What Otto is up to now

I forgot to add this photo of Otto and Goa under the most magnificent tree I've ever seen at the botanic gardens in Australia.  And I just took the one of Trevor reading to Otto in bed the other morning.  I couldn't resist sharing both and writing about what Otto is up to these days.  He is SO BIG and SMART!  He is really understanding language now.  It is remarkable how much he knows and how fast he is absorbing it.  So fast that I was compelled to introduce a second language and  I got him a Mandarin tutor.  Jera has only visited once so I'm not sure how effective she will be but I hope that just being exposed to another language will be a value.  He is getting very capable these days and can really navigate stairs well both at home and at the playground.  He pretty much goes on the play structures all by himself now.  He can go down the slide no problem and LOVES to hang from the bar above the slide.  He loves to kick and throw balls and play kick the ball down the hall at Goa's and can make a goal (and says "goal" while he does it) and can make a basket when I ask him to try.  He can make some new animal sounds-he says "Ba" for sheep "Whooo" for owl and makes a little snorting sound for pig.  He still raises his arms for ponies and does a little arm over the head wave for a duck.  And when we say flower he sniffs and when we have to go to the bathroom he says "shhh shhh shhh" a trick he learned from his Goa.  He also still likes to dance with a one arm pump, walk backwards, and jump, and turn around.  He also will kiss and hug us on demand!  Goa was the first to discover that new trick.  I was at work and she was watching him and she asked Otto if he loved his car and wanted to kiss it and he walked over to her and have her 4 little kisses on the cheek.  Oh boy, I've never seen her so proud as when she was telling me what he did!  He loves Aunt Stacy too.  Trevor and I went to Las Vegas for the weekend and she came to help Goa watch Otto and during that time they really bonded even more than before.  She told me he would fall asleep on her neck!  He is just so fun right now.  

 

San Diego and Ojai

Although Trevor and I have been working a bunch during the week we've had some pretty fun spring weekends.  We went to San Diego to visit Andy, Sarah, Troy and Morgan and had a ball.  Otto loved playing with the boys and they all got along great.  They have a million really cool toys (are we depriving Otto?) and Otto had an absolute blast playing with all of them.  Plus they have super sweet dogs and a monster truck that is always parked on the street a few houses up.  Otto was in heaven!  The first photo is of Otto taking in the truck and the second two shots are of him playing with the dogs in a little flowery filed.  The next weekend we spent Saturday in Ojai visiting Moira, Henry, and Jack.  Again, Otto had a great time playing with Jack and all of his toys (yes, we are totally depriving Otto and need to buy him more toys!).  We also spent a few hours at the Ojai Valley School.  They have an amazing playground, BEAUTIFUL grounds, and a stable of horses.  The first shot is of Otto and I at the playground and the second is of a Red look-alike.  Red was Trevor's horse when he was a kid and from the sound of it this horse seemed a hundred times sweeter than the real Red!  And the final photo is of Otto and Trevor under the wisteria by the school's pool. Beautiful! 

17 Month Duck and Stats

Since we were in Australia when Otto turned 16 months we don't have the usual duck photo.  But here he is, 17 months already.  He was not thrilled with this month's photo shoot so this was the happiest shot we got.  Although I LOVE the socks he is wearing!  

Also here are his stats from his 15 month check up (which was really 16 months by the time we got home from Australia):

Weight: 24 lbs 12 oz (47%)

Height: 33.5 inches (93%)

Head Circ: 47 cm (52%)

Australia Part Deux

I know this post is very photo heavy but Australia was so great and adventurous that we had to take a lot of pictures.  The first picture is of Otto and his friend Lillian and her Dad Alberto.  Alberto used to work with Trevor at Sundance but now works in the wine industry in Adelaide.  We hung out quite a bit and his daughter happens to be Otto's age.  This photo was taken at the zoo.  Goa came with and we tromped about all over looking at all the animals and the new Pandas.  It was very fun and a highlight of our trip was taking the ferry to and from the zoo.  I think that was Otto's favorite part.  The next photo is of Otto on Rundal Mall-a pedestrian shopping street.  We spent lots of time there watching the street performers and checking out all the shops and restaurants.  Otto especially liked all the statues (this pig in particular), fountains, and pigeons.  The photo of Goa and Otto on the grass was taken in Glenelg at the beach.  There is a large grassy area that runs along the boardwalk that we spent hours on one day.  We played in the water, then washed off in the fountian, ate lunch in the grass, and then Otto took a two hour nap.  It was a terrific day!  The photo of Otto and Trevor in front of the fountain was taken in the courtyard of our hotel.  We stayed in an amazing suite-two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, and kitchen.  It was the perfect place to stay for two weeks because we were really able to make ourselves at home.  We cooked and ate there, Otto loved to run up and down the halls and up and down the stairs, and play in this fountain.  It was very comfortable and homey.  Otto especially loved playing in the mirrored closets.  There was a safe with buttons that made noise that kept him occupied for hours.  I like this photo particularly because of Otto's outfit (it's adorable) and expression.  There is a picture of his Grandps making the same face.  I love it!  The last photo is of Otto stuffed in the airplane bassinet.  One flight attendant almost didn't bring it for us because he didn't believe Otto was only 24 pounds (the weight limitation is 25 pounds) but we insisted and honestly it was the best.  It gave me a few hours to rest with out Otto on my lap and even though it was a tight fit Otto was comfortable enough to sleep.  The video is of Otto doing all his new tricks-jumping, showing off his hands, walking backward, and saying ball.  We tried to get him to turn around but he wouldn't do it this time.  Australia was really a memorable trip made so much more fun by Goa's presence.  She was an absolute trooper keeping up with me while I told her to "hurry up and cross the street in time!"  She'd play all day and watch Otto all night.   I can't believe her stamina but she did it and I think she had a great time.  And Otto absolutely loves his best friend, Goa, so I know his time was much more fun because she was there.  Australia was the best! 

Australia

We were in Adelaide Australia for two weeks in February and March. It was such an incredible adventure. We got to "cuddle a koala" and feed a bunch of kangaroos at a nature preserve up in the Adelaide hills. It was absolutely incredible. Trevor, Goa (Otto's name for his Gram), and I were beyond thrilled...Otto was a little unimpressed as you can see from these photos. HA! As excited as I am to take him around the world I have to temper my expectations that he will be as interested in sight seeing as I am. At least he'll have pictures! What he was thrilled about was the beach. That child is a sand and water loving fish. Both the air and the water were warm so I really enjoyed it as well. Otto doesn't mind the cold water which bodes well for his future summering in Montana. He also loved the fountians on the boardwalk of the beach. He would run around to each spicket and try to catch the water that shot out. It was really fun to watch. Another highlight of our trips to Glenelg-Adelaide's beach town-was the tram that we took to get there. Otto was absolutely in heaven while we road the tram. In fact he loved it so much that he would get upset and cry everytime we got off. During our whole trip to Australia including the taxi ride to LAX, the bus rides from terminal to terminal at the Sydney airport, and the taxies and buses and shuttle vans we road in while in town Otto was 100% OBSESSED with riding in cars. He would get so excited to get in and cry when we got out and pretty much said "CAAAARRRR" our entire trip. Now that we are home he is still pretty obsessed with cars but our time in Australia was the absolute height of his love for cars. We also frequented a bunch of the parks in town. It was really fun walking around looking for playgrounds and once we got there we realized that all the equpiment was so different from the stuff we have in the States. All the new play structures made a routine trip to the playground a bit of an adventure. The photo of Trevor and Otto sitting in a car was at one playgound that had a huge helicopter that kids could climb in. It was very cool and this time Otto was as excited about it as we were! We had suuuuuuucccccchhhh a great vacation. I'll post another Australian edition and write about our second week.