16 Months Old

December 5, 2012 - January 4, 2013

Little Man is doing so much at this point, and is getting so big. As of 16 months old, he can successfully feed himself, which is a biggie; dance; hug the puppies; and LOVES loves loves 'reading' books.

I am most proud that Cael can use utensils to feed himself. He's a little messy, but that's to be expected. So from now on, we just give him his food with a spoon or spork, and he feeds himself. It makes mealtime a lot easier for us, because we can enjoy our meal without having to feed Cael. Hes getting to be such a big boy.

Cael loves to dance. Although dancing for Cael consists of bobbing up and down when he hears music, it's still dancing. He can be in the other room, and hear something on tv, and he'll come running to the living room to see. He'll stare at the tv, and then just start dancing. I love it.

At this point, Cael's most favorite thing to do, is look through books. The kid is OBSESSED with books. He'll be extremely quiet in his room, and we'll be wondering what he's doing. When I peek in his room to see what mischief he's up to, I'll find him quietly sitting on the floor surrounded by books, and he'll be flipping the pages. He will also constantly hand you a book for you to read to him. His favorite books are cardboard car and truck books. Matt tells me that throughout the day, Cael will want Matt to read the same book over and over again. So much so, that Matt has memorized them.

Speaking of which, Cael (and Matt) has adjusted really well to having Matt home with him all day. It was exactly a month of me working when Cael turned 16 months old. In that month, Matt has proven that he is an amazing stay-at-home-dad. When I say amazing, I mean incredible. I get home from work, and the dishes are done, the laundry is done, and both Cael and Matt are so happy to see me. Matt has such a set routine with Cael in the morning, and I love it. If it's nice out, they go for a walk, with the dogs, in the morning for about 30 minutes. Then it's play time, lunch time, nap time, then more play time. Then Mommy comes home from work.

Only a few days after Cael turned 16 months, we had his 15 month appointment. Yes, it was a month late, which drives me nuts, but we had no choice because we were without insurance for about a month. I am proud to report that Cael has finally caught up weight-wise and height-wise. He weighed 24 pounds, which is the 35th percentile, and was 31.5 inches tall, which is the 50th percentile. At his 12 month appointment, his percentile for weight and height was 22nd and 11th percentile, respectively. I'm so glad my little man has caught up!

Finally, Cael has been able to point out a few body parts if we ask him what they are. Matt and I were concerned about his lack of speech, since he's not really saying any words. He repeats "dadadada", but not quite in the correct context; He also says "nice" when gently petting Killian or Tyson; And more recently, it sounds like he says "thanks" after we hand him something. We asked the Pediatrician if we should be concerned about his lack of speech, and she said to give it until 18 months. And that toddlers can just start talking overnight, and he doesn't show any signs of delay or autism. That made Matt and I happy to hear.

Cael loves to read!

Bed-head!

Out to eat on one of our Sunday morning breakfast outings.

"Second" season that he's seen snow.
However, this is the first time he's ever acknowledged it.

Brownie mix licker!