15 Months

Well, kid...your 15 month post comes on the tails of a really bad night. Not only were you up screaming from 11 pm-2:30 am, but when your parental units finally resolved to just let you cry it out YOU managed to climb out of your crib and come looking for us. Yeah. Such a sweet skill to have mastered in the middle of the night! I am hoping that the screwed up sleep patterns is because of the two new teeth (13 and 14) that are trying desperately to poke through. If it isn't the teeth, and you are just trying to be annoying? You're in trouble mister.

The last four weeks have been eventful for you, as always. There is never any way for me to write or even remember all your new sweet skills, but at least I'll give it a try.

• You have figured out how to fold your arms and bow your head for a prayer - even though we don't say too many around our house these days.
• To your mom and dad's dismay, you like bananas. Grandma and Grandpa Howden introduced you to the yucky, slimy fruit and in true monkey fashion, you'll eat two in secession. Yesterday morning you nearly jumped out of your high chair begging for a banana.
• You have become a wonderful mimic - sounds, actions, feats of strength - you name it, and you'll do your best to copy it to a tee. You can now do a cow and a horse sound and sometimes a monkey if you are feeling fancy. You do this funny blinking thing and have started rolling your eyes at me. Oh, how I love that one.
  
• I've discovered, much to my dismay, that you share your dad's sense of humor. On Sunday afternoon past, the two of you were laughing yourselves to tears. Why? Because your dad was throwing goldfish crackers in the air and catching them in his mouth. How this is hilarious I'm not quite sure but it is.
• Your favorite place in the world is to be outside. There, you can wave at the kids on their way home from school, help me plant flowers with your own shovel and eat as much dirt as you want. Oh, how you love the dirt.
• I desperately want you to start talking, but you aren't interested. The only word your good at is "me". It's "me, me, me" all day long. You have said dog, and tigger, and have mom, dad, mama (that's grandma), mastered. Grandma Petersen says that you are waiting until you can speak in perfect complete sentences, she's probably right. Regardless, we work on our words daily. Particularly these: up, down, help, read, please, no, open, close. Life would be so much easier if you got these few down, but it's okay...I'm sure that once you start talking, you'll never stop.
• You have decided that all cabinets and drawers in the house are your domain. This is a bit frustrating for me, but I'm trying to go with the flow. Speaking of flow, your fascination with water, particularly the water in the toilet is a little disgusting. So far though, only finger puppets and tooth brushes have found their way into the dirty bowl.
  
• You think that grandparents and any other relative for that matter are much more fun and entertaining than your dumb old mom and dad. But, it is such a relief to me that you never cry when we leave you places - only when you have to come home.

Oh, Kiddo - life with you is great. I am more tired than I ever thought possible at the end of every day, but you are so much fun to play with, learn and grow up with. There are two things you are doing this days that I absolutely love. First, because of our communication barrier, you have taken to guiding me where you need me to be. Like this morning, you knocked a picture off of the book shelf while I was blow drying my hair. You came to the bathroom, grabbed my had and led me right to the problem. We fixed it. And, when I'm sitting on the floor with you, you will come up behind me and throw your arms around my shoulders and squeeze as hard as you can, and then pat me on the back. I think that means you love me? Well, I love you, too.