15 Month Update

Besides being Valentine's Day, today is Jack's 15-month birthday. We went to the doctor this past Thursday for his wellness visit, so we have the updated stats:

Height: 31 inches
Weight: 22 lbs., 2 oz.
Head Circumference: 18.5 inches

It's kind of interesting seeing how his growth rate has slowed down quite a bit now that he is over a year old.  His weight actually decreased a few ounces in the past 3 months.

Jack was entertained in the waiting room by his all time favorite item, a truck. We spend a lot of time watching these around the neighborhood and chasing them down the street. He also loves playing with them around the house. Such a boy!

While waiting for the doctor, Jack made sure to explore every nook and cranny of the room. He opened every draw, pushed around every stool and chair, and played with all of the toys and books. Doctor visits are much different than the infant days.

Self-feeding is a big focus in our house right now, and it's great to be done with jarred baby food (besides puree fruit and veggie packs). As I mentioned in my last blog, Jack is a ridiculously picky eater. Yesterday I gave him chicken, and he put it in his mouth and immediately spit it out. I've tried chicken nuggets both baked and fried, rotisserie chicken, grilled chicken...it doesn't matter, he won't eat it. Really any meat is rejected. He has also liked eggs in the past, but he refuses to put them in his mouth now.

So, typical meals are:

Breakfast- Waffles along with oatmeal with yogurt and apple sauce, and a few bites of banana. He eats surprisingly large breakfasts.

Lunch is normally grilled cheese, a fruit and veggie pack, and the rest of the earlier banana or apple slices.

Dinner is usually whatever we can get him to eat of what we are eating, yogurt, and apple slices and/or a fruit and veggie pack.

I'm hoping through continually introducing new things, and sneaking things like meat and veggies into the things he likes, we can broaden his food experience. Jonathan and I love food, so you would think Jack would too. Someday...

Jack has also always lacked interest in sippy cups. A few times here or there he would take a few sips, but he usually just slams them on the ground until the liquid comes out, and then he rubs the liquid all over the floor. The pediatrician said some kids just never want to do the sippy cup thing, and we should just work with him on using a normal cup. My mother-in-law, Ann, said the same thing, so we are now just working with him on using a cup. We started off giving him his cup in the bath tub so he could practice. We would fill it up with fresh water, and he actually did really well immediately. Now I've started introducing it at meals with water so that the mess doesn't matter. He likes it a lot, and he drinks whenever Jonathan or I drink at meal time.

Jack is a wild man, and I caught a rare glimpse of him just relaxing and munching on some snacks I thought was cute:

As far as current milestones, he learns something new every day it seems.

Words he says include: Izzy, Doggy, Hi, Bye, Car, Ball, and Uh-Oh. Uh-oh was funny for a while, but now he throws stuff down like my phone or other fragile items and says uh-oh. Sometimes he says Mama or Dada, but they're never directed at us.

Body parts he identifies: Head and feet. We're working on tummy.

Skills: He can step up one step and down one step without holding onto something. He usually does hold on, but he has done it by himself as well. He loves to run, and this includes running away from us. Sometimes we let him out of the stroller or off of his trike, and he basically jogs along side of it. He likes to be chased, and he runs away from Izzy holding her ball. He throws over hand, and this usually includes throwing Izzy's ball for her over and over again. I'm sure I'm missing a bunch, but those are the ones that come to mind.

Helping: He will clean up his blocks sometimes, and he likes doing it the most if I sing the clean up song we learned at The Little Gym. He likes to push the button to open and close the garage door. It actually comes in handy when I'm holding him in one arm and groceries in the other. He rides in the big part of the cart at the grocery store, because that's the only way he stays happy the whole time. The other day I was loading groceries in the back of the car, and he handed me bags. I wish I could have gotten a picture, because each time I loaded one and turned back around, he was standing there holding one up for me to grab.

Following requests: He will get his shoes (if they are in sight) and bring them to me when I ask. If Jonathan or I ask for a hug or a kiss, he will come give us one (if he feels like it). If I tell him to give Izzy a hug or a kiss, he will (if she lets him). He knows the main ones like, "come here," "not for Jack," "throw the ball," etc.

Fine motor skills: He picks up small pieces of things on the ground, which isn't my favorite but it's good he can do it. He has good hand eye coordination for feeding himself, giving high five, putting a straw into the lid of a drink the right way. He loves to build and tear down blocks. He can stack three blocks. He has tried to do four, but it tips over, because he doesn't have them lined up quite well enough.

I just wanted to share this picture, because I thought it was funny. Each morning Jack comes out and greets Izzy with a hug and/or kiss. He tried to kiss her on the cheek this morning, but she tries to ward him off by kissing him back. So sweet :)

I had to share this picture, because it made me laugh when I walked in and saw them. First off, I was impressed Jack could even sit in a chair by himself, but the like father, like son nature of this was hilarious to me.

Thanks for catching up with us, and I'll leave you with a picture of Jack enjoying a California winter day...

A Much Needed Update

I'm finally getting around to a much needed blog update. I've been a little bit lazy about taking pictures and videos in general, so I need to get back on track.

The only major update with us is that we have moved yet again. We can't seem to stay in any residence for over a year, and this year is no different. We still live in Irvine, but we needed to find a new place since the landlord in our previous place had to move in herself due to financial issues. It was a mildly stressful month getting everything packed up while also leaving the place set up enough to keep Jack comfortable and relaxed. We didn't even touch his bedroom until the evening before the move, and it was the first thing we put back together once we got into our new place. His new room pretty much looks identical to his old room, so he didn't even skip a beat in his great sleeping habits when we moved.

Jack actually got a lot of good play time during the move. He loved playing in the boxes, and he tried to pull things out of boxes as quickly as I put them in.
We put our mattress in the dining area the night before the move, and Jack LOVED it. He would climb up onto the futon and swan dive onto the mattress.

One of the major benefits to our new place compared to our last place is that we now have a large porch. Our old place didn't have any outdoor space, so we couldn't grill or relax outside. That's a huge drawback when you live in Southern California. Jack likes to go out, walk around, and chase Izzy.

Jack continues to be his crazy, energetic self. He has always been fun, but play time gets better every day. He's so much more interactive and participates really well. He loves stacking blocks, driving his dump truck around, playing "where's Jack" behind the curtain/couch/divider walls, and reading lots and lots of books. I was at Target the other day, and found these maracas in the $1 section. He loves to shake them and then throw them down as well as dance when we shake them.

For Christmas Jack got a 3-in-1 Kettler Trike. Whenever we're in the garage, he points at it and let's us know he wants a ride. Right now we push and steer it, but around 2 years old you take the pusher off of it, and he rides it on his own. He currently rides it for about 5-10 minutes and then wants to get off and push it himself. We end up taking 1/4 to 1/2 mile walks with him pushing it pretty much the whole way.

Jack is becoming more independent in feeding himself these days, so we decided to be real adults and finally get a kitchen table. We have pretty much always eaten in front of the tv, but we want to teach Jack good habits and social interactions while eating meals, so it was time to make a change.

Since getting the table over the weekend, his self-feeding skills have made huge strides. This morning he ate cinnamon waffles on his own. He also practiced using his spoon to eat some oatmeal and yogurt. For lunch he ate a grilled cheese sandwich. That makes for a happy mom since all he has wanted to eat recently is fruit and veggie puree packs and yogurt. He's very particular about what he wants to eat and when, so we're just trying to stay really consistent and continue to make attempts at Jack trying new things.

The other night as I was cooking dinner, I served things onto his tray for him to try. He ended up eating carne asada, butternut squash, avacado, and tomatoes. I know a good eater is in him somewhere.

Jack does love his snacks. I think part of his not wanting to sit and eat a meal is that he wants to go, go, go. He just likes to snack while on the move for the most part. I love watching him walk around with his little snack trap munching away. His molars are coming in now, so I'll start putting a little bit more variety in there once I can be confident he can chew well enough not to choke while running around.

He also loves snacking on apple slices with his dad.

And, of course, french fries. Who doesn't like french fries?! If you are from Chicago, you know about Portillos. It is the best hot dog place in Chicago, and my mom told me they opened one in California. I have no idea why there is only one outside of the Chicago area, but I couldn't be more excited that it is 20 minutes from where we live. Jack got to have his first Portillos experience.

Jack has his 15-month doctor appointment next week (yet to be scheduled, but it will happen). I'm going to try to get some more pictures of Jack being Jack this week to post with his updated growth stats.

Thanks for catching up with us!!