what's new with mr z

i love this sweet face

well, the last time i wrote i ranted a little bit, so this time will be a happier post.  mr z is a little over 16 months now (for you non-toddler having people, that's one year and 4 months old), so we are creeping closer and closer to the year and a half mark.  everyday hubs and i are amazed at how grown this big guy is getting to be.  it seems like in the last 1-2 months especially, he has changed so much.  he walks, of course, he's been walking since around his first birthday, but his favorite mode of transportation these days is a full on run, so we hear this tap tap tap of toddler feet running all over the house.  he is learning to climb on things like chairs and ottomans, he can climb up the stairs really well and is getting better at coming down either backwards or on his bum.  he looooooooooooves being outside.  all the time he points outside and says, "out! out!"  he is very insistent.  he knows what he wants and he wants itrightnowifnotsoonerifyoucanmakeithappenthankyou!  he talks so so much.  all day.  talking talking talking.  a non-stop commentary with some shrieks, shouts and sometimes some whiny-ness sprinkled throughout.  he loves to play, but he prefers to play with non-toys than toys.  for example, his favorite thing is the vacuum, and so he pulls the cord out, swings it around, pulls the extender tubes out and carries them around the house, playing with them in various ways.  he also loves to open the two kitchen drawers that his utensils and plates and stuff are stored and pull them all out.

NAAAACKS!!

he plays this 'achoo' game where he puts something on his head and sneezes saying 'achooooo!" and makes the object fall from his head to the floor.  then he wants you to do it, and if you don't do it right, he will push your head from the back to 'help'.  he is kind of demanding, definitely head strong, a very willful toddler.  he is learning to feed himself with forks and spoons and drink by himself out of a regular cup.

he loves playing with these rocks in our front yard

he likes to run around the living room, turning on the tv and shaking the lamps until they practically fall over, inspect the fireplace and grab stuff from the end table.  there are days that he can be very mischievous and will continue to go after these weak spots in the living room that he is not supposed to get.  over and over and over.  almost everyday he goes outside to play.  when i am at school twice a week, he is with a dear friend all day who takes such wonderful care of him, and he just loves her.  they play and sing and play achoo and sweep the floor (another one of his favorite things to do) and sometimes they go to the park and other days they go to the indoor play area for toddlers.  on the days when we are home, i usually take him to the small playground that is about 50 paces from our front door.  he winds his way through the path between the trees, picking up sticks along the way and inspecting the ground and trees, "tick, tick!" he says when he picks up a stick and carries it with him to the playground.  he climbs over the short barrier into the woodchip covered ground, climbs up the stairs, peeking through the holes in the stairs, reaches the top platform and makes sure to grab the bars on each side of the slide.  he usually remembers to sit before he heads down the slide yelling "weeeeee" all the way down.  once he reaches the bottom of the slide he squirms around like a turtle on its back until he can roll onto his stomach and slide down the last bit until his feet touch the ground screaming "again again!" the whole time and giggling.  over and over he does this.  for 30 minutes.  then it's time to check out the swings.  because they are big kid swings he can't really go on them unless he's on mama's lap, but he is content to pat the seat and say "sit" and push the swing with his hands.  then back up for a couple more turns on the slide before we run home and get a snack.  'nacks, nacks, NAAAACKS!!!"  he insists.  it's the best part of the day.

up the stairs to the slide

at the top

weee!

again!

cold!

there are so many things that he does that i want to remember.  when i am squatting down on the floor, he runs up behind me and gives my back a big hug, while he narrates, "hug, hug" and pats my back.  he still hates car rides, but now he actually does fall asleep in the car.  he takes one nap a day now, about 1-2.5 hours depending on how it goes.  he eats whatever we eat.  he still nurses in the morning and before bed.  sometimes once during the day if he is cranky-pants.  sometimes when he is tired and just wants to be with mama, he will grab the boba carrier, bring it to me and say "caweeyuh?".  if he lost his binkie or a toy he was playing with, he looks at us, shrugs his shoulders and raises his hands up to chest level, palms up, and says, "where go?".

so much for the gate around the fireplace

he loves to play hide, and chase and peek a boo.  he sings itsy bitsy spider, the beginning of a prayer that we sing all the time (just the first part, "Oh God..."), twinkle twinkle, his persian grama's nee-nigh-nigh, and some other stuff he makes up.  he cracks himself up.  he dances now by swaying back and forth from one leg to the other.  now that he talks so much he doesn't really sign anymore except for the sign for milk.  he pumps his little fist open and shut "nilk, nilk" until i either distract him, feed him, or nurse him.  we are kind of working on weaning (right now i do the "don't offer, don't refuse" bit but in a couple of weeks we will work on the night weaning using dr jay gordon's plan.  he recently got a big boy haircut.  as my friend minoo said, after he got that haircut, he really started acting like a toddler. 

after his big boy haircut

with the pumpkin he painted, "puh-kin!"

he loves to play with other kids.  he likes going to his friend amelia's house, he'll say "aneeya.....aneeya!"  when he knows we are going to visit.  he still likes waving at strangers in the store.  he is terrified of his remote control truck.  terrified of it when it's on and fascinated by it when it's off.  he is happy when he is busy and the second he gets bored, he starts to scream or whine.  he loves figuring out how things work, like the baby gates or any kind of button and the light switches.  he loves watching the laundry in the glass front loading washing machine and exclaims "bubba! bubba!" when he sees the soap bubbles.  oh he love love loves bubbles!  can't get enough of them.  he is in heaven when he gets to take a bath (baff!!).

it is amazing to watch him think through things, literally being able to watch the thought process.  one day, he points outside, "out! out!" and then thinks for a moment, looks at me and says, "sly, sly, sly, weeee!" and then immediately wanted to be done with lunch, put his shoes on and go outside to go on the slide.  this kind of thing happens every day.  it's so cool.  he seems like such a big guy when i see him running around but when i hold him and hug him, he still seems like my little baby boy.  he recently realized that the salad spinner is a very fun new toy.  he likes to run across the room, grab a toy and yell "i ga it!!!" or run to one of us and yell "i ga youuuuu!"  it's the cutest thing i've ever seen.  he says so many words now: ball, car, truck, cat, dog, basically lots of animals, jump, i got it, i got you, i don't know, where is it, why you do that, what is that, what is this, i like it, rock rock rock (for rocking chair), baby, on and on and on.  

wocka-wocka-wocka

he repeats what we say really well and picks up new words all the time.  even some that may not be the best, for instance, i say "what the heck" a lot if i misplace something or if something isn't working properly, whatever, so now if something isn't working the way he thinks it should he will say, "heck?", and then if he is really frustrated will scream, hahaha.  oh, toddlerhood.  it's so trying, so challenging, so annoying at times, but so awesome and wonderful and full of lovely moments as well.

stolen cookie!