Walter's favorite word ...

... is crocodile.

When he wakes up in the morning it is one of the first things he says--"ccchhhhroccckkkohdial"--like he's been dreaming about the word all night and practicing it in his sleep. He says it at home and at daycare; it's not his most-used word, but he says it at least once a day.

There are so many things every day that make me think "I have to write that down.  I have to remember this."  Tonight it was the crazy case of the giggles he got while nursing before bed, resulting in an unfortunate case of the wet hiccups. And the way he added in his two cents over the baby monitor while we watched the presidential debate.  And the way he walked all over the church during our Wednesday night activities, even walking right up to me while I led worship from the lectern ... a "first" my congregation has been predicting for awhile.

Walt and Henry the day that inspired us to get the boy some shoes

He got his first pair of shoes and took less than one day to adapt to walking in them. He went to his first birthday party, a one year celebration for his best friend, Henry. (Walter and Henry have been day care friends since 3 months; sometimes they'll make eye contact and start cracking up out of nowhere, sharing a joke that no one else is in on.) Walter likes eating stews and other complex, multi-layered, textured and flavored foods, making his daddy the cook very proud.  He likes to help Daddy cook, too, pushing his first pork roll around the pan with a pair of tongs.

There's no way I can possibly keep up with it all, remember it all, record it all.  But I am enjoying it all very, very much.

Crocodile!