18 things at 18 months

First....a few pictures I just love. Last week after Drew woke from his nap (Grant was obviously still sleeping when I took these, otherwise he would definitely have been a part of this!), I decided to finish off the last of a pint of Blue Bell (hey, that's what stay-at-home moms do, right?). I gave Drew a couple of bites, then he walked off. A second later he came back with a spoon for himself! It must have been on the floor somewhere, because he doesn't know where I keep these little spoons. Anyway, when there was just a tiny bit left I gave him the container. He had such fun with his little treat!



Drew turned 18 months old a couple of weeks ago. Here are some things I'd like to remember about my little guy at this age:

1. He can finally run, instead of his straight-legged fast walk that he's perfected over the past 6 months.
2. He likes giving kisses (tonight he gave them to me over and over again), but he doesn't always do it on demand.
3. When he's hurt, he will immediately come to ask for a kiss. He scraped his knee pretty badly a few days ago, and he asks for a kiss every time he notices it. Today he even bent over and kissed it himself about five times in a row.
4. Mischievous should be his middle name. He drives me batty because he's constantly climbing things, opening drawers and reaching into them, getting into my purse if I forget to hang it up, etc. Sometimes I can't even keep up with up; I take one thing away just as he's reaching for something else!
5. Bedtime (and naptime) routine: we read 3-4 stories, then I rock to him and sing him a few songs. When he's really tired he'll fall asleep, but usually he's just very drowsy when I lay him down. Sometimes he cries and throws his blanky out, but I think he's getting better with this (for now).
6. Favorite books: There's a Wocket in my Pocket, Go, Dog. Go!, Are you my Mother?, Mr. Brown can moo....can you?, The Foot Book, The Fire Engine Book, lots of Karen Katz' lift the flap books, Zoo Train, Goodnight Moon. If it's not one of these, he usually will push it away and not even let me open it.
7. When we leave Grant's room at naptime, he blows kisses to Grant.
8. He is a horrible shopper! He tries to climb out of the shopping cart, then screams when he ends up getting stuck sideways, etc.
9. He will repeat lots of words we say (although not nearly perfectly), but he doesn't say many on his own yet. Some he can say: up, down, juice, bye-bye, ball, kitty, doggie ("aah aah"), more, hi.....also some others that I just can't think of right now....
10. He likes listening to music in the car (Elizabeth Mitchell's Little Liza Jane is the boys' favorite song) and will clap his hands and dance.
11. We have a little bench swing on our swingset (two little benches facing each other), and he LOVES that thing. He could sit on it for hours and gets quite mad when we tell him we're finished.
12. He'll put on Grant's pirate hat, grab a sword and make an "aaah!" sound as he walks around hitting anyone around. A lot of times I have to take it away from him (amidst much jumping, screaming and tears) when he ignores our instructions to hit gently with it.
13. When Grant sings "ring around the rosie," he yells "down!" and falls down at the end. Every time!
14. He loves watching Little Einsteins with Grant...he pats and does all the hand motions proudly.
15. If Grant is in silly mode and runs around yelling (this especially happens after baths), Drew will do the exact same thing.....stomping his feet just like Grant and even making the same types of sounds.
16. He can point to most of his body parts when you ask him where they are.
17. He likes to bathe himself.....when Dean's washing him, he'll lift up his leg and pretend like he's helping. He also likes to wash his belly.
18. He is obsessed with sinks...any time Grant's washing his hands, Drew wants to do it too. Then he doesn't want to stop!