Airplane, Dada . . . Gui-TAR!

These are the three words I hear so often every day. Jed is really starting to stretch his vocabulary, but this means he likes to practice his favorite words. Seems like he's a cd skipping most of the time. Dada, dada, dada, airplane, dada, airplane. . . gui-TAR! Usually, no matter what else he's talking about, he always ends with one of these words: guitar, amp, pick, boom-da-boom (Jed's word for drum). He has learned now that Dada goes to work and flies airplanes and that they make noise and are up in the sky -- unless we are at the airport picking up Dada from work. Then he expects that Dada will take him out to look at the airplanes before we leave. We have tried to leave without seeing the airplanes before -- not a good idea -- major meltdown. He's not out for the life of a pilot yet, Chris still can't put him in the cockpit without him crying. We think maybe he's scared that it's going to take off with him in it. He will sit in there with Dada, but not alone.

This is strange behavior for a kid who's so fearless about other things. His latest death-defying act has been to climb onto the coffee table and jump to the love seat. Then he puts his feet back on the coffee table and pushes himself backwards until he's crossed the space between them and is back on the coffee table again. I guess most parents wouldn't let their kids climb on the furniture like this, but I watch him and go 'Wow, look what he can do!'

Here's a picture of something else Jed figured out recently. He has a Little Tikes tractor that he loves to play with. He found that if he balances just right he can sit on it and slowly push himself around the room. He seems pretty proud of his driving abilities.

I realized as I was about to post this blog that I didn't have any pictures of Jed playing instruments -- crazy I know. So, here's one of him and Dada jamming together. These times are one of my favorites. They usually happen after Chris gets home from work while I'm getting dinner ready. Lately, they've been with the electric guitar and the amp. I prefer the set-up below.

Jed discovered his huge stack of bibs in the bottom drawer of his dresser. He kept bringing them to me and asking me to put them on. I think we got to about 10-12 before he realized he had more than he bargained for . . .
Gogg! This is how Jed says 'dog.' He really loves them and is pretty cute about playing with them whenever he gets the chance. Here his is with our friends' dog when we were out at the park taking some family pictures for them. Jed got knocked over and licked a lot, but the smile didn't leave his face!
Here he is enjoying another slide. It's definitely his favorite thing at the park. I just liked this picture because of his fun hairdo.
And now, a visit to Grandma Lee and Papa Jim's house. We took off last weekend for my parents' and had a wonderful time. Jed got to explore the farm and kept asking to go outside and play. He loved the animals, the space, the wind, and the barn. Here he is learning about bales of straw.
The conqueror:
This is our cat, Mitch (a girl). She was very gracious to let Jed chase her around and meow at her and pet her. Jed can make a very realistic cat noise.
And here his is with our old dog, Hershey. Jed would point at the door to go outside and say "Gogg!" "Gengel" (gentle). This is his word for petting an animal. I guess we've been drilling that one into his head:)
I just love this picture because it is truly how Jed looked most of the time while he was exploring. It reminded me of myself and how much I loved just hanging around the farm. I am glad he's getting a little of this!
"Oooohhh! What's that over there?"
Trying out the hammock. Jed wasn't so sure of this. He'll have to get some lessons from Papa and Dada about the joys of the hammock when he gets a little older.
This is one of Jed's favorite outdoor games. Naomi had a lidded sandbox shaped like a turtle. Jed thought it was a special climbing apparatus just for him. He'd climb up one side and then try to walk down the other. He fell every single time! But that didn't stop him. He'd get back up and do it again -- maybe the next time he'd get a face full of dirt. That's our kid!
Here's cousin Naomi teaching Jed about horses. They were getting ready for the next day when Grandma was going to get the new horse, Ginger. Jed looks ready, doesn't he?
And he was! He walked around the yard on her with this proud look on his face the whole time. Mama hardly had to steady him. What a little cowpoke!


This will be goodbye for now. Jed and Naomi will miss each other until Thanksgiving. We are sure looking forward to more time with family soon. This is such a great time of year when we only have to say goodbye for one month at a time instead of several. Love you all and see you soon!