He's 18 months!

Joseph at 18 months

Height: 33 in. (close to 75^th percentile)

It's a good idea NOT to buy the child's costume a month before Halloween. You might end up a few inches short.

Weight: 25 lbs 8 oz. (about 50^th percentile)

Yes, I AM wearing an adult-sized hat.

Head: BIG (over 100^th percentile of normal)

Wears 18 month clothes though sometimes 12 (mostly pants) and sometimes 24 (mostly shirts).

Shoes are a 4 or 5.

Hair is getting longer in back, though not to his collar yet. Curls slightly just after a bath and always under his right ear. Light brown/blond.

I love this picture for more reasons than I can list. Especially his little belly button.

He loves to chase Vader around the house. She escapes by jumping up into the windowsill.

He has just started to climb up on the couches by himself. He’s been getting onto the coffee table and the hearth for a while now, and recently discovered that he can get from the hearth to one of the couches. 

He is big on words and knows about four letters. (I was wearing my London sweatshirt one day and he pointed to an O and said, “Wheel!” I said, No, that’s an O! He said, “Oh!” And then that day he kept finding the letter O in his books. He also picked up the letters  Y, E, and D from another one of my sweatshirts. Who knew my choice of tops would help my child’s literacy? I’m amazed.) I stop counting his words when he got to 100, about a month ago, but in the past few days he said alder, eat, tomato, moon, up, amen, and down for the first time. It’s funny what he has a word for and what he doesn’t. For example, he’s never said milk, pajamas, or diaper, definitely everyday words around here, but he does say jeans, engine, and goat. Some of his favorites are stinky, yucky, and gross…what a little boy. 

My favorite thing he says is the meow for a kitty. It is unbelievably cute and sweet.

He loves picking out his socks every morning from the sock basket.

The most exciting time of day for him is when the mail truck comes. He hears it down the street, pauses in whatever he is doing to look at me and say, “Mail!” over and over. If I get up, he runs to the door and tries to pull it open, saying, “Mail! Mail!”

Not so impressed by snow.

He still loves mirrors and always gives himself a kiss. If you tell him to give someone else a kiss, he’ll blow the kiss, which consists of opening his mouth and smacking his open hand on it a few times.

At church, nursery is the biggest blessing in his life (and ours!) He gets to play with toys, eat a snack, sing songs, and color with other kids instead of being herded by mom or dad.

Learning what an alder cone is on our nature walk.

When I tell him it’s time for a meal, he says, “Bite!” and runs to his high chair or the kitchen.

He loves climbing into things. His usuals are the Lego wagon, the newspaper basket next to the fireplace, and laundry baskets.  He also tries to climb into the lunch bag Brian uses and gets so frustrated that he can only get one foot in. At church on Sunday, he was playing with my keys in the hymnbook holder, and kept lifting his leg as if he were trying to climb in. He makes me laugh so much.

He is really good at hugs. He just holds on tight and squeezes! He also will say I love you if you say it to him first. It makes my heart melt.  

He also likes to say hole while attempting to stick his finger up your nose. :)