Gerrit: 15 Months

Well, this is going up a little late, but photos at 15 months are mostly blurs haha. I finally gave up and just used one that looked good enough.

This was the best photo smile-wise, but the only way I could get him to smile like that was to ask him to sign “happy” haha.

Bear with me… this is covering 3 months, so it’s a long update. I just don’t want to forget anything for when I read this when I’m old(er) and have an even worse memory. Plus, sorry, I’m long-winded!

Age: 15 months on 27 January 2016
Weight: 24.27 lbs
Height: 31-1/2 inches
Teeth: 6
Clothing Size: 18 months
Diaper Size: size 4
Milestones: more signing (more & please), he makes so many animal sounds (cat, bear/lion/tiger, fish, snake, bunny, octopus, horse, cow, sheep, goat, bug, duck, elephant, monkey) plus sounds for an airplane & helicopter, standing independently from being seated (without using furniture), walking backwards, recognizing colors, can stack items, can scribble, learning to use his spoon & fork, can take his clothes off… especially socks (all the time)

Sleeping: No major improvements. We officially dropped from 2 naps to 1 nap around 14 months. I really wanted to push 2 naps longer, but it was such a struggle, and it wasn’t benefiting anyone. I think the hardest part of dropping from 2 naps to 1 was Gerrit’s body getting used to only one nap. When I made the conscious decision to drop to one nap, I think his body was used to sleeping for fewer hours. So the transition was a little tough: he was overtired a lot, which probably contributed to night wakings…

From 12 to 15 months, we never had fewer than 3 night wakings in a night. It was far more common to have 6 or more night wakings, actually! January was particularly rough; I’m blaming it on teething and Wonder Week #9. I have to wonder, as frustrating as it is for me to deal with Gerrit’s frequent waking, how frustrating is it for him? I tried giving pain reliever at night when I realized his 1 year molars were coming in, but it didn’t improve his sleep, so I figured the teeth couldn’t be bothering him too much. And I hate the idea of regularly medicating him for no reason.

On average, Gerrit got mostly 10-11 hours of sleep a night at 12 months, but dropped to 9-10 hours a night at 13 & 14 months. Total sleep was at about 12-13 hours a day in November & December, but it dropped to 11-12 hours a day in January. Of course, I worry that he doesn’t get enough of sleep, but the older Gerrit gets, the more I realize that he just doesn’t need as much sleep as the average baby or toddler.

^ This kid took a 4 hour nap one day! It was crazy, and I feel like it will never happen again! It may have been a growth spurt.

And yes, as you probably guessed, I’m still tracking Gerrit’s sleep. It’s mostly habit now, but I love knowing all about Gerrit’s sleep patterns. I feel like I don’t have a good memory of his sleep because I haven’t gotten a solid night of sleep in so long. So I like to track it so I can look back and see changes. Call me crazy… you won’t be the first! 🙂

Eating: Around 14 months, Gerrit turned a corner with solids. He started eating more, eating more variety, and eating more consistently. I was thrilled! I had to get used to spending a lot more time at the table. Usually Gerrit would move his food around, maybe take a few nibbles, then sign “all done.” Now we are sometimes at the table for half an hour!

Gerrit used to only eat Cheerios and some strawberries at breakfast. Now he’ll eat pancakes, scrambled eggs with salsa, and even oatmeal! He still loves strawberries, but he’ll also eat blueberries, raspberries (he loves ’em!), bananas, oranges, grapefruit, and pomelo. I’m not a big fan of citrus fruits, but Gerrit loves sharing them with his Dada. 🙂

Gerrit is still a big fan of chicken, but he eats almost everything I make now. His favorite vegetables are broccoli and peas. He still loves spaghetti & meatballs. He loves cheddar cheese! If I’m cooking something that has shredded cheddar cheese as an ingredient, I end up giving quite a few of the shreds to Gerrit while I’m cooking, haha. It keeps him happy while I cook, and I figure there are much worse things he could be snacking on. And speaking of snacks, this kid loves Goldfish crackers. He wants them anytime he sees them in the cupboard!

Gerrit still nurses a lot though. Mostly comfort nursing, but he always nurses first thing in the morning, before his nap, right after his nap, and before bedtime. Some days he nurses more often than other days, but the bottom line is that I don’t see him weaning anytime soon. And, as you can see below, he always wants to have Lamby with him when he nurses!
He still nurses every 2-3 hours at night, if not more often. Sometimes I feel really concerned about how often he nurses. And then I read something or talk to someone that makes me realize how very normal Gerrit is! And I feel like I’m really doing a good thing by not forcing him to wean.

Mommy Update: Generally, I’m good. I’m tired most mornings, but if it was a particularly rough night, I nap when Gerrit does. I really love this age! Gerrit is a lot of fun, he’s learning new things constantly, and he’s just so cute.

He’s also starting to test us: throwing things, scratching, crying when he doesn’t get his way. It’s the switch from baby sweetness to toddler tyranny! I really don’t like it… I love being fun and silly, and I don’t like switching gears to being stern and being the disciplinarian. But I feel like that really is parenthood, isn’t it? Finding that balance between being a playmate to your child and teaching them what is right and wrong.

I have to say, with Gerrit’s longer single nap, I’ve gotten more time to myself at that time of day! That’s when I watch “my” shows (ones Andrew really doesn’t want to watch haha!), scrapbook, crochet, catch up on emails… it’s a great time for me to just relax and do things that make me happy. I do that after Gerrit goes to bed too, but nap time is truly Nicole Time. Except I don’t drink any wine at nap time. 😛

Best Moments: I think the biggest one was Christmas. Gerrit’s first Christmas was such a crazy blur… this year was much better! We did a little lifestyle photo shoot with my sister Becki, which was fun! I loved getting some photos done of just the two of us, and it was just a nice way to remember a less stressful Christmas.

I don’t care how tired we look… we had a happy little Christmas! That little guy brings so much joy to us, it makes sleepless nights a little more worth it.

We also traveled up to Wisconsin for Christmas with my family. I was very excited about this! I hadn’t spent Christmas with my family since 2010, and I was looking forward to getting all the kidlets together.

I wish I had a super cute picture of all of the cousins playing together, but I’m sure you all know that that is just not possible. So here’s one with 4 of the 5 cousins, haha. And this is the best one I had on my camera of the 5 of them by the Christmas tree:

Haha… no smiles…but most of them are looking at the camera, and Gerrit is getting a smooch from Braxton. Cute!

At the end of January, my mom came to spend some time with us, and we loved having her!

Gerrit & I had so much fun with her, and it was so helpful to have an extra pair of hands. Seriously, how does one kid need 3 adults?! Anyway, we had so much fun, and Andrew & I even got an afternoon sushi date out of it! Now I just need to convince my mom to move in… 🙂

Besides the big moments, it has been so much fun seeing Gerrit learn and do new things. I know I’m biased, but I’m always thinking, My kid is so smart! But whenever he tries to say something new, or he signs something new, or I just see him do something like helping me unload the dishwasher or clean up the floor with a rag… I’m just so impressed and proud of him.

Likes & Dislikes: Gerrit likes keeping busy. All the time. His favorite thing to do is still reading books. He seriously loves his books. And we read the same books all the time… no matter how many we have, he seems to zero in on 2 or 3 per day. Some of his favorites:
Planes Go (and the rest in the series by Steve Light)

Down by the Station

If Animals Kissed Goodnight

Where is Baby’s Belly Button?

Mommy! Mommy!

Curious George Rides

Dear Zoo

Guess How Much I Love You

There are so many more that he really enjoys, but I could write a whole post just on that! We have so many books that I’ve divided them into 4 rotation groups just to keep Gerrit from getting overwhelmed by all of them. And to keep Andrew and I sane! My limit is reading the same book 3 times in a row. Then I make Gerrit find a new one. Andrew is not that patient, haha!

Gerrit also has really started enjoying “cooking.” He has some plastic pots and pans, I have given him some plastic containers (i.e. garbage), and he cooks his pompons (we call them puff balls). And he loves helping me cook too. I bought a ring sling, hoping it would help me at dinner time… and he loves it! When I put it on, he starts giggling, because he’s excited to be a part of the action in the kitchen.

I let him stir some things on the stove, and I think he just loves watching me measure things and tell him everything I’m doing. I so look forward to when he can actually help me in the kitchen. I think it will be a great bonding experience for both of us.

Gerrit loves animals! I don’t even know what his favorite would be… monkeys, elephants, tigers… he likes so many! And cats. He loves meowing like a cat, he loves any books with cats or kittens, and he loves YouTube videos of cats. I think if his love of cats continues, we’ll have to consider getting him one as a pet in a couple of years. 🙂

Gerrit also has started really enjoying being tossed around by Andrew. Andrew will toss him in the air, toss him on the bed, flip him on the couch… Gerrit loves it! He likes being silly and crawling around on us, but he often gets too wound up and starts scratching us or will bite. I can’t wait til he gets over that, because I am sick of looking like I got in a fight with a cat.

Gerrit still likes bath time, and it can be hard to get him out of the tub. He will stay in there playing until his teeth are chattering! I’ve gotten him some cups that he can stack and pour, and he loves them. Between those and his books that change color in water, he is a happy kid in the bath.

And of course, Gerrit loves Lamby. He has started always wanting Lamby while he nurses. If he asks to nurse and doesn’t have Lamby, he’ll stop and ask for “Mam” (Lamb), and then I’m expected to go help him find Lamby. He always sleeps with Lamby. We haven’t gotten to the point where he needs to take Lamby with him when we leave the house, and I’m hoping we can avoid it! Heaven forbid we would lose that lamb.

Gerrit does not dislike sleep as much as he used to! I can actually say, “Are you ready for a nap?” and he will look for Lamby and willingly go to his room. I will close the blinds, and he closes the door. I think part of the reason he’s okay with going to sleep is because he loves nursing so much, and he always nurses to sleep.

Gerrit dislikes waiting. If he is done with dinner before us, he gets very upset about being made to wait. He hates waiting to nurse, and gets really frustrated and angry with me if I’m not ready to nurse when he is.

Gerrit still dislikes me cooking or doing anything in the kitchen. It’s really frustrating having him whine and cry and push me away from the cutting board or the stove. Dinner often happens later than I want because Gerrit slows me down. Either I’m trying to cook with him in the ring sling, or I’m taking frequent breaks to read him a book or try to get him involved in an activity. Thankfully, Andrew has been pretty good about keeping him entertained while I cook, except for when he’s trying to study for his tech test.

Memorable Events: Everything Christmas! Picking out a tree with Gerrit, decorating that tree with Gerrit, opening presents… It was all a new experience for him, and it was fun seeing him have fun with it all.

I wish this one wasn’t blurry. 😦 But it’s really cute anyway!

I have all these traditions that I want to do with him, and I’m excited for when he’s old enough to be involved in them and enjoy them.

One tradition is the stockings. When I was growing up, the stockings got filled on Christmas Eve by Santa. And I’m continuing that tradition with Gerrit. With all the little gifts from Santa, we also got a new ornament for the tree. Here’s Gerrit getting his first ornament for the tree:

A little stuffed penguin ornament! He loved it, and did not want to leave it hanging on the tree, haha.

Gerrit also went sledding for the first time while we were up in Wisconsin. A few of us drove to the big hill in town that I went sledding on as a kid. I can’t remember the last time I went sledding down that hill, but it was so fun!

Look at my little snow bunny! Haha, the poor kid could barely walk in that get-up. But isn’t he adorable? I’m so glad my sister had stuff for Gerrit to borrow so he could go sledding with the big kids. 🙂

Whee! Going down the hill with Dada!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can’t believe I almost didn’t go! I decided to go at the last minute, and I know I would have been so sad to have missed out on this with my boys. We didn’t keep Gerrit outside for very long because it was pretty cold. But I know he had fun too!

Well, that’s it for November through January. It was a fun three months with holidays, family, and some winter fun. This momma is still not getting much sleep, but it’s been wonderful seeing Gerrit continue to grow, learn, and develop into his own little person. He’s such a great kid, and we love him so much!

Happy 15 months, sweet boy! I am so proud of you and love you to the moon and back!