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Little Powderwhore – January 16, 2016
SEVENTEENTH MONTH
DECEMBER 21 – JANUARY 21 (2015/2016)
HOLIDAYS & FAMILY
- We spent Christmas in Bend, OR (12/23-27). See this post!
- For New Year’s Eve we visited Eric’s parents and their dog, Chico. Then we went out for a Mexican food dinner at Vera Cruz (Stanwood).
Elisa & Todd – December 25, 2015
Eric & Todd – December 26, 2015
SPEECH & COMMUNICATION
- he said “coo” for a dove in a book (1/8)
- he’ll string together various sounds that he’s made before, but in new ways
- it’s pretty easy to figure out what he wants from his verbal/non-verbal language
- he pushes on closed doors when he wants something in there
- he pushes on me if I need to help him get what he wants
- he understands an amazing amount of what we say…way too much to attempt explaining!
December 29, 2015
TEETHING TIDBIT
- his top left molar started poking through (1/9)
- that’s his 8th tooth!
- it took ~1.5 months between tooth #7 (11/19) and tooth #8 (1/9)
- he tries to bite us (but it’s not too bad)
Finishing his nap on me – January 6, 2016
FINE & GROSS MOTOR
- he precisely fingers pages of books
- he pulls Lego Duplo pieces apart
- he practices with his sippy cup parts (first he sets the circular disc on the glass, then puts on the plastic ring)
- he likes stepping on several college textbooks lined up on the floor and he’s careful not to step on carpet
- turning around in circles in place
- by month end he got good at jumping with both feet off the floor simultaneously
HAVING FUN
- flying his toy airplanes
- repeatedly racing into my arms while laughing (= safe zone!!) while Eric makes his cars go fast
- he “calls” for group hugs
- he loves to stand on the counter in our laundry room to “organize” the shoe shelf and pantry items
- he does some “fancy footwork” while “dancing,” with cute arm swings (mostly with the right)
- laughing repeatedly watching a kid at Fred Meyer climbing on a set of portable stairs that are supposed to be off-limits
MINOR CHALLENGES
Todd is easy to take care of in every way but he does really resist…
- having a diaper put on (sometimes he’ll playfully give us a look, laugh and make us chase him, but sometimes he cries while he tries to spin away from us)
- having his butt cleaned (how dare we ??)
- having his face and hands wiped
- having his teeth brushed (it’s definitely a 2-person job with massive drama involved, followed by an abrupt end to the crying)
- getting into bedtime clothes (note that once he’s actually dressed for bed he doesn’t resist the rest of our bedtime routine (i.e. rocking with me in my glider chair, reading books and drinking a sippy cup of water)
Unhappy face – January 18, 2016
COUCH CRAZINESS
(AKA…WHY HE’S LEARNING TO JUMP)
- started standing on couch and launching himself forward to pillows on the floor (1/7)
- 1st time climbing onto and standing on the armrest of the couch and balancing there (1/15)
- from standing on the armrest of the couch, he repeatedly jumps, frog-leaps and does a complete forward somersault onto a well-padded landing zone (1/20)
THINGS CHANGE!
- when he was much younger he’d always kick blankets off his legs but now he enjoys being under a blanket when I feed him and rock him in my glider chair in the morning
- when he got some fuzzy slippers for his first birthday he wouldn’t keep them on. Now, he likes wearing them and will indicate his need for help putting them on
Wearing Seahawks slippers and playing with skates – January 15, 2016
HOME ENTERTAINMENT
- he loves the show “Detectorists” and we watch the same 6 episodes repeatedly (on Netflix)
- he loves watching movies of himself on our phones/computers and he gets mad when we stop
KINDERMUSIK
- he kissed a girl his age at Kindermusik (1/5)
- one kid there plays a little rough with him, so Todd gets a little scared at times
- last Kindermusik session (1/19)
After the last Kindermusik session – January 19, 2016
SKIING!
- practicing skiing in the house on carpet and on a slope (i.e. a blanket over storage bins of different heights)
- 2 ski weekends in Wenatchee (1/9-10 & 1/16-17)
- he spent mornings in childcare at the ski area and we played with him in afternoons
- he enjoys the Mission Ridge childcare and has a buddy named Carl
- 1st time on skis in the snow (1/9)
- he loves to walk all over the snow, including up and down sloped terrain
- he was able to get up on his own after falling down (with all his bulky ski gear on)
- he loved to “sled” on his back (with help)
- 1st rope tow (1/17). First, Eric carried him with one arm, then Todd got towed up between Eric’s legs.
- he wasn’t into napping at childcare but once he got in the car he zonked out
- back at home he takes shoe insoles and steps on them, tries to “ski” with them
- at home he likes to put on his ski mitts and other gear
- he clearly knows what we’re talking about when we say skiing-related words
1st time on skis in the snow – January 9, 2016
Putting on Eric’s old mitts – January 14, 2016
ROLLER SKATING
- he got his Fisher Price Grow-With-Me 1, 2, 3 skates and he pushed them all over the house and tried to step in them with bare feet (1/5)
- he went skating at our local skate rink twice. He did 2 laps around the rink while holding on with both hands (12/30 & 1/6)
- able to put on both his boots+skates (i.e. they’re already hooked together) by himself (1/14)
Todd did 2 laps with me – January 6, 2016
HEALTH & HYGIENE NOTES
- this month he had a mild cold. Coughing and sneezing lasted a few days (starting 12/23), but it wasn’t bad at all.
- we stopped using the baby bathtub and started using the regular tub, so now he’s back to loving his baths!
FOOD NOTES
- no change from last month
Good eats (green smoothie and Chao vegan cheese) – January 14, 2016
BABYSITTER DAYS
- Todd had a babysitter 8x this month (we love her!). Jeri takes pictures and sends them to me at work…
Babysitter pic – December 28, 2015
Babysitter pic – January 7, 2016
Babysitter pic – January 14, 2016
NAPS
- he doesn’t cry when I put him in his crib for naps
- when visiting family at Christmas, he took 3 naps in the Pack ‘n Play travel bed (2.5 hrs twice & 1.5 hrs)
- he continues to nap well during long car rides
- nap duration ranged from 1-3 hours (average ~2 hrs)
- 3x he extended his nap on me (for up to 1 hour) after he woke up crying in his crib
- 1x he extended his crib nap for an hour (after I opened his window blinds because I thought his nap was over) (1/13)
Nap extended by 1 hour – January 13, 2016
NIGHT-TIME SLEEP
- he had 3 nights when he woke up once (for 2 of those times he got back to sleep within 20 minutes)
- his longest stretch without any nighttime wake-ups ended (it was 10/18 to 12/23)
- sleep duration continues to be ~9.5 to 10 hours per night
- on 1/12 Eric got to put him to bed because he fell asleep so fast
- we snuggled together on the couch on 1/18 and he fell asleep. It was bedtime so we had to get him changed into bedtime attire without waking him up too much (it worked!).
- he sleeps in a 24 mo footed sleeper over a 24 mo short-sleeve onesie and a size 5 disposable diaper
Eric & Todd – January 12, 2016
Fell asleep before bedtime – January 18, 2016
POTTY TALK
- 10 poops were done in the toilet
- 49 poops were not done in the toilet (1x he pooped more in the toilet once I got him there)
- the number of poops done in the toilet has decreased a lot because he refuses to sit on the toilet more often than not (especially first thing in the morning). And I’m making the attempt less often.
A bit tired! – January 16, 2016
Christmas 2015
TODD’S SECOND CHRISTMAS
DECEMBER 23 – 27, 2015
Note– I was going to include this stuff in my “Todd the Toddler’s 17th Month” post (soon to be completed), but that post started getting too long. So here is a separate post just about Christmas 2015. (I know, I know…it’s February now and Christmas is OVER! Sorry!)
Over the river and through the woods – December 23, 2015
On December 23rd, we drove to Bend, OR for the Christmas holiday. We got a later start than usual because we waited until after Todd woke up (at 7:15 AM) to get on the road. I figured the days away from home would be pretty busy so I didn’t want to cheat him out of any sleep by waking him up.
Unfortunately it took much longer than usual to get there because we were stopped on the snowy highway just down from Mt Hood due to an accident closure. Despite the long car ride, Todd did quite well because he had the opportunity to get out of his car seat and explore the car for a while.
It was dinner time by the time we rolled into Bend. My sister picked us up some take-out from Spork (yum).
Stopped on the highway near Mt Hood – December 23, 2015
We stayed with my sister, brother-in-law, niece & nephew. During the visit, we also spent time with my parents (“Grandma” & “Grandpa”), my aunt & uncle, and my brother-in-law’s parents (“Nana” & “Grampy”).
On Christmas eve, my mom & aunt babysat Todd while we did some x-country skiing with my sister’s family at Virginia Meissner Sno-park. Todd napped for 2.5 hours in his Pack ‘n Play travel bed, which was awesome!
X-country skiing at Virginia Meissner Sno-park – December 24, 2015
That evening, we celebrated my dad’s birthday (12/24) like we always do, by having drinks and a lasagna dinner. After dinner, dad opened his presents and we all watched “The Muppet Family Christmas.” This year the celebration was at Nana & Grampy’s house.
Me, my sister & parents – December 24, 2015
Todd stayed out of trouble in the new surroundings, and he had fun being bounced on a yoga ball and dragged along the carpet by his cousins. He even found a “gar” to play with.
Having fun with Todd’s cousins – December 24, 2015
Playing with a car on Christmas Eve 2015
Christmas morning was overwhelming for Todd, so he preferred playing a little further away from the action. He liked hanging out on the stair landing, above the Christmas tree.
Christmas 2015
The stuffed frog “Relaximal” from my mom was an immediate hit. He loves pillows and big stuffed animals. On Christmas Todd gave me lots of kisses, and he kissed his cousin Ashley and his Grandma, too!
Pillow frog from Grandma – Christmas 2015
Later in the day, Todd was dressed in his snow gear to try out his new snow sled in the yard (also from his Grandma). I watched from inside, but he seemed to do okay!
Eric & Todd – Christmas 2015
Todd napped for 2.5 hours after having such a stimulating morning. Christmas dinner was at my parents’ house, with my aunt and uncle. We always get a kick out of this singing doggy…
The day after Christmas included a short walk in the snow near my sister’s house. In general, Todd hasn’t spent much time in baby carriers, but when he does get a ride in the Ergo carrier, he seems to enjoy it.
Elisa & Todd – December 26, 2015
In the evening of December 26th, we all gathered again for our “traditional” Christmas dinner, vegan of course! We always have Field Roast’s Hazelnut Cranberry Roast En Croute. That meal was at my sister’s house.
Cousins – December 26, 2015
We listened to festive music and Todd showed off his dance moves to Chuck Berry’s “Run, Rudolph, Run.”
Todd took an interest in Kaiser the cat during this trip. One time Todd got a little too close for Kaiser’s comfort which resulted in Todd receiving a small scratch. For the most part, though, Todd followed our instructions to be “soft and gentle.”
Eric, Todd & Kaiser cat – December 26, 2015
By the end of our trip, Todd got somewhat confident walking down the stairs unsupported. Before that, he first learned how to safely descend them by crawling backward and by walking down with support from one railing or a helping hand.
On one set of just 2 steps (into the play room), Todd accidentally did a somersault down one step. I caught him as he rolled out of it. At first he looked surprised and little scared, but wouldn’t you know…he soon tried to repeat it on purpose!
On December 27th, we drove back home. We made 2 food stops (Baja Fresh & Starbucks). Todd pooped 3 times…haha! Pooping while riding in the car is definitely out of the ordinary for him.
Headed back home –
December 27, 2015
When I opened the mail at home, I felt so happy to read this lovely card from one very special lady. I hadn’t heard from her in a while, and it was like getting a big hug! I love her.
Christmas card from Lillian
Freeheel Vegan 