Adler- 16-18 months

I can’t believe Adler is 18 months (almost 19 months now!)! He is getting so big and growing up so fast. I love this age though! At first I thought I would be one of those people that loved the first year the most. Don’t get me wrong holding a newborn is amazing and I love watching all the milestones of the first year, but the interaction you get at this age and how he enjoys all the activities we do is awesome. 

We were behind on doctors appointments because of the move so at his 18 month apt. the poor boy and to get some extra shots. He’s not a fan of the doctor…but I can’t blame him! 

-His 18 month stats: He is 33 1/2 inches long (84th percentile) and he only weighs 22.4 lbs (10th percentile). This always surprises me because he eats non-stop! 

16/17 months:

-He started repeating words back to us but usually only I understand what he’s saying haha.

-He still LOVES books.

-He has started to get the concept of fake eating things… We usually eat his belly button and then he will pretend to eat it as well along with fake fruit from books. I think this is so funny.

-He knows lots of animal noises, like a duck and elephant. His pig noise is so funny!

-He is a loving boy and tries to give hugs to little kids but we are still working on being soft.

-He understands what we are saying to him and usually listens to us.

-He walks on his tip toes and it is adorable he usually does this when he is hiding. Then he jumps out and says “boo!”

-He loves to get a laugh! If you laugh at something he does he will keep doing it just to make you laugh more!

-He LOVES trains, cars and trucks! 

-Says “Thank You” and “I love you.”

-He sticks his pointer finger up and says Ah-ha! (thanks aunt Melissa for teaching him that!) It’s adorable!

18 months:

-He is talking more and it’s becoming clearer. He has started to put words together but only sometimes and it’s still not the clearest. 

-He will respond to us when we ask him yes or no questions. He says yes more often the no. 

-When something is wrong he says “uh-oh!” It’s so cute! He also says “more.” Sometimes in sign language and sometimes he actually says it. 

-We got him a forward facing carseat. I know he isn’t 2 yet but his legs were getting too long to face backwards anymore and he is heavy enough. He loves it and we call it his big boy chair and he gets really excited to go in the car. He loves looking out the window and seeing all the cars and trucks as we are driving.

This is his old carseat but this was taken after we bought his new one! I love that he's holding his balloon while he sleeps.

-We started going to a music class and I think he loves it. We sing songs and play with instruments. He really likes playing with the instruments. At first he didn’t really get it but now he has caught on. It’s cute when we are at home and he will start doing the movements of one of the songs. Also at the end of each activity the teacher will sing the first note of a scale to get the kids ready to start something new. Adler will sometimes sing this note with her and it is so cute! I hope Adler is musically gifted!

-He started nursery at church and he loves it! He doesn’t even care when we leave him! Part of me is happy that he is independent and loves playing and learning but the other part wishes he would miss me just a little, haha.

-We have been doing a ton of October activities (hopefully a blog post will be coming soon) and one of the first ones we went to had a petting zoo. Adler loves animals! He liked the pigs and goats the best. The goats were outside of their cages and the owner said you could feed them leaves and Adler loved that. He was a little iffy on petting them though. 

-When we whisper to him he will respond with a whisper! He also can use his quiet voice which is a whisper but usually only for one word then it’s back to his loud voice.

-He copies a lot, especially Dad! lately he has been copying how Dad whistles for Maggie and how Dad blows his nose.

-He is starting to get puzzles and his favorite is one with animals.

-He is so close to doing a somersault. He just needs a little push to get all the way over.   

-We have some “I Spy” books and he is good at finding pictures of things we ask him to find.

Adler has a lot of energy! Dane says that’s how boys are! I love Adler and all his energy and I can’t wait to continue to watch him grow and learn. 

One of my favorite pictures!

We met Susan from Freshly Picked! She is amazing!

Playing with daddy!

His selfie game is strong!

Walking Maggie!

I love when he reads on his stomach!

First time at Benihanas

One night it was cold enough to wear this jacket. We are still waiting for it to be cold enough again to wear it more!

His uh-oh face! These are just one pair of his Halloween pjs...I couldn't decide so he has 3 pairs!

Blog post about Cox's Farm coming soon! I have so many pictures!

Adler whistling for Maggie...watch a cute video on my Instagram 

From our train ride adventure!

We love October!

Favorite Products So Far Part 2: 3-6 months

It’s so amazing how fast you need to buy new things for your little one! I did a post about my favorite products for 1-3 months and you can read that here.

These products are my favorite for 3-6 months (and I’m sure I will use them for much longer). I love reading about products that other moms love and use so I thought I would share mine with you.

Aiden and Anais Burpy Bibs: 

As you all know Adler spits up a lot! I love these because you can use them over your shoulder or snap it around your child’s neck. It is oversized so it catches a lot of the spit up and drool and they have cute patterns. Adler also hates having his mouth wipes so the fact that these are super soft make it a lot better.

Teething toys:

Adler has been teething for what feels like forever! These toys are a must for my diaper bag. The Sofie giraffe is a classic and it really lives up to the hype. It is easy for his to hold and it has so many parts for him to chew on. 

We also love this ring. It is easy to hold and he can relieve his gums by chewing on the beads.

Bumbo:

This is great for helping Adler learn to sit up. It is also a great sub highchair while I try to figure out which highchair I want. I love that I can take it anywhere and just sit Adler in it while I cook and organize my house.

Gap and Carter’s clothing:

When I found out I was having a boy I knew it was going to be harder to find cute clothes. It has made me more creative when dressing Adler as well. Gap hast he cutest boy clothes. The majority of Adler’s wardrobe is from gap. I really love their jeans/pants and how they fit Adler. 

Carter’s has cute clothes as well and they are cheaper! Their onesies are my favorite because they are long and skinny just like Adler. They are perfect and comfortable and Adler lives in them!

All clothes from gap!

Cater's Onesie

Freshly Picked Moccs:

Everybody has heard about these moccs and they live up to the hype. Adler kicks his feet all the time and they stay on his little feet. The owner of the shop does a great job providing different patterns and colors to fit in with the current trends of the season. They are a little expensive but I wait for sales and then I buy them! The owner also does giveaways every week. Hopefully one day I will win a giveaway and be able to own a lot!

Boppy pillow:

This item was something that I was planning on buying but never got around to it because I felt like I didn’t need it once Adler was born. Around 4 months I decided I needed one because my cousin told me how it’s better to help them sit when they don’t totally get the hang of the Bumbo.  It will also be great for when I nurse my next child.

Costco Wipes and Pampers diapers:

I am in love with Costco wipes! They are thick and oversized which makes wiping so much easier. They don’t leave any film behind and I use them for everything. 

I also love Pampers diapers but I am not opposed to Huggies! The best advice I got on diapers was to go one size bigger than the size they actually fit in and synch it tight! This has prevented a lot of blow outs and leaks. Best advice ever!

Formula Separator:

Before I had kids I always watched my cousin use this and I thought it was the best thing! We bought one of these and it was totally worth it! Everything you buy for a child needs to make things easier and faster and this product does that. When Adler is crying for a bottle I am glad I can quickly get his bottle ready. I also heard someone say that they are good for little snacks when the kids get older.

Things for Next Pregnancy:

I also have a list of things I want for my next pregnancy. A lot of these things I thought I didn’t need and could get by without but after going through one pregnancy I think next time around I will definitely invest in these items.

Sleep Pillow:

When I entered my 3rd trimester I fully intended to buy a body pillow to sleep with. I started putting two normal pillows around my body which worked pretty well so I ended up not buying one.

This is the one I want: pillow

WHY I WILL BUY ONE: I am going to buy one for next pregnancy because even though my makeshift body pillow worked it took up a ton of space. I know I will get my money’s worth for the pillow and I’m sure they are very comfy! 

MATERNITY CLOTHES:

Most of the blogs I read said to just buy normal clothes but just in the next size up. I disagree with this. I was lucky that besides pants I could wear most of my normal tops through most of my pregnancy. I didn’t want to buy a lot of maternity clothes because I didn’t want to spend money on clothes I would never wear again (until next pregnancy). But I regret this. 

The best maternity jeans: H&M

WHY I WILL BUY THEM: Like I said I made it pretty far in my normal clothes so I was feeling good about not buying maternity clothes. Buy by the end of my pregnancy I didn’t want to stretch out my normal clothes. I bought a few maternity tops and thought they would be enough until I gave birth. I was wrong. My number one reason for wanting to buy more maternity clothes next time is to look cute and feel good about how I look during the last weeks of pregnancy. The last weeks of pregnancy you feel really big but for the most part you are still out and about. I had 4 tops that I worn on repeat and I feel like I would have felt better about how I looked if I had cute clothes to wear. My favorite places to get maternity jeans is H&M and they also have cute tops for a good price so you don’t feel guilty spending a lot of money. Gap also has cute maternity clothes. 

Maternity Pictures and Pictures in hospital:

Pictures are a great way to document this amazing time in your life.

WHY I WILL PROBABLY TAKE THEM NEXT TIME: Even though I took my own pictures having it done professionally can really capture the emotions and joy you are feeling. Having pictures taken in the hospital can also let you and your husband focus on your new baby and not worry about trying to get lots of pictures to remember the moment. I am not 100% sure I will do these but I definitely will think hard about it.

Newborn pictures:

I wanted to take these when Adler was born but I couldn’t fully commit. I personally don’t like all of the props and backgrounds they use for newborn pictures and just wanted to the pictures to just be of my new little baby and Dane and I.

WHY I WILL PROBABLY TAKE THEM NEXT TIME: I have seen some pictures I like so if I can find a photographer that will take the pictures I want I will for sure do it. I will also schedule it before I give birth because after you are so focused on your baby it’s hard to try to set up an appointment.