18 Months

Well it's that time again. Time to marvel at how fast my baby is growing up. Noah turned 18 months old on Saturday. A year and a half, I can't believe it. Today was his check-up, so we have all his latest stats and I want to record some things to remember about my sweet boy at this age. I'll give my usual disclaimer that this is probably going to be boring to anyone but me. But since I haven't opened his baby book since he was 6 months old, I have to record this stuff somewhere!

• He weighs 28 lbs 10 oz (82%) and is 35 1/4 inches long (99%). The nurse couldn't get over how tall he is. She said she was telling the other nurses "Have you ever seen a 3 foot tall 18 month old??"

• He’s not as interested in eating anymore. Some days he hardly eats anything but other days he still eats like a horse. From what I hear this is completely normal for his age. Oh and he eats everything with a fork. He’s doing well with a spoon too, but it is a little messier!

• Favorite foods: bananas, cheese, rice chex, carrots, Eggo nutrigrain waffles. He still loves milk but has been drinking less of it. He loves really cold water with ice.

• He has 16 teeth so we are just lacking his 2 year molars.

• We recently moved him up to size 5 diapers, he wears anywhere from 18 month to 2T clothes, and size 7 shoes.

• Bedtime is around 8:00 and he wakes between 7:15-7:45 on weekdays. Weekends he tends to sleep in later. He goes down for a nap each day at noon, and sleeps anywhere from 2 ½ to 3 ½ hours. He still sleeps with a paci and right now I’m just not overly concerned about breaking that habit. Since he only uses it in bed it is not affecting his speech or anything, so whatever.

• Favorite toys: trucks, balls, cozy coupe, ball popper, shape sorter, stuffed animals (he likes to take them all out of the basket and line them up on the floor or coffee table).

• Favorite shows: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse & Handy Manny (but usually he will only sit and pay attention for less than 10 minutes)

• Favorite books: he really loves any Bible story book (probably because most of them have lots of animal pictures, but I’ll just tell myself he is deeply spiritual already. Ha). He also loves any lift-the-flap book, Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See, Polar Bear Polar Bear What Do You Hear, and any of those little “first word” type picture books where he can point at things when we ask where they are.

• He can identify just about any animal in existence, even random ones like a walrus and a crab. The kid LOVES animals. He can point to all his major body parts. We are working on learning shapes and so far he can identify a circle and a square.

• He is not a big talker yet. I am not overly concerned about it because I know that active little boys tend to be late talkers. There are only about 8-10 words that he consistently says with meaning, and the doctor said that is within normal range (although at the low end). It’s funny though cause every once in awhile he will say a full phrase—like “I dropped it”, “you do it”, etc. I’m ready for him to get more verbal, because he is a big-time screamer/screecher. I know he does this because it is the only way he knows to express himself verbally—ask for something, tell me something, express anger or frustration—but it is NOT fun. Seriously, I spend most of the day with a headache! Oh, and he also constantly says “yeah”. You’ll see it in the video below. (We’re also working on manners—saying yes please, yes ma’am, or yes sir).

• He is getting more snuggly and affectionate as he gets older. He gives big, wonderful hugs. And sometimes he will reach for me to pick him up, and he’ll just lay his head on my shoulder and pat my back. Melts. My. Heart.

Josh and I are both just so proud of Noah as he grows into more of a little boy and less of a baby. I love his little personality. He is sweet, affectionate, giving, energetic, outgoing, confident, determined, smart, and so much more. Life with a toddler is a c-h-a-l-l-e-n-g-e for sure, but I am so thankful that God chose us to raise this precious little boy. It's a huge responsibility and a huge honor. And I honestly love him more and more every single day!

I'll end with a couple videos we made last night: