and once he realizes that he has the ability to operate/open/close things independently then it's useless trying to stop him.  He really likes the cheese drawer and the dogs are also pleased that they have a human on their side to give them what they so desire. 

 

Shark alert!!!  This little shark likes to take wagon rides while sipping his fruit/veggie smoothie after daycare.

 

Just like Goldilocks, Cal found the chair that was 'just right'.  Great Gma's rocking chair (I think it was my dad and Uncle Bryan's as kids??) was the perfect size for him to rock in.  I'd be remiss if I didn't mention his new found affinity for climbing, which includes small rocking chairs that tip over easily.  He'll learn soon enough that these little chairs tip over, but he's taken a couple spills in the meantime!

 

"Hey, get this witch's hat off of me!"

 

(uncontrollable cackling) He really liked knocking the hat off of his head.

 

This was taken at the KSU/KU tailgate.  Robert Lipson has been to every, or nearly every, KSU football game since Bill Snyder was the coach.  If that's not impressive enough, he's been a recognizable pillar in the stands of KSU athletics since my folks were in college!

 

Cal loves Paul!

 

Thanks to a recommendation from my friend, Lindsay Hachenberg, I've made foods for Cal that are on a popsicle stick.  He really liked the frozen banana covered in chocolate syrup.  He was iffy on the chicken on a stick, but it was a start.  Anytime he eats something other than chicken nuggets, it's a victory in the Walter household.  He actually is eating a little better lately.  I've probably just jinxed myself by saying that. 

 

Since he throws everything on the floor for the dogs, I have to Swiffer almost every night.  He decided to help me this time.

 

Art time!  He liked coloring with the markers on the white board.

 

So much so, that he ran off with them and sprinted like he was in the 100m contest.

 

"Ok Mom, do you want to color?"

 

While keeping a firm grasp on his markers, he discovered the joy of jumping and playing in puddles.

 

 

Originally his game was simply to splash wildly, but then he thought it was hilarious that I was trying to corral him to keep him out of the street.  Enter new game....

 

 

Guess who's tall enough to turn the TV on and off?  It's a good thing we've secured it to the wall!!!  I should take a picture of all the electronics that we've been forced to put black tape over to hide the bright blinking buttons.  The TV will probably be next up for a tape makeover. 

 

He was enjoying some cuddle time with Ollie.  He had just woken up from his nap and thought her rump looked like a good pillow.

 

He was entranced by his favorite show, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.  It would appear that Ollie was also snared by Mickey Mouse's charm.  She looks pretty comfy!

 

Mitch is finishing up his final semester of Law School and has one paper left on his plate before walking across the graduation stage.  He's working for the City Attorney in between his class schedule and studying, but manages to be home every day by 6pm or earlier.  The Bar Exam is peering around the corner and Mitch is extremely excited about that.  I chose a boring, legal looking font to highlight my sarcasm in that sentence.  :)

"Where's Cal?"

Every night around bedtime, Cal likes to play hide-and-seek.  He'll run around the house and Mitch and I say, "Where's Cal?  I bet he went to the grocery store/library/work/etc."  Then he'll reappear while sprinting around the corner and cackling as we act surprised that he's actually still in the house.  When he's in a little lazier mood, he simply lays down on the floor and hides his face.  This game of peek-a-boo can go on for awhile.  Fun for all!

 

Check out Cal's special new K-State tailgating chair from Grandma and Grandpa Gatt!  He really liked playing with Daddy's birthday card.  It plays music when you open it = new favorite toy!

 

 

He really enjoyed listening to Grandpa's headphones!

 

 

Cal didn't nap very long on Saturday so he was quite tired for the game.  However, he's such a die hard fan that he didn't want to concede to a nap because he didn't want to miss any of the game.  He was almost lulled to sleep when he rode on Grandpa Gator's shoulders.....but his alertness prevailed! 

 

Alas, that tricky Sandman got him later, while Grandpa rocked him on his lap during the game.

 

 

 

Documenting some funny behaviors

We have realized that, years from now, we don't want to forget all of Cal's funny behaviors.  Now you will be subjected to our detailed accounts of Cal's humorous tendencies.  Please continue reading if you want to giggle.

My cousin, Christina, came to visit a few weeks ago.  We all had so much fun at the KSU game, despite the brutal humidity and heat.  Cal really loved her and she was very helpful in corralling him during the game.  He wanted to climb the stairs ALL. GAME. LONG.  I didn't get to watch much of the game, but I got my exercise.  He did so well, despite it being a late night.  Our fella didn't get fussy at all. 

Talking pregame strategy with Gpa

Grandma helped Cal cool down!

 

 

I love this picture.  He was really tired at this point and didn't really know what to think about the post game fireworks.  He jumped from person to person but really enjoyed having his Daddy hold him!

 

Cal's daycare provider asked me if he puts things in our trashcan at home.  I was confused and said that I hadn't noticed it?  She said that at the end of the day, before they dump the trash, they have to sift through it to make sure Cal hasn't dropped toys into the trashcan.  However, once she mentioned this, I connected a few dots.  He has recently shown his fervor for "cleaning up".   When we're playing in the living room, he takes a few toys and drops them through the stair rails to watch them roll down the steps.  Plastic golf clubs and rings are his top drop choices.  Additionally, he has an affinity for emptying my Tupperware cabinet and putting the lids inside of various drawers.  I'm still looking for 50% of the lids.  Oh, and just last night he was picking up his room and dropping toys, books, etc. into his clothes hamper.  Although I'm sure it won't last,  for now I am going to revel in the fact that he dislikes clutter and hope, wish, PRAY that this trend continues into his teen years and beyond. 

Although he's become quite the picky eater as of late, he did give in and eat a few fish sticks one night.....but he wanted to let me know that he wasn't excited about it.

I think this face says, "You may have won the battle, Mom, but I will win the war." 

Cal is becoming quite the imitator.  When he spots an unattended cell phone, he immediately snatches it up and babbles into.  "Ello?  Lelo?  Lelolelolelolelo."  He talks more with that phone to his ear than he does at any other point in the day.  He's even pretended to hold a phone and talk into his open hand on occasion!

Here is a funny photo of him following our lead.  He has watched us drink our cereal milk enough times that he decided to try it tonight......with the juice off of his peas.   Ick.

We keep a rug near the front door to keep our shoes on.  He has started picking up shoes and bringing them to us.  Amazingly enough, he actually brings them in pairs and takes them to the right person.  He knows that Daddy's sandals are Daddy's, although he has tried to stick his foot in them and walk around at times!

When Uncle Tony was here for the KSU/Miami game, Cal helped him do a little legal work.

 

 

Rick came to visit while he was in KC for business.  Cal took to him immediately and loves the Giants jersey that he brought him!

 

I guess this post's title isn't applicable to this next story.  This isn't a funny behavior, but we do want to remember his first (and hopefully last) ER visit.  I got a text on Monday (9/10/12) from his daycare that there was an accident.  Apparently, Cal really likes Gio, a 3 year old in his daycare.  He follows him around and tries to do everything that Gio does.  Unfortunately, Gio doesn't want a shadow at all times, namely when he is going to the bathroom.  Cal toddled into the bathroom after him and Gio pushed him.  Cal fell back into the wall and hit his head.  He was crying and pretty wobbly on his feet while walking out of the bathroom and then Gio came around the corner and pushed him again into the DVD rack.  This did the damage.  His forehead struck the corner edge and he had an immediate goose egg.  Because of the bump's size, I took him to the ER (on the advice of my doctor) and had him seen.  Everything checked out ok and the staff was extremely nice.  The ER doctor even provided his personal on-call number so that I could call in and talk to him if anything changed.  Luckily I didn't have to do so and Cal returned to his old self rather quickly.  He's still sporting quite the bump on his forehead, but miraculously he isn't extremely bruised like we all expected. 

 

When we were waiting in the Emergency Room, the receptionist said, "He looks like a unicorn!"   Uhhhhh.......thanks?  Can you just get us in quickly, please?

 

 

Our big guy didn't look so large in the scary hospital bed.  He was such a good sport, but he HATED having his blood pressure and temperature taken. 

 

We had to get out some warmer clothes this week due to a much welcomed cold front.  He loves wearing hoods and was all smiles in the car one day.

 

"I'm all better!!!"

 

 

Playing with the big dogs...errrr, dog, I suppose.

I was cleaning out Cal's water table today and he grabbed the hose from me.  This isn't unusual because he really likes to drink from it.  Today, however, he caught the attention of Donnie, another HUGE fan of the water hose, and the rest was history.....adorably hilarious history.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cal ended up just as wet as Donnie.  Throughout the water play, he cackled so loudly.  It was so fun to watch our little boy play with our big blind dog. 

 

Here's another quick pic.  I found this idea of Pinterest and Mitch helped me create a growth ruler!  Now we can take it with us wherever we move and we'll always have documentation of our little guy's height.  Cal hated it and cried the whole time.  I wasn't giving him a shot, for heaven's sake...I was measuring the top of his melon so we can document our future basketball star's growth pattern!  He wouldn't stand up straight so I couldn't get the most accurate read.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Sound

As we spend our days trying to teach him how to make new sounds and say new words, he taught himself how to make this sound.  We'll take it. 

New favorite game

Whenever we, or the dogs, are laying on the floor, Cal thinks it is a prime opportunity to sit on us.  Or in this instance, use my belly as a trampoline.  Internal damage?  No......cheap entertainment.

Funny anecdotes

I don't have many pics to post, but I do have some funny stories to share. 

Cal's teething has really put a damper on his appetite.  He rejects basically everything, even what used to be the "go to" foods when he'd eat nothing else.  Fortunately, he eats fruit really well.  He especially loves peaches!  When I try to help him, he pushes my hands back and wants to hold it all on his own. 

He's never been much of a veggie eater and since he won't eat his staples of peas or carrots anymore, I've resorted to tricking him.  He doesn't even taste the steamed squash that's blended in with his fruit smoothies.  :)

Whenever we give him food, the first thing he does is squeeze it to test its squishability.  "Can I throw it on the ground and it'll make a splat?  I like it.  Can I squeeze it and get juice all over myself and the highchair?  I love it."  Side note:  cantaloupe is his new favorite fruit.  Ollie is like a shark at mealtime.  She swarms around his highchair waiting for him to drop morsels overboard for her.  When he doesn't see her in the kitchen, he'll drop some food over the side and it's like blood in the water....Ollie appears in 2.5 seconds to gobble it up.

What do you do for fun with a teething, inconsolable toddler?  Try to entertain him and take his mind off the pain!  I tried to aleviate his pain by letting him make a big mess while finger painting but he wasn't that into it.  I had to show him how funny it was to put paint on my face and atleast enjoyed that part.

Our little explorer really enjoys looking at pictures and brings the framed photos to us daily so that we can tell him who is in it.  Everyone is named "dada" in the pictures.  I've had to remove the glass from every frame in the house because he likes to drop them on the kitchen floor, behind his toy bin, and on top of the hard table.  You get the idea....it was a hazard so now we have glass-less frames.



I met Mom in Salina last week while Mitch was in the Ozarks.  We attempted to go shopping and it didn't go so well.  Cal has hit the age where running away from me while laughing is his favorite game.  Case in point, he ran out of a store while my hands were full of clothes and I chased after him which caused the alarm to go off.  I threw the clothes back into the store and resumed my chase through the mall before I caught the little sprinter.  There are just too many things to see and do when we're out in public, so he refuses to sit in his stroller now a days. 
Whenever the dogs are laying around and caught unaware, Cal backs up to them and sits on them.  He loves to go in reverse recently?!?  If he's not sitting on them, then he log rolls over the top of them or uses them as a pillow.  It's so funny.  Ollie tolerates it, but blind old Donnie is a bit unsure of why a 30 lb. child is trying to squish his innards by sitting on him. 

I have been taking Cal to the pool frequently and he's sporting quite the tan.  His feet have little tan lines from where his swim shoes allow the the sun to hit.  Anyway, when we come home I usually give him a bath. Last week,  I had just dried him off and he ran out of the bathroom while I was putting stuff away.  His naked little bottom vanished around the corner to the living room and when I came out to find him he was standing near the vent staring at the carpet.  I wasn't sure what he was staring at and then I noticed the wet lines in the carpet.  He was watching what kind of "art" he could make in the carpet when he peed.  It was pretty funny, even though he was urinating all over the place.  I'm sure it won't be the last time that he pees somewhere he shouldn't!

Cal went to his new daycare today.  "Kay Kay and Big Dave", his providers, asked that he have a backpack so they can send his artwork and notes home in it.  Here are some pics of him sporting his new dinosaur backpack!