Downton Blabby: 20 months

20 months

Wilder is 20 months old today! He's growing up so much. Every day he says new words, and his communication skills just blow me away. He's starting to string words together like "Doc, Light, Keen, Race, Fast, ZOOM" (obsessed with Doc Hudson, Lightning McQueen and the Cars gang). You can have actual question-and-answer conversations with him. He can say "Hope-pee" (Help please) versus "do it" when he wants to do something himself. He can follow along in books and point to objects and say what they are. He knows his colors, though everything is "Geen" first. He can wake up and say "Daddy, toast, oatMEEL" in the morning. He can look at the family photos on our fridge and say most of the people without us even asking who they are. He definitely has strings of words and his vocabulary keeps expanding. It's so cool to see how his brain works.

More than that, he's showing himself to be tenderhearted and a little observer. This last week we went to the chiropractor, and Wilder was really concerned for me. He cried his eyes out when I got adjusted, even though we reassured him I was ok. Crocodile tears running down his face, he said "mama OKAY? OK?" He was more worried about me than his own adjustment (which he still doesn't like). When the The King gets smashed in Cars (Spoiler alert) he says "Oh no! OKAY? OKAY?" every time. And if he falls and hurts himself, he'll look at us and say OK! to reassure himself and us that he's ok. It's a new development. He watches faces a lot to make sure everything is all right.

We talk about his new sibling a lot. He will randomly look at my tummy and say "baby? sister?" and he understands what a baby is, connecting it to pictures and other people's babies. Yesterday he was really interested in Felicity's room. It used to be a workout room, but we've been changing it up and painting. It looks quite a bit different. We explained that it was baby sister Felicity's room and he just looked around, took it all in and pointed at my tummy and said "baby." It will be interesting to see how he adjusts.

This month we've had more playdates with friends close in age. He doesn't really interact that much, but he watches them. We'll go to the park and he'll sit at the top of a slide with his truck while kids stream around him and he just watches. He plays with mulch alongside other kids. He's not one to snatch toys away, but he does get attached to things. We work on taking turns. Mostly, he'll just be hanging out on something another kid wants and he's not really playing, just say, sitting in a toy car or slide that the other kid wants to use. He's not shy, just more of a watcher at this point I guess. But he recognizes kids by name sometimes--he called a little girl at a birthday party today "Haddie? Haddie?" and I realized it's because she has really blonde hair like his little playmate he sees all the time named Haddie.

Wilder still loves to snuggle. He loves his sleep sack and his Podster. He laughs a lot. He likes to read books, to watch Cars, draw "happy" (happy faces) on paper and magna doodle, and he really likes to play outside. He pushes his mower around and this ball within a ball on a stick he calls MoMo. He likes to spin in circles and walk backward. He is obsessed with cars and trucks and wheels, and we bring a truck (or three) everywhere we go. He is completely content putting cars or trucks down playground (and his at home) slide for as long as you are willing to pick them up and bring them back to him. He loves his water table and kiddie pool and sprinkler, and many happy afternoons are spent transferring water from one of these objects to the others. Bath time is awesome.

Favorite foods: corn, peaches, pouches, cheese, yogurt, blackberries, watermelon, noodles. He will eat a lot of things if he can dip them in "dip dip" of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Also loves his toast and oatmeal in the mornings. And Annie's Cheeze its and Cheerios.

He'll read a book by himself in his book nook for a while, but then he often brings one to you and says "read? read?" Some of his old favorites are new favorites again, now that he can repeat some of the words. He likes to "shush" like the little old lady in Goodnight Moon. He likes Oh My Oh My Dinosaur! and flip books like Where is the Polar Bear? and Barnyard Animals and Horsey Up and Down. The list goes on. It's neat to see him enjoying his books.

Zach and I thank God every day for this little boy we get to call our own. We love watching him learn and grow, and look forward to how he grows more in the future.

Here are some photos from this morning with his lawn mower and MoMo! He looks really tall to me, but he's still a petite boy!