The Age of Understanding

We've had many laughs the past couple of weeks as Van keeps demonstrating his increased understanding of the world around him.

  • When walking backwards he yells "beep, beep, beep," just like a truck in reverse.
  • When told to eat his toast, he promptly pointed at his toes.
  • Anything that comes from his nose or is found in the floor is labeled as "ewww."
  • He has started giving Derek and me small bites of his food, saying "bite" followed by throwing the food at us. After many frustrated meals, I figured out that he was feeding us like ducks, one of his favorite activities to enjoy with Granny and Pawpaw.
  • This morning during our wake-up negotiations (where he rolls around in his bed so I can't get him out) I asked, do you want to go to school to see your friends? No. Want to stay home with momma? No. What do you want to do Van? Pawpaw. (He has a one-track mind for his grandparents)
Along with increased awareness, he has also become very interested in anything involved with poo poo or pee pee. We bought all the potty training essentials yesterday, we'll see how it goes.

In addition, we've been trying to figure out what Van should be for Halloween. Last year, he was a cuddly baby elephant. This year, we are trying to pick something that he likes. Here are some of our ideas, feel free to make suggestions!
  • Giant chocolate chip cookie
  • Hershey kiss
  • Michael Phelps (complete with speedo, googles, and fake muscles)
  • Bob Stoops or OU football player
  • Pawpaw (all ready for his Sunday sermon)

Is Van the Next Michael Phelps?

Michael Phelp's post-swim dinner:

  • Pound of pasta
  • 1 whole pizza
  • Another 1,000 calories worth of energy drinks

Van's post-swim dinner:
  • 2 individual containers of diced carrots
  • 1 hot dog
  • 1 slice of large Papa Murphy's garlic chicken pizza
  • 1 individual container of applesauce
  • A bite of salad
  • 2 snack-size Krackle bars

He's a Perfect 10: Van's Love of Diving

Van picked up some cute habits during the Olympics. First, he knew that when a swimming race started, he was supposed to yell, "go, go, go." Secondly, he felt very connected to the gymnasts and would raise his hands over his head after a dismount.


But the boy's absolute favorite sport was diving. Why? It combined his other two favorite sports, swimming and gymnastics. Van was so inspired by diving that he would cry when commercials interrupted the coverage. I also caught him standing at the ledge of our fireplace ready to dive off... that was a heart stopper! 

To help this swimmer/diver in-training, we decided to enroll him in the parent/child swim class at the YMCA (aka mommy and me swim class). Today was the first day. And, it took Van a little time to warm up to swimming. For the first half of the class, he decided to cling on to me for dear life. But then, the teacher suggested we do a little jumping. After one jump, Van was hooked. All he wanted to do was jump off the edge into my arms. As I told Derek, I'm predicting this kid will be diver.

Here is a video of Van giving his impression of Michael Phelps.


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