19 Months

19 months

Our wee little babe is now a cheerful, energetic toddler. Wilder wakes up in the morning around 6:30 saying "Mama, Dada, Mimi, Papa, Pierre" and hums while he eats his toast, oatmeal and fruit. The two of us go for long walks right after breakfast (and some playtime) and then sometimes end up playing at the church playground, where he watches his trucks go down the slide. Yesterday he said "I did it!" Every time he dropped the truck. After our morning outside, we come inside for some ice water and a snack, and play all over the house with his various toys and read books. He usually eats a lunch of yogurt, cheese, fruit and sometimes a bit of leftovers from the night before. Soon after lunch he heads down for a 2-2.5 hour nap. After naptime, he's up and spends some time outside playing with bubbles, in the sandbox. with the water table or in the kiddie pool. And the rest of the time he'll read books, play inside or watch his current favorite: Bob the Builder. After dinner, he says "bath" and "down" and it's bath time (one of the highlights of his day). Next is bedtime routine and nighttime nursing before he points at his bed and goes to sleep around 7:30-8:00. He's so much fun to be around. He does assert his independence when he can, but he has such a sweet spirit too. It's a joy watching him observe his surroundings and try to figure things out. He says new words every day and has started to string phrases together.

This month, Wilder:

• Did not get weighed. He still wears 12 month pants that sag and need a belt, and 18 month old tops. Size 4, 4.5W shoes.
• He has 16 teeth and is teething again. He's not too fussy about it, but he keeps digging in his mouth with his fingers and ran a fever off and on the last week.
• His new thing with mobility is duck walking, like he's doing a squat while walking. Not sure why he does it, other than just because he can.
• Wilder keeps adding words and phrases every day--I've lost count. Today he started saying "cool" and he can nearly say watermelon. He loves his bubbles and recognizes bubbles in photos, in books and the bubble machine and bottles of bubbles.
• He still likes Bob the Builder but he's obsessed with Cars. I think it's connected to his love of all wheeled things: toy trucks, books about vehicles, real-live autos, etc.
• Wilder sleeps through the night most nights, and gets up around 6:30 am. He has one nap after lunch and goes to bed around 7:30-8:00. He has really gotten good at going to sleep!
• Not as into food pouches as even a week ago (thank goodness) but he loves fresh fruit, especially watermelon and peaches right now. His favorite protein is shrimp. He loves cheese and yogurt, oatmeal and toast with butter and jelly. He loves to dip his food in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
• He still loves carrying around his sleep sack, and we have brought back his infant pillow, the Leachco Podster. He thinks of it as his recliner and loves to hang out in it to read books or watch his Cars.
• His favorite books right now are Little Critter and Goodnight Moon, as well as a book about Cars with buttons that have sound effects.
• He plays outside as much as he can, but it's tough with the heat. He is a champ though and we have to drag him inside to cool off.
• Still a snuggler, but he gets bigger every day!

Here are some photos from today's play time with bubbles! He's saying "BUBBLES!!!" the entire time, which is why he's making those faces. :-)

This is mid "BUBBLES" but also tipping over. :-)

25 weeks and cruising

My bump looks a bit funny because Wilder is using Baby Girl as a seat. Oops!

I totally missed last week's 24 week/6 month post because things were crazy and we were out of town. But here we are! This pregnancy has been flying by. Baby girl moves all the time, especially when I'm about to go to sleep! I'm feeling good. I've been working a TON (like 15.5 hours of photo shoots in an 8-day time frame) but my body has been holding up like a champ. I've started going to prenatal chiropractic adjustments again and returned to my beloved prenatal yoga. Wilder and I go for 30-60 minute walks just about every day and I'm getting better at doing my squats/pushups a few times a week.

I feel good right now, but I'm kind of dreading getting bigger and slower, to be honest. I have been blessed with uncomplicated pregnancies (knock on wood) but I really love being a mom with a baby more than being pregnant and ponderous. Really looking forward to meeting this little baby girl... that still doesn't have a name!

So we still have two names picked out. But we switched out one of them for a new one today. I really like our top two and we have the middle name pretty much set. As soon as we have it nailed down, you blog readers will get get to know!

The nursery is coming along. We have the crib, mattress, bedding, changing pad sheet, glider and ottoman. Still need to get a dresser/changing station and armoire... as well as a mobile, curtains and decor. But before we can put that in, we have to do a little bit of home improvement. Baby girl's room is the workout room right now. So we'll take down the big mirrors and tv ledge, pull up the industrial carpet and replace it with new carpet and repaint the walls. And fix up the closet. SO not a ton of stuff, but we can't put in the nursery items until we get those things done. But we are making progress! I can't wait to show you guys how it looks!

Tomorrow I'll post about Wilder turning 19 months old. :-)

20 weeks and gender reveal!

This pregnancy has gone by so fast! I'm just busy with life and following Wilder around as he's learning to be a toddler. I'm feeling really good. No real cravings, but I still have aversions to fish and chicken that has been frozen and thawed. No real cravings other than Dr. Pepper, which I try really hard not to partake of. Yesterday I really wanted a Frito Pie (something i haven't eaten in probably a decade) but I didn't end up getting one. I miss wine/cocktails and raw sushi the most.

Wilder and I have a great exercise routine going these days. After breakfast, we take the jogging stroller out for a long walk--sometimes an hour long! We go to the playground and he'll play and I'll do squats, lunges, pushups, etc. Wilder is even getting into squats and downward dog himself, and he enjoys the counting. We do this almost every weekday and take family walks on the weekend too. I am hoping to start prenatal yoga soon. Not sure where I'm at on fitness vs. last pregnancy, but I feel good and I like the activity level.

We found out the gender of Baby #2 May 7th. I thought it was going to be a boy, just because my symptoms were the same. But I was overjoyed to learn we are going to be welcoming a sweet little girl to our family this fall. We don't have the name pinned down yet, but we're close--we have two in mind.

I've jumped into planning the nursery and even picked up a few cute outfits! Some dear friends have shared hand-me downs that I can't wait to place in an armoire for her to wear in a few (!!) months. Here are my thoughts for the nursery. The theme is vintage Parisian chic... colors are taupe, blush and mint... and I haven't decided if I want to go with grey, gold or white as an accent. I'm having a hard time finding bedding and curtains in the color i was envisioning, so maybe I'm not on trend right now. :-)

Blush and gold?

Or blush and white?

Not this ornate, but this is the "feel" I like

This is an adult room, but I like the feel and the colors and textures.

So we're just trucking along with baby girl. She's been more active the last few days, which is so fun. I'm feeling really excited about what is to come, but we have a lot to do before then!

18 months

18 months

18 months is such a milestone. He's a year and a half! He's fully into "toddler" mode. No more walking like a mummy. He runs, stomps, jumps, spins in circles and much more. He spends his awake hours walking around the house or outside, exploring all there is to see and touch. He loves to read, watches Bob the Builder as much as we let him and he's obsessed with all things vehicle. From mail trucks to backhoes, Wilder can't get enough of wheeled things. He loves to play with his toy trucks and cars. he's such a fun, inquisitive boy, and he says new words every day!

• This month, Wilder: 
• Weighs 19 lb 11 oz, has a head circumference of 47.5 cm and is 32 inches tall. He's grown like two inches since his last well visit and his head is in the 50th percentile, but he's still a little peanut! He is the same clothes sizes as last  month: 12 month pants are saggy in the waist and 18 mo tops. He wears suspenders and belts. :-) Still wears 4W shoes, sometimes 4.5W.
• He has 15 teeth and one more molar just about to come in. Teething has been tough this past month! He also battled hand foot and mouth a few weeks ago. So hard on the little guy, but he's all better now.
• He walks and runs, stomps, scoots, turns in circles and backs up. He can navigate steps and stairs easily, and can walk over rough terrain.
• Wilder can say more than 35 words now, and adds more every day. He is getting better at connections too! He can tell you if his food is hot or cold, and his new favorite word is "No." :-)
• He sleeps through the night most of the time, although he has been getting up between 5 and 6 am many days. He takes one good long nap a day, and usually goes to bed between 7:30-8 pm.
• Wilder's really into food pouches right now. He eats like 2 per meal and for snacks. He loves cheese and yogurt, but corn on the cob is his FAVORITE. Yesterday he cried and cried when he realized we had to cook the corn before he could eat it. He also really likes oatmeal and toast with a smidge of jelly. 
• he likes to carry around his sleep sack like he's Linus from Charlie Brown. But we can always tell when he's ready for a nap because he'll grab his sleep sack and go lie down on a pillow.
• It's been monsoon season here, so Wilder has not been able to play outside as much as usual. But he enjoys going for long walks in the stroller and we get good play at the playground at church where the ground drains much faster. Looking forward to a bit dryer conditions!
• Wilder got to have a vacation with his Mimi and Papa this month without mama and dad. He did great with a few tears after FaceTime and when I wasn't there to put him to sleep or pick him up when he woke up. Zach and I missed him every second we were gone.
• My big boy is still really into snuggles. He's definitely still in the wanting mom stage, and I love it!

MY FAVORITE!!!

Loves hugging the kitty