Cole turns 18 months old

One by one, the months have flown by and already my littlest man is 18 months old!  He has grown from our infant, happy to be held all day long, to our very active toddler.  We are so very proud of him and what he has accomplished.

Our cautious little guy is now quite adventurous, creeping and cruising everywhere.  He loves it when Papa throws him high into the air letting out a loud squeal as he soars.  He's quite intrigued by doors (something Mom is not fond of!)  When he gets close to a door, he'll position himself  so that he can swing his legs, kick the door, and BAM, the door slams shut or slams into the wall behind it.

Cole is a good little swimmer and loves kicking and splashing around in the water.  He doesn't even mind it when his Papa dunks him under the water!  He's become quite an outdoors man and loves going to the park and riding around in the bike trailer.  He likes listening to music and bops up and down to the beat.  His dance moves are sure impressive for an 18 month old!

Coley (as we call him) loves to share.  Whether it's his toys or food, he is always offering it up for someone else to enjoy.  And not much can beat his very sweet baby kisses that he loves giving over and over again!

Cole's become a very picker eater.  The only way to get him to finish a meal is by singing.  He is quick to request his two favorite tunes: Itsy Bitsy Spider by bringing his fingers together similar to the baby sign for 'more' and then twisting them back and forth and Twinkle Twinkle by tapping his finger to his temple. And at the end of the song, he always gives Mom a round of applause (regardless of how off key I am!)    

When Coley is eating, it's very important to keep other goodies out of sight because Cole is quick to point and grunt to anything he sees which translates into "Hey Mom, I don't want to eat this...I want to eat THAT!"  Needless to say, the bananas on the counter are quick to be covered up or else throughout lunch he'll be saying "nana" followed by the baby sign for banana followed by a point and grunt (he knows how to get his message across!)

Cole will also not hesitate to let you know he is done eating something.  He loves to chuck anything he no longer wants to eat all over the floor.  This is usually followed up by him saying "no-no" as his peas go flying.  (Yes, meals are really quite eventful in our household!)  Cole's favorite foods are blueberries, grapes, waffles, pancakes and oatmeal.  His dislike for green beans has not changed.  I can only get him to take one bite before they are all over the floor.  There is only one food that can top green beans on Cole's list of dislikes, and that is eggs!  Even if you can trick him to put a bite of eggs in his mouth, he will immediately give you the look of "what is this nasty thing you fed me!" and proceed to dig it out of his mouth and whip it onto the floor.

Cole's communication has flourished.  He loves to communicate and can pick up a new baby sign almost immediately.  Some of his favorite baby signs are eat, milk, cereal, cracker, more, banana, book, ball, fan, cheese, and blueberry, although he thinks blueberries and red grapes are the same thing.  Giving him grapes  instead of blueberries doesn't seem to matter to him and he gobbles them up anyway, but when he thinks black beans are blueberries, well, that's another story.  The beans are quickly flying through the air!  He is also chatting up a storm and learning more and more words.  Some of his favorites include Mama, Papa, no-no, nana (for banana), mo (for more), bo (for book), ba (for ball), hi, and bah-bye.

One of Cole's favorite games is playing catch.  He loves throwing and rolling the ball back and forth.  He has figured out that the balls roll farther and make much more noise on the tile.  So he'll grab the ball off the carpet and make his way to the tile to chuck it as far as he can.  And boy, does he have quite an arm!  Cole has me running all over the kitchen after the ball!  Unfortunately,  balls are not the only things he likes to throw.  He'll toss just about anything in the air...toys, the telephone, even hard boiled Easter eggs!

Cole is now a whooping 21 pounds and 30 inches tall.  He has 16 of his baby teeth with only 4 molars left to come in.  He has the most adorable laugh and a great sense of humor as he finds his mom's jokes to be quiet a riot.  When he laughs, his eyes light up and the sweetest little chin dimples appear.   And those chubby cheeks of his are impossible to resist squeezing!

Coley continues to change and master new things every day.  The only thing that hasn't changed too much is his hair (or lack there of!)  It is slowly coming in, and from the looks of it he's going to be a blue-eyed, brown-haired boy, just like his Papa!