19 months old

Toddlerhood is in full swing now! It's a fun time, but also a very exhausting time. There's so much action, activity-both positive & negative, it becomes a sensory overloaded time.

The mornings have been starting a little earlier at 8am rather than 9. It's not that big of a difference & considering that most kids his age get up hours before that, I'm not complaining. We've been discussing when to start using the toddler bed & when to get rid of the binkie altogether. I think Logan is ready now, but we might hold off just a little longer, right before his 2nd birthday. This is when we might start potty training too.

Eating is still challenging with his continued finickiness. We've been giving him Carnation instant breakfast along with his pancakes (or toast, waffles, oatmeal, etc) & fruit to make sure he gets enough to eat. This afternoon, he had his first tuna sandwich that hadn't been cut up. Most of it ended up on the floor as usual. However, he is not picky about snacks. He would live on raisins & goldfish crackers (or animal crackers) if he could. He seems to have developed a Pavlov reaction whenever we go to a group activity, demanding that he instantly be handed his snack trap or a massive temper tantrum will ensue.

The tantrums are not getting any better, either. When I hold his hand to walk across the street, he freaks out & lays himself on the sidewalk screaming. If he doesn't want to go (like if we leave the bank), he lays down on the floor kicking & screaming. I have to pick him up & escort him to the car as quickly as possible, reprimanding him the whole time. "We do not act like this. Calm down right now."

His speech development is coming along now. He can say: "duck, quack, Kitty, meow, dog, cat, yes, car, truck, tree" all very clearly. Other words like: "cheese, juice, lunch, dad & mom" are not so clear. He still signs for & won't say: "eat, milk, drink, help, bath, thank you, all done, bye-bye, hi, sleep, socks & please". Then there's the constant gibberish. He's trying to combine two words, but it's gibberish words. At least he's getting the idea.

He still loves, loves, loves to read & I've started keeping books in the car for him. It's so cute to watch him "read" his book while we're stopped at a red light. He willingly sits & listens to bedtime stories now, where as before he would last a millisecond before trying to squirm off my lap. He knows the color red (I'm not so sure about the others yet) & he's getting really good at shapes. He can count his fingers & toes (pointing at them while I say the number). He likes to scribble (for about two strokes before he gets bored) & played with play dough for the first time today. He still tried to eat some, but it wasn't as bad as before when he tried to eat it all & wouldn't squish it. His absolute favorite toys are cars & trucks. He makes car noises while playing with them & "drives" them all over the couch, the floor, my lap & other moms laps.

He gets really excited when he hears birds, trucks, trains & car horns; making the appropriate sign for them as he runs around in excitement. It's funny how he pretends he doesn't hear me, but will have super power hearing when it comes to the train blaring it's horn from across town.

His first set of molars have come in this last month, the top two first & the bottom two last week. I think the rest of them will come in pretty quick as it didn't seem to take as long this time around. Brushing them is a pain in the butt though because he screams bloody murder.

He is certainly a social little guy who plays well with others. He likes to share, but also like to attempt to take away toys too. He plays tag with the other kids & loves to run around screaming with them. He does exceptionally well at they gym's daycare & can hang out in there for a very long time (even though he's not in there for longer than 3 hours at a time). He was invited to his first birthday party last weekend, where he was the only boy there. It was cute watching him play with the girls, all of us joking around about him being a ladies man. He has another birthday party this weekend & another one two weeks from now.
He is such a loving & cuddly kiddo, which is my favorite development right now. He cuddles on my lap to watch morning cartoons, he gives the best little boy hugs & kisses & just adores being tickled, wrestled with & teased. He even will snuggle up in my lap & sit in the rocking chair with me before bed, just like he used to do when he was a swaddled infant. I love it, love it, love it.
This next month should be a great time with more developments & exciting days. His increasing independence is invigorating for me, as it feels like I am my own person again rather than just a mom. It's amazing watching him grow up to be the cute boy that he is. I love him to pieces.