18 Months

My baby is 18 months old today! I've been waiting for this day so that he could go to nursery and we could be active for the 2nd and 3rd hours of church again. But now that it's here, I don't feel like he should be old enough to go. He's still just a baby, right?! But he'll probably love nursery and be glad he doesn't have to sit still anymore.

His hangout on the floor in our bedroom while he
watches a movie and Mom takes a quick shower.

He's at such a fantastic age and is so much fun. He is so inquisitive and smart. It's amazing how fast he learns. Here are some things he loves and is doing right now:

-Saying all the animal sounds. He knows the sounds for cow, monkey, cat, snake, pig, duck, dog, lion, dragon, dinosaur (those last three all "RAWR" so it probably just counts as one but he'll roar no matter which of those three animals you list), and he also will "ARGH" when you ask him what a pirate says.

-Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Little Einsteins. Definitely his favorite shows. He will yell "Oh Toodles!" with all the characters and he LOVES to dance to the hot dog dance. My dad will do the dance with him so whenever the song comes on, Johnny runs to get Grandpa to dance. It's awesome. With Little Einsteins, he will pat his lap with them and throw his hands in the air to yell "BLASTOFF!" It's so cute. (If this doesn't make sense to you, you obviously haven't watched as many of these shows as we have :)).

Watching Little Einstein's and using Daddy as his chair.

-He is trying so hard to jump. He saw the characters on a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episode jump and he tries constantly to figure it out. It's adorable. Most the time he just jumps on one foot and then the other. But if he manages to get both feet off the ground at the same time, he lands on his butt and laughs. It's so fantastic to watch.

Trick-or-treating with Daddy.

-He is talking more and more. He understands pretty much everything we say and does quite well at listening to us. Unless it deals with pushing the button to turn on and off the TV, turning on the trash compactor, feeding the dogs, or getting off whatever he's climbing on. Then he feels like he should just be able to do those things whenever he wants. His talking is helpful though because now I can ask him if he wants a certain thing for dinner and he'll actually answer yes or no. And believe me, if he says no, he means it. We've tried making him something he said no to and he WOULD NOT eat it. And the "yes" and "no" extends to going outside, which show he wants to watch, etc. He also says, "more," "please," "thank you," "mama," "dada," "gama," (which is both grandma and grandpa) "ambo," (the dog- Rambo) and he tries to mimic lots of what we say but it's not super clear yet. Every night when we kneel down for prayer, he folds his little hands and starts to try and say a prayer. He also tries to sing the "ABCs." Although the words aren't clear, his intonation is perfect so you can tell that's what he's trying to do.

Our little dragon/dinosaur. Were not really sure which one it
was but he was adorable and would "RAWR" for everyone.

-He's what I call an in-between eater. He's definitely picky about what he's willing to eat and a lot of times he just refuses to eat. But he's not the worst eater and most days he does pretty well.

-Johnny has become quite the monkey! My parents have one of those tall tables and Johnny has figured out how to climb up on the high chairs. It scares me. And he just climbs and stands on everything he can. And he is so proud of himself every time he does it.

-He loves to blow kisses, wave, give actual kisses, high-fives, and yell "bye!" I love his happiness and enthusiasm! He also LOVES baths and anything dealing with water. I think he wishes he was a fish.

-His tantrums consist of him giving you these big, sad eyes and big, pout-y lips. Then he will go sulk in a corner and go "hmph" several times or put his head down in his hands on the ottoman. It's so hard not to laugh when he does it because it's so cute. But I am grateful that he does not have screaming fits. (knock on wood).

-He really is such a happy, loving, sweet, awesome boy. He gets SO excited when he sees people he's really familiar with and it makes you feel so good and important. His current favorite people are really those he sees on a regular basis: Mom, Dad, Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts and Uncles (Especially Aunt Shelby. He doesn't see Aunt Shelby on a regular basis but he sure does remember her from all the times she came to see him and babysit him during his first year of life and he adores her!).

He gets so excited about everything and he teaches me how to appreciate the little things and be more loving every day.

Happy 18 months, Johnny! Your daddy and I sure do love you!