Can You Say Frustration?

Cade can now say a ton of words.

When I say ton, I mean many new words. He is just 20 months old, so he is obviously NOT speaking in complete sentences. Or even really putting two words together. He will say "Love you" if you smile at him sweetly (offer him M&Ms) and say, "say, I love you" to him. It really isn't understandable unless you know what he is trying to say, but it melts my heart just the same.

So, Cade's vocabulary has increased greatly. He is now able to convey what he wants for the most part. But there are times when he says something and I have NO clue what he wants or what he is trying to say. Those are the times that he has breakdowns. Full on temper tantrums. Throw yourself on the floor while screaming and lashing out at anything within your reach. It is frustrating for him. And for whoever is trying to understand him. But, this too shall pass. RIGHT? Please don't tell me that it just goes down hill from here. Please.

We were playing at my Mom's today. Cade wanted something to sweep the rocks with. He went into the garage and was looking at the big brooms. My Mom told Cade that those were not for him. She handed him a little hand-held brush perfect for his size. You should've seen the look he had on his face. I swear he looked exasperated. Like a teenager would. Like, this is SO not what I wanted, but if this is all you will give me, then fine. It was amazing. A little funny, but also terrifying. If he is like this at 20 months, what will he be like at 15? AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is a list of Cade's vocab. I am sure I have missed some words, but kind of fun to see what he is saying for all of those who don't get to hear him often.

• Octopus
• Baby
• Nuk (his pacifier)
• Juice
• Milk
• Cheese
• Nana (as in banana and my Mom )
• Ball
• Pool
• Teeth
• Bath
• Bird
• Dog
• Fish
• Mommy
• Daddy
• Ready
• Bowl
• Go
• Up
• Down
• Hi
• Bye
• Duck
• Manny (As in Handy Manny--if you don't know, watch more Disney!)
• Elmo
• Bop Bops (as in the Doodlebops (again, watch Disney) and one of his toys)
• Pooh (As in Winnie-the, not feces)
• Hot dog (as in the song from Mickey Mouse Club House...hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog--not sure Cade knows that it is a food)
• Ball
• Shoes
• Shark
• Bubbles
• Book
• Walk

The Beloved Ottoman

We got our new ottoman last week.

Cade has so many toys that they don't all fit in there, but it will encourage me to sort through the toys and pull some out that he doesn't play with anymore. It is just pretty cool. Cade seems to like it. He liked it better when it was empty and we put him in it. Don't worry. We took him out. Eventually...

User Error

Despite the evil sewing machine that I have yet to make work twice in a row, I have finished two pillows.

The fabric that I got in Hawaii has actually been used and turned into two throw pillows. There will be four pillows eventually, but the sewing machine and I are still at odds. I apparently didn't really break it while mom was gone, but every time I sew something it works once and then I have to fix it. I am getting much better at fixing the bobbin and re-threading the needle, but I tell you, this sewing machine HATES me!





That reminds me of a story from Hawaii. Mom and Dad were in the room next to us at the resort. Apparently, they had a possessed alarm clock. Dad swore he turned it off so that the alarm wouldn't go off, but it would --several times a night starting at like midnight. After several nights of this happening, Dad eventually just unplugged it. I think they half expected it still to go off even unplugged. You would think it would've stopped working after Dad threw it! It was funny to Jim and I. Not so much to Mom and Dad.





Anyway...





Here are the pictures of my finished pillows. You can see that Cade loves them! I do to. Just wish it didn't take me hours to sew one side!

It's Only April

Our air conditioning in the house is on.

It has been in the 90's the last few days here and the temperature in our house hit the mid 80's. Just a little warm for our taste. So, we turned the air on. It is ONLY April. Gonna be a llllllooooonnnnnggggg summer paying for that AC. Welcome to Arizona! If you read my brothers' blogs (either one) they will tell you that living in AZ is like living on the surface of the sun....or in Hell. It really isn't that bad most of the time, but it is pretty toasty.

Even though the weather has warmed up, our pool hasn't. Still pretty chilly. Usually takes a month of the warmer weather to heat up the water. Eventually our pool will hit like 90+ degrees--and then it is more like a bath than a swimming pool. However, at that point it is usually like 110 degrees and then 90 degree water feels refreshing. It is all relative.

Because our pool is still too cold to be in, I bought Cade a water mat/kiddie pool to play in since he loves the water and loves being outside. He LOVES it. So, even though it is ONLY April, we are already outside playing like it is summer. In fact, the concrete is already burning our feet! No more running to take the trash out without shoes! Here are some pictures of Cade playing in his little pool. Yes, he is fully clothed. He was too excited to wait to put his bathing suit on. Enjoy!