18 months!

**This post is SUPER OLD! :( I had it written when Zach was actually 18 months old and was just waiting to take pictures, but never got around to taking pictures :( Since I put so much effort into writing it, I figured I might as well post it! 

18 months. 1 1/2 years old. My little baby is becoming more of a little boy with each passing day. Although I think I will always view him as my baby. It is crazy to think that the next time I write a monthly update for him (21 months) he will be a big brother! It was also his last well-check up at the pediatrician as an only child.

Eating
Zach is still a pretty good eater although has gotten a lot more pickier in the protein department. His favorite protein of choice these days are Hebrew National hotdogs. Not my number one choice, but if it gives him his protein, then so be it. I think it just shows how he is such a boy and likes things such as hot dogs.... like his daddy. One area that he takes after his mom is not wanting to eat the same food over and over again. I personally can only have leftovers for about two days and am sick of them. Well, I think Zach takes after me. He will gobble down something I make, I will get excited that he ate it so well that I will offer it to him over and over again, only to have him reject it. He is becoming quite skillful with using utensils. He loves to say 'spoon' when he sees applesauce or yogurt come out. A new favorite is the fork. If there is a food that he is not eating or trying, all I have to do is put it on a fork and he will eat it! I usually offer him a fork at each meal, which he is becoming quite good at poking up his own food with. He still uses his fingers when he realizes that they are a faster way of getting food to his mouth than getting it with the fork. He has also taken an interest in napkins and sometimes wants his own napkin to wipe his mouth.

His favorite foods are still fruits and vegetables, although he seems to be burnt out on bananas and blueberries. He loves grapes, apples, oranges, clementines, watermelon, strawberries, squash, zucchini, carrots, broccoli, sweet potatoes, corn (especially on the cob). I have managed to get him to eat a few bites of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (when served on a fork) and scrambled eggs once (that were dipped in ketchup). He has finally turned to liking potatoes although eggs and peanut butter are still struggling in that battle.

Sleep
Oh, we are back at the sleep struggle once again. At his 15 months, I wrote how he was sleeping beautifully. Well, that lasted for about 2 weeks. At 15 months, we went on vacation and the traveling, combined with a double ear infection and teething with molars led to bad sleeping and we are still trying to recover. After many failed 2 naps a day (he would take a morning nap and just play during his afternoon nap) I decided to transfer him to one nap a day at 16 months. It worked out fine for a bit. He would go down for a nap at 1:00ish and sleep for about 2 hours, staying in his crib for 2 1/2-3 hours. However, if we were ever in the car for a morning adventure, he would fall asleep in the car and not take a nap later, or fall asleep, wake up and not go back to sleep. He has also been waking up super early in the morning, 5:30-6:00 am. It is really hard for him to make it until 1:00 when he wakes up that early. I have been doing some experimenting, but we still haven't found a schedule that works.

He goes to bed at 8:00 and sleeps until usually 6:00. Yep, he is a super early riser. Every night I pray that he will sleep in late and I always seem disappointed when I hear the monitor go off at 6:00. My husband keeps telling me that he doesn't understand why I am always so shocked to hear it when this is what our life has been for the past year and a half. I just keep hoping that one day it will be 8:00 and stay 8:00. 

Play
Our active little boy is still as active as ever. When he wakes up at 6:00 and his dad and I try so desperately for him to sleep 15 more minutes, he does not give in and is ready to go. Zach is bouncing around our bed, saying "down" and cannot wait to start the day. His play is very active and on the go. He very rarely will sit down and play for a long period of time. He does enjoy putting stickers in his sticker book and reading books, but will quickly get up to get another book, a stuffed animal or find another toy. Even watching a tv show or a baby einstein video only captures his attention for 15-20 minutes and he is done.

Zach loves to be outside. Thankfully the weather is cooling down and the humidity getting less so we are back to our almost daily walks to the park. In his stroller, as we walk, he will point out dogs, cars, trucks, choo-choos (when hearing a train whistle), po-po's (police cars, although they are not always police cars), and will tell me when his stroller hits a bump. At the park he loves going down the slides, the merry-go-round and other spinning toys and most recently the teeter-totter. He also loves playing with the wood chips. He is a very, very social kid and will always go running up to any kids he sees. Most of the time, other kids ignore him (which breaks my heart!) but he doesn't seem too phased by it. He is becoming very independent at the park and is able to climb the steps and go down slides all by himself. I no longer have to be right behind him on the equipment. I now follow along right next to him on the ground. He also likes to be outside blowing bubbles (actually holding the wand himself and putting it in the bubble solution and trying to blow), sidewalk chalk, picking up rocks, filling up buckets with water. When we take our daily walk to check the mail, he is discovering leaves and throwing acorns and picking up rocks.

In the house he likes to strum his guitar, climb on his truck, grill hamburgers and hot dogs on his grill, throw balls and say, "He shoots, he scores!". He has taken a real interest in flushing the toilet and turning on the water faucet. He usually does these things when I am trying to get ready in the morning. Let's just say that I prefer to get ready alone because it is a lot less stressful ;) Zach has also become very interested in cooking. If he hears me chopping vegetables or cooking, he comes running into the kitchen, wants up and wants to see everything that I am doing. I have even allowed him to help with baking several times. He will help me measure out flour or sugar and will dump it into the bowl, then mix it with the spoon while saying 'mix mix.' While I'm cooking dinner, he likes to go into the pantry and take out every can, box and item that he can find and put it on the floor or 're-organize' the pantry. We have also started doing some art projects together. He can 'color' with a crayon and we have done some painting!

Favorites
Book: Elmer, Pete the Cat, How do Dinosaurs say Good Night, Llama Llama books
Food: Fruits and Veggies
Word: Ta- Da! No (most recently)
TV Show: Baby Einstein, Clifford
Song: The Fruit of the Spirit, Go-Go Joshua, This Little Light of Mine, The Wheels on the Bus

Speech
It seems like everyday Zach is learning more and more new words. Most recently he has learned the word no and is quite vocal with it, although he says it in a very sweet, dismissive voice. Justin likes that he can say no and that it is another way for him to clearly communicate with us. If I say, "Zach would you like a banana?" He will say, "No." But it is sad when you ask him for a hug and a kiss and he says no :( He has also started going up to things that he knows are no's and will continuously say no no no.

He is quite the little copy cat with language as well. He was watching a hockey game and kept hearing, "He shoots, he scores!" He started repeating that, although not really the words, but the syllables with the correct inflections, and throwing his hands up in the air for scores! If he hears someone make a sound, he will repeat it, for example: hmmms, ohh's, etc.

New Words:
Please
Green Bean
Spider Man
Watermelon
Jen
Belly Button
No

Size
Weight:
Height:
Diapers: Size 4
Shoes: Size 6
Clothes: Bottoms 12-18 months, Tops 18-24 months. Sleepers: 24 months (they seem huge!)

 Milestones
13th tooth: 9.12.14
14th tooth: 9.20.14
15th tooth: 9.21.14

-Pick up and eat food with a fork
-Say please when he wants something. Still working on thank you.
-Finally got a bigger convertible car seat, although he is still rear facing.
-Identify body parts: head/hair, ears, eyes, nose, hands, feet, belly button
-When asked to count something, he will point and start tagging the objects and will say 'two' and then other sounds on rhythm. I count along with him while he does the pointing.
-Seems to be able to identify the letters Z and O
-Go to different locations in the house when asked (kitchen, take a bath or brush teeth- go into bathroom, go to the stairs, go to the door when it's time to go outside).
-Say the word no