Two Years: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

You are two years old! Where has the time gone? I can hardly believe that two years ago we were in the hospital and just getting to know you, and now you are a big boy who runs all over the house and talks in nearly complete sentences. It's been quite a ride, but we've enjoyed (almost) every moment of it.

Your twenty-fourth month began just before Christmas and included most of our trip back to Portland to celebrate the holidays. You were much more interested in all things Christmas this year and really got the hang of opening presents.

On Christmas Day, each time a gift was handed out, whether or not it was for you, you would declare "open!" followed by "more?" or "nother one?" You were very interested in your new toys, particularly your "digger" (excavator) from Auntie Lolo and Uncle Mike, and the Planes Lego set and junior soccer ball from Gammy and Bapa. We had to open the Legos immediately and assemble them.

You did a great job on the flights to and from Portland-- a marked improvement over our flight to Seattle last summer. With five round trip airplane flights under your belt, you've become quite an adaptable traveler. You still have your moments of frustration, but overall you do a great job adjusting to the two hour time change when traveling back and forth from the west coast, and you easily adjust to new surroundings and new faces whenever we visit family and friends (both locally and in the Northwest). We're very proud of this quality, buddy, and hope this is just the beginning of a lifelong love for travel and adventure.

At two years old, your language has blossomed. I think every parent believes their child is gifted, but I truly think you're ahead of the curve when it comes to speech. You are talking all the time, and speak in nearly full sentences most of the time. And whatever you say, we must acknowledge-- either by repeating it or by posing an additional comment or question back to you. You love to sing and can now sing almost all the words to "Happy Birthday" (several kids at school have had birthdays recently), and, more impressively, you can sing the entire ABC song correctly. Smart guy!

You are starting to pick up and mimic words and phrases from Mommy and Daddy, which is really cute and often quite funny. The other day you lined up all your matchbox cars (a favorite pastime-- you may have a love for organization like your mama), and then greeted the cars with an enthusiastic "hey guys!" You also recently sat all your Sesame Street characters (Daddy's old set that Dzia Dzia cleaned up for you) in chairs around the little table, and then said, "eat table - dinner yum yum!" There are still plenty of words and phrases that you don't get quite right, but it's adorable nonetheless. You've developed a recent interest in the moon ("moonie") and ask to be lifted up to look out your window to view it every night before bed. Another favorite phrase is "my do it!" and we hear this one often-- you are eager to take on more and more activities independently.

You are also extremely observant. You notice and point out everything-- from tiny bugs on the ground outside to water towers on the horizon in the distance. Recently, you pointed out the car window and said "police car!" It took me a minute to see him, but, sure enough, there was a police car hidden behind some trees up a hill in a parking lot at the middle school looking for speeders. Good eyes, buddy! You inherited that from your Daddy, and I've learned to trust that when you say you see something, you really do.

At two years old, you are 35" tall (72nd percentile) and you weigh 31 pounds (82nd percentile). You are a big kid and lots of people comment on your height. Pizza and pasta are hands down your favorite foods, and when asked what you want for dinner, you will chant, "pizza! pasta! pasta! pizza!" If pizza or pasta aren't available, you'll settle for any carb-- crackers (Goldfish or Ritz), peanut butter toast, and "puffs" (dry multi-grain Cheerios) are all favorites. You've recently discovered a love for cupcakes (thanks to all those friends' birthdays at school), although we don't let you eat much sugar. You've had juice on a few occasions, but don't love it and would easily choose milk over juice any day. (Your doctor has actually asked us to limit your milk intake to no more than about 20 ounces per day.) It's still tough to get you to try new foods, particularly veggies, but you will usually eat steamed broccoli, steamed green beans, and roasted asparagus. As far as fruit goes, you like apples, bananas, strawberries, and mandarin oranges. You sleep 11 or 12 hours a night, usually from about 7:15 - 7:30pm until 6:30 - 7:30am. Naptime still isn't your favorite pastime, but most days you will take an afternoon nap for 1.5 or 2 hours. You are still in your crib, but we plan to transition you into a big boy bed in the next couple months as we begin to prepare for baby sister's arrival.

Speaking of baby sister, we've started talking to you about becoming a big brother. As my stomach begins to grow, you seem to be catching on to the idea that she's inside my belly. You are very interested in babies in general and we have several friends who've had babies recently, so you seem excited about welcoming our own new baby. I'm sure the addition of a sibling will include a few bumps along the way, but you are naturally very caring and loving and we both think you will be a wonderful big brother.

You love bath time, singing, construction sites, and anything transportation related. You constantly point out all kinds of vehicles, including cars, pick-up trucks, dump trucks, garbage trucks, diggers, school buses, and airplanes. You are sometimes a little shy around strangers, and it can take you a little time to warm up to new faces or places, but once you get comfortable you are definitely a people person. You are a little flirt around grown up ladies, and you love to be goofy and silly, especially when you can make people laugh. You have your fair share of tantrums (you are two after all), but generally you are a happy, cheerful little guy. We love watching you grow and learn, and you've brought us more joy than we ever could have imagined over the past two years. Here's to many more!

All my love,
Mommy

Twenty-Three Months: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

It amazes me, but this is the last letter that I'll write you before you are a big two year old! In terms of your skills, knowledge, and behavior, you are already a two year old, but in my heart you are still my little one year old for a few more weeks.

Your 23rd month included Thanksgiving and lots of holiday celebration leading up to Christmas. Dzia Dzia and Grandmama came to visit for Thanksgiving and you enjoyed spending a week with them. Thanksgiving dinner was still a little hit or miss-- you liked the mashed potatoes and you ate maybe a couple bites of turkey and a green bean-- but you enjoyed sitting at the big dining table and celebrating with everyone.

Cheers-ing Dzia Dzia and Grandmama

After Thanksgiving, you helped us pick out and decorate a Christmas tree, and you watched Daddy and Dzia Dzia in amazement as they wrapped the trees in our front yard with Christmas lights. You loved our lights and you loved driving through our neighborhood each day to see all of the Christmas decor (ahem, inflatables) out on the lawns of our neighbors. You definitely caught on to the idea of Santa and were able to identify him quickly, but the "nomans" (snowmen) were your favorite.

The best we could do...

We took you to visit Santa for the first time (breakfast with Santa, hosted at your school), but you were having none of it. There was no crying or fussing, but you simply refused to let go of me when I tried to sit you down on his lap for a picture. So the three of us posed for a picture together. Afterward, you were more than happy to take part in the arts and crafts, play with your friends, and scarf down some pancakes.

At the end of the month, you took your 9th plane trip. We flew to Portland to visit Bapa and Gammy for Christmas. After a disastrous flight to Seattle this summer, we were really nervous about the flight to Portland, but you surprised us and did great! Daddy had the great idea of buying a pack of Matchbox cars and he strategically pulled them out one at a time during the flight to keep you excited and entertained. We had a layover in San Francisco, and you ran around their children's play area to burn off some extra energy, which also helped. Most of the rest of the time, you sat calmly in your seat, playing with your cars or your sticker book. Such a big boy!

During your 23rd month you also started displaying a lot more affection. Two of your favorite phrases that we hear numerous times each day are "hold you!" (meaning you want one of us to hold you) and "my lap!" (meaning you want to sit in our lap.) It's not always convenient to drop everything and pick you up, but it is pretty cute to hear "hold you" or "my lap." I kind of hope it takes you a little while to sort out the right pronouns for those phrases.

You love giving hugs everyday when you wake up (after your diaper change of course) or when you get home from school. You still haven't quite gotten the hang of kisses (they are open mouthed) and you will receive them, but don't freely give them. But, you did recently develop your own new kind of kiss, which I will gladly accept any day. You lean in really close and touch your nose to ours and then rub it back and forth a couple times and say "wiggle wiggle." It's pretty adorable.

You also love music, particularly children's songs. We have a CD from your school of songs you sing during your music class, and you love listening to it in the car. You also love for us to sing to you in the car, before bed, or during diaper changes. Favorites include "Old MacDonald," (you like to sing along, 'yi-o-yi-o'), "Country Roads" (you have an illustrated book with the lyrics of this John Denver song that you love for us to read/sing), and "Rock-a-bye Baby." We're not sure where this one came from, but every time we put you on your changing table, you will clasp your diaper and say "rock a baby!" Sometimes you request "rock a Nicholas!" It's pretty cute, so we're always happy to oblige.

Nicholas, you continue to bring so much joy to our lives every day. As much as I hate to see you get older each month, each new stage brings such fun. Your big smiles and bubbly giggles make my day.

Lots of love,
Mommy

Twenty-Two Months: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

You are 22 months! The last month included your second Halloween, and you definitely caught on to the fun this year. We dressed you up as an adorable little golfer and after an early dinner, we set off down our street for a little trick or treating on our cul-de-sac. You were a little too shy or overwhelmed to say "trick or treat" most of the time, but you loved digging through the bowls of candy to select a piece, and managed to say "tank-oo" at most of the houses. Funnily enough, at almost every house you bypassed all of the brightly colored pieces of candy in favor of a Snickers. You've never actually eaten a Snickers, and I don't think you even knew that you were collecting pieces of candy, but you loved finding those little brown packages. However, once in your possession, you didn't want to let them go! We tried to convince you to keep them in your orange jack-o-lantern bucket, but you preferred to run from house to house clutching your stash of little Snickers bars in your chubby hands.

After we made a tour down the block and back, we returned to our house and, in true Texas fashion, set out our camping chairs in the front yard with our big bowl of candy. You loved running around the yard exclaiming "kids! kids!" as other trick-or-treaters stopped at our house for candy. You even got into the action a little bit by helping to distribute the candy. We let you try a Kit Kat and you ate a little bit, but you were much more excited when I brought out some of your Happy Munchies Fruit Snacks as a treat. All in all, a very successful Halloween.

Your 22nd month included lots of growing and learning as us usual. You are now starting to use verbs and stringing together short sentences like "I see you!", "make boat" (with Legos), "watch TV," "no want it!," and "I got chu!" (chasing me around your room.) You've also started saying "I like [insert object]" -- favorite items include trucks, snacks, and treats. It's really cute to watch you put the sentence together because it's clear you are concentrating very hard to say the right words and you speak very slowly: "I.   Llllllike.    Treats!" On November 13th, you also stepped it up a notch and announced "I love soup!" and "I love milk!" at dinner. You are a little stingy with your "I love you's" at bedtime, but apparently you are a huge fan of homemade tomato soup.

Another favorite mealtime expression is "Cheers!" and you like to cheers everything from your sippy cup of milk to your spoon to specific pieces of food we may all be eating. No meal is complete without stopping five to ten times to cheers something.

As you continue to grow and become more and mobile, you've also started to pick up more bumps and bruises along the way. One afternoon this month, you were out walking down the street with Daddy and started running a little too fast downhill. You tripped and skinned your elbow. You were crying pretty hard, so Daddy brought you back inside and I exclaimed, "Oh no! You got an ouchie on your elbow!" I took you into the bathroom to clean it off, and over and over you sobbed "I sawee Mommy! Ouchie bobo. Ouchie bobo." Poor guy. I'm not sure why you thought you had to say "I'm sorry" unless your teachers had taught you to say "I'm sorry" whenever you accidentally hurt a friend and maybe you thought someone should say "I'm sorry" to you for getting hurt. But, after you calmed down, you continued to refer to your "ouchie bobo" for a week and proudly showed it off. "Ouchie bobo is still one of our favorite terms that you've coined.

As we approach your second birthday, tantrums and other less than desirable behaviors like hitting and kicking have been on the rise. As a result, your 22nd month also included your first trip to time out. I sat with you and silently counted to 60 (one minute for each year of age) and then we talked about the offense in question and exchanged hugs. It's safe to say that you were not a fan of time out, but it clearly made an impression because since then you tested me several times by throwing a toy or doing something else you know you're not supposed to do and then asking "time out?" Discipline is no fun for either of us, but it's something we'll have to figure out in the coming months and years.

Despite the visit to time out, you continue to be a sweet, loving child. You love being held, or having Mommy or Daddy sit down right next to you to build Legos, do puzzles, or read books. You love to give hugs-- to us, to your teachers, to your friends, to your teddy bears, and to many other toys and stuffed animals. You also have the best laugh and, fortunately for us, at 22 months you find humor in many things. You fill our days with so much joy, and we love you more than words can say.

Lots of love,
Mommy

Twenty-One Months: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

You are twenty-one months! The past month was a quiet one for our family, but, as usual, included plenty of action and adventure for you. One highlight of the month was our trip to the pumpkin patch, Sweet Berry Farms, out in Marble Falls, on October 12th. You were much more interested in the pumpkin patch this year, and loved picking up and examining all the small pumpkins and gourds, sitting inside a real fire truck, feeding the goats (or watching me feed them... you didn't want to get too close), and running through the fields of the big pumpkins. We picked out several to take home to decorate the house, and you've enjoyed looking at and playing with your "punkins" all month.

During your twenty-first month, you mastered your colors. You've been working on them for the past couple months, but now you can very clearly say and identify red, blue, green, purple, pink, white, black-- and your favorite: yellow. While we're driving, you love to point out every yellow object you see-- school buses, construction machinery, stoplights, flowers, even lines on the road. You are extremely observant. (You also never miss an opportunity to point out a water tower. Fortunately we have a lot of them out in our neck of the woods!)

Continuing with the theme of driving, transportation, and trucks, you developed a deep love for garbage and recycling trucks during your twenty-first month. One Tuesday morning when Daddy was out of town, I heard the recycling truck coming down the street and raced out the kitchen through the garage, leaving both doors open, to take our recycling out at the last minute. You watched as the truck pulled up, lifted our bin with it's claw, dumped our recyclables in to the truck, and then continued down the street with a loud roar. It was love at first sight. We ended up buying you a little Melissa and Doug wooden garbage truck, complete with a bin that fits into a movable arm that dumps it into the truck, and you can't get enough. Last week, I took you outside to watch as the recycling truck visited our house again. You were fascinated as it moved down the street house by house, but got very scared and clung tightly to me when it pulled up in front of our house. It was pretty noisy, so I don't blame you. They are a little safer from afar. However, that one close encounter hasn't dimmed your enthusiasm and you continue to discuss garbage trucks constantly.

Y

You continue to pick up lots of new speech, including manners. You've used the word please (peez) regularly for several months now, but you recently added thank you (tank-oo) and you're welcome (welcome.) You don't always know the appropriate time to say thank you or you're welcome, but you're working on it and we appreciate the effort! You will often hand us something and then immediately say "tank-oo," or, my favorite, "tank-oo welcome!" all as one phrase. You've also started saying I'm sorry (I saw-wee) randomly. I'm not sure you actually know what it means because it will just pop out at odd times, as I'm changing your diaper for example. Once you said it to me about a half hour after you had hit me in the face, so I wondered if that might be a true apology. Even if it wasn't, your sweet little "I saw-wee Mommy" was more than enough to erase any lingering frustration on my part. It's clear that they are working with you on manners at school and we notice your effort.

You've also started saying lots of new phrases-- more than I can count at this point. One of my favorites is "where'd it go?" You will usually preface this with a very dramatic "oh no!" and then follow it up with "right there!" (wite dare!) Or if we ask you where something went, you will always say "wite dare!" and point somewhere nearby (even if that's not where the object is.) It's pretty cute.

Another favorite new expression is your rabbit face. You will scrunch up your nose and then exhale rapidly several times like a rabbit breathing. You have a wide array of animal sounds and expressions, but I can't get enough of your rabbit face.

These days you love to mimic anything we do, from trying on ours shoes or Daddy's hats, helping me "cook" (stirring a wooden spoon inside a pot or colander), or asking "bite? bite?" whenever you see us eating something (even if it's the exact same thing that's on your plate.) You've learned the word for coffee (cop-fee) and are always pointing out "Mommy hot cop-fee" or "Daddy hot cop-fee." Sometimes you'll ask for a "bite?" but we tell you no and you're usually content to drink your milk-- which you refer to as "hot milk"-- instead.

These days you are starting to give unprompted hugs. You will say "ug? ug?" and then walk into my arms and put your head on my shoulder. Frequently you ask me to put you in your bed at night before I've had my fill of snuggles (and I always oblige-- you know what you want), so I am enjoying these other spontaneous displays of affection. You don't really like to give kisses, and barely tolerate receiving them, but you seem to like a good hug now and then. I am always happy to give or receive them.

You are becoming more and more independent, knowledgeable, feisty, and fun-- and each day we look forward to seeing what's next.

Love you buddy!

Mommy

Twenty Months: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

You are twenty months, and the fact that your monthly age now begins with a two means we are in the final countdown to your second birthday-- a fact that amazes me daily. Your 20th month began in late August and included Labor Day weekend, your baptism on September 15th . . .

Just before your baptism

All tuckered out after the baptism

 . . . and a visit from your Godfather, Uncle Geoff, towards the end of September.

September 23, 2013, your 20 month birthday

During your 20th month, we saw a big growth in both your gross and your fine motor skills-- and your overall sense of adventure and independence. During our last few trips to the pool in late August and over Labor Day weekend, we discovered that you like (or at least tolerate well) being dunked under water (we would bounce up and down a few times and then count up to three and dunk), and that you love being thrown into the water canon ball style. Daddy would stand up on the side of the pool and then swing you and throw you in the pool into my arms. I always caught you, but you definitely went under water before bobbing back up to the surface. You've loved the pool since you were a baby, but our last few trips to the pool this summer sealed the deal, and towards the end of summer you started loudly proclaiming "yay poohl!" any time you saw your shark floaty in the hall closet.

You also fell in love with the set of Legos (or "way-gos" in your words) that we bought you early in the summer. You've enjoyed playing with them from the beginning, but in the past month, we've seen your fine motor skills take off. You sit quietly and patiently stack tall towers of Legos, lining up all the pieces just so. You also love to build a "boat" with the rounded piece on the bottom and are very creative in how you construct the other shapes to look like a mast and sail. Your concentration and attention to detail are impressive. We are happy for you to pursue any hobby, field of education, or career that interests you, and it's obviously a little to soon to tell where your talents may lie, but I wouldn't be surprised if you end up being very handy or showing a talent for something like engineering.

Your other favorite new toy to play with are your "mah-nas" (magnets.) You love putting magnets on the fridge and then pulling them off, so we got you your own set of letter and number magnets to play with. Right now you love dumping them all over the floor and then haphazardly attaching them to the fridge, but hopefully they'll grow with you as you start to identify letters and numbers.

In the language department, September was the month of commands. A few of your new favorite instructions include "eat it!" (offering us a bite of your food), "get it!" (asking us to pick up anything that has fallen beyond your reach), and "read it!" (while handing us a book.) You also like to say "up!" as a request for us to pick you up, but it's also the word you use when you want to get down.

Football season started during your 20th month and you learned a few important words and phrases, including "Go Ducks!," "Touchdown!" (while raising your arms in a touchdown sign), and "go go go!" (loudly exclaimed when Oregon is rushing for a touchdown.) One evening before bed, we were playing with your farm puzzle. You picked up the duck piece and I asked you what a duck says. Totally unprompted, you paused, looked out the door of your room into the living room at the TV, considered your answer for a moment, and then said "Touchdown!" That's right, buddy, that's right.

You are starting to pick up words to songs. Your recent favorites are "Wo Wo Wo" (Row Row Row Your Boat) and "Py-guh" (The Itsy Bitsy Spider.) Each night before bed, you request each song about 3-5 times. You love it when I hold your hands and help you do the hand gestures for Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Speaking of bedtime, your routine has changed up a little in the past month. After we had your 18 month doctor's visit (at 19 months), we got the OK to switch you from whole milk down to nonfat, which is what I drink normally. At the same time, we decided to stop giving you a sippy cup of milk right before bed. Now you drink your milk with dinner, and then after bath time we put you in your PJs, brush your teeth (not a favorite activity, but the Elmo toothbrush and toothpaste help), read some books, sing the aforementioned songs, and put you in bed. You continue to maintain your normal habit of going to bed around 7/7:30pm, but sometimes you wake up before 6:30am, which is a trend we hope is temporary. You have also had some bouts of waking up repeatedly throughout the night screaming, and you won't fall back asleep unless we go into your room and lay you back down, cover you with your blanket, and reposition your Bert and Ernie dolls. I'm assuming this also just a phase.

We continue to learn more about your personality. Over time we've noticed that you do not like to have dirty hands, and your teachers have affirmed this. At school, you paint or draw tentatively so that you won't get your hands too dirty. At home, you love to shovel (some) foods into your mouth, but you are constantly asking us to wipe off your hands mid-meal. A meal like pasta, for example, requires a lot of paper towels.

At times, you also get very distressed when you spill or drop something. You are constantly pointing out if the floor is wet, or if you've spilled drops of your milk (although this doesn't dissuade you from chucking your sippy cup on the floor or across the room, usually several times each meal, inevitably resulting in little puddles of milk scattered across the kitchen floor.) Even if you aren't distressed by a little spill on the floor, you will still point it out with a concerned "oh no!" or "uh oh!" We always assure you that it's OK or "no big deal" and that we'll clean it up. The jury is still out on whether these tendencies indicate that you will be neat and orderly as an older child (you don't seem to mind baskets of toys dumped all over your room), but I think it's an interesting trend to observe.

One thing we know for sure is that you are smart, and funny, and loving, and these traits will serve you well in life. You are a joy to be around, and everyone who meets you loves spending time with you!

Much love,
Mommy

Nineteen Months: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

You are nineteen months old! Your nineteenth month started right before we left on our trip back to the Northwest and ended in late August, so it included lot of travel along with some summer fun at home. We were late getting to the doctor for your 18 month visit, so you had a 19 month check up instead. At 19 months, you weigh 27 lbs., 8 oz.  (70th percentile) and you are 33.5" tall (80th percentile). You are a big kid! They stop tracking your head after this appointment, but it's still off the charts at 50 3/4 cm in circumference. Your pediatrician checked you out and proclaimed that you are in great health and noted that you have advanced speech-- that's no surprise to us!

You are more and more of a chatter box each day, and I can't even keep up with your new vocabulary these days, but you did learn one very important word this past month. On the morning of August 14th, you said your name for the first time while we were flipping through your Elmo Peek-a-Boo book. You pointed out all the Sesame Street characters and then when we got to the last page, which includes a mirror, you saw yourself and then said "Nih-nes!" A little later at breakfast, you pointed and said "Daddy," then pointed to me and said "Mommy," and then pointed to yourself and said "Nih-nes" again. So adorable.

You've also been working on other family members' names. During our trip back home, you perfected "Dzia Dzia" and then christened Daddy's mom "Baba." (We think that came from the Babaloo song they like to sing to you.) In Portland, you christened my dad "Bap-pa" (your pronunciation of Grandpa) and worked on "Gammy." Aunt Laura also gave you some coaching and you can now say "Auntie Wo-Wo." Since we've been home, we've looked at family pictures and pointed out family members for you to name. You've done a good job remembering all of the names, but your favorite people to point out are definitely both of your grandpas. You love to say Dzia Dzia and Bap-pa and will occasionally ask about both of them.

You can now identify and say several shapes, including square, circle, triangle, star, and diamond. Admittedly, your pronunciation could use some work-- right now it sounds like "care," "kerk-uh," "tra-nanah," "car," and "dy-doh." But when you are pointing to the shape, it's clear what you're trying to say. Pretty impressive for just a year and a half old!

You are starting to string together pairs of words. Recent examples include "Daddy pop pop" (you call your popping lawn mower toy your pop pop, so now you like to point out Daddy's pop pop); "den-dul peez!" (asking me to be gentle when I was wiping your face); "Daddy ow-side;" and "that bye-bye, watch!" (pointing to Daddy's laptop and asking him to put it away and pay attention to you instead-- pretty clever!). One of your cutest phrases is "oh no!" But you say it very dramatically with three syllables so that it sounds like "oh no-oh!"

You are still obsessed with all things transportation. One of your favorite expressions as we drive down the road is "ooooh trut!" every time you see a particularly impressive truck. Your recent airplane travel cemented your fascination with "ah-panes," and you're now also curious about boats. Row, Row, Row Your Boat is a favorite song from school, and you will say "wo, wo, wo!" as a request for me to sing the song.

You continue to be a little picky at meal times, but you do have several favorite foods that you will ask for by name-- particularly, pizza, pasta, and yogurt. If you don't like what we're serving you for dinner, sometimes you'll look at me and say, "pizza? peeez?" and then you'll smile and I can tell you are trying to pour on the charm. Other times, we'll just be driving in the car and you'll start chanting "pizza pasta! pasta pizza!" Food is clearly on your mind-- a man after my own heart.

After we returned home from our summer trip, you were moved up to the big toddler room at school. I was a little worried about the transition because the move from the infant room to the young toddler room around your first birthday was tough on both of us. But most of your buddies had already been moved up to the toddler classroom, so you handled the change like a champ. And, since you've been in the toddler room, your separation anxiety during our morning drop off has dramatically declined. We're so happy that you're adjusting well to your new classroom and teachers, and that you genuinely seem to like your daycare.

You still go to sleep around 7:00-7:30pm every night and wake up anytime between 6:45 - 7:30am each morning. Lately, when we put you to bed at night, we will read you a few stories and rock you in the glider and you'll be requesting "bed, bed" before we're even done. You know when you're ready to hit the hay and I can't argue with that. You take one afternoon nap, usually beginning around 12:30pm and lasting about two hours.

Nicholas, you are so much fun to be around! You are growing and changing so rapidly and it's amazing to watch as your brain grows and absorbs something new every day. It's evident to everyone around you how bright you are, and you undoubtedly have big things in store. I am so proud to be your mom!

All my love,
Mommy

Eighteen Months: A Letter

Dear Nicholas,

You are eighteen months old today! It is hard to believe that half a year has already sped by since your first birthday, and even harder to believe that you are now closer to two than one. This second year sure has gone by fast, and, although challenging at times, it sure has been fun!

On to the stats. Your official 18 month visit isn't until the first week of August, so I'll update this post then, but as of a recent doctor visit (due to yet another ear infection) you are weighing in at about 27 and a half pounds. I'm guessing that's at or above the 50th percentile. I'll add your height after we see the doctor in two weeks.

Your language development continues to speed along at a rapid clip, and your pronunciation of many words is getting noticeably better. Even just a few weeks ago you said "Mon-ee" and "Da-ee." Now you clearly say Mommy and Daddy. You can say a wide variety of animal names or noises, including "dah" (dog), "fuff fuff"(ruff ruff), meow, "boooo" (moo), neigh, rabbit, chicken, bird, "dut" (duck), and rawr (for both lions and bears), and you can open and close your mouth like a fish. (You like to do this when you eat Goldfish crackers or when you wear your One Fish Two Fish Dr. Seuss bib.)

You've always loved songs, but now you are starting to try to sing along. You're always good for a round of Old MacDonald, and happily chime in "yi-ee-yi-ee" during the "ee-i-ee-i-o" part. You also recently learned Row Row Row Your Boat at school, and you will say "woah woah" (row row) and make little oaring motions. It's pretty cute.

A few weeks ago on July 7th, you made my day when you told me you loved me for the first time. (I'm not sure you actually know what it means, but I'll take it any day!) I was rocking you in your glider before bed and told you I loved you. Then I asked if you could say it. You said "wuv-oo." It was cute, but I knew you were just mimicking me, so I didn't think much of it. A few minutes later, I laid you down in your crib, said good night and "I love you," and turned to walk towards the door. A few seconds later, as I was opening the door to leave, I heard you pipe up "wuv-oo!" from your crib. Be still my heart. It was adorable. I haven't heard it since, but I know you'll surprise us one day and say it again.

You say a bunch of other funny and cute things on a regular basis. You love to point out cars or trains in books and comment that they are going "bye bye!" (And your "bye bye" often sounds like you are a distinguished Southern gentleman with a thick accent -- "buh bahye.") You always ask if your food is "ot? ot?" (hot) and want me to blow on it. However, hot is the only temperature-related word you know, so you use it to describe any food that is not room temperature, including fruit straight out of the fridge or a sippy cup of ice water. You love some "ot" ice water. You have started using the sign for please (rubbing your chest) and will accompany it with a high pitched "peez?" when you really want something, especially a "snat" (snack). It is nearly impossible for me to refuse you when you say "peez." You just sound so polite and look so earnest!

You continue to be obsessed with all things transportation. You love "truts" and point them out constantly during every car ride. ("Truts" include trucks, SUVs, most sedans, and sometimes trains, wagons, riding mowers, or other types of large equipment.) You will also say "vroom vroom" and "beep beep!" We leave tomorrow for a summer trip back to Seattle and Portland, and you have been talking about it for weeks. You can't wait to "fy" on an "ah-pane." I can't wait to see your excitement when we board the real airplane, and again later in the trip when we take a train from Seattle to Portland.

You love your daycare, especially your teacher, Emily, and you frequently mention her name, along with your good buddies Archer, Jack, and Drew. You are learning a lot at school and always surprise us with new words or concepts that we know you didn't pick up from us. Just last weekend, I was trying to entertain you in the dressing room while Daddy tried on new shirts and started asking you to point out your body parts. You have been saying and pointing to nose and eyes for a month or two, but I asked about your mouth, head, hands, feet, tummy, fingers, and hair and you were able to point all of them out. Way to go, buddy! You are so bright and so observant. You don't miss anything. I know you will keep us on our toes over the years, and I love that about you.

Nicholas, we just love the little person you are becoming. You are such a joy to be around, and your laugh and smile light up the room.

All my love,
Mommy