Friday, November 1, 2013

Carter: 17 Months


Carter Man,
You are SEVENTEEN MONTHS old today! Big boy! Now when we ask you "Carter, how big are you?" you will stretch out your arms as wide as they go.  I feel like I do the same thing in my mind when I picture you as a 17-month old.  You are so big! You are proving to us each and every month how much bigger and more independent you are getting.  As tough as you are at times, I'm really loving this age.

You are still 100% mama's little boy.  With the exception of PawPaw, you really don't want to go to or be held by anyone else.  Even dad, which breaks his heart on the rare night that he makes it home in time to put you to bed.  You still love to cuddle and be in my lap and be carried, when possible.  If I weren't pregnant I'm sure I would still be wearing you around in the Moby wrap while we are at home; you just would so much rather be held than be put down.  Granted, you make it hard to do some tasks, but I'm soaking up every single second that you let me hold you because I know those days are soon to be gone.

You are now 100% on a one-nap-a-day schedule.  You pretty much have been for awhile but would occasionally sneak in the morning nap.  Or you would go down so early in the day for your one nap that you would be too tired to make it to bedtime yet too stubborn to give into a second nap.  I like our new schedule a lot because it completely opens up our mornings and gives us a long stretch at home in the afternoons.  Now...this is not to say that you all of a sudden are a great napper.  No sir.  You still will try and be "all done" after an hour or so, but most of the time you will get back in bed for a second hour or so after stirring for awhile.  And you are so good about sleeping a little later in the mornings and playing in your crib after you wake up.  What used to be us being awake at 6:30am has now turned into waking up between 7:30am and 8:30am.  Way to go!

You finally have discovered that you love books (after months of mama's pushing) and now you can almost always be found with a book in your hand.  When we go into your room after you have been sleeping you always run to your bookshelf, grab a book, and then run to your glider so we can sit and read.  So sweet! Your favorites are I Love You Through and Through, Goodnight Moon, and anything by Sandra Boynton or Karen Katz.

Another new favorite thing is watching videos of yourself on our phones.  If we make the mistake of leaving our phones where you can reach them you will bring them to us, grab our hand, and put the phone in our hand signaling us to stop what we are doing and show you videos.  You even know how to "swipe" the screen to switch between videos.  On that same note we have started letting you play with the iPad this month.  Although it's incredibly frustrating at times with you not understanding not to touch the screen, you do love playing with the animal sounds app and the tractor app we have downloaded for you.  I have faith that in no time at all you will be working both our phones and the ipad without any help from us.

I can't think of much else that has changed since your 16-month update.  You still love to be outside, so we spend a lot of our afternoons at the park, on wagon rides and playing in the backyard.  Oh, and you have finally discovered the joy that is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse! You will actually sit and watch (almost) an entire episode.  Typically you want to be sitting in our laps while watching it, but you will also watch on your own as long as we let you stand by the TV.  This has saved our mornings many times while I'm trying to get ready to walk out the door and you want to be held.  See also the bathtub, unpacking all of mama's drawers, and riding Cooper.

Carter Man, buddy, hurricane...you are truly the best part of our lives.  I enjoy all the time we get to spend together and simply cannot wait to watch you become a big brother (to two little sisters!) in a few months.  You amaze me everyday with how much you understand, and say and communicate.  I love your laugh, your snuggles and watching you discover new things.  To the moon and back.

17-Month Stats:
Weight: 25ish pounds
Length: 32ish inches
Eating: sippys of milk, combo of baby and table food, and one snack
Bedtime: around 7:30pm
Awake: around 7:30am
Naps: around 12:30 
Diapers: size 5 Huggies
Clothes: 18-months
Shoes: 4.5 wide
Favorites: playing outside, anything with wheels, your paci, books, videos on our phones, Cooper
Dislikes: not being able to get into something, nursery at church, most meat items
Development: running, climbing, communicating
Words: mama, dada, nana, dog, uh oh, night night, what is that, outside, bye bye, hi, hey, hello, deer, duck, who is that

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