Big, Giant, 18-month-old

It has occurred to me that most of my posts in the last month or two have been personal soapboxes and melodramatic, self-indulgent, emotional rants. Since some (okay, most) of you read this little blog out of a insatiable desire to see my son's face, I will take some time to correct my inexcusable sin of omission.

Benjamin is a whopping 18 months old! I can't believe it. At his 18 month check-up last week he was 32" (50th percentile) and 25 1/2 lbs (40th percentile). 18 month clothes go up to about 27 lbs and 31 inches, so...pretty much his shirts are crop-tops and his pants are capris, but they're still kind of baggy. 24 month clothes are big on him, but he's too tall for the smaller ones. So....he'll be kicking it gangsta style in his droopy 24 month clothes for a bit. Sexy.

Benjamin's favorite activities include reading, climbing onto the couch and running laps, playing with his cars, building with his blocks, and (un)organizing everything. He LOVES to dance. He still likes the salad spinner, although he has new favorite toys. He also loves to play pretend, particularly with kitchen-y things. I gave him some of his Ikea bowls, plates, and cups to play with, and he loves it. He feeds Elmo and Cookie Monster, and he stirs, pours, and drinks all kinds of things. We're saving up to get him a little play kitchen and table, which he will love. He's very rowdy and energetic. It's funny how you can actively work against gender stereotyping, but the boy just naturally gravitates towards dirt and messes, and he is a non-stop ball of energy. His most favorite games are playing on the couch and tackling mommy and daddy.


His language seems to be slowly developing. He can still only say a handful of words, but he's using them more regularly and seems to be adding. Yesterday he said "outside." I think that puts us at six words. He also signs a bit, though. He can say please, milk, and all done. He's very good at climbing up and down the stairs holding someone's hand. He loves to tickle, and he even says "tickle" while he does it. He can also "count". He will "count" all the animals in a book, or blocks on a table. Every number is two. He can take off his clothes, most without help, and he often does (including his diaper). He also knows what all of his clothing items are called, and he can identify most of his body parts. While he can only say a half dozen words, his receptive vocabulary is incredible.

Two weeks ago he made the switch from two naps to one. The first week was a breeze. This week not so much. He's only slept a couple of hours each day, and completely loses his mind around 5:00 and basically cries and throws things until we put him to bed. It doesn't help that he hasn't been sleeping well at night, either. These last few nights have been challenging. We had Adalee with us for a few days while Brandi was in the hospital, and I think that may have thrown him off. One night he was up half the night puking, the next night he woke up screaming a few times, and never really went back to sleep after 4:30am. Last night went much the same, except he added a new bonus: he somehow managed to climb/fall out of his crib. So at 1:30 in the morning Matt was putting the crib at its lowest setting while I tried to calm the boy with his goose-egged forehead and a renewed energy and desire to play. Suffice it to say, we are all very tired, as no one has slept much for a solid week.


But other than sleep deprivation and a seemingly endless string of illnesses, Benjamin is doing fantastic. This is a really fun age, and we are having such a good time with him.