He said his first word, and has said a few more, too. His other words include "mama," "dada," "uh oh" (which is more of a vocal high pitch followed by a lower one while his mouth makes an "o"), "mmm" when he eats (if you can count that as a word??), "hi" (accompanied by a wave and also used for "bye"), "gih-gih" for Gidget, and sometimes he says "up" if he wants to be picked up, but usually it's more of a grunt.
When he was around 11 months old, we started watching a DVD with him called Baby Signing Time that teaches babies sign language. I knew within a couple of weeks that he knew what signs meant when I did them, but he wouldn't do them on his own. Then one day, he just started showing us he knew how to do the signs! The first one he did was "all done" (which, ironically, isn't on the DVD). Then he started signing "more" and "eat." Now he's added "ball," "milk," "dog," "bird," "car," "cat," "flower," and "fish" to his signing vocabulary. He doesn't always use them in the right context (i.e. he usually just does "eat" if we ask him if he wants more), but it has clued us into how much he understands.
Speaking of things he understands, it's so amazing to realize how much he truly understands! He knows what we mean when we say, "Come here," "Sit down," "Sit on your bottom please," "Will, sit down, please," "Will, mommy said to sit down," "This isn't a game, Will," "Okay, I'm taking your chair away," etc. He also knows who everyone is (us, Gidget, my parents, friends, etc) and will point to them when we ask "Where is ______?"
When we went to his check-up at the doctor, we saw a different pediatrician who I really liked. She asked a lot of questions about his development, and he's right on track. We got some really great news that his weight percentile has gone up quite a bit. He went up from the 2nd (at his 12-month) to the 8th!
Here are his stats:
Weight: 21lbs, 4oz - 8th percentile!
Height: 30.5 inches - 27th percentile (another drop there)
Head circumference: 18.5 inches - 42nd percentile
We did talk about the percentile drops with his height. He used to stay around the 60th percentile in height, so his curve is dropping a little. She said to ask Will's GI for his opinion when we go back to him in July and that we'd keep an eye on it. There's no need to be concerned right now, but they're going to watch him.
He loves listening to music and dancing to it. A lot of times I'll have the TV on a music channel, and if a song comes on that he likes, he'll stop what he's doing so he can dance to it. Isn't it amazing how babies/toddlers know to move to music? There's something inside of us that music stirs. I love that about kids.
He does something we call the happy dance. He likes to go to the fireplace and stomp his feet on it, but he also does the happy dance on lots of other occasions.
He also loves to read books.
He's still in size 3 diapers, but we've moved up to size 4 in overnights. No more wet pj's in the morning now. He's also still wearing 12 month clothes, although he fills them out much better now. The 12-month onesies or one-piece shorts are getting too short for him, but he mostly wears t-shirts and shorts now anyway.
We are no longer nursing. It was a much easier transition for Will than it was for me. Our last nursing session was the Friday before Memorial Day. While I miss the snuggles I used to get during that time, I'm thankful to feel like my body is mine again. And I can't WAIT to eat some peanut butter!
Will eats mostly anything we give him except for meat. He loves fruit, cheese, veggies and beans. He is still drinking soy milk instead of cow's milk, and he loves it. He has 3 to 4 cups of milk a day.
I really love this age. His personality and independence are beginning to shine, but he's not yet defiant. And he loves me. He's not too cool for me. I know we've still got a while before that day comes, but I already dread it.
I wish I could be his favorite forever.
Well, at least until he meets his wife, I guess.
Thank the Lord that's nowhere in the near future.
Happy 15 months, Buddy!
