21 Tidbits about Andrew

October is Down Syndrome Awareness month. In honor of this I've put together 21 tidbits about Andrew. (21 being significant of his triple 21st chromosome, of course)

1. Andrew was born at exactly 37 weeks gestation; Tuesday, February 1st, 2007 at 1:37am. He weighed 6lbs, 4oz and was 19" long.

2. Andrew loves to 'read' books. His favorite right now is 5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. He gets very animated when the Doctor says, 'No more monkeys jumping on the bed!'

3. He loves to brush his teeth and can spend over 15 minutes doing so.

4. He doesn't particularily like bath time and 'runs' from me when I tell him it's time for a bath. Of course, he can't quite run yet & his legs are short...so he doesn't get very far.

5. He's very independant, likes to do things HIS way....it's almost as if he's 2 years old or something!

6. He loves to be outside, would wander around out there for hours, and pitches a nasty ol' fit when he has to go in.

7. He's had 4 surgeries to date.

8. He loves music and loves to dance. He will dance to anything, including white noise, but his favorites are Hi-5 songs.

9. He's not a picky eater.....yet.

10. He has over 30 signs and says over 50 words. Of course, most of those words can't be understood by the general public...only by mom.

11. Andrew is a big-time cuddler. He likes nothing more than to cuddle up in mommy's lap, suck his thumb and rub mommy's face.

12. He has a strong throwing arm and excellent aim. His Physical Therapist is quite impressed and is sure he'll be a great ball player when he's older.

13. He can say Spongebob Squarepants (in his own way)....but can't say 'mom' yet.

14. His favorite Tv shows are Hi-5 and Spongebob. He'll follow the actions to the Hi-5 songs (as best he can) and pretend to play the flute at the end of the Spongebob theme song.

15. He has a gigantic sweet tooth! (even bigger than his mommy's!)

16. He's a goofball. He can make even the grumpiest person in the room giggle...I know, I've been the grumpiest person in the room before and you don't stand a chance with this kid!

17. He loves to give hugs and kisses. He'll offer them spontaneously throughout the day.

18. His favorite finger plays are Itsy Bitsy Spider and Patty Cake.

19. He has his mommy wrapped around his little finger. Twice.

20. He likes to 'play' Playstation with the big boys. He'll hold the controller, moving his fingers on the buttons and moving the controller side to side as if he's really steering the car on the screen.

21. He smiles with his whole face and it lights up the room. You just can't help but be happy when Andrew's around.