Jack is 15 Months Old!

 

After Jack turned 1, I decided that it was too much to keep up with the monthly updates, but I thought that quarterly updates would be a good way for me to write down the things I want to remember this year.

It is so fascinating how quickly Jack continues to change and grow. He is developing by leaps and bounds.

 

Jack started walking around Christmas and within a couple of weeks, he was into everything. It amazes me how sure he is of himself and his steps. He occasionally falls, but he is quite adept.

He has been climbing down the stairs for some time, but shortly after he turned one, we allowed him to start climbing up. He has embraced the stairs and has never fallen.

Now he wants us to hold his hand so that he can go down the stairs standing up {and facing forward}. We allow him to do this on the 2 steps leading from our bonus room to his nursery. They are carpeted and relatively safe. Of course he is more interested in going down the big stairs this way, but his parents are not ready for him to do that yet!

Jack loves other kids. Any time we drop him off at nursery at church, or go to a park or visit his cousins in Nashville, he squeals with delight.

Last week, we were in the city and visited Chick-fil-a. Another mom commented on how expressive Jack was. His giggles are pretty adorable, in my unbiased opinion.

He gives tight bear hugs around the neck and sometimes gives open mouth kisses. He is such a sweet little guy.

Jack recently became very interested in feeding himself with real silverware. I load up the spoon and set it on his plate or tray and he proceeds to feed himself.

He continues to be a good eater, though he is not a huge fan of meat. He turned out to be slightly anemic, so we have been supplementing with iron drops and I have been on the hunt to find anything he will eat that has iron in it. After 2 weeks of supplements and lots of iron-fortified food, he is no longer anemic.

Jack is really starting to show understanding of words. He calls me, "She" {he is calling me by my first name}, though I am pretty sure he knows that I am "mama." He just likes to yell "She" in the house. He also says, "dada" and "bye bye" and "okay" and continues to do lots of babbling. He teachers at church tell us that he loves to talk {shout} during Bible class.

When we are getting ready to leave the house, he seems to know it and will repeatedly say, "bye bye" and even goes to the door to try to open it. He can reach the door knob, but can't open it yet.

He also says "nigh nigh" or "bye bye" when he is ready for bed. He will find his paci, put it in his mouth and start waving his hand to signal that it is time to sleep. When I tell him not to do something, occasionally he will he say, "okay," and then proceed to do it anyways. When all else fails, I just distract him.

Jack loves trucks and will make a "vrrrrrrrommmmm vrrrrmmm vrrrmmm" noise whenever he plays with one. He also likes toy tools and pretending to fix things. Buttons and door knobs and latches fascinate him. He has many of his father's tendencies. He also loves to go get the mail from the mailbox with his daddy every day. He takes the mail out, one piece at a time, and then puts it all back so that he can do it again.

In the last 3 months, Jack had his first hair cut, experienced his first snow and has had lots of opportunities to see family {including trips to Canada, Tennessee and Arkansas}.

 

Jack sleeps well -- typically 10-12 hours at night and two naps during the day. He still has only 4 teeth {two on top, two on the bottom}. We will go to his 15-month check up in a few weeks, so I am not sure about his height and weight. He is in 12 and 18 month clothes and size 4 diapers {when we use disposable}. We still use cloth diapers 90% of the time and are very happy with our decision to do so. Shoes have been difficult for Jack since he has really thick feet. He currently wears size 5 Robeez, but we can't seem to get a regular shoe to fit him. We are probably going to have to bite the bullet and spend a bit more to get him something that fits well. Jack is officially weaned and drinks whole milk from his sippy cup like an old pro.

We continue to fall in love with our little man with each passing day. He brings us such joy. In the evenings, before bed time, we enjoy playing together as a family. Parenting is exhausting at times, but definitely worth it.