How is it possible that I have a ONE AND A HALF YEAR OLD!?
Nolan has changed so, SO much since our last update at 12 months! He is all over the place, full of energy and is definitely all things boy. He loves to run around, wrestle, climb, throw, kick, and play, play play! He mimics and babbles, and is constantly learning and repeating new words daily. Some of his favorite things include playing with Harley (or chasing him/torturing him), anything to do with playing or being outside, bubble baths, and watching YouTube kids and KidSongs on the iPad. He loves playing with his Sesame Street toys and it has become his absolute favorite show and characters. When we're out shopping and he sees anything Sesame related, he will scream in excitement and just can't control his absolute joy! He enjoys coloring for a few minutes and has improved his scribbling skills over the last month. He has become a fan of stuffed animals and has favorites in Mickey Mouse, Elmo and Stuffy (from Doc McStuffins), and often wrestles with them and babbles to them in his crib.
He's our big helper and loves to follow any tasks given to him. He can follow directions well and becomes super proud of himself and claps when he completes a task at hand. We have continued classes through the recreation centers (at least 2-3 a week!), and Nolan has gotten extremely comfortable with them and has turned himself around with his demeanor in them. We have met friends through them and we have become familiar with our surroundings, which helps! He still can by shy and timid in new situations, but the crying has subsided and is now replaced with coy smiles and clinging close to me, and after a few minutes, he warms up and is ready to play. On the flip side, Nolan has definitely maintained his stubborn personality and has entered his terrible two tantrums, but nothing to be unexpected for his age! We have initiated time outs and he follows these quite well when needed (mostly for biting, hitting or throwing). We're working on patience, playing independently and being a little more gentle with our dog-dog. Overall, Nolan is an extremely happy, sweet and loving boy. He loves to give hugs and kisses to us, family and friends, all on his own terms. He is a goofball that will try to make you laugh and has a contagious, affectionate giggle that is my favorite sound to hear!
Nolan babbles all day long and says many, many words, most of which we understand but are by no means clear. He uses the same words over again for the same things, he just can't quite say them completely clear. Some of his most used words are Mama, Dada, dog-dog, nah (no), milk, moh (more), cup, car, cccchhhhoookkk (cookie), night night, hi, bye bye, haaal (help), and iPad (he can say this one clear as day). He can identify many characters and say their names E-mo (Elmo), Cccchhhhoookkkke (Cookie Monster), Ber (Bert), E-rhn (Ernie), Os (Oscar), Bi-Bur (Big Bird), Mih-Mahs (Mickey Mouse), Mininininini-very excitedly (Minnie Mouse), Dah Duck (Donald Duck). He can identify most of his body parts and can say eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, hands and toes. He loves learning about animals and their sounds, and tell you many of them when asked. He loves to follow sing-along books like Barnyard Dance and Shake a Leg, and is starting to predict what's coming in many of his books. One of his absolute favorite things is one that I used to love just as much his age- KidSongs videos. I connect our Apple TV to YouTube and play him the same video I watched when I was a baby, and he is completely obsessed. He asks for it multiple times a day, but I try to limit his watching! He would seriously watch it every second if I let him!
Here's what else this little dude has been doing:
Height, Weight, and Sizes:
Nolan was completely healthy and normal for his 18-month well check. He weighed in at 24 pounds 4 ounces (72nd percentile), 33.5 inches tall (84th percentile), and 18.5 inches head circumference (38th percentile). He's pretty tall for coming from Jason and I, and even his doctor commented on his height at his appointment! Since his last update at 12 months, he has cut 4 new teeth (all of his molars). He currently wears the majority of 2T clothing, with a few 18 month bottoms since he has that skinny, skinny waist! His pajamas are all 2T and even some 3T for the tighter ones! He wears a size 5 in most shoes, and his favorites are his Saltwater Sandals for the summer! He has moved up to size 5 diapers since our last update, and I think he will stay in those until he potty trains (oh man, that's coming soon...but not too soon)
Nolan was completely healthy and normal for his 18-month well check. He weighed in at 24 pounds 4 ounces (72nd percentile), 33.5 inches tall (84th percentile), and 18.5 inches head circumference (38th percentile). He's pretty tall for coming from Jason and I, and even his doctor commented on his height at his appointment! Since his last update at 12 months, he has cut 4 new teeth (all of his molars). He currently wears the majority of 2T clothing, with a few 18 month bottoms since he has that skinny, skinny waist! His pajamas are all 2T and even some 3T for the tighter ones! He wears a size 5 in most shoes, and his favorites are his Saltwater Sandals for the summer! He has moved up to size 5 diapers since our last update, and I think he will stay in those until he potty trains (oh man, that's coming soon...but not too soon)
Feeding:
Nolan is expected to eat everything we eat, but sometimes his pickiness takes over and makes that difficult! He is big on being picky with textures over the last few months, so he tends to shy away from meats and fruits. We've determined he has a dietary sensitivity to tomatoes (as well as a possible allergy to red and green peppers, just haven't confirmed), so we are conservative with how much he takes in and how often. He absolutely loves pizza, but can't eat too much of it, especially if we've had a meal recently that involves tomatoes or tomato sauce. Some of his favorite foods are pasta, pizza, cucumbers, anything cheese, waffles, peanut butter, peas and carrots, and of course, cookies! He loves dessert and we spend lots of meals negotiating to eat "this many more" of said dinner to be rewarded with a cookie. He usually complies, so we'll take it for now!
Nolan continues to drink out of straw sippy cups, and can manage to drink out of a glass but with assistance. He can use forks and spoons, but still makes a decent mess while using them, so we're constantly working on that! He still receives whole milk 4 times a day- when he wakes up in the morning, for lunch, for dinner, and his last serving during his bedtime routine.
Sleeping:
Nolan has a pretty steady sleep schedule, and has maintained the same one since about 14 months, when we switched from two naps to one. His day consists of waking around 7:30AM, and is up playing, running errands, attending classes or meeting up on playdates until lunch around 12:00PM, and nap time shortly following around 1:30PM. Long are the days where he would ask for a nap, now he says, "No!" and has a little protest from separating from his toys, but once upstairs is calm enough to go down. Nolan has been a solid napper since we switched, and will typically nap at least 2.5-3 hours long. He's back down for bedtime around 8:00-8:30PM, and will sleep soundly through 'til the next morning. During bedtime routine, Nolan knows to say, "Night night" and give us all his night time hugs and kisses before settling down to sleep. It is probably my favorite thing he says and melts my heart every night! He continues to use his pacifiers only in his crib for sleeping, although he tries to sneak them out and knows when he is not supposed to have them! He's sneaky!
Firsts & Milestones:
-First emergency room visits (food allergies) (12 months)
-First Merry-go-round ridden & carnival (13 months)
-Can identify body parts (13 months)
-Blows kisses (13 months)
-First splash pad visited (wasn't a fan) (14 months)
-Open doors (with the handle) (14 months)
-Ninth tooth; top right molar (12.5 months), tenth tooth; bottom right incisor (13 months), eleventh tooth; bottom left molar (14 months), twelfth tooth; bottom right molar (15 months)
-Can repeat actions to songs (i.e.: Itsy Bitsy Spider, Hokey Pokey, Shake a Leg) (14 months)
-Rode his first pony (14 months)
-First trip to Sea World, rode first amusement park rides (16 months)
-First fireworks (hated the bangs, loved the poppers) (17 months)
Likes:
-Bubble baths
-Feeding Harley treats
-Sesame Street & all Sesame characters, especially Elmo, Cookie and the Count
-the iPad, YouTube Kids & KidSongs videos
-Playing outside (even in the hot summer heat!)
-Cookies and ice cream sandwiches
-Identifying animal sounds
-Snacks and his snack cup
-Target's red balls out front
-Jeopardy
-Checking the mail
-Dancing
-Brushing his teeth
-Repeating words
Dislikes:
-Being told "No"
-Being told "No"
-Timeouts
-the carseat (sometimes), especially when the car is stopped at a light or stop sign
-Meats and fruits
-Having to sit in a highchair at a restaurant for too long (save the iPad!)
-Not being able to figure out a toy quickly (frustration level reaches 0-60 in about one second!)
happy 18 months, big boy! Can't believe we're on our way to TWO!
