July 25, 2011 Eighteen months now! At his checkup last week, he measured 28 lbs (79th percentile) and 33.5 inches (84th percentile). I believe this was the first time they measured his height with him standing up, which might explain why he apparently shrunk by a quarter-inch since January. =)
Walking is old hat now, so he has taken up climbing to keep his skills sharp. He can climb into Brenden’s standalone high chair without help as well as the tall chairs at our dining room table, so we really have to watch him. Today his climbed to the top of the tubes in Chick-Fil-A. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t go down the slide or climb down, so I had to go retrieve him. Luckily for him, he’s so cute that the little girls up there took care of him and kept me updated with his current status until I got him down.
His vocabulary is coming along, too. New words include “cup”, “juice”, “up”, “thank you”, “baby”, “cheese”, “ya”, “no”, and “fishies”. Although he still throw fits to express displeasure, they don’t usually get him anywhere unless he simply wants out of his highchair. He’s still frustrated that he often can’t communicate what he wants, but he’s making progress. When we do figure out what he’s trying to say, he always seems pleased. Yes/no questions still work best.
We’re planning to start him at Brenden’s preschool in January, right about the time he turns two. He’s becoming more interested in books and loves to bring us one and say “book” to ask us to read to him.
As before, his appetite is good with less pickiness than we see with Brenden. Except for some heavy carbs like waffles or bagels, he eats most foods we offer him. Fruit is still his favorite. Give him a handful of blueberries, and it’ll be gone by the time you turn back around. We’re trying to do mostly organic fruit and milk, but it’s not always easy to find at our Target, so we have to go to Central Market sometimes for the good stuff.
Most of the time, he’s a remarkable happy and sweet little boy who has won many fans at Jenny’s gym, church, and pretty much any restaurant we visit that has ladies for him to flirt with.
May 20, 2011 Jonathan has come a long way over the last few months. Walking is now his preferred method of transportation, and he loves to move. He can climb the rock wall at the park near our house without help and has figured out that he can move chairs around by pushing them. We really have to watch him closely because he’s very mobile, tall, and curious. Jenny recently added more drawer locks to the living room cabinets to keep him out.
He is surprisingly good at following directions, which tells me that he understands a lot more than he can say. Cleanup March (nightly cleanup of toys) is actually easier with Jonathan than with Brenden because Jonathan is more eager to obey. Often we can tell him to take a toy to the toybox, and he’ll do it. He talks a lot, but it’s hard for me to understand what he’s saying. Jenny picks it up better. He often drops the initial sound. But he definitely knows what he wants and can point or gesture to tell you.
When it comes to flirting, he’s even worse than Brenden was. He loves the ladies and has a killer smile and flirty eyes to match. Jenny has already told him that he is grounded until he finishes high school. Any time we are out at a restaurant, school, or gym, he finds the ladies and turns on the charm.
His daily schedule hasn’t changed. Obviously we’re through with bottles, which is a big help. We’re thankful that for now he’s a good eater. Favorites include berries, white grape juice, packets of organic pureed veggies and fruits, and chicken. His nose runs a lot, but Children’s Claritin seems to help, as did finding new homes for our dog and cat. No signs of Brenden’s breathing trouble yet, although Brenden’s didn’t appear until around his second birthday.
He still loves to be held and often walks up to us with arms outstretched, hoping to be picked up. Unfortunately, he has figured out how to throw fits. Sometimes they are related to teething (he has 12 teeth now plus 4 more that are starting to push through), sometimes to his frustration at not being able to communicate like he wants. He loves his brother, and they play together well most of the time. Brenden is a swiper and doesn’t always play gently with him, but otherwise they have a good time. It’s adorable to watch them share toys and food.
April 21, 2011 Full update soon. For now, at his 15-month checkup, he was 33 inches and 26 pounds. They accidentally gave Jenny the 18-month developmental checklist, and Jonathan aced it. =) Either he strunk since his last appointment, or one of the height measurements is wrong.
January 18, 2011 Today is Jonathan’s first birthday, so I’m starting a new page for his second year. What a year! He is such a sweet little man with tons of enthusiasm. No one can crawl across a room at high speed like Jonathan can.
At his one-year checkup, Dr. Z said he was doing great, as usual. He is still HUGE: 33.75″ long (100th percentile, the height of an average two-year-old) and 24lb 7oz (76th percentile). He’s even bigger than his brother at that age (31.25″ and 23.2lb).
Daily life is roughly the same except for his diet. He goes to sleep around 7:30-8:00pm and wakes up around 7:00am. The morning nap comes and goes, but he usually takes a good afternoon nap when Brenden does (1-3pm or so).
He’s down to one bottle a day, right after the afternoon nap, and this final bottle will be going away once we use up the last of our formula. He loves drinking from sippy cups, although sometimes it’s just as fun to throw them on the floor. Meals include a mixture of baby food jars and toddler meals, finger foods like Cheerios and puffs, various fruits, and whatever we are having. His appetite rocks. Very few foods get rejected. Sometimes he doesn’t want mushed up baby food because he would rather feed himself. He ADORES cheese so much that “chiz” was one of his first words.
He’s coming along in other developmental ways, as well. He can take a few steps at a time and has figured out how to climb up on chairs and couches. Climbing is a good source of entertainment. Wrestling with his brother is another fun pastime, although he usually ends up crying at some point after a minor injury from Brenden. He still babbles throughout the day, and we can pick out real words here and there, including “Mama,” “Dada”, “chiz,” brudder”, and “night-night”. He can also pick up small objects such as Cheerios with only his thumb and index finger.