Wednesday, December 4, 2013

17 Months!

Well, at least I'm remembering to do some Matthew updates every now and then ;)

Mostly I just want to record all his words.  The last month, his vocabulary has really taken off.

At 17 months he:

  • can say: mama (but still doesn't call me mama), mommy, daddy, bubba, shoes, cat (followed by "meow"), kitty, dog, Sadie (shee dee), baby, duck, truck, car, up, uh oh, no, hot, ow, ouch, milk (guck), binkie (ginkie), wow, whoa, Jake (oh my...), ahoy (OH my...), go, wheee, please (pea), he asks "what's that?" and "where is it?"... and probably a few more I'm forgetting.  He's parroting a lot now and will often repeat what you've said.  
  • He used to shove his finger up his nose and said "ni" but he doesn't seem to want to do that anymore. He can point to head, ear, eye & mouth and knows where his belly button is (and enjoys poking it)
  • he LOVES to play.  he makes the "bbbbbbbbppp" noise when pushing around cars.  He loves to swing, slide & run.  He takes particular joy in annoying his older brother every opportunity he can.
  • he's wearing 18-24 month clothes and a size 6 shoe.  he detests his hat but likes his scarf and no longer head butts me when I put his coat on.
  • bath time remains a favorite as does teeth brushing.  I scheduled his first dentist appointment for the spring, so we'll see how that goes.  ;)
  • he loves to read and enjoys exploring the library as quick as he can.  
  • he signs more, all done, milk, water & please & waves when you say "night night!" and blows kisses when it's time to leave
  • is very anti veggie.  if you offer him veggies, he will refuse.  he will inspect every bite on his fork before putting it in his mouth and if you manage to sneak a bite of veggies in with his regular bite, he'll spit it all out, pick through it and throw the veggies on the floor.  He does like smoothies, though, so I make him one loaded with veggies at least once a week.
This little boy is no push over and has a sassy temper.  We went out to eat the other night and he'd brought along two cars (one of each hand, you know) and was happily pushing them around the table and through the tunnel made by our order number sign while Nick & Ben got drinks, straws & napkins.  Ben came to the table and asked if he could play with a car, so I said sure and handed him one.  I think any one within a 5 mile radius heard the angry scream from Matthew (very long too and turned his whole face red).  


These boys fight like demons and don't have very many heart warming tender moments.  They play but it often feels a bit mean spirited on Ben's part (sure, Matthew laughs at first when Ben whacks him in the face with a pillow, but I know Ben and I know he isn't doing it to make Matthew laugh - he's doing it to see how long he can get away with it before I make him stop).  Matthew gives as good as he gets and will not sit back and take it when Ben's mean.  Hopefully these two grow to more friendly play and less competition for attention cuz this mama is exhausted with that game.


He's a sweet little cuddler and loves to be picked up and lay his head on your shoulder.  His favorite songs are the ABC's and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and is usually calmed very quickly by either singing the ABCs to him or counting softly to 5.  He sleeps a solid 12 hours at night and generally does about 2 hours for nap during the nap.  It's so lovely.  I can usually get at least 1.5 hours of time to myself during the day as Ben's quiet time (not always napping) occurs at the same time as Matthew's nap.  Heaven.