I wonder if it's just a coincidence that today was one of the most challenging days ever with Jonah. He is 18 months old today and seems to have stepped right into toddlerhood, with all its wonderful moments and frequent frustrations. Or maybe it's just me reaching the end of my rope during the last couple of days of Matthew's work trip. I have this fantasy of him walking in the door, me handing him the baby and a sippy cup and saying, "See ya! You boys have fun. Mama's going out for a long, long time. Later!"
Even so, I think things are going about as well as can be expected, but, man, I am really ready for Matthew to come home. I need the extra set of hands to play with Jonah while I fix breakfast, too help interpret his grunts and frustrated outbursts, to change a poopy diaper while I feed the cats, to step in and redirect Jonah when he freaks out because I put the toy on the floor instead of wherever he wanted it to be, to let me stay in bed for an extra 30 minutes when Jonah wakes up at the crack of dawn (which he has done every day!).
Everything took longer today. This morning, he only wanted to wear a t-shirt and a hat and refused to let me put pants on him, but wanted to go outside to see the doggies and keeps banging on the door and making doggie noises.
His language skills are exploding. He is trying new words every day, and it is so clear to me that he understands almost everything he hears. He has been really interested in grouping objects into categories. Some mornings, he wants to hold all of his bunnies. Other times, he shows me all of his ducks. Or, he lines up all his little cars and trucks under the kitchen table and shows me what he is done, clearly proud of himself. Today, he lined up all the little plastic links that used to hold dangly toys on his floor gym when he was an infant. He spread them out on the living room floor, looked at me, pointed at them and said "Ah!" obviously very pleased about his work. He has also been "hiding" a lot. Sitting in the lower cupboard in the kitchen, he pulls the door closed a bit, then opens it and says "Hi!" with a big smile. Today, he was hiding behind a pillow over and over.
I remember when he reached 6 months. Around that time, though not on the actual day, Matthew was away on a work trip. I think he was covering the Pennsylvania presidential primary. I couldn't believe that we had made it to 6 months in one piece. It was a lovely day and I was so happy that he had reached that milestone age. Now, here we are a year later. He is walking, running, almost jumping, dancing, singing, talking, signing. It's unbelievable. It's also a little bittersweet. He is growing up. He is just as close to being 2 as he is to 1. I wonder if I will feel this way for all of his half birthdays.
A year ago, I said I thought the first six months passed in the blink of an eye. Well, I blinked again and now he's 18 months old! Last year, we were just thinking about starting solid foods. Today, he eats everything, except when he doesn't, like today when he refused peas and only wanted oatmeal (my oatmeal) for dinner. He is still my baby, though. I stared at his face after he fell asleep tonight. He is so beautiful. He sighed as I put him in his crib and he snuggled down onto his belly. (Oh, we have come so far in some areas!) Yes, he is still my little baby Jo-jo. Despite the many times I let out long, exasperated sighs today, the night ended peacefully. He put his bath toys away all by himself. He told me when he was all done reading books by waving bye-bye to "Where the Wild Things Are." And, then he turned toward me with a cuddle, asking to nurse, asking for sleep. And, then he fell asleep in my arms, my little baby boy. ~ Nicole
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