i think i can, i think i can...

My buddy can walk! He takes after his mother as far as the walking timeline goes. Actually he was faster than me- he walked 1 day before his 16 month mark. I'm talking about independent walking. He has been holding onto my finger for months. He still likes to do this and lead me around the neighborhood looking at dogs, the bunny, and keeping up with the kids. It's funny to watch him try to pick up the pace when we are chasing him. Just thinking about it makes me smile.
Keaton is such a verbal boy. He is always jibber-jabbering. Now he includes real words. I've noticed that a lot of his words begin with "b". Bird, ball, balloon, Blake (his own version "Bae"), blankie, book. It's funny to see him mimic things that I say repeatedly to him. For example- if I'm calling one of the older boys by name he will put his hand up to his mouth (as if it will make him louder) and say something with similar voice fluctuation. If we are looking for something he'll say "eeeee go?" like "where did it go?". His most frequent sign language phrase is "more candy". Uh-oh! One of my most favorite things he does is right before bed. Darren or I sing him the first verse of I am a Child of God and then say a prayer with him. He is quiet during the whole prayer until the end when he chimes in with him own amen.
He likes to play with balls and small cars. His favorite game right now is Silly Six Pins. He does well trying to keep up with his older brothers. He learns from watching them. In fact, the other day he joined them in playing with the rocket outside. He walked over and picked up a rocket, put it on the launch stick, pumped the handle, and then attempted to pull the string to send the rocket up. Not bad for a guy who just learned how to toddle!