That's another thing: he is really good with names and wants to know who everyone is. When we are reading a story he will point to all of the characters and want to know their names. I have to make up names for the creatures in the Dr. Seuss books. His memory is incredible.
He will go through phases of wanting to read just one story and will soon have that story memorized. We go back and forth while reading Hop on Pop, and he has recited several pages off the top of his head. He went through a Green Eggs and Ham phase, Hop on Pop, and now it's Curious George. I always try to get Daxton in bed first because I love spending that one on one time with Quinn while reading his story.
Quinn almost knows all of the upper case letters. Sometimes while we read our story I will point to the letters and he will spell out the word. There are a few of the letters that aren't as common that he needs to learn, but if I just sat down and spelled out a few words with those letters he would have them down in no time.
He can almost count to 20. I just have to get him going on the teens. He still skips 4 most of the time, but he is getting better at remembering it.
He is definitely a Dada's boy, but today he willingly went to the store with me, leaving Daxton and Dada behind. I thoroughly enjoyed spending that time with Quinn again. The two of us haven't been out much since we moved out here. I used to love taking Quinn to the store with me. He was always such a delight, and today reminded me of those moments.
He still struggles to share with Daxton. He doesn't like it if Dada or Grandma is holding Daxton and he will insist, "Mama hold Daxton. Quinner hold you." That means he wants you to give Daxton to me and hold Quinn instead. Every once in a while I catch him trying to make Daxton laugh. Quinn will realize that what he is doing is making Daxton laugh so Quinn will continue doing it. Quinn likes to have an audience, and Daxton has a really charismatic smile and infectious laugh. They don't know it yet, but I think they will compliment each other really well.
Quinner loves the park. This is the first summer he will be able to climb on the equipment by himself, which is good for me since I have Daxton, and it is good for Quinn as well. We've only been out a few times so far, but he really enjoys it. We just need to work on his playground etiquette.
Whenever Quinn eats he needs to have fishy blankie behind his head and bink on the table. I've been letting him eat at the table more often because it is one less battle I have to fight, but he is getting better at not making big messes.
While I am getting Daxton ready for bed and feeding him his bottle I will ask Quinn what song we should sing to him. Quinn will promptly answer, "I am a Child of God!" He will even sing along with the chorus.
Quinn has said two prayers all by himself. It is the cutest thing ever!
Two weeks ago we had to miss church because Quinn was sick. The week after he would wake up in the morning and either ask to go to church, talk about getting ready for church, or he would say how he needed to eat breakfast so we could go to church. It is a testament to me how true the Gospel is because it resonates with and attracts young children. I think they crave that spiritual enlightenment we receive at church each week, and they readily recognize truth. Quinn doesn't know the days of the week yet, and he doesn't have the best concept of time, but he knew that it was about time to go to church again. I hope he holds on to that throughout his life and knows that he needs that boost every Sunday to get through the week.
Here are some common things Quinn will say:
"ummm...okay." (He uses this to convince you to do something he knows you will probably say no to)
"Hold you!" (He wants you to pick him up)
"Where's Mama?! (repeat until he sees me) "There she is! There's mama."
"No Daxton" (He doesn't want you to hold Daxton or let Daxton touch his things)
"No...I don't think so." (That is his more polite version of saying No.)
"Change your bum. Get the poops out." (He has a poopy diaper)
"Still eating!" (He normally uses this when he is trying to avoid getting ready for bed)
"All done, ready to get out!" (You cannot ignore this one and try to finish your dinner. He will keep repeating it and becomes more forceful about it until you take him out of his seat)
On Quinn's actual birthday Quinn and Christian made a chocolate cake, and the four of us celebrated before Chris left for work. My parents came over once they got off of work and we did finger painting. The Saturday after, I had signed up to have the missionaries for dinner so they were a part of our formal celebration. Quinn opened presents, and we had Dairy Queen cake. Quinn blew out his own candles, and Daxton didn't even scream. It was a really great happy day!
He kept putting his finger in the cake while Christian played Carly Simon
"Ice cream in a bowl? Uh huh."
I think he likes things to be in order...
