The end of January signaled 18 months of life for Number One Son. He weighed in at 27 lbs (80th percentile) and is a stout 32 inches tall (50th percentile). Even though he's on the higher-end of the weight category, his new doctor said he's doing great and she's not at all concerned. Along with continuing to grow physically, his capacity to do things on his own grows as well. As an illustration of this, his mom felt it was time he got his very own ice cream cone. . . and he got to hold it all by himself. . . the whole time!
It's astounding to see how much he's grown over this last period. His personality is becoming more evident, and he's beginning to exert his opinion. . . often to the exasperation of his mom. With the constant threat of teeth rising (and apparently falling again), this has been a challenging month for mother and son. And let's be honest, it really can't feel too great to have blunt molars breaking through sensitive gums! In the end, most our days are spent playing cars, reading some books, and watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. We've been working on his communicating what he wants and doesn't want, hoping to stave off some of the tantrums. He's very good at shaking his head "no;" but I've never thought about how PHYSICALLY more challenging it is to nod the head "yes." I once tried to show him how to say yes by helping him nod his head with my hand. I thought he thought it was just a funny game. Then, when I asked him to say yes to something later, he grabbed his own face and tried to have his hands help his head nod yes! It was HILARIOUS (no video, unfortunately)! Since then, he has made huge strides in nodding, even though the jury is still out on if he knows exactly what it means. There have definitely been some challenges and lots of fun times. But, we know that without living through the challenges we don't appreciate how great things are when everyone is getting along.
And so, we come to our next visual aid. Jax has always enjoyed bath time, and with Aubrey having to make extra efforts during the day to curtail the fits and tantrums, Dad has been doing bath time alone so Mom can have a few extra minutes of cool down. I really don't mind, because he's mostly a pleasant person in the water. However, the events of a few nights ago brought Mom into the bathroom, wondering why son and father were having such a great time!
Part of our goals for this year are to increase our physical activity, decrease body size, and be outside more as a family. Luckily, a very nice - and shaded - park is a short 3 mile walk from our apartment. Because the weather is mostly very pleasant right now, walking/jogging to the park is both possible and enjoyable! Jax is still deciding what he likes to do there and he's learning it's ok to put his hands in the sand. He sees so many other kids enjoy digging and playing in it, he desperately wants to try. In the end, his hyper-extended fingers allow his palms to brush a few grains as he bends down at the waist to try it out. (No way is he going to get on his knees in the stuff unless a rogue dip catches him unawares and he's forced down.) This last trip to the park, Jax was trying VERY hard to keep up with the 8-10 year-old twins he met there. It was funny to see him mimic someone other than us. Unfortunately, those darn legs are just too short for him to keep up. He's getting more independent with his playtime and has even gone so far as to climb the stairs, sit down, and do the slide without any help!
