By Self, By Self!

Elliot has become our fiercely independent little boy. He doesn't want help with anything. He climbs into our cars by himself and then climbs up into his car seat by himself, and if I so much as touch him, he starts all over again, shouting---'By self, by self (by myself)'! I can't help him get into his booster seat at the table or the stroller either. He never backs down to Delaney-which is great-because she needs a sibling who can hold his own.

Elliot tries so hard to keep up with Delaney--after she has mastered a new part of the playground, he is quick to follow. It breaks my heart a little, and I always want to tell him that it's okay to slow down.

He's 20 months but reminds me so much of a two year old. He shouts, 'Mine', 'Nooooooo', and 'My turn' and 'not yours' about 100 times a day. He's super physical and needs to run around outside like a puppy. He just goes and goes and goes until he collapses in bed. This morning he was tearing around the house by 5:15 AM, and really didn't slow down until naptime (12:30). But he also can have a tough time with new people and new things. He's really pretty shy around other people and gets somewhat out of sorts if Delaney isn't with him.

He's growing a ton right now. Our kids have always been small but he's definitely had a little growth spurt over the past month or so. He's busting out of his 18 month clothing and I barely can squeeze his feet into size 6 shoes-which I just bought in June. He's even ready to move into Size 4 Pampers Cruisers---Delaney never came close to making it out of a Size 3 before she was potty trained.

And he's a definite mommy's boy-not that there's anything wrong with that!