Vegetable fiend!

Sam seems to continue to be a big fan of vegetables! For a while it was green peas, then green beans. Now he loves carrots and is just scarfing down broccoli florets as fast as I can cut them right now...how great is that! Go Sam! Keep it up for the next 17 years :)
-Christine

Sheila's note

At the end of January 2008, our friend Sheila helped watch Sam while Christine had training with the Registrar of Voters. Sheila wrote this note about how Sam was while they hung out and I wanted to reproduce it here since it did a great job of describing what Sam is like these days:

"Hi Christine!
Sam woke up about 3 o'clock and had (no tofu or cottage cheese), but quite a few peas, a couple of cheese chunks and avocado and several grape pieces. Made a few "noises" but no aroma and seemed to want to get up and play. :) Fun with the tupperware drawer - love to see him walk! What great balance. Lots of BAA's a few GAA's and one long sentence :) and nothing but laughs, smiles and serious confidences. I love his shoes! Hope you had a great meeting. So nice meeting Clemente and looking forward to seeing Dave's Uncle, too.
Lots of Love, Sheila
PS A few Cheerios. OXOX"

Entering toddlerhood

A week and a half ago Sam decided to use walking as his primary means
of transportation. So walk he does, sometimes nearing a run! He finds
great joy in it, particularly in running at our L-shaped couch and
flopping against its corner. Sometimes he doesn't make it all the way
to the corner...he falls face first in his excitement. But he's a
tough kid, he usually just gets up and completes his run to the couch
corner.

He's also using newfound mobility to get into every little nook and
cranny that he can - all cupboards, baskets, drawers and boxes. At
least now he's finding as much joy in putting things away and closing
them as he does in opening them and taking them out.
-Christine

External mastication

Sam has been going through a phase of squishing his food before he eats it (blueberries, beans, etc). It finally occurred to me today why he does it! He's just compensating for his lack of teeth (two on bottom, one on top, two more little ones starting on top) by performing some mastication external to his mouth. Of course. Why didn't I think of that before....
-Christine