Growing Like a Weed: 15 Months

Sam is 15 months! We went to the doctor for a checkup and here are his measurements:

Head: Ginormous! (85th percentile)
Height: 32.5 inches (67th percentile)
Weight: 23.5 lbs. (33rd percentile)

The doctor said that these measurements were great because he is keeping on the same growth curve according to her chart. It's nice to see his weight jump a bit because he eats more than me! I'm not sure we could feed him any more than we do now!

One of the fascinating things about kids is how they learn. It has been a lot of fun to watch Sam learn as he gets older. For example, he has somehow learned that keys open doors. He loves to take mine or Kimberly's keys, walk to the different doors in our house and see if he can open them. So, we made him his own set of keys. If you ask him to get his keys and unlock the door, he will find his keys and try to open a door in the house. Amazing! Of course, this makes me wonder what else we're teaching him that we're not even aware of!

Sam apparently also has a very active imagination. He is the new chef in the house. My neighbor recently gave me a toolbox that sort of looks like a rolling suitcase. I brought it inside and put it just inside the back door in the kitchen. Before too long, Sam began to use it as his own personal stove. He went to the tupperware drawer and put some "pots and pans" on top of Sam's Stove. Then, he went to the pantry and pulled out the Rice-A-Roni and pretended to pour it out into the "pots and pans." He even went so far as to get a spoon out to stir it all up! I have to say that it wouldn't be a bad deal to have a chef for a son! [For some reason our camera connection is not working, so we'll have to post pictures later. Sorry.]

He is learning all the time. Sometimes I find myself sitting back and watching him, just wondering what he'll do and learn next.

Showing Some Resolve

This year I've made three New Year's resolutions.

1. Run another half marathon

I ran the Wicked Half Marathon in Salem, MA in September of 2009, although using the word "ran" may be stretching the term a bit. I lost 40 lbs. training for that half marathon, going from 235 lbs. to 195 lbs. I have gained back 25 lbs, weighing in at 220. It's time to start training again! Below are a few pics from the first half-marathon.

2. Be more organinzed

This one sounds a little vague, but I need to be more organized with every area of my life (including the covers, according to Kimberly!). So, I am making a concerted effort to structure my schedule very carefully, mainly so I can be a better husband and father. One of the projects we have been working on around the house will help with structure and organization. We own a small building that used to be a store, which is on our property. We have been working to make this building into usable space for an office/craft room/play room/man cave. Below are some pics of the remodeling.

3. Communicate more with friends and family who do not live nearby 

I could always do a better job of staying in touch with friends and family who do live near us. I think many of you could provide ample evidence of my lack of communication. Part of the solution will be posting on this blog once every two weeks. I haven't posted anything to the blog since July 27! You'll notice that it's January 13th, which means two things. First, I'm cutting it close on breaking this New Year's resolution. Second, it's Granny and Mom's birthday today! Happy birthday Granny! Happy birthday mom! To catch you up on just a bit of what's been going on at Catlin Farms, I've provided some pics below.

Happy New Year!