19 months and counting

Micah is almost 20 months old, so I am quickly trying to write down some of his 19 month milestones before it is too late. So here goes....

Language: he is finally learning some words! Here is his list. "Doda" (doggy); "Dow" (down); "Ep" (yep) combined with a big nod of the head; "Mama"; "Dad"; "two" (always said after I say "one"); "Mou"(mouth) as he points to his lips. The words have started to come on more quickly this week, so hopefully he will keep the trend going. He understands most of what I say, as well as what our nanny says to him in Spanish (which is the only language she speaks to him).

 

Sleep: he slept through the night 3 days in a row last week. I thought we had finally made it! It was all just a trick though. He has been up again the last 2 nights. :( He is napping later in the day now (noon - 2pm), which makes it so much easier to get errands done in the morning. His bedtime is 8pm and he usually sleeps until 7:30am.

Size: he is wearing size 24 months clothes, size 4 diapers and size 5.5 shoes.

 

Personality: He loves to be with the big kids. He watches them very closely and tries to do everything that they do, especially on the playground. He has no fear and loves to climb. If he sees a camera, he scrunches up his nose and makes a funny cheesy grin. It means that I don't have very many good pictures of him actually smiling! If I can't get him to eat something that I want him to eat, I just pretend that it is mine. If I am eating it, then he automatically wants it. Works every time! He loves to give hugs and is great at cuddling. He is just sweet and I can't imagine life without him. :)

18 month check-up

Micah had his 18 month check-up at the doctor yesterday. He weighed in at 10.35kg (or 22 pounds) and is 80 cm long. He is around the 50th percentile for both! His developmental milestones are right on track, even though I thought his speech might be a little slow. :). He only has about 4 spoken words, but he is making lots of different sounds and definitely gets his needs/wants known.

His favorite things:
- his Mama. I am definitely number one in his life.
- breast feeding. There is no plan to stop this anytime soon, since he loves it so much (and to be honest, so do I)
- playing outside. This kid loves the freedom of doing his own thing. He is so independent on the playground now, especially climbing up to and going down the slide.
- waking his sisters up in the morning. He loves to climb right up onto their beds and make sure they are getting up for the day!

- baths. This has always been a favorite thing.
- pulling his hair. He is not a thumb sucker, but he does like to grab his hair and hold onto it for soothing purposes. He needs a haircut, but I am worried I will take away his security blanket!















- shoes. He is constantly going to the shoes and trying on different pairs.
  - dogs. He can spot a dog a mile away and always calls to them and points. He loves it when dogs give him kisses and will happily stop and say hello to every friendly animal. His favorite dog will always be his Jackpot though.

His least favorite things:
- going to bed. When asked if he would like to go "night night", he always shakes his head no, no matter how tired he is.
- coming inside from playing. This always elicits a tantrum from him. :)
- eating meat. He still won't touch it.

17 months old

Time is flying by much too quickly for my liking.

 

Micah is 17.5 months old right now and I was just realizing that he is exactly the same age that Shaylah was when the twins were born.  I cannot imagine how I managed 2 babies and a toddler without any outside help.  It is a good thing that I have absolutely no recollection of that year of my life!  Micah still seems like such a baby to me, yet I remember Shaylah as being such a big girl back then.  It is amazing how life circumstances can change your perspective on things.

Micah is seriously the sweetest baby ever.  He loves to cuddle, he gets so excited when Johnny gets home from work, he smiles easily and he is rarely cranky.  He is finally sleeping through the night (except the occasional 4am wake-up).  He loves to feed himself with a fork/spoon and drink from a regular cup (sippy cups aren't his thing!).  His favorite toys are his Home Depot drill and table saw (the plastic kind, of course).

(Helping Daddy put up new blinds on the windows)

 

 He still doesn't say much verbally, but he loves to sign for "milk", "open", "up", "all done".  I am sure he would do more signs, I just haven't taught him any more.  I must look some up soon!  He follows simple commands, such as "go get your jacket or boots", "clean up" and "go put it away".  He is choosing what he wants to eat mainly by vigorously shaking his head "no" for most things I put in front of him....he is so picky.  He loves the playground at the school and climbs and slides independently while waiting for the kids to get out of school.  He has a couple of ride-on toys that he loves.  I am thinking it might be time to get out the tricycle and see what he does with it.  I am thankful that he has been healthy so far...no flu or bad colds yet!

He is growing so fast and I am not quite ready for it to happen!  Slow down Micah, I want to keep you little a while longer.  :)

16 months

What's new with Micah at 16 months old?  He is so much fun, but I guess that isn't new.  He has pretty much always been fun.

 

He still doesn't say very many words, but he sure understands a lot.  He loves to point out his body parts when we ask him to.  His favorite is the nose, but he also knows, ears, eyes, mouth, tongue and belly button.  He also loves to point out his family members.  When you ask "where is _____?". He gives a big smile and points to the person.  So cute.  His favorite word to say is "dada!", which actually means "doggie".  He can spot a dog from so far away and always yells and points.  He also loves to use the sign for "more", which to him actually means that he wants some milk.  At least we know what he wants!

 

Micah still wakes up 1-2 times per night.  He has teased me a few times and slept through the night, but only a few times.  He goes back to sleep pretty easily though, so I can't complain too much.  He just needs some reassurance and a pat on the back.

(Watching the renovation construction in our back yard)

Micah loves shoes.  He can often be found wearing his sibling's shoes all over the house.  Big or small, he doesn't care.  He also still loves bath time.  Just turn on the water and he will come running.

 

(The only way to keep him happy during photo time was to let him have his favorite toy - his doctor kit)

He has been so good with the Christmas tree.  I was worried he would be tearing it apart, but he has pretty much left it alone.  He goes over to it occasionally to check it out, but he leaves the decorations on the tree. Such a smart little man!

Christmas was fun.  He saw the present meant for him right away(a new ride-on toy) and loved it immediately.  He slept in that morning, so most of the chaos was already complete.  It worked out perfectly!

He is a bit of a picky eater.  He won't eat any meat, unless I completely hide it in something else.  He loves dairy and fruit, not such a big fan of vegetables.    He also loves pasta and eggs.

15 months

15 months is a busy age.  Whoa!  I forgot how busy the toddler stage was.  Maybe I don't remember because I had 3 toddlers (almost) at the same time and I have blocked out that year of my life.  That was smart of me, I think, otherwise I may not have had another baby.  This kid climbs everything, destroys everything and makes a mess of everything.  But he is so sweet, that one little smile from him and I forgive anything.  :)

 

 

He is fun to play with.  He gets how toys work these days and loves to figure things out.  He especially loves his play Home Depot tools.  Maybe because he has been watching workers around our house for the past month (or maybe just because they are NOISY), but they seem to be a favorite these days.  He also still loves his cars and can play for a long time with them.

 

 

With his brother and sisters all taking piano lessons, a favorite activity for him is to climb up onto the piano bench and sit and play.  He does this everyday.  Hopefully, he will want to take lessons when he is older too!

 

 







He loves bath time.  Anytime there is anyone in the bathtub, he insists on joining them.  He has even climbed in fully clothed on occasion.  This little one has to be watched so closely!

 

 

 

His sleep is better, but still not perfect.  He naps for a good 3 hours during the day and goes to bed at 8:00ish at night.  He settles so much more quickly now and consistently sleeps until 4-4:30am.  I give him a quick feed and he falls back asleep until 6:30.  So much better than having him wake up every 1-2 hours.  Plus, he is in his crib all night now!

 

He transitioned well to my return to work.  Gloria (our nanny) is so fantastic with him and she adores him.  He goes right to her on the mornings that I have to leave and I don't have to worry about leaving a screaming baby.  It is so good.  He is so sweet and I can't imagine life without him now.  :)



House Ronovations.

We have started some house renovations this year.  They are long overdue and it feels good to get it done.  We have started with the front stairs.  The wood was all rotten, we didn't have a railing and they were very steep before.

Before.

Current state. Note the large tree is gone and we have lovely new windows on the main floor!

 

We will have to wait until warmer arrives returns to stain/paint and we are still waiting for our (back-ordered) front door to arrive, but the front is almost complete!

 

Next stop....the back deck.  I will keep you posted.  :)



Halloween 2013

This year was fun!  We don't currently have a front door, so there was a nice excuse to take the evening and spend it trick-or-treating with the kids.  I felt a bit guilty not handing candy out this year, but it was fun to all go out as a family.  Usually Johnny and I take turns with the kids, so this was a nice treat.

Shaylah wore a costume made by my grandma is the early 80's.  My mom kept everything from when I was a kid, and this is one of the things I am glad that I still have.  It was so awesome and Shaylah was just as excited as I was.

Shaylah the clown.

 

This is the first year in Ashlyn's life that she hasn't wanted to be a princess.  This is just another sign that my kids are getting too big!

Ashlyn the hippie flower child.

Caelan was not only a pirate, but a ninja pirate.  He has some pretty good ninja moves, so watch out if you ever see him in a back alley somewhere.  Definitely run the other way!  :)

 

Micah was my sweet little pumpkin.  He only trick-or-treated at 2 houses this year, but he thought it was pretty fun.  He is almost impossible to take a picture of these days because he doesn't sit still for a second.  I should have dressed him up as a monkey!!  Notice my little helpers in the background trying to hold him in place for me.

 

Caelan's, Shaylah's and Ashlyn's pumpkins.