Twenty-four months pictures

Here are the pics. Finally. We waited until all the hives stopped popping up on his face before taking the pictures. And then I just forgot to post them...

Oh, and the nurse totally had Aiden's height wrong at the 2-yr appointment. He is not 36 inches. More like 33. I can't blame her for being so off, though. He totally fought through the measuring, even with me trying to help hold him still.

Aiden trying to show that he is "two years old"


This kid never sits still!


I love close-ups of his eyes...




Somebody looks just a little bit like his daddy in this one...

TWO Years Old!

Aiden's big 2nd birthday bash was all about the Cat in the Hat and Dr. Seuss. Ryan and I agreed we would consider it all to be a success if we didn't end it in the ER, like we did last year. So, based on that, it was successful; even aside from that it went off without a hitch. We had a blast, and everything went just great!

Instead of a long post, simply enjoy the pictures. :)

2010 August - Aiden's Birthday

Twenty-four months

Our baby boy is TWO YEARS OLD! Wow, how time flies...

This month has been a whirlwind with lots of changes, visitors, and the big birthday. And Aiden continues to grow way too quickly.

Weight: 26 pounds, 2 ounces
Height: 36 inches
They didn't bother even trying for the head circumference due to his incessant screaming and freaking out over being back in the dr office. You'll see why towards the end of the post.

He's gained three pounds and five inches since he turned 18 months, so I guess the kid IS growing, after all! I've been wondering... He just seems so small to me!

Likes

• Visitors! A couple weeks ago, Mammaw Melly, (Mom's) cousin Michelle, and Michelle's little boy Cody (same age as Aiden) visited for a week. What fun we all had, especially those two little boys! By the end of the week, they were more like brothers! For Aiden's birthday, MaMaw Sharon and David visited, as well. Aiden doesn't take long at all to warm up and loves all the extra attenion. ;)
• His sprinkler/pool. LOVES it!
• Dr. Seuss. We didn't have a Cat in the Hat birthday party for no reason! The kid LOVES him some Dr. Seuss. He knows a lot of the parts in the Cat in the Hat, and after we told him he was having a Cat in the Hat party, anytime we would say birthday, he would exclaim "CAT IN THE HAT!!"
• The big P.F. Chang's horses that are outside of the restaurants.
• Acting like his stuffed animals do real things...like poop, sleep, nurse, etc. One day he thought both Puppy and Bunny needed diapers. We got some cute pictures out of that!
• Sports Signing Time video.
• Lining up throw pillows on the floor and then falling onto them (more like jumping onto them, landing on his tummy).
  
• Mama's granola. Mama's fruit "juices" that I make instead of giving him actual juice. Coconut milk. Good thing, too, since he's off dairy for a while. He's into pears right now (we just took him off citrus foods and berries as we try to sort out some possible food allergies, so many of his favorite fruits are off the table, so to speak). Also, he loves frozen blueberries or frozen grapes (grapes are cut before freezing).
• Tickling us. He's not really into us tickling him, but he likes to tickle us (or his stuffed animals). When he tickles his animals, he bursts out with these high pitched giggles, pretending the animals are laughing.
• Dancing. He asks for music ALL THE TIME. It's like it's suddenly a crime to not have music playing. And he's very specific about what he wants to hear (usually choosing between Toby Mac, Veggie Tales - he calls them "tomato," Wiggles, and a cd we have with various children's songs - he calls it the animal songs or he'll name certain songs on the cd).
• Coloring. We've noticed he's becoming more intentional about drawing, too, and is more focused when he does it. (Apparently he doesn't think crayons should have the paper wrapped around them, though. He's been more into pencils until lately, and now that he'll use crayons, he spends more time tearing the paper off than drawing, it seems!)
  
• Sports or balls related to sports. He's all boy, that's for sure!

Dislikes

• The ocean. Still. We went while Cody was visiting so he could see the ocean for the first time, and while Cody loved it, Aiden still was scared of it. At one point, I debated...risking traumatizing him more by bringing him in the water anyway or possibly helping him realize it was calmer once we got past the waves at the shore. I brought him out, and he did end up liking it. He even smiled a bit and splashed the water. It lasted a few minutes. Hopefully next trip won't be as bad, and he'll like it more each time. He still says he likes and wants to see the "big sand" but NOT the ocean or waves...
• Putting his feet on his high chair seat when we're getting him out. We have him stand up to wipe off any food that got on his clothes, and he now will try not to stand so that his feet won't touch any food that might be on the seat!
• Anyone but him dancing. He doesn't mind a lot, but when you first put on music, if you start dancing along, too, he'll say "NO!" We simply say "YES! We can dance, too," and continue on. He gets over it. He does, however, love to chase me around in circles while we dance to the music.
  
• Bananas. I think he's just gotten tired of eating plain ol' bananas most mornings. He'll still ask for them but will eat the first bite or two and then break and smoosh it all apart, wasting the whole thing. We're finding other ways to eat bananas these days.
• Knowing he needs his diaper changed. He'll run away and sometimes cry b/c it means he has to stop his playtime or delay getting mama's milk to have his diaper changed. If it means delaying getting the milk, he'll kick and scream and throw the biggest fit the whole time.
• Meat by itself. Still not a fan. Give him some chicken salad or taco soup, and he's all about it. He sometimes likes bratwurst. A burger by itself, he might eat it or might not. But any other meat by itself, nope.
• Stairs. Still. He can go up barely using his hands at all, but going down...while I'm sure he can do it just fine, he rarely will. He'll stand at the top, frozen, and insist "Carry, Mommy!" I'm not pushing him to do it himself yet. If I try, he just gets scared, and it's not worth it to scare him. He'll get it.
• Seeing mama sleeping. Ryan brings him to our bed when Aiden wakes in the morning, so he can nurse while Daddy gets up to shower (or snoozes...), and if I'm still lying there like I'm asleep, he gets pretty upset about it.

New Developments

• Moved to the TODDLER BED. This was not by choice. Aiden was leaning over the rail and we knew it was just a matter of pushing up on his toes a tiny bit more before he fell out and landed on his head. He wasn't trying to *climb* out yet, but we did not feel it was safe to keep him in any longer. So, we converted the bed to a toddler bed. Way sooner than we wanted...
• Hives... Ugh. They've been around for too long lately, and we just can't seem to figure out what is causing them. We're still trying, and it means both Aiden and Mommy are on a rather strict diet right now in order to hopefully get rid of the hives and then figure out what the culprit is. Wish us luck.
• Aiden's getting to be quite the sneaky kid when he wants to get into something he knows is off limits. One day he repeatedly kept getting something out and trying to walk past me with it. He would put it back when I told him to do so, and then take it again...walking past me with his head down as low as possible, almost as if he thought if he couldn't see me, I couldn't see him!
• Feelings. Not that he's just now aware of different feelings, but we've been working on recognizing them. We make a game out of acting various feelings out. He likes to do sad followed by silly. He'll make the sign for sad, speak with a really slow, sad voice, and make a big frown while he does it. And then he'll make a silly face, shake his head, and say in a really high-pitched voice "silly!" He also likes to bunch up his fists, scrunch his face, and do "angry."
• Whispering. Sometimes he must think he'll get his way more if he whispers what he wants or the answer to a question, even if he's across the room. For example, when asking if he's ready to go to bed or if he's tired....a whispered "no" is not an uncommon response. It's pretty cute.
• Rolling the balls in the house. This is actually just an indication he is learning rules and following them. If he is, by chance, caught tossing a ball and is reminded we don't throw (we have a no-throwing-the-ball in the house rule...we only roll them inside), Aiden will say "roll the ball" and proceed to do that. Or sometimes he'll just say it when he rolls it.
• Repeating what we say or what he hears. Not that this is entirely new, but he'll repeat much longer phrases. If he's listening to music or we're reading a story, it's often the last line he hears. It's funny most of the time and incredible to hear him say such long sentences. Ryan says it's annoying sometimes when he's trying to, say, brush Aiden's teeth. Ryan: "Ok, open your mouth." Aiden: "Ok, open your mouth." Haha!
• On that note, he's also saying much longer sentences these days. I think we don't give him enough credit sometimes, too. The other day, he was asking for something. He said, "Book please." I told him sooner he would need to ask by saying, "May I have the book please?" to which he responded, "I have the book please?"
• Memory. Wow, he's remembering so much more these days. Again, nothing too new, but it's growing all the time. I'll mention before bed that we'll be going somewhere the next day, and he'll wake up bright and early asking if it's time already. Or we'll have a friend over one day, and he'll be talking about that person weeks later, asking if they will be coming to play (and apparently, even months later, in some cases!). Another example...He received some shots a little over a month ago. He did not enjoy the experience, and yelled at the nurse, "ALL DONE, ALL DONE!!" and gave her the meanest look. We went for his 2-yr check-up recently, and as soon as the nurse called us back, the screaming began... Since we had some other issues going on, we were not giving him shots at this visit (even the dr agreed to wait), and even constant assurance there would be no shots and "no hurts," the child would not calm down until we left.
• Tip-toe-ing. I don't know why, but we constantly see Aiden walking around on his tip-toes. He can do it for quite a long time, too! The other day, he was trying to get something from higher up on a shelf, and he was actually standing on the very tips of his toes, with them straight up like a ballerina would do. It was wild to watch!
• He's gotten rather good at buckling things. He likes to buckle the large chest buckle in his car seat and the buckles in his high chair and booster seat. The last two he can also UNbuckle...
  

No pictures yet. Again. I was going to take them this morning, but his hives are reappearing on his face and are pretty bright, so we're going to wait until that's not showing for pictures. He broke out in hives the other day, big time, and they're still showing up on and off from that. (More on that soon.) Plus, he woke up super early this morning and has been THE grumpiest kid since. I'm certain any pictures I might succeed in actually taking would not turn out so great. I know he would not smile or cooperate... We'll wait for another more pleasant and hive-free day. :)

Twenty-three months pictures

While working on Aiden's 24-month post (yes, I'm late - and I still have to TAKE those pictures, so it isn't going up just yet), I remembered that I still hadn't posted his 23-month pictures. Whoops. So, here they are....

He refused to give me a real smile until he decided picture time was over...

Twenty-three months

Welcome to toddler-hood, where every day brings something new....independence, constant mind-changing, can't-do-it-myself-but-don't-want-your-help, let me have it MY way, learning something new every single day. Life is FULL of surprises and changes these days! It's SUCH a fun age, but there are more challenging days lately, too.

Likes

• Stuffed animals. It started out with Aiden deciding he liked this huge pink puppy one day. It suddenly replaced Bunny, and he took Puppy EVERYwhere for a few days. Then he moved on to another stuffed animal. And another. He mostly keeps coming back to Puppy, and Bunny still has his place at bedtimes, but each day there's no telling which animal will be his favorite.
• The color pink. He really LOVES pink. He does. (And for those of you that think...boys and pink don't go together... We're fine with it in our family.) It's actually pretty cute.
• Laughing about something and then exclaiming "Funny!" ESPECIALLY when it's something that he knows is wrong or isn't funny.
• Foods... Bell peppers (yes, really), salad (one week, he ASKED for salad every day!), peaches, black and blue berries, homemade granola. Ice cream... I made some without eggs, and he loves it. (Of course, he loves it! He's hardly ever given anything that contains sugar, and ice cream definitely contains sugar, even homemade!)
• Music. For a week, I guess, he was obsessed with the Wiggles. Every second music was not playing he would ask for the Wiggles. He'll dance and dance and sing some of the parts, too. Then suddenly he dropped the Wiggles for Toby Mac. Now, anytime there is no music, it's "Mac? Mac?" (Kind of funny going straight from the Wiggles to Toby Mac, but I'll take it. It's nice to have regular music playing in my head instead of the Wiggles or Veggie Tales...) ;) Who knows what he'll like tomorrow, though. Nothing sticks around for too long at this age, it seems!
• His necklace. We got him a hazelwood necklace that is supposed to help with teething (and eczema), and he just thinks it is so cool.
• Saying "cool!"
• Soft diapers. I'll post more about this once we get through our new-diaper-trial, but we're trying some new diapers - mostly pocket diapers (diapers that have a pocket that holds the insert, and usually has a softer material against the baby's skin) because they are so soft and don't have tags and other things that can irritate skin. We've been having all sorts of issues trying to get Aiden's eczema on his lower back under control, and we think a change in diapers is helping. Aiden will even talk about the "soft diapers" and, when asked, will say he likes the softer ones better. He won't always verbally complain about others, but he will pull on them, and, when asked, say it is bothering him and that he wants a different one.
• Coloring. He loves to draw with colored pencils now! So much fun, and we have an assortment of pictures to send out to some lucky grandparents soon. ;)
• Talking with grandparents on Skype. He's really figuring this stuff out, and when I'm on the computer, he'll often ask about his grandparents now! (He talks about grandparents all the time, actually, but he knows he can "see" them on the computer.)
• Giving kisses (to people, things, etc) and then immediately saying "awww." I guess he gets that reaction a lot when we see him kissing.
• Washing with soap. He used to hate having soap suds on him, now he loves it and asks for it the whole time we're in the shower.
• Girls. Well, I think it's more that he likes friends and playdates, but there must be more girls than boys... After one playdate (we actually were able to attend b/c we hosted, so Aiden slept through some of it), Aiden was trying to put on his shoes. When asked where he was going, he said to see a "GIRL!" Haha! And he constantly asks about certain girls he remembers seeing at our house, even months ago(!!).
• CitiBlocs. You CAN get a joint gift for an 11-year-old and (almost) 2-year-old that they will both equally LOVE. You really can! We got the largest set when we found a great deal on-line, and it's been a great gift!
  

Dislikes

• Not getting enough sleep. Now that he's getting more, the days he DOESN'T get enough, he is beyond grumpy!! Before, he wasn't like that, and missing some sleep didn't seem to affect his mood all that much. We think maybe he was just used to it and then he started getting more sleep, which was better for him...and maybe now that he's used to getting more sleep, missing some affects him more than before, if that makes sense. Either way, a short nap (meaning two hours) leads to a very, VERY cranky kid.
• Mommy not joining in with bedtime routine. I've been nursing Aiden downstairs before any sleep routine. He's done fine, but lately he's gotten to where he gets really upset when Daddy takes him up to get him ready for bed. He screams for me. For a while, he wouldn't even let Ryan brush his teeth, which is odd for a couple reasons... Ryan's the main one that does that job, and Aiden normally doesn't want me doing it. Also, I'm all business about it, while Ryan tries to work with him more if he fights. But still, he wanted me. He's gotten better, and now Ryan can usually get through changing, teeth-brushing, and story-time without me having to join in. I still sometimes have to come up after Aiden's in bed, though, to re-tuck him in because he gets so upset if I don't do it. Not sure where this came from, and it does seem to be getting better. He just wants his mama sometimes, I guess!
• Not being able to go outside... It's just been way too hot here lately. We sometimes can go out about 8am - for a few minutes. But when the forecast is for 100 degrees, it's pretty hot even by 8 or 9 in the morning.
• Not being able to do something just the way he wants it right away. Hello impatience! And forget letting us help - until he's already gotten angry, probably thrown what it was he was trying to work with, and then calmed down a bit to even hear our offers to help.
• Not getting his way right away with certain things. Sometimes "no" is easy to hear, sometimes it sends him into his own "no, no, no"s.

New Developments

• It seems we've recently been able to go back to one nap, BUT we have to get it in earlier than before. He has to eat lunch at 11 and be down by around noon. If that happens, he can get a good three hours in (yes, my son! Can you believe it?!). He might wake up a few times, but if I go right in and lie him back down, he goes back to sleep. I do have to make sure he gets down on time, though, because if he doesn't...the longer nap doesn't happen, and (as mentioned already), it SHOWS! Get three hours in, and he's one happy toddler, though.
• Time-out... Aiden has become pretty familiar with time-out recently. The other day, he hit me and immediately said "time-out!" He doesn't always like it. Sometimes a warning that time-out will be the consequence gets him to change his behavior before he does something wrong. And sometimes he says he wants time-out and laughs all the way through it. If he stands, which he does sometimes, I reset the timer, too. And he'll even say "beep!" to show he understands he's supposed to sit until the timer beeps. But it works more than it doesn't, which is nice because it never worked for Camden. And at the end of time-out, he always says he's going to be nice and acknowledges what he did was wrong (e.g. "hitting's a big no-no!"). I've been warning him that soon he'll have to sit for two minutes instead of one. I wonder how that will go.
• The ever-changing mind of a toddler... This happens with everything it seems. One day he wants one specific blanket for naptime (or he asks for all of them), or he wants a certain animal (usually has four in the bed, but he'll say he doesn't want one and adds a different one), he wants a specific book one day but doesn't want it the next. Sometimes his mind changes before you can even give him what he wants. Sometimes he is stuck on a certain thing for a week, and then he switches to another obsession (such as songs) the next week. You never know! For one week or so, anytime we took a shower, he would say "Mommy sing ACD (the ABCs). Goooo!" Actually, for that week he wanted me to sing the ABCs CONSTANTLY! Now we get in, and he says "No ACD."
• Books are not safe lately. Not sure what's gotten into him! He has always been great about handling books, and lately he just tears whatever he gets his hands on some days. Very frustrating. It seems like he's just a bit destructive lately in general.
  
• Memory. He could remember stuff for quite a while before, but it seems now that he just remembers every little thing - and for the longest time, too!
• Church = Success!! He didn't even fuss when Ryan dropped him off a couple weeks ago, and I even got to walk back with them when taking him to his room recently! There are some Elmo toys...and apparently that really helps! One day at home, he kept asking for "Elmo Church?" and saying he wanted to go there. Now, he will be moving to the next room when he turns two in less than a month, and we're really hoping they have some Elmo toys in there!! It's taken a while to get him adjusted and happy to go in the room while we...don't, but it's also been really nice to sit through and hear the message uninterrupted.
  

And blogger isn't uploading pictures tonight, so I'll have to post those later.

Twenty-two months

What a busy month this has been! Lots of traveling, seeing new people (new to Aiden...or people he hadn't seen in a long time!) and places. And Aiden is growing by leaps and bounds! (Maybe not so much physically...but in all the other ways!) ;)

He looks like he's so over pictures...and this was the first one!

Favorites

• "Where'd go??" in the cutest voice ever. He says this about things he can't find, but he also likes to "hide" things (sometimes under his leg or a blanket or whatever is nearby) and then asking. Then he'll pull it back out and act surprised....THERE it is!
• Taking his shirt off. And he may get mad if you keep putting it back on.
• Foods - oranges, avocado, bread. If he hears the word "orange," you'd better deliver. We started Aiden back on gluten at the beginning of the month. So far so good, but we'll see. Oh, and mommy's salad dressing! He loves it. I'll put it on his salad or he'll even dip his apples in it. He just eats it up. (Here's the recipe. This is some good stuff!) And yes, he eats salad. It's mostly the fruit we have in our salad (apples, cranberries, etc), cheese, and then I cut up some lettuce or spinach into very small pieces - so it basically sticks to the fruit and he doesn't have big chunks of lettuce, which is a strange texture for him still. But he's eating more and more of the salad part these days - almost the same amount as the fruit, or close. Yay! He also likes stir fry. The other night we had some, and he loved it. I made a veggie version with (homemade) sweet & sour sauce, so I threw in some fresh pineapple. He was tearing it up...until Camden said "pineapple" out loud. Then he wouldn't eat anything more b/c he wanted pineapple by itself.

"I see you, Mommy!"

• Any type of vehicle. Not sure this will change for a while.
• Telling everyTHING "Hi!" Not only does he tell everyone we see, but he tells every little thing "hi" and "bye" these days. Bunny, his toys, various body parts, colors he sees, vehicles. He even says "Hi mommy's milk!" when nursing sometimes.
• Showers. While traveling, we just put him in the shower with us. Sorry...not going to give him a BATH in a hotel tub. Blech. Since we've been home, he's ended up in there a couple more times, and apparently he is back in love with showers! Now, he'll even move up to stand in the water and get it all over him. I let him play some while I dry off when he's in with me, and he does not like getting out when his time is up. He does, however, say "Bye water!" when he does get out.
• Spiderman. I think this is mostly b/c it's Camden's and kind of off-limits. He's pretty crazy about Camden's Spiderman figures, though. He calls them "Spiders!!" (though it sounds more like "piders!").
• Sharing with Bunny. He pretty much tries to share everything with him. He kisses him all the time, puts him up to our faces for us to kiss him. When nursing, he'll unlatch and hold Bunny up so he can have some milk.... The other day he was caught trying to give Bunny some milk (well, he actually DID give Bunny some milk.) And while at a friend's canning party (yes, you can be jealous b/c it was tons of fun!), Aiden slipped Bunny some guacamole. I'm glad he's sharing with his best buddy (actually, when he says Bunny, it comes out "Buddy"), but sometimes it's a little too literal.
• Song - "Rock-a-Bye Baby." I'm not sure how he decides he's changing favorite songs, but it seems like each month, it's a new one. He takes it so far that he pretty much won't allow another song. Even when he's awake and playing, if I try to sing something else, he might get really mad. Sometimes, if I start to sing another song, he'll actually get so upset he tears up! (No, I don't keep singing it - I'm not going to make him cry on purpose!) Whenever he wants me to sing this song, he says "Rock."
• Mommy's water. He'll ask for water...you give him his water bottle. No. He wants "Mommy's water." Sometimes it's Daddy's, but mostly Mommy's.

Drinking Mommy's water. He looks sooo old in this picture, too!

• Putting things where they don't really belong and then laughing about how silly he is for doing it. Mostly he'll do it with his cars. He'll either stack the cars, will put some other little toys on the cars, or will put something IN the larger cars that open up. After he does it, he bursts out laughing at himself for being so clever and humorous!

He looks so serious when he's focused on putting things JUST where he wants them. Afterward he laughs and laughs (didn't get a picture of that, though).

• Pinching/kicking someone else and then loudly squealing "OWWWW!" (and laughing about it). He hasn't really grasped the understanding that the "oww" means it HURTS. We think he just likes how it sounds and knows that the pinching will usually get it from Camden. Lately I've been trying to put the sound "oww" in there whenever he gets hurt himself and explain the meaning, so he can start to put the sound and feeling together and get what it really means. It's just like him thinking it's funny when you get angry and make angry sounds (or when you say "that's not funny"). He doesn't completely get it and thinks it IS funny.
• Book - Are You My Mother is a new favorite for me to read; Cat in the Hat for Daddy.
• He's getting particular about certain things, one being his blankets. Through the winter, we would put a light fleece blanket on him and then his quilt. He's gotten so used to that being what he uses that he insists on having them, even though it's quite warm now. I'll even try putting one to the side, maybe a bit of it over him near his chest...but he knows the difference and will move it all the way on top himself! No matter how hot it is in his room (and he has the warmest room in the summer, for some reason)!! He likes me to say which blanket I'm putting on, too (here's the soft blue one...and now the quilt that Mammaw made you). I think it's to make sure I'm doing it right. Hmmmm...
• His attachment to Bunny is growing stronger and stronger. A couple nights recently, he's woken up in the middle of the night asking for Bunny. I've had to go in and put Bunny in his hands because it was too dark for him to find him. Then he goes right back to sleep. Bunny goes just about everywhere with him and gets to participate in all sorts of things these days! (And as I said before, Aiden tries to share everything with him, as well.)
• Saying "see _____." This started after going to the zoo with some friends. See the zebra? See it? Since then, he's always pointing out things...See car. See this...see that. (You know, "see" is one of those words that looks totally wrong after you've written it so many times.)
  

His new silly face, making an "O" with his mouth open.

Least Favorites

• Ocean. The kid is terrified of it. He did fine with the sand this year, but the ocean...each time we saw it, he hated it more than the time before. I think it's the sound and the fact that it seems endless...and moves toward you! Maybe next year?
• Singing a song other than "Rock-a-Bye Baby" - Already explained above. He really doesn't like it.
• Camden getting in his face or trying to make him do things his (Camden's) way. He may be crazy for his big brother, but he usually does want him to back off! He'll start with a grunt for a warning (or a gentle push when Camden gets in his space). When Camden ignores that, he screams. When Camden ignores that, he might pinch him. You would think he would learn to listen to the first warning... (Rolling my eyes. It's an everyday battle in regards to this.)
• Meat that isn't IN something. I think this is more a texture and chewing issue. He knows what burgers are, what chicken is, etc. Put beef/chicken/fish IN something, and he eats it up! Put it by itself on a plate, even cut up...not a chance. He probably won't even try it and will most likely ignore it completely.
• This is something *I* don't like... If Aiden poops in his diaper, he'll often put his finger in his diaper and then come to me, finger sticking out to show me (sometimes there is something on it, sometimes not - I just know what it means at this point and don't touch it!), saying "Poop. Yuck!"...and then, he'll say "uggghhhh!" because that's what Mommy says. Haha! But really, I could do without him putting his finger in his diaper. Yuck is right!
  

Lining his cars up on the arm of the chair. He is so focused!

New Developments

• He climbed onto the ottoman (he can also get on the couch and bed sometimes, too). He was pretty proud of himself the first time...and most times still.
• 2 Naps still. We're pretty much not having any social life lately, but he needs the sleep! I put him down as soon as Camden leaves for school, and he's out sometime between 9 and 9:20. He can sleep anywhere from an hour to two, and he still takes an afternoon nap. Some days it seems like he's only up around lunchtime! We don't get out much these days, but...his needs come first.
• Time-Out. He's learning there are consequences when you knowingly break the rules. At first, he thought it was funny. And sometimes when you ask, "Do you need to go to time-out?" he still says "Yes" and smiles. But he doesn't always love sitting through that minute. (I keep warning him, he's about to turn two..which means two minutes!) After time out, he has to say he's sorry, show "gentle hands" (he nicely touches your face to show he can be gentle and says "nice" while he does it), and then he'll give me a kiss (just b/c he's sweet!). Sometimes he goes right back to doing what he did that landed him in time-out (which means time-out again!), but he's learning!
• Saying two words together (sometimes three). Not sure if I said this last month, but he did start this around then. It's so wonderful hearing his vocabulary grow!
• Possession (actually was last month). I know I forgot to put this last month. He's not only picked up that certain things belong to certain people, but he talks about it. He'll point to our milks at dinner and name everyone's "Daddy's milk. Camden's milk. Mommy's milk. Aiden's milk." He does it with body parts, food/drinks, everything.
• Changing his voice on purpose. He'll do this when saying "Hi." He'll be sitting there and will start out with his normal cute voice and will gradually deepen his "Hi"s until it's as low as he can go. Very funny.
• Saying "Yes." I wish I could explain how cute his "yes" really is. I love hearing it. I'll sometimes ask him something just to hear him say it. It's very properly pronounced, if such a small word can be. The "e" almost sounds like an "a" in a way (like the a in "cat") but not quite so much. More like a cross between that and the way the "e" should sound in "yes." Not sure if that makes sense... But it is beyond adorable. And I'm really hoping to avoid him saying "yeah" for quite a while. Camden wasn't allowed to say "yeah"...until he started school and heard everyone else saying it (that was frustrating!). Hopefully we can keep up the "yes"es and avoid "yeah"s for a while with Aiden, as well. Nothing better than a child who speaks properly. (Well, there are many things better, but that's also a very nice thing.) :)
• Speaking of manners...Remember last time I mentioned he was into pushing people out of his way? He's getting it. The other day, he wanted Ryan to move, and I overheard him say, "Move, please." Usually he'll say "move," you say "what do you say?"...and he'll say "please." But this time, he totally got the whole thing himself. I was mighty proud. We're also working on saying "excuse me" when he burps. He'll even say "burp" and when we do the "what do you say?" routine, he'll often say something that is supposed to resemble "excuse me."
• Movin' on up... Aiden is finally moving up to size large in his gdiapers. He has the tiniest waist, so he can still fit the mediums just fine in that regard. We don't have to tighten them hardly at all. But his rise is finally at a place that puts him starting to fit into the larges. So, we'll be doing some diaper shopping soon!
• Colors - he rarely, if ever, misses and says the wrong one. :)
• We're working on those two-year molars big time right now. You can feel them under the gums. There have been a number of days over the last week where Aiden wanted nobody but Mommy touching him.
  

Aannndd...picture time is over.

LOVE this guy.

Ok, I think that's enough for now, right? ;)

Twenty-one months

I've been working on this for over a week. Blogger keeps deleting things! Ugh. But here it is...

Favorites

• Lining things up. And when I say "lining things up," I mean he is showing some perfectionist tendencies. (He comes by that honestly...from BOTH parents.) The lining up is usually with his cars (any and all of them), and if they aren't exactly how he wants, he will nudge them into the right place a bit at a time. We'll find things lined up all over the place...

An example of things being lined up. This was in April, and he's gotten even better at it since then. More "perfect" lines and all...

• His Bible. Aiden got his new Bible for Easter, and he's basically been inseparable from it ever since. He takes the thing EVERYwhere he goes - to the potty (yes), to the car, in the stroller, to the store, the zoo...everywhere. It's about the only book he ever wants to read, whether he's reading to himself or having us read to him. We (I'm sorry...the Easter Bunny) first got him a paperback Bible with just the new testament, but we quickly realized he would need it in hard cover b/c he was wearing the book out (not being rough, just from so much reading!), so he now has it in hard cover, also including the old testament. I have read through the entire thing over 4 times now (and Daddy reads it at his own pace, too, so who knows how many times he's heard the whole thing already!). We're certainly not complaining.

Reading his Bible. Doesn't he look so serious about it?!

• Tag Jr. Books. He got these for Christmas and played with them some, but it's like he REALLY figured it out all the sudden and just loves sitting and playing with them.
• Favorite foods: carrots, strawberries, and oranges. He will eat and eat and eat any of these until you tell him there is no more. We've been strawberry picking four times now, and if you ask him about going again, he's already headed to the car... (He actually doesn't eat the berries while picking! He's managed to learn that they're dirty and we need to wash them at home first. I'm quite impressed! He does squish a few while inspecting some after I've put them in the bucket, but...can't always win!) And oranges...we have to watch him with those. At home, I cut them so there is no peel, but when we're at the grocery, there are usually samples. And if you turn your eyes away from him for a moment, he will eat the peel. And like it.
• Reading out loud. It's so funny to watch. He'll sit in his boppy pillow, stick his feet straight out and cross them at his ankles (I think it's adorable how he sits when he reads!), and will proceed to read out loud. He'll make his voice go up and down and will sound like he's really telling a story. (He doesn't use many real words when he does this, for some reason.) And the best part, every now and then, he'll "read" something and then will start laughing out loud like what he read was the most hilarious thing ever! He'll just laugh and laugh for a while and then continue reading.
• His Veggie Tales cd. He calls it "tomato" because one of the characters is a tomato. Whenever he says tomato, he emphasizes it "TOE-may-toe" (because that's how we always said it when talking to him...), and he reaches down and touches his toe! Haha! He knows the difference, but still makes the connection. He does this when eating tomatoes, as well.
• Baby. I started watching a little girl, about 8-9 months old, a couple days a week. Aiden is absolutely crazy about her!! He asks for her all the time and goes around saying "baby, baby" in this cute, sing-song voice. For those of you that are familiar with Baby Signing Time, it sounds just like the intro song (surely where he got it from!).
• The B-I-B-L-E song or Jesus Loves Me - Bible related songs, who woulda thought? ;)
• Walking over to one of us, reaching out for our hand, and leading us to what he wants to do. He doesn't always have something big to show us; I think he just likes knowing he can lead.
• Taking certain toys along when he goes upstairs for a diaper change or whatever else. It's usually his Bible, another book, or cars. He likes to have something in his hands, though. When I say it's time to go upstairs, he scrambles to get whatever he wants and then runs to the steps.

Holding as many cars as those little hands can handle!

• Saying "sorry" to his toys. This mostly happens with his cars. He'll be playing and then suddenly say "sorry!" and then go right on playing. Ryan and I just giggle quietly and wonder what is going through his mind.

Least Favorites

• Having trouble getting things where he wants them (e.g. books on shelves, cars just how he wants). He gets so frustrated if things don't go how he wants them or if he has difficulty. He'll throw himself a little mini-fit and might throw down the object. Sometimes he'll end up asking for help after a moment, and sometimes he just figures it out himself.
• Not nursing during the (new) morning nap. We took out that nursing session a long time ago, so when we reintroduced the morning nap, I wasn't about to add in an unnecessary nursing session. He would get really mad...well, not mad, but sad. He would cry in a way that showed he was truly hurt, not just mad he wasn't getting his way. It just about broke my heart! He wouldn't even let me read to him, b/c as soon as we sat down, he tried to turn around to nurse and would get really upset. But...if I just put him in bed, he would roll over and go right to sleep. He's doing better now and will sit for a story without fussing too much.
• Pooh Bear running. He has this big Pooh Bear that will walk, run, etc, when you push his hand. (He also makes a comment when he falls over and then thanks you when you hug him - it's really too cute!) Aiden likes for Pooh to walk but not to run, so when he runs, Aiden gets mad. But you can't skip that option, so he gets mad a few times before Pooh gets back to the walking setting...
• People being in his way. If he wants to do something and you're in the way, he just pushes you. Um...we're not having that. He's slowly learning to ask us to move please (usually just saying please b/c he doesn't say "move" yet). We won't move when he pushes, and if you happen to be around and he does it to you...make him ask. Nicely. Just because he's little and cute doesn't mean he gets a pass at being rude. He has to learn manners, too. ;)
  

This is the face he made when I told him to sit back down.
He knows he isn't to stand on the chair but thought he could get away with it...


And this is the face he made when he realized he couldn't get away with it and those precious cars went into time-out.

New Developments

• Saying "uh-oh" - Yes, one of those other typical first words, and he's just now saying it. I guess we just don't say "uh-oh" much in general, and we intentionally didn't say it when Aiden would drop things to avoid that "uh-oh" game. He says it now, and it's adorable, and he only says it when it really is an accident. :)
• Going down the stairs (and now not). Well, for about a week he would go down the stairs. Remember, last month, he was TERRIFIED of going down the stairs himself. Now he's back to being terrified of it. He didn't fall or anything, just decided he had enough and was still scared of falling.
• Sand box. We're hoping this helps him get over his fear of sand, especially for when we visit the beach again soon. It seems to be working. He'll not only stand in the sand box, but he will pour sand over his legs. That's big!
• Enunciating words ("Bibe-UHL," "miLK," "duck"). It's funny how these things seem to happen overnight! One day, he was saying "mi-mi" for milk. The very next day, he was trying to add in the "lk," but that's really all you heard when he said the word. The next day, I kid you not, he was saying "miLK." It's just incredible how quickly these things happen. You can see him trying to enunciate many words properly, too. Even today, he was repeating milk over and over, trying to say the "i" different ways..."muhlk, meilk, milk." He'll slowly sound it out while paying close attention to how his mouth is shaped. So neat to watch him.
• Sleeping - two naps in the daytime. It's amazing how much he has been sleeping, and it just goes to show that he really does need more sleep than he's been getting. It's been tough going back to two naps a day (for me, not for him), but it's also been necessary.
• Toddler picky-ness. This is just your typical, run-of-the-mill pickyness (is that even a word?). You know...I might have liked this food yesterday, and I'll like it again tomorrow, but not today, thankyouverymuch...I know I said "no," but I really mean "yes" and am just saying "no" because I can...things like that.
  
• Saying two words together (e.g. Bye Camden, more cheese). This was another thing that just seemed to happen overnight! Suddenly he's stringing words together!
• Weight... Is this kid ever going to grow!?! We had bought all 18-24 month clothes for the summer, and this child is still fitting mostly into 12-18 month pants! And a couple 24-month or 2T that have the adjustable waist (thank God for those things! I guess he will need those, just like his big brother does!). His waist is TINY. But he needs to grow soon or else his entire wardrobe is useless (or the bottoms, at least). Geez kid. Up until now, he's fit according to his age, so it's not been a problem. I think he likes to throw us curve balls to confuse us from time to time.
• Mommy instead of Mama. And another overnighter...literally. One day he called me "mama" and now I'm "mommy." It's still cute, but it's also another reminder of how quickly he's growing!

Are we done here?

Twenty months

Finally. Here it is... Later than usual. But as I mentioned, we've had a lot going on. Regardless....

Aiden is growing in SO many ways lately...language, development, abilities, personality. Attitude. It's a fun age, busy, and challenging at times.

Favorites

• Leo's horse. We had a playdate at our friend Leo's house, and Leo has this rocking horse. If you press the horse's ear, he plays music. Aiden could not get enough of the music!! He wasn't sure about the actual rocking on the horse, but the music was fun enough for him. (The rest of us were ready to stop hearing the music, I do believe.) Not only did he love the horse while at Leo's, but when we got home, he kept signing horse and asking about it. After nap, he kept asking about the horse. The next day when he woke up, still asking. This went on for about a week. He did NOT forget about that horse. It clearly made an impression on Aiden!
• His bicycle! Aiden wants to ride on this thing all the time. He doesn't do much on it...he can go forward a little bit, he can more easily go backward. He mostly just gets on and off of it, though.
• Hats and sunglasses. He's been ok with hats for a while, though sometimes we had to put the hat on, distract him so he wouldn't pull it off, and it would remain on for a while. But suddenly he always wants to wear hats! And where he never would allow sunglasses on his face, he now loves them! He'll put both on when we go outside, but if we're running errands, he'll often want them left on even while we go into a store. I'll ask him a few times if he wants them off, and he'll shake his head no. Of course, everyone that sees him thinks it's so funny and cute. It is.
• Dumping anything with liquid in it once he's done and before you can take it from him. If he's done with his cereal and there is still some milk in the bowl... If he's done with his drink in an open cup... If he's got a little bit of soup left and doesn't want anymore... He dumps it on his tray before you can grab it from him. To give him credit, he will often pick up the bowl/cup and hand it to one of us when he's done. But if you don't get it QUICKLY, he will then dump it. And sometimes now, he doesn't even do that first. He just dumps it. Once that happens, though, he's definitely done...because WE say so. I'm not sure how that will work as a deterrent, though, because he does it WHEN he is done...
• Cars. Just about any kind. He especially likes his two larger trucks that he got for Christmas from his aunt Rachel and family. And matchbox cars. Those are big winners! (Grandparents...please do not take this as a hint to buy him any! We saved all of Camden's - and he has a LOT - so Aiden gets a few here and there and thinks they are so awesome. Trust me, we have plenty. Way more than enough. And he does not care that they are hand-me-downs. Even if he understood that, he wouldn't care because he wants anything that is Camden's!)

• New favorite song: Hush Little Baby. You know, the one with the mockingbird... He mostly wants it when he's getting ready for bed or a nap or nursing. He'll sign "bird" and "sing" to let me know he wants me to sing it. Recently, he's been using the potty some, and I was doing some silly songs to celebrate when he actually did something. He loved it. I would dance around and act really goofy. Then suddenly, instead of wanting that...he would request Hush Little Baby. When he pottied!! I would ask if he was sure...and yep! To celebrate using the potty he didn't want an exciting, fun song. He wanted a lullaby.
• His 4am nursing session... Ok, so we took this away for a while. Two months really. I think that's long enough to see if something is going to work. And it didn't. Aiden would still wake at 4 or so...and then stay awake! Whereas before, he and I would both be awake a lot from that point on, this way...the two of us, plus daddy, were up from then on with basically no more sleep. It was not working. Sleep deprived and not knowing what else to do just yet, we have recently went back to nursing him. We all at least get a bit more sleep. And we're trying to figure out what else to do at this point b/c we all need more than what we're getting. But Aiden is happy that he's getting his milk at this time again. Of course.
• Animals. Aiden really loves things that are about animals. His favorite Signing Time videos are the ones about the farm and the zoo. The Zoo Train is his most favorite, and he'll ask for it by signing "animals" and "train." What is most funny is this game he made up, all by himself. He comes up to us and does the gorilla sign, grunting while he does it (the sign is simply taking your fists and alternating thumping your chest with the fists...just like you would do if you were acting out a gorilla). After we say "gorilla!" he does another animal sign and so on. He usually does (in this order) gorilla, crocodile, kangaroo, hippopotamus, tiger (and the rest in any order) monkey, penguin, bat, rhinoceros, lion, and then some of the others if we mention them. He thinks it's so great to do the signs and have us "guess" the animal.
• Fresh pineapple. Loves, loves the stuff.
  
• Big Bird and Elmo. He has a couple books with them and knows them this way. (Yes, I'm still the mean mommy who really only lets him watch a couple Signing Time videos here and there...) He was watching tv when we were at my dentist the other day, since he was having to sit in the stroller for so long. Sesame Street happened to be on, and his face just lit up with so much excitement and surprise when he realized that Big Bird wasn't just in his book! It was a priceless look.
  

Being silly

Least favorites

• Dirty diapers. Not that he doesn't like dirtying them...he doesn't like that if he does, he has to be changed.
• Throwing up. No fun. After his nasty virus, you know, the one where he threw up between 25-30 times in ONE DAY...he really doesn't like it.
• Stopping nursing sessions. He is going through some phase where he wants to nurse and nurse and nurse and just not stop. It's not that he nurses more often. He doesn't. He just doesn't want to stop during the times he typically nurses. I've asked other moms about this, especially after finding out that most toddlers usually are quick nursers b/c they're so busy playing, and apparently it's not all that unheard of. Hard to tell if he just wants the extra comfort after he's done actually drinking for milk or if he is teething and this helps or if he needs the extra milk due to all his developmental growth...or if he's just being a toddler and wanting what he wants. It's just so strange to me because as a baby, he was an extremely quick nurser. My let-down was so fast, he would get all the milk out in no time and be done. I noticed a few months ago, he might nurse for 20 minutes, which was long for him. Now...he could probably go for an hour if I let him!
• Going down the stairs. He's fine if you carry him, but he is terrified of going down them on his own. He won't budge and will turn and cling to you if you try to get him to even stand on a step at the top. If you ask him about walking down (or if you even hold him so that he is looking down instead of facing you), he will absolutely freak out.
• Going to sleep quietly. Not that he fights going to sleep, but lately he plays more and makes more noise, taking longer to go to sleep once he's in bed. We're not sure why exactly, but he just is taking a bit longer lately.
• Coming inside. This kid loves being outside and hates having to come in.
• Having the lid on his snack cup. The lid is made so that kids can reach through it to get the snacks out, but the snacks won't fall out and make a mess. (Someone made a fortune from that idea...) Aiden does not like having that thing on there anymore. We have been letting him have snacks in open containers when at home, so he learns not to spill, etc. He will sometimes be ok with the snack lid on when out and about, but lately he's less and less ok with it.
  

New developments

• Saying "no." He just started saying no, and he doesn't yet yell it at us or say it in a mean way. It's still cute. (I know...we'll get there.) He did take a while to say "no," but we really don't say it a lot to him (we try to use other ways of telling him what not to do or what TO do, etc), but he's been able to communicate it in other ways, as well. It is so cute, though. He sticks out and curls up his upper lip and says no in this little voice that comes out as if he has a Spanish accent.
• Going on the potty. He's done #2 quite a number of times and has peed a couple times. It's harder to know about peeing b/c he's on the big potty and I don't stay right next to him, so I might not hear if he does that. He's more likely to go if I am busy with something else and not sitting right there watching him, so we let him do his thing while we are nearby. He usually sits on the potty right after waking in the morning, before and after naptime, and before bedtime (and occasionally he'll ask at other times). Like I said before, we're not pushing potty training right now, just working on awareness and following his lead. If he says no, he doesn't want to sit, that's fine.
• Grandparents... Aiden is becoming more aware of the roles these folks play in his life, even though we don't see them often. After seeing Pappaw Gene (Daisy's stepdad) on the webcam one day, he would continue to make a gesture that Gene often makes toward him..it's where you pop your finger out of the side of your mouth, making a loud "pop" noise from pushing out the air in your cheek with your finger (if that makes sense...hard to describe). Aiden will do this ALL the time, also signing and saying "Pappaw!!" Pappaw was the first grandparent's name he said. He now also talks about "MaMaw" (Ryan's mom) after her visit at Easter and "Mammaw" (Daisy's mom). I'm sure the rest will follow very soon! (Visits definitely help, grandparents! After that, using the webcam does, too.) ;) He brings up grandparents fairly often, especially Pappaw, and does so out of the blue; it's not just after seeing them, talking to them, or hearing them mentioned.
  
• Talking more and more. Just as I suspected, once he started... ;)
• This isn't so much a development as something Aiden is interested in and is working on... Like I said before, he loves playing with cars. Well, he loves being outside and seeing real cars, too. Whenever we are out walking, he will point at EACH AND EVERY vehicle we pass. He'll either say "car" or "truck" or will ask if that is what it is (by adding a question mark). I name every vehicle (car, truck, van, SUV, etc), as well as the color of it. He can't get enough. I mean every single thing he sees, he points at for me to tell him what it is - or he will say what it is if he knows for sure. It can be exhausting sometimes because that is what our entire walk around the neighborhood ends up about, but he's learning new things, and it's fun to see him so excited about it. It's interesting when there is someone in the car he is pointing to, as well... Usually they just think it's cute and wave back.
• Aiden is definitely becoming more aware of what HE wants and how to let you know. He can be rather insistent, whether it's about something he wants to do or something he doesn't want to do. He's also starting to get more into wanting to have his way or doing things on his terms lately, letting you know what his preferences are. That personality is starting to really shine through!
  

Nineteen months

Busy boy always looking at something else!

Yes, this is late. As usual. It's tax season, and I have a demanding toddler. I get little computer time these days. Ask all the people I owe emails...(or that have been owed and waited for a couple weeks to get them). All of this is based on when Aiden actually turned 19-months, on the 6th, not on what he's doing now.

Favorites

• A new favorite book, especially for bedtime, is now God Gave Us You. Shortly after he impressed me by sitting through this book, he decided he also liked The Little House, which is much longer (a lot longer than one would expect him to sit and listen!). I've realized that Aiden's naptime nursing session is a great time to get him used to hearing longer stories, and he really loves it, as well. He used to be a super-quick nurser, but now he will take quite a while, which is opposite from what I keep hearing from others with nursing toddlers. And it makes a perfect time for cuddling together and reading longer books. Whenever it's time to sit down before his nap or bedtime, he grabs whichever book he wants (always the longer ones now!), and pats the seat indicating he's ready.
• Draping blankets/towels over his shoulders and the back of his neck (kind of like a scarf) and walking around. It's so funny to see. He'll use whatever he finds, even a hand towel from the kitchen.
• Cereal. With milk. In the mornings, when we're walking down the stairs to get ready for breakfast, he tells me he wants cereal. I often don't even have to ask, he just tells me. It used to be bananas, but now he is all about the cereal. And if I ask him with or without milk, he lets me know clearly he wants with.
• Other favorite foods...sweet potatoes (he will eat an entire one and more if we let him!), tomatoes, avocado, blueberries, dried cranberries, currants, yogurt bites, any of the freeze dried fruits from Trader Joe's (these things are so yummy and great for on-the-go), tortilla chips (he calls them crackers). Pirate's Booty (veggie and barbecue flavors) is a new one; these are rice/corn puffs. Camden takes the veggie ones in his lunch most days , and I'm always surprised he's choosing those over the barbecue! It's hard to find good snacks that are gluten- and egg-free, esp that can be tossed in something to have on the run; and these are healthy to boot! A side note about the cranberries...did you realize the Craisins kind you get at the store has lots of added sugar? I'm not surprised, but I never paid too much attention until Aiden wanted some and we happened to see some at Whole Foods that were marked as being sweetened with apple juice. There's still some sugar b/c it is juice, but it's less, at least! And they taste better, I think, too.
• "What's this?" We hear this from Aiden about ten times a minute!! He points to any and everything asking what it is, even if he knows what it is. And he'll point to the same thing over and over, too, especially when reading. It's actually really great because it's a good way to work on his language skills. We often ask him to tell us what it is instead, too.
• Kermit the Frog toy. This used to be Camden's when he was really young (I think...that or it was mine? It's been too long....). Aiden loves it because he sings. BUT he can't really find the button to push easily enough (it is tricky), so he's constantly asking us to do it. Over. And over. I don't mind hearing the songs over and over. It's having to push the buttons over and over that gets to me.

• Lip balm. He loves it. Whenever he sees it, he gets excited at the idea of getting some.
• Sweeping. He tries to use the big broom, too. Maybe it's time for his own child-sized broom... ;)
• Trying to put our shoes on. And when successful with that...trying to walk in them.
• Five Little Ducks song. He will sign "duck," letting me know he wants to hear the song. Sometimes he'll even go out of the room while I sing, playing whatever. But when the song is over, he appears again to let me know he wants me to sing it again. This will happen over and over, sometimes until I just say I'm not singing anymore (sometimes after singing it 25 times, you need a break).
• Reading. Reading books has always been a favorite. He will sit and let you read over and over. He'll often get some books, take them to the couch, and pat the seat until you finally come over. He can be rather insistent, though, when it comes to reading, he doesn't need to be. We're happy to oblige. :) Until we've read the same book about 7 times, at least. He's all about the repetition, as you can surely tell.
  

He's either telling me what he's pointing at or asking "What's this?" Probably asking, even though he knows the answer.

Least Favorites

• Giving up his 4am nursing session. Ok, so before this month, he was waking around that time each morning to nurse, and he would stay awake and nurse for nearly an hour before finally I could stop him and then get him back to sleep (no, he doesn't nurse to sleep). At this point, we agree he should be able to skip that and just nurse when he wakes up...it's only a couple hours later. But man, it's been a rough time trying to convince Aiden. Actually, he's been ok giving up the nursing. But he still often wakes at that time and doesn't really go back to sleep! He'll be in and out of sleep until we let him stay up around 6am (with Ryan having to constantly go into his room...if I do, he gets VERY angry that I'm not holding him, nursing him, or taking him to our room). It's not been fun for any of us (I'm still awake even if I stay in our room), and we're all a bit sleep deprived. Because of this, Aiden's also been sleeping more poorly at naptime. But...we seem to be having a bit of improvement over the last few days, so hopefully that will continue! We think his recent separation anxiety is a big contributor with how difficult this has been. He just wants someone in there with him. But then he doesn't go back to sleep as well if someone is in there. Not a fun cycle.
• The end of a Signing Time video. He only watches one a day, if that. Sometimes when it's over, he's fine. Sometimes he fusses a bit. Sometimes he throws a fit (though usually just for a minute, until something else catches his attention). And he asks for Signing Time all throughout the day.
• Being taken out of his Radio Flyer wagon. Even if it is inside, he will beg to sit in it. And after a while, we'll feel bad that he's buckled into a wagon inside, so we'll go to take him out...and he gets pretty mad. So, I promise, we're not making him sit in it...he LOVES that thing.
  

New Developments

• Drinking from a cup (again). He now drinks from a regular cup at every meal. He was doing fine with this before, and then last month he decided he was too afraid it would spill and didn't want to hold the cup by himself. After a few meals where we would help him once then leave it up to him, he realized if he wanted to drink, he had to hold the cup himself. And he did. And he did fine. We now only use sippy cups with straws during the day for his water that he carries around. Or for smoothies, which he has also had from a regular cup with a straw. The one problem we have is that sometimes...when he's done with his meal, after he hands you his bowl and all that, instead of handing you his cup, he picks it up and then quickly turns it upside down!! He's doing better about that lately. Not sure why he does it...he doesn't act like he's doing it to get attention or to play. He acts surprised when it goes all over him. I think he's just figuring it all out.
  
• Potty awareness. No, we're not pushing potty learning, but Aiden is showing a number of signs and some interest. So, we got a potty seat...and he asks to sit on it quite a bit. Hasn't led to anything yet, and we're not in a hurry. But he's certainly at least interested.
• Nursing. As mentioned above, he is no longer nursing in the middle of the night. He also gave up his 10am nursing. I wasn't sure when that one would happen because for a long time now, he has demanded that one and is very punctual about it! 10am on. the. dot. I have gone along with the "don't offer, don't refuse" method with nursing, now that he's a toddler. One day, he happened to have some cereal out and kept eating that instead of asking to nurse. So, after a few days of that, I considered that session to be dropped. He's asked a couple of times for it, but it's usually too close to lunchtime, so I do say no then. He still nurses before nap, before bed, and as soon as he gets up in the morning. If you are wondering why I am still nursing a toddler...feel free to read this post I put up shortly before Aiden turned 12 months. And know that this is VERY healthy for both child and mom. And if that's not enough, you can know our doctors (all the ones we've been to lately!) have told us to keep it up as long as we can, especially with all of Aiden's allergies and other problems. That is actually one of the best ways to prevent allergies. (With them being what they are, I can't imagine how worse off he might be if I never nursed or stopped it earlier!) I really have no idea when he might be willing to let go of the nursing sessions before sleeping. This kid LOVES his milk.
• Aiden's really learning a lot lately. Alphabet, colors, animals, all kinds of things. If you ask him what color something is, he'll probably tell you it's red. But he can sign the colors and will say most of them, too. Sometimes he'll point out a color if you ask him ("Where is the blue?"). He's learning some of his alphabet songs. If you ask what "j" says, he'll make the j sound. If you ask him what an "o" is, he'll sign "o." Just a few examples... He's even pointed out some letters on his own and made the correct sounds for them. He loves playing with his alphabet toy on the fridge and will make the sounds along with the songs. He knows a TON of animals, the signs for them, their sounds, etc.
• Blowing his nose. This actually is from a couple months ago, but I forgot to mention it, and now that he has a cold again, I'm reminded. It seems so funny seeing him able to blow his nose, but...I guess with as often as he is sick, he's figured it out!

Kissing Bunny.
(These pics are for you, especially, Ashley!) ;)

• Bunny as a lovey... This isn't new, but we have noticed lately that when he is using Bunny as a lovey while nursing or when falling asleep, he plays with Bunny's tail. He fingers it between his finger and thumb. I can just see the tail falling off sometime in the next year or so... We'll have to figure out how to fix it asap after that happens! I don't think he could do without Bunny. He actually just saw the picture while I was typing, and starting asking for him! It's funny...because when he says Bunny, it sounds a heck of a lot like Mama. Sometimes the only way I can tell the difference is the fact that he signs "bunny." I've detected a slight difference lately. You wouldn't think the two would sound a lot alike, but they do...and hearing it the way he says it, it makes sense that they do (if that makes sense).

Eighteen Months

Ok, I'm finally getting around to it. To be fair, Aiden has been sick some, and then I had what we are sure was the flu. Then I got even sicker from the Tamiflu; seriously, I'd rather have the flu. I won't be taking that stuff ever again! And then I had to wait to get access to the good computer with the pictures from my hubby who is busy with tax season, so here we are halfway into month 18, and I'm finally getting posting this. Sorry!

This is kind of a long one. Been a busy month for the little guy!

Weight 23lbs
Height 31 inches

Favorites

• Hats. Aiden suddenly loves hats and asks for us to put them on him all the time. He also likes to put on his baby sunglasses, which he never liked before (even hated!).

• Puzzles. He's getting quite good, too. He has three wooden puzzles, and I think it's time to get some more. The funny thing is, he's better at the ones that are slightly more difficult... His favorite right now is one that has emergency vehicles...police car and motorcycle, fire truck, ambulance, etc...even a tow truck. When he picks a piece up to put it on the puzzle, I tell him what it is and what they do (the firetruck comes when there is a fire and the firemen help to put it out and make sure everyone is safe...that sort of thing). He even tries to say "tow truck" when he gets that piece.
• Dancing. We really need to get record this so you all can see, but Aiden has the funniest dance moves. He will play certain toys that have music and then dance to the music. When dancing to certain songs/music, he will slowly "walk" but will spread his legs as far to the sides as he can and will put his hands on his thighs as he goes. Hard to explain, and it is absolutely hilarious. We have NO idea where he got this from, but it's the way he moves! Other times he nods his head (slowly and as far down and up as he possibly can) to the music. It all depends on the type of music that is playing.
• "Again." He signs it instead of saying it, but it is his favorite word these days! After I sing a song, after we read him a book, after just about anything (but those two things in particular), he immediately signs "again."
• Singing. He loves for me to sing to him. He'll sign for me to sing whenever I'm changing his diaper or nursing him. And usually before I'm through with the song, he'll sign "again." It's like he knows the song is almost over and wants to be sure I know he wants more!
• Reading. He's always loved reading. But this child thinks every hour is story hour. Seriously. He constantly asks for us to read to him. (And of course we happily oblige! Well, usually. Sometimes it's a bit harder when I'm trying to fix dinner and he's working on the fifth or sixth story...)
• Kissing. I know, this has been mentioned the last couple months. BUT not only does he love to kiss us all the time now, he also likes to kiss his animals...AND to make them kiss each other! He'll take his two little kitty toys and put their mouths together and make the kissing sounds. A.DOR.A.BLE. Seriously. (There's a picture in February's photo album of him doing this. You have to see it!)

Oh...wait...here's a picture...

• Rubbing noses. I know I mentioned this last month, as well. But it's so cute, and he starts it himself! He'll lean forward and turn his head side to side so we're rubbing noses, and he'll say "neh, neh, neh, neh." I'm not sure where the sound came from, but this is the only time he does it. This kid really is too cute.
• Pillows. The kid loves pillows. If he joins us in bed, he has to get on Mommy's pillow, too. We finally found Camden's old toddler pillow, and he really likes sleeping with that. And he just loves getting all the couch pillows together and playing with them, especially....
• Pretending! His favorite thing to pretend is sleeping. He'll lie his head on a pillow and pretend to be sleeping. He'll close his eyes, put his finger to his lips and say "shhhh" and act like he's asleep! Too cute.
• His little tricycle toy. He likes to be pushed around on it, and he can finally move himself around on it, as well. It's now a toy that he can only play on when a parent is next to him, though...because he also figured out how to STAND on the seat (and even let go of the handlebars once while standing!!).
• Favorite foods... Tuna. Can you believe it!? But it is. I add just a tiny bit of veganaise, and he will eat as much of that stuff as we will let him! Bananas is another favorite, of course. He asks for them all the time. Blueberries. Tomatoes. Taco soup. If he's eating something he might not love, he'll ask for fruit by doing the sign for fruit - or cheese, any kind. Oh, and cinnamon! If he's not crazy about something but sees you put cinnamon on it...oh boy does he suddenly love it! Same thing goes for cheese; put some Parmesan cheese on something and it's suddenly ten times better. He also likes a lot of soups that I might not have expected...just about any vegetable soup, lentil vegetable soup even, tomato soup (and we just discovered tomato bisque...yum!). He really likes soups! I'm looking for great veggie soup recipes if anyone has any to share. I'm wanting to stock up and freeze a bunch to have on hand, and I'm looking for a variety of soups so we don't get bored with them easily.
• Kisses for his hurts. He seems to most often bump his head, and there for a while it also seemed that no matter what he hurt, he would point to his head and expect me to kiss there. But now he'll also show me his hands if he falls on them. He'll come to me and either point to where he hurts, lean his head toward me if that's what he hurt or put out his hand, palm up and give me this pouty little sound, indicating he got hurt. Then I kiss it, tell him he's all better now, and he seems to agree (usually).
• He's got a new favorite naptime/bedtime book, too. Brown Paper Teddy Bear. We ALWAYS read Guess How Much I Love You, but he discovered this book and asks for it over the other now! So....the bunny book is getting some shelf time lately.
  

Least Favorites

• Thinking Mommy is leaving (or Mommy actually leaving). We thought maybe we were lucky and missed out on this....but separation anxiety and stranger anxiety have moved in! Just a few weeks ago, this became noticeable. Even when around people he sees every now and then, Aiden has become clingy with me and shy with others. When we got his hair cut recently, he wasn't even happy with me being right next to him. When someone new is around and I am holding him, he hides his face in my shoulder. (And I have to admit, sometimes it's just too cute and quite endearing.) Now that he's older, too, he stays in the kiddie room when I go to my Mommy Bible Study meetings. He's stayed in there twice, and both times he was rather cuddly with the person watching him. He didn't cry, but he was pouty and wanted to be held. Pull at my heartstrings, why don't ya...
• Going down the stairs on his own. I think he's just very aware that he could fall. He might go down one stair, if that, and then will turn to us and reach out to be picked up.
• Snow. He's not a fan.
• Drinking from a cup by himself. A real cup, I mean, not a sippy cup. He was doing fine with it last month, but he realizes he can spill it if not careful. So, instead of worrying about spilling (which he REALLY does not like doing!), he would rather us hold the cup. Actually, he refuses to hold it himself! We'll even help him by holding it over his hands. Sometimes he'll do this, but he usually puts up a fight.
• Making/seeing others cry. A couple times this child has banged into my mouth with his head hard enough to make me cry (I mean...I had a bruise from one for a few days, so I think that indicates how hard it was), and he's done the same to Camden, as well. Once he sees us crying, he gets really upset, like he is scared.
• Being held in certain ways (for example, if you hold him out in the air like he's flying) or being set on the edge of something (like on the counter with you in front of him, maybe to wash hands or something like that)...he's very aware he could fall and doesn't like it. He gets nervous and tries to cling to whoever is holding him or next to him.
• Getting things from under (or close to being under) the table. He's bumped his head enough to have learned... If a toy is on the floor and within a few inches from being under the table, he won't get it himself. He'll stand a foot or more away and will act like he's reaching with all his might to get it, looking at you in a helpless way...b/c what he really wants is for you to get it for him.

New Developments:

• Talking. Aiden is definitely saying more words. He also talks a LOT in his own jibberish. It's funny to hear. He certainly has a lot to say sometimes, that's for sure; he's just the only one that understands what he's saying! We actually got this on tape recently, but we have a hard time getting things from the camcorder to the internet to share. Not that we don't know how...I think we need a different camcorder. Some compatibility issue that we're not sure how to fix. (Anyone well versed with these things is more than welcome to come and help out! We actually have a really nice camcorder...not sure why this should be so difficult!) I really like how he has his own ways of saying things sometimes. For example, ball is always said twice (ball ball). And when he says Hi, he waves his hand back and forth, but when he says Bye, he opens and closes his hand to wave.
• Separation anxiety/stranger anxiety. Mentioned above. He also won't talk when around some people, even if they're not "new." BUT he will tell them "bye bye" when he thinks it's time for them or us to leave! Funny how he can be so forward about that.
• Cleaning up. I mentioned this last month, but this time I mean with food. Aiden doesn't throw food often, but if he doesn't want something or is done with it...first he'll try to hand it over to us. If we don't have a hand ready to take it immediately, he tosses it. So...when that happens and the meal is over, he has to help clean it up and throw it in the garbage. We've noticed lately that even if he just drops something, when we take him out of his high chair and set him on the ground, he'll go on and pick it up and throw it away! Without us asking! We don't make him clean up those messes...that's just part of him being a toddler, so we take care of it ourselves. We just expect him to help when he does it on purpose. But it is extra adorable when he just notices the food on his own and goes to clean up himself!
• Turning his toys on. He has figured out where the on/off switches are, which is fine by us. But he's also figured out how to turn on things such as the dishwasher...not as fine by us. And he tends to turn the tv on and off when he sees fit (but will also undo whichever when you ask him).
• Walking backwards. He just started doing it one day, out of nowhere. Walked across the room backwards...until he walked into some toys. He'll need to learn to turn his head and see if there are things in the way...
• Asking for help without whining!! I think he's figured out he doesn't always have to fuss when he can't get something just right. He'll often just immediately do the sign for help instead of fussing or whining. Boy does that make things easier on everyone! On the occasion that he does start to whine, if we ask if he needs help, he stops whining and signs "help"...and that's that. Cuts down on a lot of frustration for all of us! (We love signing!!!)
• Flossing. Yes, Aiden flosses now. Well...WE floss his teeth, but he is very agreeable about it. The dentist keeps saying we don't need to floss but to start flossing when teeth touch. Well, he has teeth that touch! One day I noticed some apple peel stuck in between two teeth. If that can happen, it's time to start flossing. Better to start sooner than later anyway, we think.

Showing you his Valentine's shirt.

I was going to try to get some better pictures, but I never got back around to it. After taking THESE pictures, Aiden got sick. And then I did.... And then it was a week and a half late. Blah, blah. These pictures will do after all. Haha.