Milo is 19 months old!

Can you even believe another month has gone by? Milo is nineteen months old and amazing beyond his years.

His vocabulary is, once again, growing by the second. I no longer could even begin to try to recall all the words he knows. Many, many animals and their sounds have been identified. Many machines and their sounds have been identified. He knows words for more abstract concepts, like "mess" and "hot" and not just the words for tangible things. He strings words together, two-words sentences for the time being. He is really and truly communicating with us, and it all at once makes things easier and more complicated.

He has taken an interest in coloring. He prefers pens, though markers or crayons or highlighters will do. He scribbles, switching the pen from right hand to left. He holds it the proper way—not grabby with his entire first, but more like an adult would. Sometimes even daintily, letting his pinky hover in the air. He especially loves it when we guide his hand and draw something. "M-I-L-O," I help him write. "Miyo!" he responds. "D-A-D-D-Y," I help him write. "Miyo!" he responds.

He loves seeing himself in the mirror and proudly identifies himself as Milo.

He likes washing his hands, turning the lights on and off, playing outside, riding his tractor, and jumping on Mommy and Daddy's bed.

He does not like wearing socks without also wearing shoes, putting on his coat, having a sore rashy bottom, or being told "no."

Milo likes dancing and bobbing his head to the beat (or almost to the beat) when he hears music or singing. He smiles when I sing the ABCs to him, but won't sing with me.

He'll say please and thank-you when prompted, but reluctantly. I think he'll only say please when he really really wants something. And typically that something is a grape.

Andrew and I have become slightly less paranoid when it comes to fearing that Milo will choke any second. We no longer cut his grapes in half and we trust him to eat string cheese without assistance. I still have my doubts about dried fruit, but I see that he eats that at daycare sometimes. Not on my watch, though.

Favorite foods haven't changed much in the last month. Eggs, cheese, and grapes top the chart. Fruit in general is a big hit. He's good with a fork, and I hardly ever worry that he's about to stab himself in the eye anymore.

Milo loves trucks, planes, and tractors. He likes robots, or "bobots," as he calls them, and he and Daddy have a weird routine where they take turns giving a kiss to the robot on the flashcard.

He's a good sleeper, goes to bed without a fuss and sleeps from about 7:45pm to about 6:15am. We typically don't hear a peep from him during the night, though lately he's soaked through his diaper and woken up wet and fussy—and I can hardly blame him for a little whining when he's trying to sleep in wet pajamas.

The best thing of all to happen in the last month is that Milo's Daddy-only phase is over. Or sort of over, anyway. Milo now occasionally wants me over other people. And when he reaches for me, because no one but Mommy will do, I love it. There is no better feeling in the world.

Mama called the doctor...

I had an OB check-up this morning. All is well with Sissy. She had the hiccups when I listened to her heartbeat. After the appointment, I scheduled my next nine appointments. In other words, I am now scheduled all the way to my due date. For some reason, this makes it all seem like it's happening very quickly. And I am not ready.

There are a million things on my to-do list and I don't know when I'm going to do any of them. I spend every weekend just trying to see Milo and do fun things with him and Andrew. There is no time to design a nursery or organize the onesies and burp cloths. We're only three and a half months away from actually having a baby and I'm pretty sure I need at least six months to get ready. Not good math.

First Sentences

Milo has begun stringing words together now. So far we've heard three, maaaayyyybe four, sentences. He said "Light off" when Andrew turned the lights off. He has also said "No, Mommy" and "No, Daddy." Somehow I don't think that will be the last time I hear "No, Mommy."

The possible fourth sentence was just this morning, and I don't really believe it happened. Andrew asked him, "Where do your shoes go?" and I swear it sounded like Milo said "On your feet." But he can't put three words together like that yet, can he??

It's so fun to see him start to really communicate with us. Man, I love that guy.

The Belly Expansion Project

Please ignore the pile of toys etc. on the floor behind me.

22 Weeks, 3 Days

Dog Days Are Over

Today was the first day I dropped Milo off at his (relatively) new daycare and the dog didn't growl at me. Six weeks in, and I guess she finally knows who I am. That makes it official—we have settled into our new routine. Even the dog knows it. I call that progress.

Crazy or Dedicated?

Yesterday I started back up with my weekly personal training sessions. I quit going when the "morning" sickness kicked my ass for the entire summer. But, you know, since I hadn't thrown up in a week, I thought it was high time to start exercising again.

When I got there, my (male) trainer said, "Looks like you've got a little belly there." Yes. Yes, I do. It tends to grow with pregnancy.

Working out was way harder than I expected. I'm not sure if it was extra tough because I haven't lifted any weight (other than the constant lifting of my nearly 30-pound toddler) in a few months or because I'm pregnant. Or both, probably. But it was not easy. I couldn't (and didn't want to) lift nearly as much weight as I was before. I got out of breath quickly. My lower back felt strained at times, causing me to pull back even more. My pesky round ligament pain held me back, too.

But I did it.

And even though this morning my lower back and round ligament are aching more than normal, I'll be back next week for more torture exercise.

The Gender Reveal Party

Yesterday we hosted a gender reveal party for our friends and family to share the news of Future Baby's sex. The party was a great success. Gorgeous weather meant our deck (and new patio furniture) were open for business. The food was a hit, the kids loved playing with Milo's toys, and our reveal moment had the perfect amount of suspense. My video hangout with long-distance friends and family even went smoothly. Overall, I'd say a good time was had by all.
To reveal the sex, we went old school with a science-project volcano. Except our volcano came out of a wine bottle. In addition to the baking soda, we added Koolaid mix in order to get the color (mixed ahead of time, of course, so as not to give away the surprise). Everyone gathered around, and I poured in the vinegar. It took a few seconds to react, then—an eruption of pink!
Everyone cheered. It was such an exciting perfect moment. We're having a girl! Amazing. And now that the party's over, it really is sinking in. It's gonna happen—Milo is going to have a baby sister and I'm going to have a daughter. Wow. Can't wait to meet you, Future Baby Girl!

The Post In Which the Gender Is Revealed!

It's a girl!

Another belly pic

Are you sick of these belly pics yet? Don't answer that. Here's me at 20 weeks. (Halfway! Woo!)

The 18-Month Stats

Milo is 18 months old. A year and a half! Just over four months away from becoming a big brother. He’s such a little boy, with only traces of baby remaining.

• Weight: 28 lbs., 9 oz. (80th percentile)
• Height: 32 1/4 in. (50th percentile)
• Head Circumference: 19 1/4 in. (80th percentile)

Favorite words include outside, yellow, no, and up (as in, “Pick me up now, woman!”). He knows many, many more words: paci, hat, button, doggie, Zadie, spoon, fork, potty, bump, TV, truck, neck, book, robot, grape, peas, oh no, what’s this?, “Dog Go,” “La La La” (can you guess what two books are making the rounds in our house?), milk, etc. etc. etc.
Favorite books: Go, Dog, Go; Moo, Baa, La La La; Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb; Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed; and occasionally Goodnight Moon.

Favorite things to play with: Milo is into toy cars, balls, two splatter screens from the kitchen drawer, flash cards, and our cat.

Milo made up a new game the other day that Andrew and I think is hilarious. He put a pea on top of his head and said “hat.” Of course we laughed, and he kept putting more peas on his head, saying “hat, hat.” This led to other hats, including yogurt and peanut butter toast. Messy, but adorable.

The boy cannot get enough of being outside. Immediately after dinner (or before, or during) he starts whining "ow-side, ow-side!" and goes to the back door and just waits there.

He's quick to throw a mini-tantrum, like if he wants to go outside but does NOT want to put his shoes on, he'll cry and carry on for awhile until distracted by something else.

He refuses to let me kiss him. Sometimes he smiles and turns away, and it's kind of cute. Other times he screams at me, "Mahmee, Mahmee, no, nooooo!" and pushes away with all his might. Sad.

Milo generally likes food, especially breakfast foods, but he sometimes just refuses to even try something. Often if we can convince/trick him into taking a bite, he'll eat with gusto. But if our usual tricks aren't working, forget it. Grapes for dinner it is.

Milo can walk backward, run (sort of), bounce and almost-sort-of jump, spin in a circle, and go up and down stairs fairly easily (crawling or scooting).

Milo has taken a liking to stuffed animals, though they're not really loveys. He just likes to cuddle with them during story time and in his crib.

Every animal says "moo" and everything is the color yellow, according to Milo.

He can reach too many things all of a sudden. Drawers that he never paid attention to before are now opened and their (hopefully safe) contents strewn about. Things on the edge of the table or counter are pulled down. He OPENED THE OVEN DOOR, which seems particularly dangerous to me. I have no clue how to completely baby-proof the house. This kid is just too crafty!

Things at the new daycare are going great. Today was Milo's check-up, and Kristin (Milo's caretaker/teacher) had him up and ready to go and a snack all packed to take along to the doctor's. At the old daycare, we would have been lucky if Milo was in the room we expected to find him in, forget being in a clean diaper, awake, or with snack in hand.

Life is good right now. Milo generally sleeps well, he is currently without rash (though to keep him that way, he has to be in disposable diapers with loads of desitin, so goodbye cloth diaper dreams), he's smart and funny and adorable, and we're all getting ready to become a family of four.