18 Months

the boys chillin'

careful! careful! these cars are so neat!

hmmm.. who doesn't love the taste of wood chips on a nice sunny day?

this is awesome! i love my shovel!

role 'em down the hill!

me, my beanie and Binkus

livin' the good life

Congratulations Coleman!
Today Cole turns 18 months old! Actually – as I’m typing this he is exactly 18 months (to the hour :)). I guess that’s mostly important to moms. My friend Brittney posted a darling 18 month picture of her little girl and blogged all about the cute things she does. I guess I’m really a copy cat. Thanks for the idea! :)

Last night I had grand plans of dressing Cole up in some handsome little guy clothes and taking a cute picture. This morning was a rush, so he ended up in faded (because I have to wash his stuff so many times) hand-me-downs. Throughout the morning he played hard with a friend and ate snacks on his blanket. He spilled on his shirt and wiped his hands on it when they were dirty. He got wrinkled and messy looking, but was having so much fun. I thought- oh I’ll change him into other clothes later and take a cute picture.

Cole took a great nap and greeted me with a huge grin when I finally got him up. He insisted on me helping him put on his favorite hat (a great AMB cold weather beanie). He paraded around the house with his hat and shovel. He was so excited to have that shovel that we had to go outside to play in the wood chips and the sand at the playground. I put shoes on him that didn’t match his already used up outfit and we were off. I had a realization as a mom at that moment: The cutest picture I could take would be one that showed off his funny personality and daily goings on. So, here they are. This is my wonderfully exciting, hilarious, opinionated, loving, active, brilliant (I know – I’m the mom – I can say that) 18 month old son who is the light of his mom’s and dad’s life. Wrinkled, dirty and faded can’t hide how cute he is!

About Cole – 18 months –

Cole’s latest favorite things are his daddy, cars and trucks (real or toy), “naks” (snacks), playing with “frens,” lunch with dad on Wednesdays, playing in anything he finds outside – dirt, sand, water, wood chips, etc., Disney and Baby Einstein movies, crayons, naming EVERYTHING he sees, his lawn mower and airplane toys, looking for airplanes in the sky, going for walks around our apartment complex, watching the cars, pointing and telling Dad (affectionateley known as "dat") about the cars, singing, wrestling with Dad, tickleing, being tickled, and reading books. He’s also a big fan of teasing adults, usually by throwing things to or at them and then with his puppy dog face and arms outstretched saying “uh-oh.”

Cole is saying so many words that Tyler and I can’t keep track anymore. He’ll say things that we’ve never heard him say, he repeats things we don’t know we’ve said, and people are amazed everywhere we go that he can talk so clearly for such a little guy. I think it’s probably extra extraordinary looking because he’s pretty small for his age. I wish I knew his exact weight and height, but I’ll find out. The other day when my cute visiting teacher was over he was interrupting our conversation every 3rd word or so to ask for something or help doing something. I just gave him repeatedly whatever it was that he wanted. In a break in the conversation I added under my breath that “mommy is a sucker” – for the next 5 minutes he ran around the living room saying “sucker… sucker… sucker.” It was pretty funny!

Cole is a good walker and runner, but is extremely cautious when doing so. He still stops at all thresholds and everywhere the sidewalk meets the grass to carefully choose his footing. He asks for "hep" (help) a lot when I know he could do it alone. I find it kinda cute though and am sure I should enjoy this phase for as long as it lasts. I love that he asks for my help and I love being involved in what he’s doing.

Cole is a fantastic climber. We went with some friends to the climbing gym for Valentines and thought Cole would like running around on the bouldering pads. He did, but his highlight was climbing on the walls like Dad. He’s a good little climber and knows where to keep his feet to stay stable. He is overcautious like me and stays pretty safe. He also loves climbing on rocks outside. The other day while he was in the tub, he stood up and before I knew it, was holding on to the soap dish with both hands and had both feet on the side of the tub scaling the wall. That’s some amazing smearing with soapy water on your feet. Now every time he gets in the tub he holds onto the soap dish and announces “climbing.” I’m a horrible mother, but I let him hang for a minute and tell him “climb on.” (If this post doesn’t make sense it’s because since marrying Tyler I’ve had to adopt a new climbing-based vocabulary: (smearing is when there’s nothing to stand on and you just put your feet flat against something to climb up – when you are ready to climb and are tied into the rope and you’ve checked your harnesses and gear you always say “climbing” and the person belaying says “climb on.”) Cole also knows the names of the different types of trad gear and loves to get out the cams and nuts. :)

On most days Cole sleeps from 7pm ‘till between 7:30 and 8am. He loves his nighttime routine, his jammies and reading stories. Sometimes he puts a few books in his crib to save for later. When he wakes up in the morning, no matter who gets him out of bed, he always asks for the other parent. :) It’s really funny. He likes to cuddle in the morning and watch a few minutes of “Rella” (Cinderella) in our bed. He loves to tease Tyler in the morning by tickling him. Cole always laughs before he tickles someone which makes it even better. :)

Cole’s favorite breakfasts are cream of wheat with honey and Crasins or apple cinnamon oatmeal. He can eat them by himself, but does get a little creative with the finger painting. These are both naked breakfasts. He still loves eating any type of fruit. Lately he’s most excited about kiwi, bananas, strawberries, mandarin oranges, apples, and blueberries. Anything we give him in a bowl gets dumped out with an announcement: “dump it!” It’s obnoxious, annoying and messy, but kinda funny too.

We play inside a lot in the mornings because the mornings are still cold and often wet. The afternoons are much warmer and he likes to play outside if I can get him out the door. We go to play groups on Tuesday and Thursday and he loves to be with the other kids. He’s really enjoying the parks we’ve been to and really loves to play on the slide at our apartments. He prefers to climb up the slide then slide down on his tummy. He can do it over and over. It’s really hard to convince him to come in from doing that.

Cole naps in the afternoon for about 2 hours usually starting around 1:00, but he’s really flexible. He is getting less and less opposed to naps and it’s so nice!

After his nap he looks for his dad most of the time. If Tyler is here, that’s FABULOUS. He’s been here a lot recently, but is usually studying or watching lectures online. He always takes a few minutes to play with Cole if he’s here. We play and read stories and sometimes watch a few minutes of a movie. Sometimes we run errands, but Cole would rather walk around looking at cars than ride in them. Cole plays with Tyler while I make dinner, which is sooo nice! Cole loves to “hep” (help) with the cooking. His favorite things are to “stir it” and “watch.” He loves it when I cut up vegetables or fruit and always asks to “haf it.” He’ll eat almost anything straight off the cutting board.

Cole’s favorite dinners (and lunches) are sandwiches – mostly grilled cheese, chicken, hot dogs, anything with fruit, yogurt, peas, corn, or (as of today for the first time) raw carrots. He never ceases to surprise me with what he will and won’t eat. I make things all the time that I think are going to get devoured and he won’t touch them. On the other hand, he surprises me with what he asks for and enjoys. Some of the strange ones are raw onions, red pepper, slices of tomato, balsamic vinegarette dressing, ketchup for dipping (or eating plain), or anything spicey. During dinner he often asks for “ice keamy.” Tyler and I always melt at that. Apparently our love of ice cream is genetic. Coleman doesn’t get it very often and he doesn’t complain if we don’t give it to him, but he LOVES eating it. That’s a definite favorite FHE treat.

We love our little guy and the fun and excitement he brings into our lives every day (every moment, really). Life with a toddler is super challenging, but we wouldn’t change any part of it. We love you Cole! We’re so thankful Heavenly Father has blessed us with you!