The Fahed Fam: September 2012

   August was a busy month for us that flew by and left us wondering where summer went! How is it almost fall, ya'll? It's amazing how much children change over just a month time span! Ant and I were just saying last night that the older we get the faster times moves. We want to slow it down, but since we can't, we try hard to soak up every.single.moment.
     Camden turned into a toddler this month. Although he still loves to snuggle, give hugs and kisses, he is definitely not a "baby" anymore. He has started throwing some temper tantrums that are pretty extreme. Sometimes Ant and I are scared he might hurt himself the way he flails himself back. Thankfully this is not my first rodeo and instead of getting upset, I just sit back and kind of chuckle. I know he is living in a state of "me, me, me" and will for a while. But boy has he shown his wild side lately. One of his favorite things to do right now is kiss you on the mouth. He always gives lots of kisses before naps (he does his best to stall), but is insistent on kissing my mouth, which I don't let him do. He can be found cruising around the playroom with any toy up to his ear talking to it like he is on the phone. He often says, "Dadda" mid babble so I assume he is always talking to him.
     Recently Camden started talking and signing A LOT. He can say "momma," "dadda," "night-night," "this," "uh-oh," "done" and recently he started saying "ALEXANDER!" It's so funny to hear him say it because it's such a hard word for a 14 month old! We go nuts when he says it and he just loves to watch us laugh. He can really say anything he wants and often repeats random words after we say them. He has been signing "all done" for a while now and recently added "milk" and "more". He usually won't sign or talk when we ask him to. He loves to wait till we turn our backs or give up on him. I think he just enjoys throwing us for a loop. Walking is in the works still. He can stand by himself forever and then take 4 steps just to fall on his face. He has just as many bruises on his little body as Alexander.
     Camden officially has all his teeth except his 2 year molars! Isn't that crazy!? I told Ant I have never seen a 14 month old with all of those teeth! He has been in a constant mode of teething since 3 months old and I jokingly told Ant he will probably go ahead and cut his 2 year old molars! Why stop now, right!? I am hoping he doesn't..we sure could use a break from teething! He is still infatuated with his older brother and Alexander can usually do no wrong. Alexander makes him laugh so hard sometimes that he throws up. All of that is due to the fact that he still is dealing with his LM a little bit. He still has slight stridor and very bad acid reflux. We discovered this weekend that he gets car sick!   While on the way to Buckingham to visit Ant's grandmother he threw up his lunch due to the winding, crazy back roads and being in the car for an hour. Camden still enjoys his 30 minutes of snuggle time with Momma/Dadda before Alexander gets up. He snuggles while we drink coffee and talk about our day.
Alexander has also developed a lot over the summer! We are now his "best friends." It's obvious that he looks at our family as a unit and he wants to be a part of everything. He is also starting to be able to use moral judgment to make decisions. It fascinates me to watch him develop. This kid is amazing. His vocabulary astounds Anthony and I daily. We have been doing "preschool" at home for the past month, but we plan to dig in deep now that school is officially in. The plan for now is to home-school so we are trying it out.
   We recently bought Alexander a fish to help teach him a little responsibility, which he declared to be called "Nemo" on the way home from the pet store. It's Alexander's job to feed Nemo everyday. He talks to Nemo all day, tells him "night night" and to "sleep good."
   Alexander often comes up with famous quotes that we write down and add to his "memory bank." Right now it's, "Watch this action!" Then he proceeds to do some terrific stunt to which we cheer him on like he is amazing of course! He also likes to walk up to anyone and anything (including Nemo) and say, "Hi, I'm Alexander! What's your name?" He still longs to hug or kiss strangers when we are out and about. And just recently he began a stage of wanting to call people by their real name. He often refers to Dadda as Ant, myself as Sarah and Nana as Sue. Although we correct little wise guy, its pretty comical.
    Alexander's strongest desire right now is to be just like Dadda. Anthony is his hero and it's so adorable. He often will do something and say, "Look Momma! I did that just like Dadda!" He has become a wonderful helper to me and when Camden needs help, Alexander often gets to him before I do. He loves being a big brother.
    We are sooo looking forward to fall and cooler weather. This summer hasn't been too hot here in Va, but the mosquitoes have been eating us alive! We are excited about the holiday season coming up, the leaves changing, pumpkin picking, all food pumpkin, apple picking and all the memories that will be made!