One point five. That’s how old he is. 1.5 years old already, or as they say in mommy-speak, 18 months. I remember doing this post and thinking that 9 months was an ‘old baby’. Well now that we’ve hit double that, I’m definitely thinking I have an ‘old toddler’ on my hands.

What’s Ryan up to at the ripe ‘ol age of 1.5? Well let’s see. He pretty much ignores all of his toys, preferring instead to empty out the kitchen cupboards, clang pots and pans around, remove all objects from the utensil drawer and chuck the lot down the basement stairs.  He likes anything small that he probably shouldn’t have, with lids or covers that he can open and close repeatedly. He likes contact cases. Lipsticks. Cell phones. Fingernail clippers. He’s also taken a liking to looking through photo albums and pointing out all the people that he recognizes. Mama, dada, and doggie are his favorites. He recognizes other people in pictures, but hasn’t learned to say their names yet. As for speaking, he is a very chattery guy. His favorite words of all time are mama, dada, baba (blankey), NO, and MORE. It’s amazing how much he can get across with just those few simple words!!! I made a list last night of all the words he knows how to say, and he’s up to about 40. Among the most surprising that he’s uttering these days are “ma-moe-r” (lawnmower), “taa” (tongs), “sey-co” (scarecrow) and “mel-mo” (Elmo). [ELMO??!!! Um, hi. Ryan does not watch much of any TV, and has NEVER seen Sesame Street. We do not own a single object with Elmo on it. The only, ONLY time he may have heard the name Elmo and seen the wacky red doll was at this ‘movin’ and groovin’ music class that we attended, where the teacher would dump out a giant bag of stuffed animals for the kids to play with…and somewhere in there were a few Elmos.] ‘Course these more complex words do not come out clear as a bell, but I know what he means when he says them, and that’s what matters, huh little bud?

Anyway…he’s obsessed with turning on and off light switches, and pressing any buttons he can reach. He’s turned the dishwasher on a number of times by himself, and has mastered turning on/off his own radio/CD player. He’s still ultra-attached to his blankeys. Thankfully we have three of them and he’s not picky. I only allow him to have one out at a time. He drags them all over the house and looks for them, calling out the word “baba” if they are not in his sight.

Ryan loves it when dad gets home from work, or if I announce that someone’s coming to visit. He runs to the door and presses his face to the glass and giggles as the person walks toward him. He loves playing outside too. Trips to the park are a favorite. He still loves the swings, but has also grown to appreciate the fun in slides, teeter-totters, and climbing structures. When outside, he still prefers exploring the neighbors’ yards/sidewalks/stairs/, but will play an endless game of opening and closing the gate to our fence.

Ryan adores goofing around with and teasing Leila (yes, she’s still around. I should do an update on that). He likes to throw her balls and toys around, and laughs when she runs to fetch them. Leila continues to receive one extra meal equivalent per day, as donated by Ryan. He now knows to wait till I’m not looking to hand over food to Leila. He gives himself away though with that adorable giggle that he just can’t contain when she’s licking his fingers.

Ryan is most definitely a mama’s boy. He’s taken to grabbing my finger and pulling me wherever he wants me to be at a given moment, while simultaneously saying mamamamamamamamama. Looking at photo albums? He insists I’m right there next to him. Exploring his toy bin? Oh, suddenly mama must be no more than one inch away. Very cute, very endearing. Yet not too clingy because he takes it fine if I get up and walk away…he just comes and finds me within minutes. Ah, it’s good to be loved.

Just a few other cute things he does…

-somersaults
-snuggles on your lap, sucks his thumb, and hugs his blankey during book-reading time
-dances
-loves to ‘help out’ and follow directions (I’m gonna enjoy this one while it lasts!) Will throw things away, set things down, bring things places, if asked. So cute!

Happy one and a half years old to my little boy! You are growing up so, so fast, and dad and I are loving every minute of it!

Some pictures of my big kid, from the past month or so.

Enjoying some time with his GF Sophia…a lovely walk at the Rose Garden

He learned to drink through a straw this month. Mama’s iced chai did the trick…

Ryan, looking so European at this bistro table…

a little gnome drives a car…and gets sad

pulling the wagon, gnome-style