16 Month Update!

Dear Luke,

I know I haven't been very diligent in updating this blog about all of the exciting things you do everyday...it's just that you are SO BUSY all the time! It's all I can do to just keep up with you! I did want to take a few quick minutes to document what is going on with you at 16 months old.

It seems in the last couple of weeks that your vocabulary has really started to take off. You mimic so much of what we say and you'll try to say almost any word we ask you to. Here are some of the words you are saying right now:

Cah -- car, truck, bus, etc

Cah-cah -- tractor

Nana -- banana

Wah or wah-wah -- water

Bah -- ball

Buh -- book

Cack -- cracker

Mama (you also draw it out lately and say maaaaa-ma in a sing songy voice -- so cute!)

Dada (same as with mama)

Pop or pop-pop or papa -- Poppy

Niiiice -- nice

Nee -- Annie

Hi -- you say this in the proper context, and also wave while doing it

Bye-bye -- same as above

Haa -- hat

Nooooose -- nose

Gaagaa -- glasses

You also are understanding SO much of what we say to you. If I ask you if you're hungry and if you want to eat, you will run over to your high chair and hold your arms up for me to put you in. When I ask you if you need your diaper changed, you know what it means and usually run the other direction! When I say it's time to go bye-bye, you run to the garage door. When I ask if you want to go outside you run to either the front or back door.

You've also started testing limits. Recently you started trying to reach up onto tables and pull on the bases of the lamps. I have told you 'no' when you do this, so now you will go over to the lamp, put your hand on it and say "no." Sometimes you will go put your hand on the lamp and look at me and say "hi", as if it will distract me from what you are really trying to do! Silly boy! You also know that you aren't supposed to stand on your books, so just yesterday, you laid a book on the floor, stood on it, and then looked at me and said "nooo" with a big smile on your face. It's all I can do to not crack up laughing when you do this stuff!

We are still working on your sign language and you are learning the signs very well! Whenever I introduce a new sign, it's just a matter of a day or two before you have it down! So far, here are all of the signs you know and do on a regular basis: milk, more, cracker, bird, banana, water, baby, and eat.

You can identify all of the parts of your face -- eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. Your favorite thing to do the past couple of days is to show me your nose, as well as the nose of anything you can get your hands on. My nose, daddy's nose, Grammie's nose, Poppy's nose, your Superman doll's nose, the pull-toy puppy's nose, etc! And you say it soooo cute -- "nooooose".

And I can't write an update about you without addressing your sleeping. Oh my dear precious Luke -- why oh why don't you like to sleep? I've finally accepted this fact, but I don't have to like it! Honestly, you do great for a couple of nights, and then you'll have a lousy couple of nights. I guess you just don't want us to get too comfortable with anything! You typically sleep anywhere from 8-10 hours at night total. If you sleep in one long stretch of 8 hours, then that'll be it for the night -- you're totally rested and ready to go! If you are up a few times throughout the night, you tend to get more like 10 hours of sleep total...I guess it's not quite as restful for you that way (I CAN RELATE!). I also think that you are slowly starting to give up your afternoon nap. Some days, such as today, you still need it, but more often than not you just take one nap, usually around 11am or so. And of course, keeping with your style, that nap can be anywhere from 45 minutes to over 2 hours long! Thankfully, I most always lay down with you for that nap, so I that I can get caught up on my sleep somewhat too!

There is never a dull moment with you, sweet boy! You keep me on my toes, you keep me laughing, and you give me more joy than I ever thought possible. I love you bunches and bunches baby boy!

Love,
Mama