Ezra's 18 Month Recap

Has it really been six months since I did Ezra's one year update?! He has grown and changed so much since then makes it hard to believe it's only been six short months! Nevertheless, he is still my darling little cuddlebug and just as cute and sweet as ever. :)

He has covered quite a few milestones since the last update, and this will be quite a long detailed entry to try and capture as much as I can remember.

Let's start with the stats from the doctor's office for both his 15 and 18 month appointments:

15 Months (appt was on Dec 16, so closer to 16 mos old)
Weight: 26lbs 1oz - that puts him in the 50-75%. (Gained 3lbs from August)
Height: 34in - off the chart! (Grew 2.25in)
Head: 18.5 inches

18 Months
Weight: 27lbs, 10oz (up 1 lb 9 oz from Dec) which puts him in the 75%.
Height: 33in (yes, it looks like he shrank an inch, but the 15mo measurement was probably inaccurate) - that puts him in the 75%!
Head: 19 inches - again in the 75%.

He has been very comfortably wearing 18mos sized clothing since close to his first birthday, and he just moved out of regular size 5 shoes into Converse size 6. I don't think it will be long before I move him into 24mos/2T clothes!

Ok, let's hit up the milestones, shall we?

• Ezra walks like a champ. When motivated he can move quite quickly! Falling flat on his face is no deterrent if it means something like the opportunity to climb the stairs! He has recently discovered the fun in pulling along toys on wheels behind him. He is also getting very good at walking backwards. He isn't running quite yet, but I'm sure it won't be long before he has that mastered too!
• Still holding steady at 4 teeth. Two top front and two bottom front. Those first two that came in were the top pair, and they made their grand entrance in September.





First teeth!



• He self-weaned from breast feeding in October at 14 mos old. We were down to one to two feedings a day and for a few days he simply refused to nurse. So I took that to mean he was done. For a few weeks to follow, he would occasionally try to lift my shirt looking to nurse (usually only in the morning when Brian would bring him into our room which was part of the old routine for him), and I would remind him that he was all done nursing. Sometimes he would get upset and other times he just moved on to something else. Part of me was sad to see nursing him end and to not have recognized those few final nursing sessions as being just that. But at the same time it is refreshing to have my body back to myself after 4 years of pregnancy + nursing.
• He also kicked the bottle habit shortly after weaning. He started refusing bottles at nap time, so I switched him over to a sippy cup, and he was much happier. It has been kind of nice no longer having to worry about having clean bottles available and freeing up cabinet space.
• Within the last month or so Ezra has started making clearer words. And on Feb 18th, he was saying "hi" all day long. Before that, you could sometimes get him to parrot back mama or dada. And at other times, it almost sounded like he was saying things like "here you go" clear as day. I think he is working hard on mimicking sounds and words though. He certainly "says" plenty in his own little babbling language, and often he'll repeat the same series of sounds to you when asked. I just have no idea what he is actually saying! :) He also says "bong" for the bell in a book and "ding dong" for the chimes on a doorbell/house toy.

Videos of Ezra Talking


• He is also signing more things. He signs milk, bath, more, book, waves goodnight/goodbye, and blows kisses. I think there may be a few more, but I can't remember at the moment.
• He is still very much a mama's boy which (most of the time) I think is the most precious thing. He lights up when he sees me, and is often my little shadow. He gets upset when he is forced to stay in the playroom while I am working in the kitchen (much to Caiden's chagrin), and he gives me the biggest hugs when I come back and pick him up. He is also very hesitant to leave my side when we go different places. I have learned that he needs extra time warming up and do my best to keep him close until he starts feeling more comfortable.





Somebody does NOT like Santa Claus!

• Speaking of hugs, he is the cuddliest most snuggly little guy on the planet. I love rocking with him at nap time and bedtime because he is so content to just lay over my shoulder and let me cuddle and kiss him to my heart's content. We often play little games, and I love making him giggle and laugh during these times. I often call him my little cuddle bug.
• He also still enjoys being carried around and seeing what is going on at "big people levels." I think if he had his way, he'd be carried around all day long. :) He also likes to sit on my lap whenever possible. Often I'll just sit on the floor, and he'll bring over toys or books and hang out in my lap. I am making sure to enjoy those opportunities as much as I can!
• We have finally moved into that magical period of coordinated naps. Around Thanksgiving, the stars aligned and we were able to shift his bedtime from 6pm to 8pm. Fortunately he started sleeping in later as well and gets up between 7:30 and 8:30am. This has allowed me to push his nap to the afternoon (usually around 1pm), and he usually naps for 2-3 hours. Caiden also naps in this window, and I adore having a break and time to myself in the afternoons. It appears to be a very healthy sleep schedule for him as he is usually in a pretty good mood for much of the day.
• He has been eating like a champ. I swear these boys are going to blow out our food budget! :) He has oatmeal, fruit and some O's for breakfast. For lunch he has been happy with grilled cheese, banana, more fruit and veggie straws. Some days he enjoys an after nap snack, and dinner usually involves sweet potato plus whatever else we're eating that night. He doesn't appear to have any allergies to any foods either. We haven't been able to be as aggressive about limiting his sugar intake as we were with Caiden. It was pretty easy to hide the sweets from Caiden when he was this age, but now he gets to eat those things more often and Ezra often wants demands some of what Caiden is eating. I still try and limit the sweets, but he does get to enjoy them from time to time.
• Ezra has learned how to throw some wicked temper tantrums. They are almost humorous to watch (at this age anyway!). When he first started throwing them a couple months ago, Brian thought he had hurt himself and wondered what all the commotion was about. He was shocked to learn this was just one of Ezra's soon to be many temper tantrums! His tantrums often take the form of a boo boo lip accompanied by tears and an angry cry. When he really gets going, he'll fold himself in half (if standing) so that his hands and head are also resting on the floor. Sometimes he goes into all out stretched-out-on-the-floor-on-his-belly tantrums. He is generally distracted out of them by either getting focused on something different or (in extreme cases) getting what he wants.
• He absolutely loves climbing the stairs. Boy was he ever furious when he discovered the safety knob we had to install on the stairwell door to prevent him from unsupervised climbs! All I have to do is ask him if he wants to go upstairs and he makes a beeline straight for the stairway! Heaven forbid if something is in his way! LOL!
• He is very particular about closing doors and gates. Whenever he spies one that is open he makes it his personal mission to make sure it is closed right up. 
• He absolutely loves playing with gadgets and electronics. His favorites include remote controls, phones, and cell phones. With the phone, he'll often walk around with it next to his ear. So cute! I have to often keep an eye on my purse or pocket as he'll pluck my phone right out before I know it!
• He has really gotten into books. For nap/bedtime, we must absolutely have his two favorites on hand: The Best Nest and In A People House. He will seek those out as soon as we get into his room. And those are the first things he asks for when he wakes up. In fact, one of his first understandable words/sounds was "bong" for the bell in The Best Nest. From our library downstairs, his top books are Gossie & Gertie, Ollie, Brown Bear Brown Bear, Baby Colors, What Does Baby Say, and You Are My Sunshine. I absolutely love spying him sitting down with a pile of books and looking through each one of them.
• Ezra and Caiden are getting better and better about playing with each other. Sometimes Caiden is a bit rough or not in a sharing mood and in those instances, there are tears from both of them. But when they are happily playing together it is the sweetest thing. I love peeking in on them and just observing them interact with one another. Caiden often calls him "buddy" and often asks for Ezra to keep him company in the playroom. Ezra likes playing with Caiden's toys, and I think as he gets older they're going to have even more fun playing together. Just the other day, I caught Ezra grabbing Caiden's hand and pulling him around the room. It just fills me with such joy to hear them laughing and giggling together. Those are definitely the good days. :)





Playing with Daddy's old toys at Grandma & Grandpa's house






Boys in the bath






Caiden sharing his pear with Ez

• Once or twice a month, I'll leave Ezra with Caiden at Wednesday's Drop 'n' Play at the park district. Initially he is very upset that I am leaving, but about two minutes after I've left, he is a happy camper. It's nice that he gets to socialize with other kids (while having his big brother around), and I get a little break too.
• We've also been working on reinforcing his interest in music. We did a session of Kindermusik (sadly the teacher was not very engaging) and then a session of Tot Rock. The Tot Rock classes were a lot of fun, and he seemed to really enjoy them. They have lots of fun songs and instruments, the teacher was fantastic with all the kids, and Ezra seemed to have lots of fun there. I look forward to taking him to more of those classes soon.
• He's gotten very good about cooperating with picking up toys and putting them away when asked. When he sees Caiden or Brian or me picking up toys or books and putting them away he gets in on the action as well.
• He is definitely at the age and the type of kid who freaks out when a parent changes something about themselves. Brian shaved his mustache and goatee off and Ezra was completely freaked out about it. Brian tried to pick him up right after he shaved and Ezra had a massive freak out. Full on silent shriek followed by a very loud and hard cry. I came upstairs shortly after and he totally clung to my legs and hid behind me whenever Brian got close. It took a few hours, but he finally got used to seeing Brian's new look and understood he was the same person.
• Overall, he's been pretty healthy. He's had a handful of colds with runny noses and a couple of rough nights' sleep, but in general nothing major. Fingers crossed that he finishes out the winter in the same manner!
• He had his first and second haircuts over the last six months. The first was in October at the same salon where Caiden had his first cut. He did pretty well and only got upset at the very end. I opted to have a less dramatic change and decided to keep his hair on the long side. He had his second cut in January and handled it like a champ!

Pre-haircut in October

During his first haircut

Goodness this has turned into a mighty long entry! Then again, there was six months worth of recapping to do, and at his age there is a lot of material to cover!! I tried to capture as much as I could without turning this into a novel. I hope I got it all! :) Let me leave you with one of my favorite videos and a cute picture of Ezra all dressed up for the snow.

Video of Ezra in the Bath

Our little man in the snow