18 Months Old

Another month has passed and Harlow turned 18 months old today. I can't just say that she is 18 months old, really, she is a year and a half. That means in 6 months she'll be 2. And just typing the number 2 freaks me out. She is blowing through days like a baby genius. Every day she has learned something new. Last month, I stated that I hoped we would find a good balance between being clingy and not. I think we have finally gotten there. She still has her moments of only wanting mommy or daddy but she has gotten a lot better. Her little mind works in super speed. Some days I feel like I just can't keep up with her emotions or thoughts. She has so much going on at once and things change by the second for her. As she gets older, her stubborn trait becomes more and more apparent. Changing her mind or distracting her use to be a piece of cake! Lately, its hard, really hard. Once she has it in her mind what she wants or expects, watch out! Like every month, her vocabulary is exploding. And the best part is that she is starting to make more of her own sentences. This morning while she was sitting next to me in her highchair, she was tapping me with her foot and she looked over at me and said, "I kicking mommy, haha!" She has learned so many new words this month, and not only that, she has taken those new words and started using them in sentences or commands or questions. At her 18 month check up today, her Dr said that on average a baby her age has the use of about 20 words or commands. 20??? Harlow has about 200! Maybe talking to her all the time has paid off! Though, I have realized that I need to be more careful in how I say words and what I say. She was throwing a fit one morning and I said, "Geeze baby!" and she repeated it right back at me, with the same tone of voice. As well as one afternoon when Buddha was barking. I said, "stop it Buddha" and she immediately repeated it.

At Harlow's check up today, we also learned that she finally hit the 20 lb. mark! Hooray! I thought we'd never get there! She is 30 and 3/4 inches tall and 20 lb. 3 oz. And she is back on the charts. She is in the 5 percentile. Barely there but I'll take it!

Lately, my favorite part of the day has been right before Harlow goes to bed. Each night she has her milk and we sit in the rocking chair relaxing or reading a book before we go to bed. Then it is lights out and we sit for a few minutes longer. During this time, Harlow will whisper things like, "Mia", "Tumble", "Bounce", "Swimming", "Mickey Mouse". I love that you can tell she is remembering and thinking about all the things she did that day and what she really liked. And the very best is when I lay her down in her crib and whisper "Love you, ni night baby" and she whispers "love you" right back.

Her newest words are:
Get out - to get out of her car seat
I like it
Daddy swing - for daddy swing too
Let's go
Paci ni night (for when she wakes up and we put her paci away for the day)
Potty
Big girl potty
Daddy's car
Mommy's car
Shower
Watermelon
Fork
Oh Toodles - from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
Arm in/out - for getting in her clothes, backpack or car seat
Blueberries
So cute
Put back
Away
Cooking
Back pack
Quiet
Sleeping
Hot
Cold
Hi Baby
Excuse me
Where are you?
Snow White
Sleeping Beauty
Little Mermaid
All gone
Let's go baby
Teeth
Bathtub
Lunch
Dinner
Peek-a-boo
I see you
Swimming
Crazy
tomato
Tumble
Tea cup
Scary
Bite
Have
Toys
H, H for Harlow
M, M for mommy
Tip toes
Bounce
Play
Britney - yes, as in Britney Spears
Awesome
Susi - for her swim coach
Chocolate
Pluto
Daisy
Minnie
Goofy
Mickey Mouse
Donald Duck
Diaper
Necklace
Bounce
Spoon
Lunch
Dinner
Snack
Cousin
Washing hands
Welcome
Do you hear it?

Whew! I don't know how much longer I'll be able to keep track of all of her new words. The quantity gets bigger each month and I feel like I'm always pulling out my phone and adding new ones to the list. She can repeat anything you ask her to but these words are words that she uses on her own and associates things with. It's pretty neat to see her progress. Maybe I'll start to write down the funny things she says instead or her newest sentences.

She is still obsessed with princesses and I'm 99% sure that she is going to be Snow White for Halloween. She loves to dance to any beat you give her and loves to ham it up in front of our full length mirror. She is also obsessed with bouncing on the bed or couch and has fully mastered the Seat Drop. She actually gets some air too before she lands. At tumble, she held on to the uneven bars all by herself. She can climb our stairs (to my dismay) and insists on doing so on her own every time we go upstairs. She has a pack of alphabet magnets and when you ask her to find the H, she always comes back with the right one. As well as the M, though sometimes it's the W, but hey that's confusing even for me!

look out 19 months, ready or not, here she comes!


18 Month Old Photo Shoot