Iver is 17 months old, and
- is probably between 19 and 20 lbs, and still probably in single-digit percentiles. He feels like he's growing in terms of weight (when I carry him for long periods, I notice! and his tummy seems rounder), although it amazes me that he can even maintain weight with how little he seems to eat. He wears mostly size 12-month clothing (some 12-18 month shirts) and about size 4 shoes.
- still nurses regularly and drinks some milk and water from a cup (and some pediasure through a straw). He sits for short periods at his Ikea "baby table" and will try to use a spoon/fork but mostly eats/grazes on the run. He still is a fruit-a-holic (watermelon and blueberries are his favorites), but eats most veggies and meats/our table foods, but in very minute quantities. He likes pretty much all crunchy snacks.
- is loving daycare, where now he runs into the kitchen happily when I drop him off and actually where he prefers to eat breakfast after a 2-hour fight at home. He hasn't been febrile/sick (fingers crossed) in a few weeks, which is an improvement. He is very social, and loves other kids and babies, and is good at giving hugs and kisses.
- sleeps on his own full-size futon in our "office." He goes to sleep usually between 7:30 and 8:30 p.m., and wakes anywhere from 1-4 times (we had a good stretch of 1 waking but now it's regressed) before being "up for the day" between 5 and 6 a.m (and not convinceable to sleep longer). He has gone up to 8 hours at a stretch before waking at 4, although this is not the most common pattern. I had a pretty successful month and essentially night-weaned him (Kelvin has been getting up with him to break the milk association), but it still hasn't extinguished the midnight, 2, 3, and/or 4 a.m. waking. I read another toddler sleep book, and read that many (as much as half) of toddlers still wake at night and require parental intervention, so, while I would love things to be different, I know that I'm not alone. Sigh. While I am a morning person, I really don't like to be up at 5 a.m. seven days per week... and 9 hours of night sleep doesn't seem adequate for a one-year-old (in my opinion). So he generally still needs two naps, one around 10 a.m. for 1-2 hours, and another around 3 or 4 p.m. (which he often fights when he's home with me, and which I don't let go past 5 p.m., otherwise bedtime is a fight).
- has started being more verbal. He will say, in addition to the "bear," "yeah" and "no," from last month, also says "ball," "bath," and, most recently, "cat," and "car" and "Pepper." He signs a lot, and is starting to learn all body parts, animal parts and sounds. He understands so much-- it's incredible to see this little mind grow! I can't wait until he's talking more and can communicate instead of throwing tantrums!
- still wears cloth diapers when we're home (and size 3 Huggies overnights), and will poop on the potty every morning and 1-2 more times during the day, usually consistently after dinner (and not recently in the bath).
- loves baths, reading books, and the outdoors, loves to "walk" Pepper (he voluntarily jumps into the umbrella stroller in the mornings!), and playing at the park. He's been imitating everything, like washing our hands and faces, and he loves to be a little helper, taking good instructions at unloading groceries, and "cleaning" the house, dusting and sweeping.
He hates: straps, being confined, the BOB stroller, diaper changes, and especially the carseat. He screamed for 2 hours straight in the car yesterday (then puked) on our way to the Bay Area.
While he tests our patience every day and leaves this mama exhausted and frustrated a lot of the time, he's a fun, passionate little guy who is almost a year and a half old!
Here is his climbing prowess at the Eureka library
