Fifteen...

Fifteen what you are asking?!? Well, months of course! My sweet little Sawyer is growing right before my eyes. Not only is he growing, he's getting quite the little personality to go with that growth! Remember my quiet, easy, go-with-the-flow baby? Well, not only is he not a "baby" anymore, he's also not quite so quiet, easy or go-with-the-flow anymore either! He is still just as sweet as ever, but the quiet and easy part has pretty much gone right out the window. As a matter of fact, it FLEW out the window. It is like he woke up one day and decided "Today I am going to make myself heard!" And, heard he is. Let's just say that is where the quiet went out the door! As a matter of fact that is where the quiet, the laid back and the easy went out the door! Somehow when the quiet is gone the other two are gone right there with it!:) The absolute best word to describe him right now is, well... Stubborn. With a capital "S". Just like "S"awyer... how appropriate! He WILL get what he wants, and if he doesn't you will pay. And by pay I mean want to pull your hair out pay. He gives new meaning to the phrase "He'll give you a run for your money"! For example, he prefers to drink his milk out of a bottle. If you give him his milk in anything else he just throws it at you. He will.not drink milk out of anything other than a bottle. So, yes, at 15 months I still let him have milk out of a bottle. He wins that battle. Not because he can't drink out of a sippy cup, but because he prefers it out of a bottle! We all have preferences right?!? I know, I know... one bad Momma. I promise I will take it from him before the new year!:) He drinks water just fine out of a sippy cup, but you put milk in it and it is tossed right across the room. It doesn't matter how much he wants milk, it is never enough to make him drink it from anything but his bottle... STUBBORN! Yes, I realize me giving in and giving him the bottle is making his "stubborn" personality trait come out more, but I just don't have it in me to force it on him just yet. Exact same way with walking. Can Sawyer walk you ask? Sure he can. Does Sawyer walk you ask? Not one little step. Scoots faster than a bolt of lightning flashes across the sky, but refuses to walk. He just doesn't want to. I'm not going to complain too much about this at the moment, because most of the time it is just easier that he chooses not to. But, it is slightly frustrating to know that he can walk and just won't. I didn't know babies were allowed to be that smart. I always thought if they could do something they just would. Who knew they could have a mind like a teenager?!? Ha! I know you are reading this thinking man did this child do a 180 from how she has described him in the past, but he really is still all of those previous things as well. He has just decided to add stubborn to his list of personality traits, which came as a little bit of a shock to those of us closest to him. I think we all thought he would just be easy and laid back his whole life, but oh no... he has come out of his shell and wants to be heard(I knew some of me was in him!)!!! He is still my sweet, lovable, happy Sawyer and always will be. He brings an over abundance of joy to a room instantly. His smile melts my heart daily. It is the biggest, happiest, most loving smile you have ever seen. He truly loves life. If you take the time to sit back and watch him, you can see him stopping to enjoy each and every moment. It is like he knows these moments are something special and he isn't going to miss them. I treasure those times I actually take a minute to watch the wheels in his head turn. I try not to be one of those sentimental, sappy kind of Mom's too often, but it's hard when you have a Sawyer. He's just that kid. He helps you re-define love. Even with his new found personality his likes still far outweigh his dislikes...

What Sawyer Likes:
- Clapping - I know this seems like a silly thing to list, but he is so into it right now. Especially when he is clapping for someone when they do something he likes or clapping to the beat of the music. The way his face lights up during his entire clapping process is just priceless!
- Being outside - The boy would probably live outside if I let him. The way both of my boys love the outdoors is unlike anything I have ever seen. We actually have meltdowns around here when we have to go inside for dinner!

It's easy for me to get pictures with smiles like this when we are outside!

He just can't get enough of it!

- Closing doors - I'm pretty sure this is something he learned from Hayden(who still loves to close doors by the way) and he loves it just as much as his big brother. What is it about closing a door that is so much fun? The loud bang? The fact you can do it without an adults help? Both? Whatever it is, Sawyer loves it!
- Stairs - If you take your eyes off of him for 1 second and don't have the gate closed, you can be rest assured he is half way up the stairs. It is amazing how fast he can scoot over to the stairs and get up them... and even more amazing how fast he can fly down them on his belly! He does know he isn't supposed to go up or down them without an adult present, but I guess the urge just hits him sometimes and he has to try to get away with it without an adult. The funny thing is, he gives himself away every.single.time. He literally will not even make it up 2 stairs before you hear him stop and say "WHOA!" I'm pretty sure he thinks he's pretty cool! Oh, and he is definitely proud of himself!!
- Dancing - This boy definitely knows the beat(he gets it from his Daddy!)! Anytime he hears music, he starts his dancing. It is pretty much the cutest thing EVER! It is especially funny when we are out in a store or at a restaurant with music. Let's just say he doesn't get embarrassed with a crowd. He gets just as into it away from home as he does when we are all alone in the living room! So cute!

He even gets into it outside if I give him a little song!:)

Such a cute little dancer!

- Sydney - "Dog, dog, my dog, dog." I hear those same words over and over. I hear those words so much I hear them in my sleep! He loves her. He kisses her, he hugs her, he LOVES her. And, she loves him! It is just the sweetest thing!
- Bye-bye - OMG. I have never, and I mean never heard a child say "Bye" the way Sawyer says it. It is long, it is drawn out... it is SO southern! "Bbyyyyyyyyeeee!" And it is every.single.time. He doesn't even have to be prompted to say it. If we are leaving somewhere, or someone is leaving us it is just automatic for him. You can't help but smile from the inside out when you hear his sweet little voice draw that tiny little word out!
- Giving kisses - Not just to Sydney. To all of us. He loves to give out his sweet kisses! They are still open mouth, and still as sweet as ever!

I am not exaggerating when I tell you his mouth will be this
wide open when he goes to give you a kiss!

- Throwing balls - OK, so if Sawyer and Hayden were given a few balls and a backyard 24/7 I'm pretty sure they would be happy 24/7. They could throw to each other all day long. The only problem is when they throw inside and the balls are flying all over my house. We have a "rolling" rule in place now for inside play!:)
- Climbing - Not just stairs. Everything. He is all over the place. Another reason I am sometimes relieved he isn't walking just yet! Climbing and walking really would give me a run for my money!
- Cars - It's a boy thing. If you don't have boys just trust me... it's a boy thing. I just don't get it. It is just in them to love them and love them they do. And by boys, I am including Daddy! The cars are everywhere, they are small, and they take forever to clean up. BUT, they love them. Something about watching the cars fly across the floor and then crash into something is just so great. I'll never get it, but I'm pretty sure Sawyer will always love them!
- Scooting - LOVES it. I guess everyone loves their mode of transportation, but who knew scooting was a mode of transportation before Sawyer came along?!? Oh, and don't get in his way when he is on a mission... he stops for no one!:)

This was him on a mission...

And this was him mid-mission when he finally decided to turn around for me.
Yes, he is holding his hand up to his ear and saying "Huh?" as if
he couldn't hear me after I called his name a good
10 times. Boys and their selective hearing
starts at such a young age!!!

- Front rolls - You read that right, he loves his front rolls... assisted of course! He is the most limber child you will ever meet. If there is such a thing as triple jointed, he is. It is crazy the things you can do with his limbs. I have never seen anything like it. I'm sure one day he'll be using it in a talent show!
-Baby Einstein - I have listed him liking TV before, but had to include it here again because he just loves these movies. Before, he really didn't care too much about what was on the TV, but now he definitely has more of an opinion. That opinion you ask? Well, Baby Einstein. Anything Baby Einstein! He just loves those movies. Hayden always liked them too, so it comes as no surprise, but I just really don't get these movies. They seem so boring! Oh well, he loves them!:)
- Choosing his own meal - I am not kidding you when I say he likes to choose exactly what he wants to eat. He will literally point to the pantry for you to open it when he is hungry and then go to it and pull out what it is he is wanting at the moment. It is one of the craziest things I have ever seen. Who knew a 15 month old was that into what he wanted to eat?!?
- Brushing his teeth - I never knew brushing your teeth could be something to "like", but my children sure do enjoy this task. At 15 months and with only 6 teeth, it's one of Sawyer's favorite daily tasks! I know it is partially because he likes the toothpaste taste, but he also really seems to like having his teeth/gums brushed. Maybe because they are always sore from all of his teething?!? I sure hope his love for brushing teeth will stick around for a while!

What Sawyer Dislikes:
- Being held when he wants down - And to this I say, "You are more than welcome to walk Sawyer." To which he responds "No." And so the daily battle begins. Of course when we are at home this is not problem because he can scoot around the house, but that is a little harder to do when we are out doing errands. At first I felt bad for him thinking he didn't understand, but now I'm pretty certain he understands exactly what we are saying and is just choosing not to "dit down" as he likes to say! Soon enough Sawyer, soon enough!
- Hayden taking his toys - Total dislike. As in will scream at the top of his lungs dislike. Absolutely crazy the noise little Sawyer can make when Hayden has taken something from him. I know no one would like something to be taken from them, but the noise Sawyer makes is just out of control. We are still working really hard on the sharing thing, and we have now added screaming to our workload!:) Fun!

What Sawyer is not sure of:
- Walking - Yep! You knew that was going to be on this list. For the record, he has progressed greatly in his cruising around the house, but still hasn't started walking without holding onto anything. I'm pretty sure he just knows scooting works and gets him to where he needs to go super fast, so he doesn't want to bother with the whole walking thing. He is double jointed like I said earlier, so maybe that has something to do with it also. Who knows! We have his 15 month check up next week, so we'll see what Dr. Papciak has to say about it! For now we are just going to enjoy watching our little man scoot, scoot, scoot!
- His carseat - Although he usually loves his car rides and even manages to get great sleep in the car, he's just not always 100% sure about his carseat. It is super plush and everything, but I think he is beginning to be a little too cramped having to be facing backwards in the car. There are times he is fine with the seat, but times he pitches the biggest fit ever as soon as he realizes we are getting in the car. Not too much longer until I think we will get the okay to turn him around and join the rest of us in the forward facing position, so hopefully that solves the problem!

And that's little Sawyer at 15 months! Here's a few more pictures for you...

He's double jointed and he can make his
tongue do this crazy little thing!

Fun with leaves!

Fun with faces!:)

"Uh-OOOH" he says as HE takes his hat off!
Yeah, my exact definition of an "uh-oh!"

How could you not LOVE that face?!?

Happy 15 Months sweet Sawyer! We love you!

* Update - At 15 month appointment on December 9th with Dr. Papciak, Sawyer was 22 pounds exactly(10-25%), 30 and 1/2 inches tall(25%), his head measured 49cm(90%) and Dr. P said we'll worry about his walking at the 18 month check-up. I guess that means you've got a few more months to scoot buddy!:)