Eighteen!

Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. - A. A. Milne

18 month special day cupcakes!

18 months old! Holy cow! Last night as a special treat we got mini-cupcakes. He loves cake.He eats it so cleanly- can't miss a bite!

On his first morning of 18 months I asked Ethan if he is old now. He said "No, Grandpa old." So there we have it folks (keep in mind, it was in fact Grandpa who taught Ethan that Grandpa is old- he is just repeating a reliable source!)

Ethan's favorite nusery rhyme is "Hey Diddle Diddle." His teachers tell me that all they have to do is say the title and he lights up and goes and gets the nursery rhyme book.

He really likes "Ring around the Rosie" too. He walks around and says "As-this, As-this"

In the car the other day he made up a song for me to the tune of "Twinkle Twinkle." It goes "Mommmy Mommy Mommy Mom, Daddy Daddy Daddy Da" I'm partial, but I think the lyrics are fantastic.

I cannot believe how big his heart is. He is so loving to everyone. He still has to hug all his friends before we can leave daycare at the end of the day. And we have to hug any staff members that we see along the way. If someone gets hurt, he's right there to give a hug and a smile- and he clearly shows signs of concern until everything is ok. When he's really truly enjoying your time together, he gets this awesome look of loving admiration in his eyes. It's fantastic.

If there's a bright light- sun, or kitchen light in the morning, Ethan will say "eyes, eyes." Ditto for when he's tired.

Speaking of when he's tired, for as long as I can remember, he wants you to cover his face with your hand. It started when he was a baby, as soon as he could control my hand placement. He buries in, to the point where I have to cup my hand to make sure that he's got enough air! He also rubs the side of his face or pulls on his ears when he's tired. And as long as we're talking about sleep- he's finally doing that better too- but I don't jinx those kinds of things talking about them in a blog...

Loves to play games on Mommy's phone!

No more going up the stairs on his knees. That's baby stuff. Feet only. Sometimes it's hands and feet. Sometimes he holds on to the railing or holding hands. Either way, he's big. Also within the last month he's started going down the stairs by himself on his tummy. He's a brave kid, but he's very cautious. And that's ok by us!

He remembers details about his day. Sometimes he tells me what he did at school on the way home in the car. Sometimes I can confirm that's actually what he did, other times I can't- But they are always possibilities. He especially likes to tell me about when the go outside! 

At school he's learning to take turns. It's catching on. He'll tell us "Ethan's turn" when he wants to do something. He's working on it...

Yesterday when he was outside at school the kids were playing on the tricycles. The kids are supposed to push them under their own power- the teachers don't push for them. Well, a few crafty kiddos (which included Ethan) realized that they could talk their friends into helping out and taking turns pushing each other. "Lincoln, come push." Pretty neat. This from Ethan who a week or so ago talked his friends into giving him some of their goldfish crackers because he'd finished all of his. His teacher said "And of course, he's so cute, they actually gave them to him!" That's our Ethan!

So one last story. This morning I was unloading the dishwasher and Ethan was playing in the Living room. He had been asking for his daddy who was up showering, but had settled in to playing trains. But then there was that "too quiet" kind of quiet, and a small thud from upstairs. So I go to the stairway, and there is Ethan standing at the top with the gate closed between us. He was standing waiting for me- knowing he wasn't supposed to be there, he laughed at the sight of me, and then yelled "Noooo!"- knowing that I would now be going to fetch him. Apparently in the meantime he'd gone in to see Charlie in the shower. When Charlie asked where Mommy was, he said "I don't know." Well played Ethan, well played.

If you missed it, here's the 17 month update from last week.