The Zorio Family: Carter at 20 Months

Our sweet, silly, happy Carter is 20 months old today-Friday the 13th! AND he was born on a Friday the 13th, so these (now) "lucky" days are his!

There is so much I could say about Carter this month, but what I really want to remember is his happy personality! He is so, so sweet. He loves to give hugs, kisses, and snuggles without being asked or prompted. He is especially sweet with Nora Kate-even when we're not looking. He really just can't get enough of her. He kisses her head, hands, and toes...isn't that the sweetest thing?! He is constantly hugging or patting her. Sometimes he will sit down next to her or in front of her and just watch her, waiting, like they're going to have a conversation. He's just so sweet!

Carter is also super silly! He loves to be a ham. He will do silly things and then look at our faces to see if we are going to laugh. Then he laughs at himself right along with us. Carter loves to laugh. He will do something we won't even notice and crack himself up! So funny! There is no way to have a bad day when Carter is around.

As sweet as Carter is to Nora Kate, he looks up to Dawson just as much! I don't think there is anyone that makes Carter happier than Dawson. He copies EVERYTHING Dawson does (this is both good and bad!)

It would be impossible to specifically talk about words in Carter's vocabulary now because there are just so many! However, there are a few things he says or talks about that I want to remember! His favorite phrase right now is "all aboard!" He says this 24/7 and with a variety of tones, inflections, and volumes. The other day the first thing I heard on the monitor when he woke up from nap was "all aboard!" repeated about 15 times before I could get to his room! If you're in Carter's way, he will look at you and shout, "Move back!" I'm not sure where this came from, and it honestly doesn't sound super polite (so we're going to work on that), but it makes us laugh every time! Last week at church, John had Carter trapped in the pew during the service, but Carter wanted out to the aisle to run. He looked and John and said, "Daddy, move back!!" If he is looking for anyone or anything he says, "Where are you?" in the sweetest sing-song voice ever! The other day I asked Carter where his bellybutton was, and he said, "Bellybutton, where are you?" :)

Carter loves music, and he loves to dance and sing. His current favorite is Frosty. I've never sang Frosty so many times in my life as I have in the past 2 weeks! Any and every snowman is frosty, so every one we see in a Christmas decoration he points out, calls Frosty, and then wants us to sing. :) We are always so impressed with how quickly Carter learns things by song-even at this young age-he knows A LOT of words to various songs, and even Frosty which we haven't been singing for too long!

Carter points out bugs, bees, stinkbugs, and lady bugs EVERYWHERE, and he usually correctly identifies between them. There is a huge stinkbug problem in East Tennessee (lovely thing to remember on our son's 20 month blog post, right?), but because of this Carter has learned what they are. Unfortunately now if Carter sees a piece of a leaf or anything on the floor that isn't supposed to be there, he is convinced it is a "stink bug" (which he says with a lot of emphasis). He points it out, and says stink bug over and over until we come look. If we tell him it's a leaf, he will say, "stink bug! ew! shooo! gross! stink bug!" I want to remember the way he says "no" he draws it out and shakes his head, "noooooo!" He has started nodding yes, and it's the most dramatic nod you have ever seen...hilarious.

In terms of potty training Carter is doing really well! We usually have a minimum of one success each day, and a lot of times more! The days I do a good job taking him frequently, he does great! If I could stay on him better about asking, he would have it quickly because he is already even telling me when he has to go a lot of the time without me asking.

Carter is currently cutting A LOT of teeth (finally!) at once! I'll update next month with how many he actually has, because as of now his top molars are half way through, his bottom molars feel like they're coming through soon. And he has a couple more knots on his gums in the front where it looks like he could be getting more teeth too!

My sweet Carter!