The Latest on Rex

Rex has been doing so many new things lately. In the past week or two, he learned how to open doors with doorknobs (he has been able to open/close the pocket doors for quite a while), open the fridge, and open all the drawers in the kitchen. AND suddenly he is tall enough to reach all the buttons on the dvd player again- we moved it as high as we could a while back and it worked for a few months but now we have a problem again. The biggest reason for the trip to Des Moines last weekend was a trip to Babies R Us to buy childproofing supplies. I got a dvd guard and fridge latches. We already had some cabinet latches to use for the kitchen drawers so Rob put all those on. They are so incredibly annoying but you only have to find your child with a battery in his mouth one time (as we did) and you realize the latches are worth their trouble. Finally, we went to Lowes two nights ago to get some locks/latches to install at the top of all exterior doors rather than the handle covers (already had some of these too) that we use on the interior doors. Honestly, all these safety features are annoying and a pain for Rob and I but we will deal with it to keep our baby safe.

Rex's vocabulary is really taking off now too. It has increased a lot in the last month but now it is crazy! He counts to five (and recognizes the numbers in print) which is my favorite thing. Some other new words that I like or make me laugh are "homo" for home, "bess-oo" (bless you) when somebody sneezes or blows their nose and "too too" for all busses, delivery trucks, semi trucks, trains and even just big passenger trucks. "Too too" is his way of saying "choo choo" which he learned for train and then adopted for all large vehicles. Oh, and he says that when someone honks their horn too. One of my not-so-favorite new phrases is "I do"- nothing wrong with the words, just what they mean. The boy is going to be two soon and he is figuring out that he wants to do things himself and his way. I try to let him do things himself and his way as much as we can but really, mommy still needs to be the one to put the seatbelt on in the car. I let him do the latch at the chest and that compromise seems to work okay. He loves to push the button for the garage door opener so that is his job now. He has learned "no" but he doesn't use it too much. He would rather just repeat everything you say to him. For instance this is what happens when it is time to change a diaper. He follows me down the hall but stops just outside his room.

Me: Rex, come here so I can change your diaper.
Rex: Come 'ere!
Me: Get in here- let's go.
Rex: Les go!
Me: Now!
Rex: Now!

At this point I usually stare him down until he comes in or I go get him. It's just so wonderful that he has his own ideas about things now. Argh. I told Rob recently that the fun times are getting even more fun but the tough times are a little more challenging now too. We are having a good time with it all.

Speaking of having a good time, it is in the 60s today and I am planning on taking Rex to the park today to run around so I better get going!