18 Months Old

We are having so much fun with Lailey lately. We always do, but lately her budding personality and enthusiasm for life have made things even more exciting. I'm continually amazed by the things she picks up daily. I started this blog for my grandmother, Grandma Cele, to keep up with my pregnancy journey since we live so far away from each other and I didn't want her to miss out. Now more than two years later, I continue blogging for her and now a few others who tell me they enjoy reading about Lailey. But I also blog to keep a record. Any parent knows it's hard to remember all the stuff your kid does, and I try really hard to write (or type) things down so I can look back and smile and laugh at all our blessings. I also want Lailey and her future sibling(s) to have a record of life before they remember it. Don't know where that all came from, but there you have it. Now on to Lailey... This post is long, but I don't want to forget what she's like at this age.

-She was 18 months on October 7th, 2010.

-She is talking in a few sentences now. She actually says a lot of sentences, but I can only understand a few.

-She is 23.5 lbs. and 31 inches tall. Tiny for her age and perfect. Besides an occasional runny nose, she has been very healthy. Thank you Lord!

-Her hair is growing so long and she has one curl in the middle in the back. I hope it gets more curls!

-She understands an immense amount of words now.

-She says NO a lot. To anything and everything if she's in the mood. I don't ask her things anymore, (are you hungry? do you want to take a bath? do you want milk?) we just do them. No sense in asking if there isn't an option. Before the NO phase it was the O-TAY phase ("yes" in Lailey language) so that's probably why we asked her about everything because it's so cute to hear her say "o-tay."

-She seems to be in the beginning stages of the Terrific Twos. I don't want want to say "terrible" and I don't want to say she's already there, because I may underestimate the power of the Twos (you know, the terrific ones) and then be unpleasantly surprised.

-She finally understands smiling at a camera; getting her to comply is a different story. But that is how I got these pictures.

-When she sees my camera, she says "Lailey?" because she knows she can see pictures of herself on it.

-She's going to have a first, first cousin next May! Congratulations "Nit" and "Lulie!"

-She only takes one nap a day, but sometimes it's as long as 3.5 hrs. I'm SO glad she takes after me in her love of sleep. She goes to bed around 8:00 pm and has been known to sleep as late as, are you ready for this?...past 10:30 am!!! The house must be quiet, but it happens. Blessed child. We're usually all up before that though.

-She can identify all her family members by name.

-She signs a lot, and she's still learning new ones. (recently, "thirsty," "light," "nice" and "cold")

-She LOVES. the. moon. Seriously. She'll babble about the moon on an entire car trip home if she can see it, or she'll ask "la moon?" as in, "where's the moon?" if she can't see it.

-She can run.

-She loves to give us hugs and will grab our legs and squeeze them and say sweetly, "hut."

-She can't say g's or c's. Hence, "hut."

-She loves milk.

-She loves chickens.

-She loves her "miney" (blanket). We have several, in fact, to avoid being without one. She doesn't care as long as it's a crocheted blanket.

-She loves Rudy.

-She loves any phone. If she doesn't have a toy phone, she will make any object into a phone. A toy elephant, a remote, a shoe, a box, and of course if she can get to them, our cell phones.

-Speaking of phones, while hanging with Grandpa, she locked him out of his phone preventing him from using it and they had to take a 30 minute drive to the AT&T store! But it did get her a trip to Monkey Joe's, so I think that was in her masterful plan.

-She might not like it, but she will try mostly any new food.

-She loves pizza. We mostly eat the homemade kind on wheat pitas with pureed spinach, sauce, cheese, and turkey pepperoni, but any pizza will do.

-She enjoys books, especially before bedtime. Her current request is "a-choo" which is the book "Because a Little Bug Went Ka-Choo." I can almost recite it verbatim. Ask me, if you dare. I'm kinda proud of it and you will be subject to a long recitation. Just ask Davey. "The Eye Book" is almost etched in my memory too. I heart Dr. Seuss. I think I enjoy our reading time just as much, if not more than Lailey.

-She can make a cute face (head to one side with a grin), a surprise face, a silly face (wrinkles her nose and sniffs repeatedly), and a sad/mad face where she actually fake cries. I did not teach her that, but when she first did it I cracked up laughing.

-She likes to sing, by herself and with me. She asked for "Bider" (aka the "Itsy Bitsy Spider") about 8 times in a row in the car the other day. Yes, I obliged.

-She very rarely has any separation anxiety. I can probably count the times on one hand. Usually if I drop her off at Madison's house (her sitter) or church nursery, she hits the ground running and I have to tackle her for a kiss before leaving. I wouldn't have it any other way.

-She loves her time with Daddy but she definitely shows a lot of mommy favoritism right now. I just keep reminding him that it won't last forever and she'll probably go through a phase where she wants him more than me.

-She does not play with many toys, but loves household objects, buckles, doors to open and close, and other things you wouldn't think are entertaining but really are. She has her own cabinet in the living room with items such as a Quaker oatmeal container, a small card file box, a wooden spoon, a stuffed animal or two (they don't get out much), a ball maybe, and probably some hidden mail.

-I live for her sweet giggles and her spontaneous hugs. They brighten my day every time.

I will probably think of more things, but that's it for now. I love my Lailey!