Grayer: An 18-Month Snapshot

I fully intended to do a 15-month snapshot for our Grayer Bear, but by the time I finally got around to it (AKA now), he was 18 months! We have been so busy moving into the new house that it totally got away from me, but I definitely wanted to document all the things I want to remember about our littlest guy at his current age.

Weighs: At his 15-month doctor's appointment, our boy weighed in at 24lbs I think. I know that he is in the 50th percentile for weight and only the 15th percentile for height! Our stout little guy has a check-up later this week, so I'll know his stats for sure :)

Sleeps: Grayer has been a fantastic sleeper for quite a while now. It is rare for him to wake up at any point throughout the night. His bedtime routine consists of a bath with bubba, PJs, getting his teeth brushed (which he is NOT a fan of), and then a story. I turn on his sound machine & projector, say prayers, give him his paci & blankie, and lay him down in the crib. Every now and then he will put up a fight, but he usually goes down without a peep. As for naps, he sometimes still takes a morning snooze. If we are in the car in the late morning, he will fall asleep at that time, and sometimes at the house if he is extra fussy, I will lay him down for a 30-minute max morning nap. He takes a pretty good afternoon nap - lately it has been about 2 hours. #allthepraisehands

Eats: Our boy is still a big eater. He is always jealous of anyone who is eating in front of him. He doesn't usually have a huge appetite for breakfast right away in the morning but always wants his milk first thing. And he will plop himself down on the kitchen rug to drink it every single time. He LOVES to snack all day long, too. His favorite foods right now are fruit (specifically blueberries & strawberries), cheese, french fries (#getsitfromhismama), and sausage & ham (#getsitfromhisdaddy). He is literally always in the pantry pulling out food like a crazy man.

Wears: He is wearing 18-month clothes right now. Because he's a short fella, I can sometimes put a pair of 12-month shorts on him :) He is in a size 5.5 shoe.

Plays: While he would still rather play with non-toys (like my keys, wallet, the remote), he has gotten so much better than he used to be at playing with toys and keeping himself entertained. He and Wells have really started playing well together...when Grayer isn't trying to snatch Wells' toys or rip up the train tracks! He loves chasing after his brother, wrestling with brother & Daddy, baths, being outside, and "reading" books to himself.

Other things to note: 

-Grayer LOVES LOVES LOVES music. If he hears even the faintest sound of a song, he immediately starts dancing. If any kind of song comes on a TV show, it's got his full attention. He likes to "sing," too. He has a little tune that he either made up or is trying to mimic some song he heard - he was singing it at the top of his lungs for days and we thought it was the funniest thing!

-He likes to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Bubble Guppies, Daniel Tiger, Mother Goose Club, and Barney...basically whatever Wells is watching :)

-He is our little trouble-maker. He is always into something. ALWAYS. Whether it's emptying dirty clothes out of the hamper, going through the kitchen/bathroom cabinets, emptying the silverware out of the dishwasher, or trying to get in the trashcan - the boy is mischievous!

-This child has a temper!!!! He will throw a tantrum like a crazy man if he doesn't get his way. We are working on this, but it is a little funny to see how dang dramatic he is! (See below. Ha! This was because I wouldn't give him any more fruit snacks...after he ate like 3 bags!!!)

-He is still a big-time Mama's boy. He was having major separation anxiety for a while, but I think it has gotten better. He does want me to pick him up a lot during the day when we are home - if I am in the kitchen, he will come up to me and wedge himself between me and the cabinet and reach up for me to hold him.

-He has not a been as big a talker as Wells was at his age, but he is becoming more and more vocal by the day. He can actually say a pretty good number of words, but he would rather babble. And even though he doesn't talk a ton, he understands everything we say! It's a little scary how much he understands sometimes! :) Here are some of his most-used (or just my favorite ones!) words he says:

• Mama, Dada, Bubba, Pappy (Paci) Baa-Baa (Bubble Guppies), Dog, Fishie, Milk, Grandma, Grandpa, Ashie (Ashley), Gat (Gatlin), Bird, Gigi, Papa, No No, Yes, Annie (Granny), Juice, Cheese, Bye, Night Night, Hot Dog (what he calls Mickey Mouse), Uh-Oh, Train, Choo-choo, Car, Dump Truck, and the animal noises for a monkey, elephant, lion, tiger, cow, and dog.

-This kid still puts things in his mouth even though I think he should be well out of that phase by now. If there is something small around, he cannot be trusted! Like I said, mischievous!!! :)

-He is our early riser. It is rare for him to sleep in in the mornings.

-Having grown up with a train-obsessed brother, Grayer had no choice but to like trains! Haha! He is now a little train lover, too, and likes to get a train out of the train box in the playroom first thing in the morning.

- He also likes to play with some little animal figurines that we have. He will take each one out and babble about them and say their noises if he knows what that particular animal says :)

-Just like with Wells, it has taken forever for Grayer to get hair! It seems to be coming in faster lately. He has a lot in the back, but not very much on top still, so he has a bit of mullet! Haha! And his hair is kind of a medium-dark blonde as of right now.

-I think he got a true mix of mine and Eric's eyes because his appear to be hazel. For a while, they stayed blue, so I thought he might have Eric's eyes. But eventually they started to darken. They aren't quite brown like mine and Wells', though. On any given day they can look gray, blue, green, or brown.

-Grayer is our little daredevil - he is not scared or hesitant about ANYTHING. He gives me mini-heart attacks all day long.

-He loves Wells so much. In the morning, they will give each other hugs. And randomly throughout the day, I will see them loving on each other. They get on each other's nerves, too! But seeing them play together and be sweet with one another is just the best thing ever.

We love this little stinker so much! Can't believe he's already a year and a half! Happy eighteen months, Grayer William!