William at 21 Months

As of this morning, William now weighs 25.4 lbs, has a head circumference of 19.12" and is 35" tall. 
 
Despite the brief illness he had, this month has been a big one for language and skill development. All of a sudden he has started saying a ton of new words, and is able to do a few more physical activities (like climbing ladders and blowing bubbles underwater) that he was not able to do before this. I can tell he is starting to really know the rules of the house, and thinks about whether he wants to break those rules or not. Usually if given some guidance and encouragement, he is pretty obedient and well behaved 90% of the time. Of course there is always going to be some level of toddler resistance, and that is to be expected. He is really a great kid though! 

One example of his language skills improving, happened the other night when we were eating some broccoli. I had overcooked it a little and Michael was remarking how overcooked broccoli tastes like ass. Then Will saw that we were eating broccoli and motioned that he wanted some too. I handed him a floret and he took a little nibble and said, "ass!" I'll admit that I laughed at that one. There is something so humorous about babies swearing. I suppose we need to start watching our language around him more! Here are some more new words from this month: Ouch, uh oh, dirt, trucks, duck, dog, rock, boots, watch, down, orange, hold this, eggs (which he often request for meal times), and see that? (this is asked repeatedly until you respond that you have seen what he is pointing out. "See that" can also mean that he wants us to lift him up to see something). There are probably a few more that I have missed. It seems he learns a new word every day. They are not often very clear and usually only I can understand most of them, but I am excited that he is trying to use more words to communicate instead of whining nonsense words and gesturing. 

Will is VERY picky when it comes to meal time. He used to be so adventurous, but lately wont even attempt to try most things. I try not to make too big a deal about it, and just keep offering different things all the time. I consider it a win if he will even try something, let alone eat it (which he does not most of the time). One of the more healthy foods that he does enjoy eating, are eggs (thank goodness, as protein of any kind is hard to get into him). I make him these little omelets by cooking one scrambled egg in a bowl, in the microwave, putting cheese on it and then folding it in half. I've started letting him select which egg he would like, and then I let him crack that egg into the bowl until the yolk comes out. It takes him a few whacks but he always gets it. Then I add the milk and let him help with the stirring. He loves it and it makes him more excited to eat the omelet! He will eagerly eat the whole thing in like 3 minutes! Its a rare win in the food category and I will take any that I can get!

He is also starting to pay more attention to things like what adults are saying to each other, and what goes on between characters on TV. There are a few commercials that are very disturbing to him. It actually took me a while to realize that it was the tv that was upsetting him, as for the longest time, he didn't really pay attention to it when it was on. Now though he will sit and watch a large portion of a kid's show, as long as you sit there with him. In that vein, one new development is that, for whatever reason, he is afraid of and will cry when someone on tv sings. Sesame Street is the main culprit but commercials with singing folks also distresses him. Oddly enough though, he is not bothered when the muppets on Sesame Street sing, only the actors. He does however, love when I sing to him. When I start singing, Will crawls into my lap, completely limp, and lays his head on my chest :)

One thing that I'd like to record for posterity before it stops, is something that Michael and I call the 'post poop shake.' This is something that Will has done since he was quite small, starting from about 3 or 4 months old and continuing today. When he poops, you will often see him standing quite uncharacteristically still for a few moments. Then, once he is done, he will do this whole body shake or shiver. It looks like he just got a sudden chill or something. Its hilarious and also very telling. Once I see that shake there is no need to check his diaper. I KNOW he pooped. That will be a story to tell his future fiancee ;)

Another new change this month, is that he now wants to pick out his own clothes most mornings. If I try and select an outfit for him, he has a complete fit. So I hold him in front of his dresser and he grabs out what he wants to wear. Then I can dress him with no further issues. The funny thing is, he usually picks pretty well! He is becoming more curious about the world too, including with things that he sees every day. He wants to suddenly explore these familiar objects in new and different ways. For example, Will has these books with different textures on every page, and as we read them, he has to lick every page to feel the textures with his tongue! Oh and the last funny thing from this month, is that Will has been obsessed with having two drinks at all times. If you hand him his milk, he also wants his water. If you hand him water, he also wants his juice, and will alternate drinking out of both. We've always known that he has been a big liquid drinker, like his dad, but this particular trend of wanting two cups, really illustrates his love of drinking! Funny kid!

Since he was born I had kept his room at 70 degrees via space heater. In the past few months though I figured that he was probably old enough that it didnt need to be quite so warm in there. Then he got sick and it messed up his sleep and even after he was better, I attributed his shorter naps and night wakings to the effects of the illness. Then recently it was very warm here, both during the day and at night. And like magic he suddenly slept through the night and had longer (1-4pm) naps again. But it wasnt until it went back to being cooler during the day and night, and his sleep similarly returned to being bad, that I finally figured out that he might be waking due to the temperature. I reset the space heater thermostat to 70 degrees a few days ago and he has been sleeping through the night and having nice, long naps ever since. Its a miracle! I wish I had figured it out sooner! Of course, his HFM illness messed up his sleep a bit as well, but we are slowly getting back into a good sleep rhythm. Hopefully permanently!

Finally, he is a very affectionate child. He loves hugs and kisses and any time he has had a tantrum, or has been away from me for longer that 10 minutes, he requires a hug for comfort. Not that he cant ever be without me. He plays independently all the time and has no problem when I am not around, its just that when he spots me after an absence, he immediately runs to me for a hug. I think its adorable. He is a very sweet and sensitive child, as well as mischievous. One cute example of this hugging phenomenon, happened the other day. I took Will to an indoor play park as it was a rainy day. Every 5-10 minutes he would stop playing, scan the area to find me, then start running toward me with a huge smile on his face, as fast as his little legs could take him. Then he would throw himself into my arms and give me a big hug, before running off to play some more. I just love this kid! I will desperately miss things like that when he is bigger and way too cool to show affection to his old mom. In the mean time, I relish and encourage it!