18 Months and the end of the Paci

The boys turned one and a half on Monday and they had their 18 month check-up this morning. Overall, they are doing well and seem healthy. They were unusually cranky and unsettled at the doctor's office today and the immunizations didn't make it any better. The nurse informed us that, after about 15 months, they start to remember more things like getting shots and visits to the doctor. While that's not necessarily good, I don't think that was their problemo this morning. Who knows, maybe they just woke up on the wrong side of the crib...

Another thing she told us is that Alex's palate is really forming to the paci even though he only sucks on it at nap and bed time. I guess his palate is "softer" than Connor's or something. So, she said we need to stop the chupa's for both the boys effective immediately.... Yikes!! While we were planning to stop them around their 2nd birthday, we certainly were not prepared to do it now. Alex (and we) have been quite dependent on the Paci for going to sleep especially at night. Alex also tends to wake up several times during the night and the Paci is what calms him down. So, we are going to give ourselves a few more days to get used to the idea and figure out a plan and then we will see how things go.

Anyhow, here are our boys at 18 months:

Alex is still in the 5-25% range, although he is well proportioned. He is finally wearing 12 months pants and some 12 month shirts, but can also fit into some of his 9 month clothes. Of course, just like adults, it depends on the brand. The Pedi's scale said that Alex weighs 20lbs. That is less than at his last visit. Our scale says he weighs closer to 24. His height and head circumference measured the same as his 15 month appointment at 30.3 inches and almost 19 inches respectively.

Alex likes to wave and say "hola" to anything living. He LOVES balls and notices them everywhere. He loves to kick, throw and roll the balls and has been known to "steal" them from other kids. He still likes to walk and run on his toes and enjoys eating sand. He likes playing with and throwing rocks and generally making a mess out of everything. He has a contagious laugh and is usually a very happy, limit testing, curious boy. He talks all the time and his vocabulary is expanding almost daily. Words we can actually understand include: apple, hello, bye-bye, all done, sit-down, agua, no, nana (banana), ball, bus, car, rock, book, cracker, cookie, more, up, down, out, please, thank you, Mama, Dada, Lela, book, "boom-ba," hat, balloon, vamos, bubbles, dog, etc. He can say his Spanish vowels and can sign several words including: more, all done, please, thank you, milk, drink, and eat. He is an excellent eater, and of course he has preferences, but we have yet to find anything he really doesn't like.

Connor's weight is in the 90-97% while his height is in the 75-90% range. He still has a big head, but is also well proportioned. Connor wears 12 month pants and 24 month (sometimes 18 month) shirts. He is weighing in at 29.5 lbs (also a bit less than our scale at home, but still more than last his Pedi visit) he is 33.07 inches tall with a head circumference of 21.25.

Connor likes to be silly and is very concerned about others especially his brother "Addee." When he gets a cracker or other "treat" he always asks for another one to take to Alex. Of course, sometimes he eats it before actually delivering it to Alex, but the thought was there. Connor likes to build things with Mega blocks and then take them apart or knock them down. He still likes poking his fingers into holes "just because," he likes to figure things out, and he loves to throw things in the trash. He is very ticklish and loves to rough-house and wrestle on the floor. He listens reasonably well and seems eager to learn new things. He talks all the time too and can say and sign everything Alex does as well as a few other things like get down, poo-poo, trash, and peek-a-boo, etc. He likes to talk on the phone saying "Ell-oo?" "Buh-byyeee" unless there is someone actually on the phone, then he just stands there frozen.

They can both find their head, mouth, nose, teeth, tongue, hands, fingers, feet, toes, hair, eyes, ears, knees, and belly buttons. They like to spin in circles, roll on the floor, walk forward and backward, dance, and jump, and they are working on doing somersaults. They love to give and receive hugs and kisses and even know how to blow you a kiss if you're too far away. They understand more than they can express. They are both very energetic and active and like to climb on and explore everything. They are generally laid back, outgoing, and well behaved...and, like true monkeys, they eat copious amounts of bananas.

"While we try to teach our children all about life,
Our children teach us what life is all about."
~Angela Schwindt