21 months

Going to do a post by pictures to show what Nate is up to this month:

Getting naked.  Yep, all by himself.  I didn't mention it last month, but Nate likes to unzip his jammies and get into his diaper.  We started duct taping his diaper at night over the tabs to make it hard to get off (or so we thought.)  This morning I heard he was awake but he sounded like he was playing happily, so I took a load of laundry downstairs.  I checked the video monitor before making my breakfast and saw a naked baby in the crib!  Luckily he hadn't made a "mess" and I was able to take the camera in to capture this Kodak moment.

Shoes:  He loves putting on my shoes and walking around.  He's also getting harder to dress....likes to take it as an opportunity to play "chase" and obviously he won at this moment.

Brushing teeth:  VERY obsessed with brushing his teeth.  And taking his time.  Like 10 minutes.  I guess this could be helpful if I'm needing to attend to Little Brother, whose room is right next to the bathroom.  For now I try to deter him away if we are on a schedule, since removing him from the bathroom results in a major sad tantrum.

Coloring:  He is getting better at coloring and I'm loving these big coloring pages that my parents gave him for Christmas....less likely to color on the table!  Still also loves putting stickers on paper.

Other things--

Teeth:
He has cut 2 new teeth this month...his top first molars.  That gets him up to 9!

Movies:
 It has been awesome that Nate is more into movies for these last few weeks of pregnancy.  His favorites right now are Elmo in Grouchland and the Toy Story movies.  I LOVE snuggling on the couch with my little guy!

Language:
Not sure why, but he calls Elmo "Sahh"
Also recognizes Cookie Monster and Big Bird
Other words:
Cookie
Please
Baby (sounds like bebe)
Duck
Dog

We're trying to enjoy our last few days with Nate as an only child...but also looking forward to how he'll be with his Little Brother :-)

Well it turned out to be a memorable day!

The turkey breast turned out well, so I'll share that in a minute.

But the big news of the day is.....

NATE WALKED!

Joel came home from work a bit early and we were playing in the playroom. We've been trying to encourage him to walk from one of us to the other, but he'd never done it. I let him go and he took about 5 steps from me to Joel! I love so much that Nate tends to save these milestones for times when Joel and I can both see it together for the first time and it makes me sooooo happy.

We'll work on trying to get this on video. After dinner he wasn't too happy and didn't want to agree to our numerous attempts to get him to repeat his performance.

Ok, Turkey Breast! It was yummy, easy (I don't know how it could get much easier) and I doubt you could really tell the difference if you had cooked it in the oven and basted multiple times. Once it cooked for a while I was able to replace the corningware with the proper lid.

Crock-pot Turkey Breast
source: Cedar Rapids Gazette, Desperation Dinners column

1 turkey breast (6 to 6-1/2 pounds), frozen (see note)
2 tsp vegetable oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 medium onion
4 garlic cloves

Rinse the turkey and pat it dry with paper towels. Rub the turkey all over with oil. Sprinkle the breast lightly with salt and pepper to personal preference.

Place the breast, meaty side up, into a 5-quart slow cooker.

Peel the onion, cut it into quarters, and place the pieces around the edges of the pot. Peel the garlic cloves and place them around the sides of the cooker. Cover the cooker and cook the breast on low for 9 hours, or until the meat thermometer registers 170 degrees. Remove the breast from the cooker and let the bird stand at least 10 minutes before slicing. (The internal temperature will continue to rise while the bird is standing.) Discard the vegetables in the cooker. Serve the breast sliced, preferably without skin.

Note: If the turkey breast is not frozen, check for doneness (170 degrees) with a meat thermometer after 7-1/2 to 8 hours of cooking on low. Be sure to wash your hands well with soap and water immediately after handling raw poultry. Wash sink and counter surfaces the meat touches with soap and hot water.

If you do not use the entire turkey in the meal you can refrigerate, covered for 24 hours before chopping the meat and freezing. Place the meat in a freezer-weight plastic bag and freeze for up to 2 weeks.