We've created a monster!

On Christmas, we visited with Uncle Eric's family at Nanny's house. Xander was very social. He learned a new trick: Cheers! We had him running all over the living room clinking his sippy cup up against the glass of anyone who would let him, saying "chee! chee!"

Now that we're home, he's been bugging Jessica incessantly. Poor girl is trying to go to sleep at night, with Xander insisting that she do cheers with him with their water sippies. Now he's using the toy soda bottle in the play food set he got for Christmas, trying to get Jessica to do cheers with the other toy soda bottle.

I think he'll do well at the toast for the next wedding we go to.

Update: now he's trying to do cheers with their lollypops. Will the insanity ever end?!

It's that time of year again!

Happy Birthday Alexander!

He's so cute. He kept saying what I chose to interpret as "I two, I two."

Pictures to follow.

I'm ready to go!

Xander loves to go out when everyone else goes out. Frequently only part of the family will leave the house for whatever reason. Even though he hasn't been invited or asked to go along, Xander invariably goes and gets his shoes and coat whenever someone leaves the house. Or if they're not easily accessible, he says "shoes" and "coat." He gets very mad too, if you tell him he can't go. He's perfected the pouty big-lip sad face.

The Amazing Alexander

Alexander has become a magician. His favorite (and only) trick is the magic disappearing act. He takes an item, covers it with a napkin, asks "Where is it?" then takes off the napkin to magically reveal the item.

A couple of days ago he was doing this with a tiny piece of donut. He did it, oh, 7 or 8 times, complete with the "Where did it go?" hand gesture. Then, in his zeal to pick up the napkin, he accidentally picked up the tiny piece of donut with the napkin. He was absolutely dumbfounded when he saw he had actually made the donut disappear.

* * *
2 notable word acquistions

"Salsa." For some reason, we were talking about salsa and Hari and I started saying it over and over the way Jerry and George do on Seinfeld. Then Xander said it, sort of the same way George and Jerry say it.

"Love you." I finally got the boy to tell me he loved me. Yay!

Stubborn stubborn STUBBORN

Nap time is always a trial. At least for me. Apparently Xander goes right to sleep for everyone else.

Today was no exception. We were in bed and I kept laying him down and he kept popping back up. Then Hari called, and since it was related to our power outage, I took the call. I had to go downstairs to find the list of things for him to bring with him when he comes down tomorrow. I went downstairs, and Xander followed me.

While I spent 10 minutes on the phone, Xander climbed onto the couch, sat next to me and proceeded to fall asleep sitting up. I laid him down on the couch, and he's still there. STUBBORN!

Ball

I'm not sure whose blog to put this on. Jessica thought it was funny when a little while ago she put a ball under her shirt so she could have "boobies." Xander thought it was funnier than I did, so he's currently putting the same ball under *his* shirt.

My Little Photographer

I was somewhere recently, bored, with nothing to do, so I took out my cell phone and decided to go through the pictures I've taken (I haven't figured out how to upload pictures from the phone, so I have 1 1/2 years of pictures on there). Still, I don't really take that many pictures, and I was surprised to see that there were a lot of them. I got interrupted, though before I got to see what they were all of.

Cut to...a couple of days ago. Xander was crying and I handed him the nearest thing to entertain him which was, as it frequently is, my cell phone. I noticed him pushing all sorts of buttons, activating the camera and suddenly realized he was the reason why I had so many pictures. Now I kind of can't wait to see what he's been photographing all this time.

What's in a name?

This is from the second link from the results that Google spit out when I put in "Xander" as a search parameter (the first thing was regarding Xander from Buffy, and my Xander is *not* named after him).

Xander

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Xander is an uncommon given name that is often a nickname for Alexander.

People

• Xander Berkeley, American actor
• Xander Darren Lloyd Steen-Thomas, Son of Michael Steen,and Sheena Thomas

Fictional characters named Xander

• Xander Bly, a protagonist from Mystic Force Power Rangers.
• Xander Cage, the protagonist in the film xXx, starring Vin Diesel.
• Xander Crews, a character in the animated series Frisky Dingo
• Xander Drax, an antagonist in the film The Phantom, played by Treat Williams.
• Xander Harris, a character in the cult television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
• Xandir P. Wifflebottom, a character in the animated series Drawn Together.
• Alexander "Xander" Xero III, protagonist from the upcoming novel X Marks the Spot by Mike Baugh

Fairly Oddparents

Is it Xander? Or Timmy Turner?






















Again, he insisted on wearing the pink hat.

Deny deny deny

Xander has reached the "no" stage. Pretty much everything you ask him, he immediately says no. Now, I primarily ask him yes or no questions because he's not up to more detailed conversation. Most recent conversation:
"Xander, do you need a diaper change?"
"No."
"Are you sure you're not poopy?"
"No."
"Can I change your diaper?"
"No."

He will also answer no to questions that are not yes or no. For example:
"What kind of cereal do you want?"
"No."

* * *

He can now ask for a book by name: "Hawo." This translates to Harold and the Purple Crayon. We have about 6 books and he loves them!

Counting

Xander is counting. Sort of. Jessica's bedtime hugs-and-kisses ritual has evolved into 5 hugs and kisses, where we each count out 5 hugs and 5 kisses, her to me and me to her. So Xander hears us count it 4 times every night. The other night he wanted to do hugs and kisses too, so I did. And he started counting "Two....fwee." That was the extent of it but it was a start.