Berkeley Antics and a new bestie

BW has had an obsession with Elmo for the last 18 months or so. He has an Elmo stuffed animal he sleeps with every night, he plays with him constantly and it has been clear that Elmo is the favorite of Berke's toys for some time now. He also has a stuffed Cookie Monster, Abby, Ernie and Big Bird and while he plays with them sometimes, Elmo is being dragged around everywhere and Cookie is the #2 in town. That is...until recently.
Berke has a recent obsession which is watching Mickey Mouse Club House. We started getting videos at the library and now he cannot get enough of Mickey, Minnie and the Gang.
The other day I told BW if he went the entire day with no accidents in his undies then I would get him a Mickey doll. This was a good motivator and no accidents were to be had. I went that evening to Target and got him the doll. That night as I put Berke to bed, I handed him Mickey which he quickly hugged. I then handed him Elmo (who he has slept with for the last 18 months) and he quickly threw him on the ground. Just like that Elmo went from Hero to Zero!
I will say Elmo has not completely fallen out of BW's good graces and he still gets played with quite a bit, but it is clear who the new #1 Bestie is, and his name starts with an "M".

Berke's imagination has really picked up the last couple of months, it is pretty adorable really. This week, Christian blew up this little pool and Berke has been playing with it all day, every day. He needs no water, as he can imagine that it is full. He gets all his stuffed animals and tells them they are going to the beach. This thing gets drug around the house and played with constantly. Who knew? Mickey is taking a mid morning swim. Good thing he has his floaty so he wont drown.
Berke is also loving our new couches; especially all the fun pillows it came with. A favorite game we played during Tropical Storm Irene was bury BW in all 6 pillows......

then he will break free! Then he screams, "More, more, more!"

Here is Berke putting all his little friends to sleep. This was pre-Mickey Doll, but he does have his Mickey Pez dispenser taking a nap, which is pretty cute. He was so sweet to lay everyone down on his pillow and make sure they all had a place to lay.

My friend at work gave us a cute bedroom set for Berkeley, so he went from Toddler Bed to Big Boy Bed in a matter of months. I sort of love his big boy bed, because now I can lay in bed with him and read books, scratch his back, or just be silly with him. He loves it to and has had no problems with the transition.

Other cute things about Berkeley:

1. Everywhere we go, this kid turns heads. I am constantly hearing, "He is so cute!" or "Look at that little boy with the glasses; he is adorable." This kid knows he is cute.
2. We have been working on counting for some time now, Berke seems to know the numbers but without fail, every time we count something he says, "Two, Five, Seven, Eight, Nineteen, Four!" EVERY TIME it is the same pattern, what a nut.
   
3. He is still a picky eater but has added Bean Burritos to the list of things he will eat as well as cashews. Yea, for more ways to get the kid some protein. Still wont eat ONE darn vegetable. He looks at it on his plate and says, "I can't eat it." and then quickly throws it on the floor where Mr. McDuff happily eats it up quickly.
   
4. Berke loves going to the Beach and every day he asks if we are going to the Beach with Megan and Q. We have been to a lot of beaches this summer, but I think he would be sad if he knew that beach season is quickly coming to an end and we probably wont have any more trips there this year. :(
5. Every day I tell Berke about how we are going to go to Mickey's house in December. He gets so excited and asks if we will see Minnie? Donald? Goofy? Pluto? I think he may be just as excited as I am for our adventure this winter.
6. Christian has been teaching a children's singing class at MIT this summer and Berke gets to go with him to the class. It is amazing how quickly he is picking up on these songs with repetition. He loves the Wheels on the Bus, London Bridges, Choo Choo and Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. Singing these songs instantly brings a smile to his face.
7. Berke has this game where he looks at me and says, "Laci, what is your name?" I say, "Laci, what is your name Berkeley?" Then he replies, "Christian!" and he laughs and laughs.