More!

More! That is the word of the week. Reshen uses it with gusto all day- "more" food, "more" of his tv show, "more" of that story, "more" of that song, "more" of that game, "more" of that dog that just ran away... he even says it to himself when he wants to do something over again. It's so funny how he's *really* grasped that concept now and uses it!

He's also begun saying "Thank You," although it sounds more like "tee too" when you give him something or he gives something to you :-) I'm so happy that he's picked this up. I've never even prompted him to say it- he must just hear it from me and from the kids I nanny for. It's *so* cute to hear in his little sweet voice. I hope he keeps it up!

He is also beginning to use more 2 word phrases. What I've heard him say:

No Mine!
More Cheese
Bye DaDa
Bur (bird) Go?

He doesn't use them consistently yet, but every now and then he'll utter 2 words close together enough that they seem like a phrase. Cool!

He's also tackling some more "difficult" words these days. Some new words he's saying:

Broccoli (gawk-i)
Tiger
Motorcycle (ki-kyle)
Helicopter (cop-ker)
Beep Beep (for a bus)
Eat
Poopy
Hand

On Friday we played "Ring Around the Rosie" with Luke and Lucy. Reshen thought that was hilarious. Luke, Lucy, and I would "fall" down at the appropriate time and Reshen would watch us with glee and then say "oun! (down)" and do a slow, dramatic fall to the floor. Then he would pop up and say "more, more, ash, ash (ashes, as in part of the song)."

He also tells me to do certain songs and games with him. He is getting better at communicating excatly which ones he wants, through words and hand motions, but I'm still at a loss sometimes. I feel bad when I can't figure out excatly which one he wants. If I get it wrong he'll say "No, No," and shake his head, like "come on, mom, that's not right!"

He's been using "MaMa" *a lot* lately. I can't be out of the room a second that he's not calling for me. He also uses it to get my attention when I'm right there. He'll climb into my lap saying "Mama, Mama!" and then will tell me what he wants (well sort of).

I've realized I really need to watch what I say and do in front of him now. I was talking to Alan in the car today and Reshen was reading in the back in his car seat. I said something about the LoneStar Steakhouse and Reshen shouts "Star! Star!" He had no idea what we were really talking about but really likes stars at the moment, so was excited that we said that word, I guess. I thought it was funny that he was actually listening to our conversation, though, as we weren't talking to him at all :-)

Oh, and he showed me how he picks up things I do... Sometimes Chancey, our cat, tries to get out the door when I open it, and I push him out of the way with my foot (not roughly, mind you), and I say "No Chancey." The other day Chancey was hanging out by the garage door and Reshen walked up to him, stuck out his little foot at him and said "No!" It made me laugh, but also made me realize I need to make it a point to be nicer to Chancey around the little man!

Reshen is really into drawing right now. Ok, so it's actually scribbling, but he thinks he's drawing :-) One of our favorite activities is to draw with sidewalk chalk outside. He plops himself down in the driveway and we both scribble away. I draw something, like an elephant or a dog and he shouts out the name and does the appropriate sound and then scribbles over it. We draw animals, shapes and letters. He could do that all afternoon I think. He thinks all letters are either an S, B, or M right now, and all shapes are Triangles, and every color is Blue ;-) But at least he's getting the concept! He pretends he's writing and will say "eh-s (S)," "B," eh-m (M)"! I'm really amazed at how much he's been absorbing lately.

I love to watch him play these days. He gets so focused sometimes. He likes to take out all his cards (flash cards and uno cards) and sticks them, one-by-one through the slats in his Crawl-n-Cruise toy. When he begins to run out, I push them back through for him and he'll start all over again. He will play with those cards for a long time... he also likes to move them in and out of containers and boxes. He is so serious and quiet when he plays with them.

He has also been playing with his Weebles toys a lot lately. He likes to make them go down the slide (and makes a great sound effect for it) and announcing "up, oun (down) before and after they make their descent. He also likes to put his Weebles into other objects (like the ball chutes in his crawl-n-cruise and in mommy's backpack). I had to laugh when I found my laptop bag full of Weebles today :-)

I just love my little man. :-)

Wide Feet Blues

Turns out our little man's feet are not so little. Noticing that his current shoes were a bit too snug, we went shoe shopping this weekend. We knew his feet were on the wide side, but were surprised when even the wides were not fitting him. After two days of searching (selection for wide toddler shoes is horrible, by the way), we finally broke down and drove all the way to the North Bend Outlet mall (60 miles away) to visit the Stride Rite store. He was fitted there in extra wide shoes! So currently our bubby is wearing a 5 1/2 xw. It's sad for mommy because it severely restricts our shoe choices... there are SO many cute boy shoes out there (and cheap too), but now we don't have much to pick from.. and they are not cheap. :-( But what is important is that our little guy has comfortable, healthy feet.


Reshen has been *such* a toddler lately. First of all, he has begun throwing more defiant tantrums. He will scream "No, no no!" and then launch himself into the screaming and crying when he gets upset now. We had an episode at the Nordstroam Rack today when I wouldn't let him climb on the shoe racks. He *was* tired, so I understand where it came from, but it still is embarrassing. We are just not giving into the fits, but also try to divert his attention and make him forget why he is throwing them.

He has also begun to stick objects in his nose. Yesterday I had to fish a pea out of it! I have to say, even with all my experience with toddlers, I was not ready for this one! Now I watch him more carefully if he is eating anything small and round.

I have been so amazed with his language development. Today at the shoe store he started standing and then squatting and announcing "up!" "oun (down)!" over and over again. He was so proud :-) He has also started saying "on" ("off" used to mean both on and off). He was playing with his socks in the car and kept saying "on, off, on, off" and then would chuckle to himself. What a funny guy.

He is such the helper lately. He puts everything away (except for his toys of course). If he sees something on the floor that goes on a table or in a drawer he picks it up and puts it away as best he can. Today he picked up a paper towel from the floor, threw it in the trash can and then tried to pull the trash can into the broom closet, where it usually is. I was impressed! He also LOVES the broom and will "sweep" for a long time. I just hope he is always this helpful :-)

Words he has added to his vocabulary:

Rice
On
Down (oun)
Stick
Store
Juice
Grandpa (gan pa)
Book
Monkey (meh key)
Baby
Diaper (deh per)
Cheese
Peas

He's begun playing "games" with us. Yesterday I was in the kitchen and Reshen was playing in his hat drawer nearby. I heard his cute little voice say "bye bye" and looked up to see him standing there with his sun hat on his head. He then waved and grined at me and took off running towards the door, stopping every so often to say "bye bye" again and wave with that silly grin on his face. When he got to the door he started giggling and then ran back to me. It's so neat to watch his sense of humor developing.

Last Monday we took Reshen to the doctor because of goopy, swollen eyes. It turns out he had a common upper respiratory virus that causes goopy eyes and other cold symptoms. She gave us some eye drops and said it should go away. He did run a fever for a few days and didn't sleep well, but he seems to be healthy now. Let's hope it lasts!

Sunny Days

We've had some really nice warm weather here lately. Yesterday was 65 and simply goregous! It was so nice to open all the windows and let the wonderful spring breeze refresh the house. Reshen and I spent the afternoon outside. It's no secret that he loves the outdoors, but he especially seemed to enjoy himself in the warm sunshine. I taught him how to pick dandelions and smell them. He thought that was really neat and would toddle over to one, pick it, and then hold it up to his mouth while breathing in and out really hard through his nose (trying to smell it). He would then hold it up to me and say "mell!" He calls flowers "oweh" Hey, it's close :-)

He really loves the park and scares mommy to death with his confidence. He likes the slide (which he calls "ide" and also makes a sound effect for it. Sorry I can't replicate the sound effect, you just have to hear it). He goes down the slide on his belly, feet first thankfully. What scares me is how he likes to walk around on the play structures, which are not always fully enclosed. I'm so afraid he's going to fall over the edge of one. He's also really into steps and will walk down them without even hesitating, whether I'm there or not! To his credit, he does do really well on them- even uses the hand rails- but he's not 100% steady yet and also tries to tackle big steps (way too steep for his little legs). He also loves big kids and wants to do what they are doing.. which means he's always trying to play on the big kid play area, which I'm not ready for yet, and also thinks he can use a big kid swing, as opposed to the baby swing. He's not even 16 months yet and thinks he's 4 years old!

One of his new developments has been the concept of "stuck." He now pushes trucks and other objects around and when they run into anything else he announces "stuck!" and then backs it up and goes around it. It's really cute.

More words he is saying:

Flower (oweh)
Smell (mell)
Stuck
Nemo (mo)
Giraffe (ahf)
Splash (ash)
Turtle (tuh-tuh)
Slide (ide)
Dog
Frog(agh)
Jack (ack)
Luke (uhk)

He really likes music and singing and dancing. Sometimes he'll pick up his Elmo and start swaying back and forth with it saying "la la la" and then I have to sing the Elmo song for him. Or he'll pick up his Baby Einstein Dragon and dance with it and then hold it out to me so I can push the button and make it play the music. This morning he was watching Little Einsteins and one of the characters was singing a funny nonsense song and shaking his head. Reshen grinned and started doing the same thing. Now if I sing that song to him he shakes his head crazily. He also still adores the British Action Songs CD from Lucy and dances around the room and does the motions for Wheels on the Bus, I'm a Little Teapot, Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, etc..

He is becoming very interested in TV. He's always enjoyed bits of it from time to time, but now gets *really* into certain programs. His very favorite thing to watch right now is the movie "Finding Nemo." He says "ish ish! (fish)" and pushes buttons on the DVD player when he wants to see it. I limit it to evenings when I'm getting dinner ready and he is over tired (from those mini naps he's been taking). He sits right down and grins in anticipation. He doesn't watch the whole thing (nor do I want him to), but mostly just the middle (as I begin it a bit into the movie). He now recognizes Nemo on his blanket and poster in his room and likes his Nemo bath toy. He mostly calls it "ish" but also says "mo" for Nemo."

He's also taken a shine to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the Disney Channel and Big Big World on PBS. He actually got upset last night because he only saw the last 2 minutes of Big Big World. He kept saying "more, more!" but it was over. I don't mind him watching TV a little bit, but am seeing that I might have to actually put a *real* limit on it soon.

Reshen's eyes have been a little "goopy" the past couple of days. He's also been really resisting sleep. *sigh* I'm really hoping this is not another ear infection. I'm giving it till Monday and if it's not better I guess we will have to go to the doctor again. It's really been going around at my nanny gig. All the kids have been sick with something and they keep giving it to each other. But that is life I guess.

15-Month Well Baby Check

We had our 15-month well-baby check last Thursday. Reshen is doing great. He weighed 23lbs 8oz and was 31.5 inches tall. That puts him in the 32nd percentile for weight and 57th percentile for height. He's actually jumped up in percentiles for height and is being pretty consistent with his weight gain.

The doctor was impressed with his development skills. She said he seemed like a 2-year old stuck in a 15 month-old's body :-) She also kept saying what a sweetheart he was. I already knew that though :-) She also checked his ears and they are all clear- yea!












One thing I talked with her about was starting him on a multi-vitamin, since veggies are still touch and go. He used to eat everything, but lately has gotten so picky. I know it is normal for his age, so am hoping it is only a phase, but it is driving me crazy! The only veggies he will eat right now are potatoes, carrots (but only if they are baby carrots that are baked in the oven and seasoned AND they cannot be cut up), cauliflower if it is smother in cheese, and he actually had a few beets yesterday which was shocking. But right now he won't eat peas, green beans, corn, asparagus, or broccoli. I have tried them in all kinds of forms. He even separates them out of casseroles and omelets. Today I snuck some baby food vegetables into his spaghetti sauce and he didn't notice, so I will try that way more often. But still I am afraid he is not getting enough vitamins, so have started him on a toddler multi-vitamin just to be sure.

So what *does* he eat, you may ask. He LOVES dairy... milk, yogurt, and cheese are his favorite foods for sure. He will also eat pretty much any fruit- fresh or canned. Bananas are his favorite. He also likes apples, strawberries, mandarin oranges (canned), peaches, pears, kiwi, and pineapple. Those are what we have been eating lately, but I am sure he would love any other fruit too. He also likes carbs- bread, crackers, noodles. Protein can be hard to get in him sometimes, other than dairy. He will eat eggs and peanut butter, and humus, so that is good, but I am trying to get him to like chicken and beans too. It's amazing toddlers can still grow with their picky eating habits!

Another frustrating development in the past couple weeks has been his 30-minute napping streak. I think he's transitioning from two naps to one, but it's not going smoothly! He resists the morning nap, but then when he *does* go to sleep around noon he only sleeps for 30 minutes and then wakes up crying. I try to get him back to sleep, but it doesn't usually work. I then have to keep him up for the rest of the day (usually) because if he naps too late it messes up his bedtime. It's driving me CRAZY! He and I both need him to sleep more than 30 minutes during the day. I'm hoping it will work itself out. He did take a good 1.5 hour nap on Sunday, but today was back to a half-hour. Maybe in time he'll get it figured out.

He is still collecting those words. Here are some more he has added:

Cracker
Moon
Car
Bus
Tree (tee)
Blue (boo)
Purple (puh-puh)

He has started pretending to write. It is so cute. He scribbles and says very deliberately "Eh-s, Eh-s" Like he's saying that he's writing the letter "S." I think he picked this up from Luke and Lucy who I am teaching letters to. He also says "M" (Eh-M). I don't think he recognizes the unique letters, but knows that they have a connection to writing. Cool!

He also knows that colors have something to do with crayons. He heard the word "purple" on TV and said "Puh-puh!" and ran to the crayons. Of course I had to let him play with them then :-) He doesn't seem to know which one *is* purple, but knows that one of them is :-)

What a cool little guy he is becoming :-)

Developmental Leaps

I'm so amazed at the little "person" our bubs is becoming. This week he has astounded me with his rapidly-increasing vocabulary, as well as the new ways he is enganing in and trying to control his world.

Words he said this week for the first time:

Done
More (mah)
Bubble (buh-ba)
Snow (no)
Banana (na)
Milk (ilchk)
Ball (bah)
Truck (uhck)
Bus (us)
Water (wah-uh)
Yuck (eh-uck!)
Bye (ba)
Eye
Nose (nus)


He's really into ducks these days and thinks all birds are ducks. He especially gets excited by Big Bird (from Sesame Street) for some reason and shouts "d-uck!" We don't bother to tell him that Big Bird is not a duck, as we're not really sure just what kind of bird he is anyways. He doesn't even watch Sesame Street, so I'm not sure why he loves him so much, but it is funny. We have cereal/fruit bars with Big Bird on the label and he likes to get into the cabinet and pull them out and bring them to me, shouting "d-uck! d-uck! qwak qwak!" He then has to eat one. :-)

Today he surprised us by showing that he makes a connection between pooping and getting his diaper changed. He made a poo and then ran over to where we keep his changing pad downstairs. He got it out of the drawer, laid it on the floor and then laid ontop of it without ANY prompting from us at all. Maybe a good sign for potty training in the future? :-)

He really follows direction pretty well for his age I think. Today at WalMart he wanted out of the cart, so daddy obliged. Against my warnings, Alan put him down and let him walk. I thought for sure he would be ALL over the place and taking things off shelves, etc., but instead he held Alan's hand and walked beside him for the most part. Eventually, he did decide to act like a toddler and wouldn't leave things alone, but he lasted a lot longer than I thought he would. He also is beginning to follow alongisde us when we are walking outside. He used to have no sense of distance or direction, but I can see it's developing now.

He is still really into action songs and finger plays. We go to Book Babies at the library on Thursdays and he just absorbs it all. Every time we sing a hello song while the leader holds a dog puppet and has it greet the kids. I sang that same song to Reshen yesterday and he said "uff! uff!" He made the connection to Book Babies and thought of the dog! So cute!

He really likes "Two Little Blackbirds" right now and always wants me to do it with him, especially when he's in the bathtub for some reason. He holds his hands behind his back and says "uh uh!" and stares at me until I do it (the blackbrids (your fingers )fly away and hide behind your back in the song).

He likes to mimic counting on fingers. I count and raise each finger as I go until I get to 5. He then looks at his own fingers and wiggles them around and says "do, do do!" in the same tone and cadence I use. He also points to objects in books and does the same thing, like he's counting them. I think he picks up a lot of what I do with Luke and Lucy (the 2 and 3 year olds I nanny for).

He likes to put objects away... like when he's done eating he "helps" me clean up by putting all his unwanted food back on his plate. He puts his toys back in their containers sometimes, and today put his changing pad back in the drawer. Of course, you'd never know he could do this by the looks of his play area... but I guess it's a start :-)

Tooth #8 has finally pushed through. It's his lower second right tooth if you want to know specifics. He also is getting his first molar. His upper right molar is just beginning to poke through (the front end is through the gum, but it looks like the rest still has a ways to go). Fun, fun. I'm blaming that on his screwy napping this week. I thought maybe he was finally transitioning to one nap per day, as he sometimes doesn't seem to want the morning one. So this week I didn't push the morning nap and sometimes waited until 12 to put him down. But then he would only sleep 30 minutes and wake crying and crabby! Let me tell you- 30 minutes is NOT long enough for either of us. He's also been waking a little bit at night and also waking early in the morning.... I'm hoping it's just teething and not his ears again/still. We just finished our last of the 2nd round of antibiotics. I'm SO hoping that killed it. We have his 15 month check-up on Thursday, so I will know for sure then. *crossing fingers*

This week he pointed out body parts- he pointed to the eye of Nemo (on his blankie) and said "eye!" He also points to mine if I ask him where it is. He also pointed to his own nose and said "nus." He's so obsessed with my hair, but doesn't say anything for it yet. He's always playing with it and pulling it (not so much fun) and messing it up. I'm trying to teach him to be soft. He's always been like that with my hair- I thought he would have grown out of it by now... he's kind of weird... :-)

He really likes to say "neh" (no) and shake his head these days. You can ask him about anything and he will shake his head no. One exceptionally tiring day this week I asked him, "Reshen, are you driving mama crazy?" He shook his head and said very matter-of-factly "neh, neh, na" Made me laugh. Now he knows it's funny and grins while he's doing it, even if you ask him "do you want to eat?" (which he always does). We're working on nodding the head and saying "yes" (which he did do today- yea!).

He's been so cute at bedtime lately. When I lay him down he scoots over to his baby bear and his ellie elephant and tucks one under each arm. I then cover him up with his fleece teddy blanket and he snuggles down. He's so sweet that it's almost hard to leave him in there :-) I said ALMOST... I do look very forward to 7pm when I can exist outside of being "mommy" for a few hours :-) That said, here I am at 8:30 typing away about my boy. I guess you never really do take a complete break from being mommy :-)