16 Months

This past month has been an emotional one for us, however, continuing to watch our little guy grow and change has made it all the while.  A friend recently told me that the 16-20 month time was "golden" and I would have to agree.  It is amazing to watch a child truly learn and pick up on new things each and every day.  Yes, we still have our meltdowns, but they are a little more infrequent, and most stem from the fact that he wants to go outside, (non-stop----c'mon Spring get here!) play with the iPad, or watch Mickey Mouse.

He loves to stack things, and move bottles, plates, bowls and cups all around the house.  He seems to prefer to play with these things right now instead of his toys.  His favorite thing is to be outside, and I am looking forward for the weather to warm up, so that we can spend hours outside.  He is picking up on our routines as well, and he will get a bag, put it on his arm and wave "bye bye" and give kisses to us, like he is leaving for work, just like his Daddy does.  It is pretty sweet, but it makes you realize those eyes and ears are watching your every move.

His vocabulary is continuing to grow.  It is still saying mostly babble, but the babble is much more frequent.  He can still say, "Mama, Dada, Belle-Belle, on, uh-oh, and bye-bye", and has added "duck, papa (sometimes),  balloon, and last night with the phone in his hand he made a sound that sounded like hello".  He still signs "food, milk, more, please, thank you, and all done". He can point to most body parts (head, hair, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, tummy, hands, and feet), and can recite animal sounds when asked, (a lion, monkey, dog, cat, duck, chicken, and a sheep).

He went through a stage where he did not want us to read any books to him, but the last few weeks, he has been bringing us books and his favorite are books that have any type of lift-the-flap or that has something that he can point out (like the balloon in Goodnight Moon or the bear in I Love You All The Time).

He is still a great eater, loves most fruits and a few vegetables.  Some of his favorites are chicken, avocado, edamame, broccoli, oranges, grapes, and strawberries.  He is finally drinking milk from a cup pretty well, and some days he will guzzle it down non-stop and some days he would rather have water.  We still pretty much limit him to those 2 things.  His favorite snacks are PB crackers, Cheerios, Goldfish, and yogurt covered raisins.

He is such a blessing.  Look at those eyes, how can you resist?

16 month stats:  22 lbs 8 oz, 33 inches long.  14 teeth and 1 on the way!