Arlo: 3 years old

Having left toddlerhood behind him, here is what our now three year old is up to!

What a fun age.  I feel like a broken record here, but I am constantly feeling like the age he is at is my absolute favorite.  Arlo is growing into such a sweet little boy, and is only more and more fun the older he gets.  He is more independent than I imagined him being at this point.  He wants to do as much as he can for himself, which is helpful now that there is another kiddo in the family.  He has so much concern and compassion for others, and I hope this never changes.  He has always been something of the adventurous sort, but definitely knows his limits and will ask for help when he needs it.  He's a social little guy and it's not uncommon for him to try and chat up other kids and adults when we are out and about.  He's always been my little buddy and my sidekick, but now it feels more like I am hanging out with a friend all day.  I can ask him things like "what should we have for dinner?" and "is there anything special you want to do today?" and he will answer with his requests.  That being said, his requests are usually "waffles or cereal" for dinner and this morning when I asked him what he wanted to do today (it's early January, cold, and pouring rain right now) he responded completely seriously "how about the beach?"  Ha.  He's such a fun little person and I am so proud of the little boy he has become.

Arlo is continuing to thrive on a fully plant-based diet.  We have only very recently started discussing what meat is and kind of planting the seed to help him understand why we eat the way we do.  I know in the coming year he will likely start to question our dietary choices and we are prepared to answer his questions when he does.  We are lucky he is a kid who will eat his veggies, loves beans and grains, and doesn't reject too much of what we offer him.  I think this has a lot to do with the fact that this is how he has eaten his whole life and he just doesn't know any differently.  He still drinks his plant based milk blend (hemp, oat and soy) daily.  He knows he gets a cup in the morning and after dinner and will now go to the fridge during those times and get it himself  - we keep already filled cups on the bottom shelf in the fridge for this purpose.  He's still not big into sweets but has enjoyed a few bites of baked goods on occasion.  Favorite foods at this age are: nuts (ALL kinds, he asks for them daily), baked tofu, green peas, rice, in-shell edamame, pasta, bell pepper strips, veggie pizza, burritos, apples, grapes, berries, and dried fruits.

 

Arlo's bedtime is somewhere between 8 and 9pm, usually falling on the earlier side of that range.  He's allowed to stay up a bit later on a special occasion, such as for a family movie night or if we have relatives in town.  He is up for the day between 6:30 and 7am, occasionally sleeping in a bit later.  Thankfully, he still takes a mid-afternoon nap, most days.  We are no longer at a point where it's a struggle to get him to stay in his room and lay down and after reading a book or two together he curls up and goes to sleep without issue.  Some days he tells me he isn't tired and I will let him play or read in his room, but the vast majority of those times I check on him 20 minutes later to find out he has climbed into bed, covered himself up, and is snoozing away.  Usually I try and get Oliver to nap around this time so I have some "me time" during the day.  Occasionally I get a 2-3 hour window where both boys are napping and my productivity during these hours is impressive.  Days where no one naps are usually pretty challenging and I find myself drained and wanting to crawl in bed myself by 7pm.  I'm secretly hopeful he's going to be one of those kids who will nap until they are five but that might be wishful thinking. 

Arlo had his three year well-visit with the pediatrician this week and is currently weighing in at 28.5 lbs.  He went from the 10th percentile at his two year checkup to the 16th percentile at his three year visit.  He grew nearly 3 inches from his second birthday and is now up to 36.5 inches tall which is the 28th percentile for his age, exactly the same as last year.

Clothes-wise he is still pretty comfortably fitting into 2T stuff.  Aside from a few pairs of sweatpants that are 3T, and pajamas which are now all 3T, his shirt and pants are still all much of what he wore last winter.  I did have to buy a few new pairs of pants at the beginning of the fall, some size 2 pants that are on the longer side but narrow in the waist to fit his long and lean frame.  Current shoe size is 7-8, and I will mention here that this kid loves all kinds of boots and jumps at any chance he has to wear them.

Arlo is still really, really into books and reading, and if he's playing independently there's a good chance he's sitting in his playroom reading to himself.  He has memorized most of the books he has and while he doesn't know the words verbatim, he will turn through the pages and describe what he knows is going on.  It's pretty amazing and I love that he is still so into books.  For Christmas this year, Arlo received a few games and we are just starting to get into playing them.  Memory matching games are his current favorite and it's a lot of fun to play them together.  He's not so into drawing or coloring right now, given the option he would rather play with play doh or kinetic sand.  Puzzles are also not really his thing but give him wooden blocks to build with or pillows to make a fort and he can entertain himself for a long time.  So, it's kind of obvious he is more of a builder than an artist.  He is also really into tools and fixing things, which comes as no surprise given who his parents are. Still obsessed with the Harbor Freight catalog dad gets in the mail and will pour over it as soon as it arrives.  He loves looking at maps and we just started teaching him the 50 states, he already knows several of them (and when he points to Ohio always says "that's where the Buckeyes play!" ha.)  Imaginative play has taken off even more since his last update.  His toys all have voices and are good at conversing with each other now, and if I walk into the living room and there is a row of pillows lined up I know that I am now standing in "the ocean" and that it won't be long before he excitedly tells me to quickly get on "the bridge" (pillows) or "the boat" (the couch.)

He also enjoys riding his bike outside and is getting better at using his balance bike.  He can get going on the green way by our house and pick his feet up to balance for short distances.  He is very observant, noticing if the tiniest thing has changed in his environment.  The other day I put a different hand towel in the bathroom because all the usuals were in the wash and he immediately asked me why we were using Lucy's towel, which I guess technically it was.  He notices the tiniest noise and always wants to talk about what made it.  He is also very into opposites right now and is enjoying identifying things that are the same or different. 

Arlo loves his little brother like crazy and is happy to help where he can when with Oliver.  The other day I walked downstairs to find that Erik had Oliver laying in his play gym and Arlo was sitting next to him in the bumbo chair (yes he still fits in this, and I'm convinced he probably will until he's five), and Arlo was reading a book to Oliver.  I watched them for a moment and when Oliver started to make a little noise Arlo said "it's okay, I'm right here Ol-vi-der."   He loves to play with other kids at the park and community center, and becomes very concerned if someone is crying or upset.  He seems to gravitate to the older kids, and talks all the time about his cool, older friend Carter, who is five.  One morning a few months ago he played at the park with a six year old boy named Max and told me for weeks and weeks that Max was his best friend.

Overall, he's a pretty easygoing and mindful little guy.  He is still a three year old though and at times it's more obvious than others.  He likes to have his voice heard, most often when Erik and I are trying to have a conversation between ourselves.  He will butt in with a very serious "No!  You stop talking.  I need to talk to mom."  It's actually hard to keep a straight face during these times because his attempt at complete seriousness is so stinking cute.  There are also small meltdowns here and there over little things, fortunately those are not too common.  When he gets worked up over something we tell him he needs to calm down before we can proceed and sometimes this involves going to the calm down corner.  There is technically no "corner" dedicated to this instruction, he will just go pick a spot on the floor and sit there a moment before he comes back and states that he is now calm and feels better.  We don't use time outs and for now the calm down thing seems to be working well to help him work through his moments of overexcitement.

Three busy, exhausting, crazy, fun, trying at times, but so filled with joy years with this kiddo.  Can't wait to see what changes this next year brings for Arlo and our family as a whole!

Arlo: 2 1/2 years old

Somehow, after celebrating Arlo's second birthday just last month (or so it seems) we are already halfway to the next one.  Here is what he is up to at 2 1/2!

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sleeping

Pretty much the same as his two year update - up for the day anywhere between 6 and 7am, napping for around two hours in the afternoon, and bedtime is around 8:30pm or so.  Honestly, 8:30 is on the earlier side of things right now, with the days so much longer it's not uncommon for him to still be awake well after 9pm.  We have grown a little more relaxed with the bedtime routine and just kinda roll with however the night goes and it always works out fine.

The biggest change in the sleeping department is that he is now in his big boy room!  We officially moved him in at the beginning of March and the transition went pretty smoothly.  Bedtimes are easy and from night one he has rarely gotten out of bed on his own.  Nap times have been another story though.  Thankfully now we have reached a place where for the most part, after several books, making sure he has his blankie and Micky Mouse, sound machine is on, shades are down, and his "little light" (night light) is on, he will usually lay down without giving me a hard time and falls asleep quickly.  Most days I sit on the floor by the door for about five minutes and by the time I leave he is typically asleep.  That being said, it took us several months to get to this point, and at one point I resorted to taking him to his crib when he wouldn't stay in bed for his nap.  He, of course, hated that and would cry for his "big boy bed."  I reminded him that going to the crib was a consequence not a punishment and to nap in his new room he needed to stay in bed.  He now understands how it works and while it's not a quick or easy process every day it is so much easier than it was a few months ago.  He has had only a few no-nap days but I try my hardest to make sure that doesn't happen - he still needs his daily nap and honestly, so do I!

eating

Not many changes here either.  One thing I have noticed over the last few months is that he is snacking less and eating more at meals.  He eats everything that we do and is able to feed himself very well at this point.  We bought him a booster seat about a month after his second birthday but honestly rarely use it for meal times.  He often eats breakfast and snacks at the island counter and we put him in his highchair for other meals in the event that things do get messy - the high chair tray is way easier to clean than the rug below the table!

Still drinking his plant-based milks twice a day, periodically he will ask for more and he can pretty much have as much or as little as he wants now.  I am pretty sure at the time of his last update we were still using the Pura Kiki stainless steel bottles with the sippy top so we could warm his milk to room temperature (he still disliked anything that was too cold.)  Now he drinks out of a straw cup or regular sippy and has no problem with cold milk straight from the fridge.  In fact, sometimes he even requests ice in his water!

Arlo is a pretty good eater and will generally eat what we offer him, but certainly there are days/meals when he just doesn't want to eat much of what I have made.  Although, from what I hear about typical toddler food pickness we are pretty lucky that he is so into so many healthy foods - veggies, fruits, beans, nuts, and grains.  He still doesn't like sweets or baked goods, but that being said I did offer him a small taste of my ice cream a couple months back and he looked straight into my eyes and declared "I like it!"  He hasn't asked for it since and we are not in any hurry to introduce junk foods into his diet so for now desserts are grapes, dried fruits, and fruit snacks, and we plan to keep it that way as long as we can.

weight and length

His next pediatrician appointment is not until three years old and we don't own a scale so I don't have a current weight, but we did measure him on his growth ruler and he grew about an inch and a half since he turned two.  He is now just over 35" tall.

wearing

When the warmer weather rolled around I excitedly brought out the tub I had stashed away labeled "2T summer clothes."  Well, the shirts fit perfectly but the shorts were all too big in the waist.  I didn't take into account that last year Arlo was still in cloth diapers and this year he is in undies which take up a lot less room in his clothing.  So, I had to pull out all his 18 mo shorts from last year and those fit great without the bulky diaper he was in last time he wore them.  He does wear some 2T shorts but I need to fold over the waist to keep them up.  PJ's are 2T or 3T.  All his bathing suits from last year fit great so I didn't have to buy a new one this year.  Shoes are 6 1/2 to 7. 

likes

Favorite things include...

Dad's Harbor Freight catalog that comes in the mail.  This kid will sit and page through it asking repeatedly "what's this?" and pointing out all the tools he knows, which are actually quite a lot at this point.  #mini-Erik.
Still into Micky Mouse everything...
Planes/rocket ships/construction equipment - anything that goes.  He recently broke down in tears when we couldn't spend all afternoon standing in the grocery store parking lot watching the digger trucks work across the street.
His little brother/sister in Mama's belly.  For a while he was asking on a daily basis if the baby could "come out" but now whenever someone asks about the baby he says "baby due in August!" or "baby coming in August!" (which means nothing to him as toddlers really have no conception of time but I think he has caught on to the fact that I can't just take the baby out whenever I want!)  He loves to hug my belly, kiss it, "feed the baby" his milk, and sometimes sing to baby.  It's basically the cutest thing ever when he does it.  However, when you ask him if he will share his toys with baby the answer is always the same - "no way!"
Bee Movie which is really the only age-appropriate movie I have found to date.  What is up with all the parental separation and death in Disney and Pixar films?!  Please give me recommendations for situational appropriate movies for our family movie nights, I can only watch Bee Movie so many times  ;)
Feeding the pets in the morning - we measure and he does the rest.
Books, oh the books.  While technology has become a regular part of his life (iPad, TV, movies) I am thankful that he still loves his books as much as he does.  We always read at least three books before naps and bedtime, and often several more throughout the day.  He often will sit and "read" them himself as well.  He loves the library story time and we have started checking out new books every week.  He has all of his favorite books memorized and while reading we can stop mid-sentence and he will finish it.  It's pretty impressive - he can probably recite most of 20-30 books he has.
Surprisingly - thunderstorms.  We have been having many evening thunderstorms as of late and he always wants to stand by his bedroom window and watch them.  That being said, he's also becoming a master of procrastination so that could also be his way of trying to stay up later...
Chapel Hill.  I don't know what started his obcession of our former town, but nearly everyday he talks about going to Chapel Hill, where he thinks his Memere, Papa, and their dog Juno live.  Then he shakes his head and says "no, Chapel Hill, too far away."
Spider webs.  Actually we don't know if he likes or dislikes them but he is constantly pointing them out and has a genuine concern for their existence.
Swimming!  We have been to the pool several times this summer now and he has amazed me with his fish-like love of the water.  We bought him a puddle-jumper (think water wings meets life vest) and now when we go to the pool he doesn't even want me to hold him anymore.  He tells me to let go so he can swim himself.  He is kind of a pool daredevil and loves to jump off the edge, which is equally entertaining as it is terrifying.  We also have a little pool we use in on the back deck and he likes playing in that as well!

dislikes

Arlo's biggest dislike right now is loud noises.  He hates when we run the vacuum cleaner or when Erik is using power tools.  He immediately covers his ears with his hands and makes a face that clearly indicates he wants the noise to stop.  He's always been a pretty sensitive kid, and I think that has a lot to do with why he responds this way.  We always try and prepare him before we turn on the vacuum, blender, etc., which really seems to help the situation.  All this being said - last weekend we took him to see fireworks for the 4th and after some major preparation (watching fireworks on YouTube, and us telling him at least a dozen times how loud they were going to be) he absolutely loved them.  Didn't cover his ears once even for the big, super-loud boomers.  We were thrilled he did so well and that he enjoyed them so much!

He also dislikes sticky hands, sandy feet, and most recently - tags in his clothes (definitely something we expected as Erik and I were both like that as kids!)  Outside of that, he gets upset when he doesn't get his way or we have to make him stop doing something he shouldn't (like this morning when he opened the DVD player and was then trying to force it closed again) but by in large he is a really easygoing kid.  Not one to throw temper tantrums and while we briefly used time-outs as a way to let him cool off during times of him getting frustrated, we no longer do time-outs and resolve mini-meltdowns with either distraction, discussion, or ignoring the behavior (if he whines for no reason.)  So far, these seem to be working very well but parenting is a constantly evolving process so who knows how long these methods will actually last!

new milestones and developments

Certainly the biggest development with Arlo since his last update is his language and speech.  He went from putting a few words together and speaking mostly one or two words at a time to essentially speaking in sentences.  Communicating with him at this age is amazing, and the stuff he says is always a mix between adorable and hilarious, and the best part is I know it's only going to get better over the next year or two.  One morning earlier this week he told Erik and I that he had to go to work, and when we asked what he did he told us " I work at airport.  Fly airplanes and rocketships!"  Then a few days later he told us he worked in a museum where he rode the elevator up and down and that it took 20 minutes to get from one floor to the next (20 minutes is his go-to time frame reference, that's how long pretty much everything takes in his mind.)  He has quite the imagination and it's a daily treat to see what he will come up with.  He is really starting to get into pretend play and it often involves food - making pizza in the sandbox or using his play kitchen to make a batch of "Micky Mouse Soup."  ha, poor Mickey...

He is so curious at this age and is constantly asking "what's that?" even when nine times out of ten he actually knows what it is that he is asking about.  Most recently he started asking us all the time "mama (or daddy), whadda ya doing?" or "what's happening?"  He has also entered into a stage where he really wants to assert his independence and whenever he thinks he can help or do it himself he tells us "no mama, I dude it" ("I do it.")  Which is sometimes very helpful (getting himself dressed) and sometimes not (pouring his milk into his cup.)  

He is still doing great with the potty and we are now, with the exception of sleeping, in undies full time.  We can go out and about to run errands or to a friends house with him in his undies and he is very good about letting me know when he needs to go potty if there isn't one that's obviously accessible to him.  One of the best things I did was buy the smallest potty I could find for the back of the car so we always have one with us.  I prefer him to use it over public restrooms since it's quicker, easier, and much more sanitary than germy bathrooms!  He still wears a pull-up for naps and bedtime and I don't see that changing anytime soon.  He always goes potty when he wakes up and is sometimes dry after naps but always wet in the morning.  I am in absolutely zero hurry to get him to the point of undies at night and quite honestly I don't think that is something you can even teach your kid to do, it just happens when their body is ready.  

Other random Arlo facts and things I am loving right now:

He can spell his name and recognize it if written.

If he gets hurt he will cry a few seconds and then say "I'm okay!"

He calls band-aids "rubber bands" (rubber bands are also "rubber bands")

He says please and thank you on his own

When he says no he rarely ever just says that, it's always "no way" or "no, no, not."

He loves to sing.  He thinks that the ABC's are a song and when you ask him to sing a song that's often a first choice.  He can also sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, twinkle little star, row your boat, and the other day he said out of the blue "I sing Frozen.  Let it go!  Let it go!" (which I think comes from the girls at his babysitters house since we never watch Frozen!)  He makes up songs and the one he sings the most is "rocking time" (those are the only two words in his song, haha)
He pronounces sprinkle "binkle" and fast is "past."  Lucy still sounds like "tootsie."  Grandma is "Nama" and Grandpa is "Dampa."  Sadly calling lotion "losh" is a thing of the past, along with several other words he says correctly now. 

If you are still reading this, props to you - this was a lot longer than I meant to sit down and write today!  I struggle with not wanting to write too much but also wanting to remember all the little details and knowing that someday I am going to love to look back and read about Arlo at this age.  I feel like I want to put all these sweet moments with him in a bottle and keep them forever so I can go back and experience them again and again.  I know I have said it in pretty much every update, but right where we are at is my favorite age.  I love his little personality and watching him grow and develop into a little boy.  Arlo will officially be a big brother at the time of the next update so I am sure there will be a lot of new things to write about (and realistically I will be lucky if I can find the time to write a post about it that is this long!)  ;)

Arlo: 2 years old

Two!!  In some ways these two years with Arlo have flown by in record speed, and in others it's hard to remember life before he was in it.  It's true what they say, the days are long but the years are short.  Erik and I have been reminiscing a bit lately, looking at several of the photos of Arlo when he was first born.  How much he has grown and changed in two short years, it's nothing short of amazing, really.  Here is what our little guy is up to at TWO!

'sleeping

Not many big changes in the sleeping department.  Still napping once a day around 1:30pm or so and going to bed around 7:30 or 8:00pm.  He now gets to stay up a bit later on the weekends, which I am not going to lie, is so we can all sleep in a bit later the next morning!  He is still sleeping in his crib but at the babysitters house naps really well in a toddler bed and I am told he always wakes up super happy because he can get himself up when he is ready.  His toddler room is all set up (except for the mattress, still need to order that) and I plan to post more about that once we move him in there.  A couple of months ago I gave him a toddler pillow and he loves sleeping with it.  Periodically he will have a nap that he wakes up from before he is actually ready to get up, and will want to cuddle in his rocker, falling back asleep on my chest.  I cherish those moments because I know they won't last forever...

eating

His eating habits haven't changed too much and he still eats what we eat the majority of the time.  For breakfast now I ask him what he wants and he tells me, which is so much better than me guessing and then having to make something else when he doesn't like it!  Breakfast always includes fresh fruit and is paired with his choice of oatmeal, cereal, or waffles with nut butter and we rotate though those pretty regularly.  Lunch and dinner isn't a choice, he eats what we eat and overall is a very good eater.  Some of his favorite foods right now are: apples, clementines, raw bell peppers, hummus, carrots, coleslaw, tofu, toast, raisins, dried cranberries, macadamia nuts, pizza, pasta, tomatoes, bean burritos, and avocados.  He is thriving on a plant-based diet and it's been very easy to raise him on one since that is the way that Erik and I have been eating for a very long time now.  If he is ever skeptical about trying a new food we show him that we love eating it making a really big deal about it being delicious, and he will almost always have at least a bite, more if he likes it.  If that fails all we need to do is bring out a "dip" (hummus, ketchup or fancy sauce - ketchup and veganaise mixed) or "sprinkles" (nutritional yeast flakes) and he will eat whatever we add the magic ingredients to, ha!.  We recently discovered he likes salad, and I'm not talking iceberg lettuce with ranch - he loves spring mix with a vinaigrette, which really surprised us.  He eats with regular metal utensils and does great with both a fork and spoon now - even with tricky things like cereal and soup.  He still drinks milk twice daily, usually 10 oz in the morning hours and another 8 oz or so after dinner.  He has been offered sweets on several occasions but does not like them at all.  My mom baked special mini banana nut muffins and molasses cookies during our visit last month and Arlo wouldn't even try a single bite.  He even refused his cupcake on his birthday!  Which, I am totally okay with because he really doesn't need processed sugar and one day it's going to be a struggle to keep him from wanting sweet treats all the time, so I am okay riding this train as long as we still can.

weight and length

At his two year check-up, Arlo weighed in at 24.4 lbs putting him in the 21st percentile for weight for his age.  He measured in at 33.5 inches tall, which is about the 37th percentile for height.  Head circumference is up to 20 inches, still in the 97th percentile.  So, following his growth curve with a lean build and big noggin', ha!  Apparently at around two you can predict with relative accuracy how tall your child will grow as an adult, and our pediatrician thinks he will be somewhere around 5' 9" or 5' 10".  So, maybe around Erik's height (5' 11") or a bit shorter.

wearing

This kid has been really easy to buy clothes ahead of time for, since he always fits true to size relative to his age.  The 18-24 month pants I bought when the weather turned cooler had some room to grow at the time, now they are getting to be just a bit short on him but still fit great in the waist.  I actually thought they would have lasted a bit longer.  Shirts are 24 month or 2T.  The 2T pants are still a bit long and I have a feeling he will be able to wear them later this winter as well as next fall/winter.  He will be solidly in 2T shirts and shorts this summer, which is great because I have a huge tub overflowing with summer clothes for him in that size.  2T pajamas fit with zero room to spare and all his spring/summer jammies I have been buying are 3T.  Actually, this holiday season I had the brilliant idea (pats self on back) to buy only 3T Christmas jams so he could wear them for two years in a row.  The pants were a little long but they otherwise fit great and I am happy we will get another holiday season out of them!  Current shoe size is a 6 or 6.5.  Winter boots are a 7 which also fit and will hopefully will until spring.  Stride Rite is our favorite brand of shoe and is almost all he ever wears.  They are so well made that we will get to use them for kiddo #2 should we have another boy since they are still in great condition!

likes

Favorite things include...

Micky Mouse everything 

cars/trucks/planes/trains - so obsessed

collecting all the treasures on our daily walks (rocks, sticks, pine cones) and bringing them home to his ever-growing pile in the garage

HATS - all the time indoors or out (favorite hat happens to also be Dad's favorite smartwool beanie and when they go out together it's always a challenge to figure out who gets to wear it!)

books - and will now "read" along with us when he knows the words that come next

feeding/diapering/kissing/strollering his baby doll that he named "Howie"

hopping/jumping (on the bed too - ugh!)

emptying the lint screen (it's become his official laundry time job - he cleans the screen, hands me the lint, and replaces it in the dryer)

"washing dishes" which started at my parents house and now he always grabs his little chair and brings it to the sink so he can "help" me (or make a huge wet mess haha)

Lucy and the kitties (grumpy Bosco kitty does NOT share his affection)

his bestie Lyra and our babysitters daughter who is the same age and probably like a sister to him by this point - he asks about them both all the time

getting his picture taken - when he sees me with my phone he will smile and say "cheese!" so I will take his picture.  he also loves looking at pictures of other kids and I always show him pictures of his friends when I am scrolling through my instagram feed.  he knows them all by name and has the biggest smile when he sees them!

"losh" (lotion) that he loves putting on his body whenever he steals it from my room

bracelets (my hair ties, will still load up his wrists with them every chance he gets)

washing his hands

getting his hair cut - he gets really excited about it and will stand surprisingly still while I use the clippers

undies and using the potty (more on that below)

drawing/coloring with markers/crayons/paint, play doh

having people over - he loves "showing off" for guests

reading in his tee pee (which is actually called a "tee pee" now - sadly no more calling it "pee pee")

being outside and going to the park which he asks to do on a regular basis

... and probably a whole bunch of other things that I am forgetting!

dislikes

Typical toddler dislikes - getting dressed in the morning (this is actually our biggest daily struggle - this kid hates the process of putting on clothes!), having to stop playing to go inside or take a nap, being told he can't do something - swiffer the walls, stand on the table, drive our cars, remove everything from the pantry, and the list goes on.  He is a pretty ambitious kid, ha.  While he definitely has moments of protesting and shouting "no!" when he doesn't get his way, we are pretty lucky that he is usually pretty easygoing.  We have only had a couple of big tantrums where he has thrown himself on the floor and completely refused cooperation and I am hoping the frequency of those stays to a minimum!

new milestones and developments

We have seen some really big changes here since the last update, most notably in the past month or so.  Kids have physical growth spurts, and I definitely think they have developmental spurts as well, as we saw huge changes from 18-19 months and now from 23-24 months.  His speech and language really took off and he is talking all the time now.  He puts short sentences together and pronounces words so much better than before.  For example he has always said "all done" as "dahl dee" and just recently we have been working with him to change the way he says it, and now he can say "all done" clear as can be.  He still shortens long difficult words - for example flamingo is "mingo", elephant is "elf", and he still calls lotion "losh" but I have started calling it that too and now I think it will forever be losh!  He answers yes and no questions reliably which has been awesome in so many ways, and quite frankly made life a whole lot easier.  At his pediatrician appointment he passed the developmental question exam with flying colors, actually seeming advanced in several areas.  I still think he is pretty average in terms of language and speech for other boys his age, unlike his little girl friends who are pretty much talking nonstop and practically in full sentences.  Everyone has said that is a big difference at this age, girls tend to be a lot more talkative, and really - does that ever change?! 

Arlo can count from 1 to 10, and at first he always left out seven but now he has decided to include it.  ABC's are a work in progress and something we really haven't spent too much time on.  They go something like "A B E X I P D but at the end of the song he says clear as day "now I know my A B C'ssss!" haha.  I really need this on video.  He knows his left from his right and will tell me which is which when we are putting on his shoes.  

He often says please and thank you without even being prompted, and every time he is done with his milk he brings the empty cup to me and says "thank you" which I never taught him to do but I so love it.  He usually eats snacks at the table instead of his high chair, and will bring the empty dish to the kitchen and put it in the sink.  He knows the difference between the trash and recycling station and will (usually) put things in their appropriate place. 

I have a feeling that even though he's not the biggest kid on the block, he will probably be quite athletic.  He loves to climb and has no problem getting to the top of the "big kids" play structure at the park.  He runs, hops, and jumps all the time and seems to have no fear of heights.  He can walk up and down stairs without holding onto anything but when he does I have a small heart attack and ask him to "please hold the railing!"  He loves to play ball with his dad and can throw and kick really well (yes, I see little league soccer in his future!)  

At around 23 months, Arlo entered into an extra-clingy phase, which is something we haven't seen since he was a baby.  I think it is somewhat common around two years old though, as other friends have mentioned similar experiences with their kids around the same age.  He started coming to me multiple times a day saying "hold" and putting his arms up to me, wanting me to carry him around (I actually had to break out the Ergo at one point so I could get things done!)  He still does it maybe once or twice a day but it has certainly lessened in the last couple of weeks.  He will also now happily cuddle up on the couch with us and watch a TV show, which is also something new for him.  I never liked the idea of him watching TV as a baby and would almost always turn on a kids Pandora station instead of TV when we wanted background noise, but as we approached two we relaxed our screen rules a bit and let him watch short shows periodically.  Screens and sugar are inevitable as kids grow up, neither are necessary or necessarily bad in moderation, but I have always figured why rush either?  So, now Arlo wants to watch Mickey Mouse, Daniel Tiger, Thomas the train, or my least favorite show in the world - Chuggington, at least once or twice a day.  This actually works out in my favor since it allows me a few minutes to get ready in the morning or cook dinner in the afternoon. 

And finally, probably the biggest accomplishment of the last month or so is that Arlo is now nearly completely potty trained!  He has been peeing on the potty daily but not consistently since around 18 or 19 months, and started pooping on the potty right when he turned 23 months.  Once he started going number two, he took a big interest in wanting to go on the potty all the time.  So, we actually got serious about potty training, spent a few days at home diaper free (had a few accidents of both kinds) and then just like that he was going to the potty on a regular basis.  The whole process was a whole lot easier than I thought, and I feel like we actually followed a "child led potty training" plan if such a thing exists.  We never pushed him to do anything, only praised him when he did well.  He went through about a week of what we called poo-phobia where he was afraid to poop on the potty, in his diaper, or on the floor.  So he would hold it and cry and say "no mama, no poop!" which was so sad.  This was probably the hardest part of the entire process, and I felt like there was so little we could do to help him, outside of just supporting his choices.  Luckily he outgrew that quickly and we made a huuuuuge deal when he got comfortable pooping on the potty (like high-fives, first bumps, and both Erik and I dancing around the bathroom!)  We had to spend a couple of weeks with Arlo naked to avoid accidents, since he seemed to always tinkle a little with undies on.  But now he can wear undies (he calls them "unnies" and loves them) and pants and will reliably go to the bathroom on his own, pull everything down, and call for help if he can't get his pants up.  He also empties his little potty into the big one which we are trying to get him to call for help since that could get very messy very quickly.  For naps he wears a pull-up just in case, it's still hit or miss with him waking up dry or not, and during the night we put on a diaper.  He still drinks a lot of milk close to bedtime and I can't imagine it will be anytime soon that he will wake up dry in the morning.  That being said, I didn't even think we would be starting potty training until closer to three, and am still amazed that we were for the most part, potty trained before two.  When we leave the house we put a pull-up on him but he now asks to go to the potty when we are out and about.  Erik actually got to take him to a public restroom for the first time on one of their father/son Starbucks outings, and surely it was a very proud dad moment for him.  Soon we will probably venture out in his real undies but I am still nervous about having accidents and our car seat is such a pain to launder!

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Arlo, we are so proud of the awesome little man you are turning into.  You are so kind and compassionate, energetic beyond belief, imaginative, curious, and sensitive.  You love giving kisses and hugs and always seem to want to please us.  You know what you want, have your own opinions about everything, and are not afraid to voice them.  You have your Dad's eyebrows, your moms mouth, and a smile that everyone always comments on.  When we are out and about you are such a flirt with the ladies, and you always know how to make us laugh.  You still love music and dancing, just like when you were a baby.  Everyday I feel so lucky that I get to look into your sweet blue eyes and call you my son.  Thank you for being you, and for choosing us as your parents, sweet boy.

Arlo: 21 months old

The past three months have brought more changes with Arlo than I could have anticipated.  He has had quite the development in the speech and communications department, among other things.  Here is what he is up to at 1 3/4 years old!

Sleeping:  No big changes here.  Bedtime routine starts between 7:00-7:15pm, and he is down for the count by 7:30ish.  He is usually up between 6:30 and 7:00am, but just in the last week or so started sleeping in until 7:30 or later.  I am hoping that this is our new normal, ha.  Naps are still around 1.5 hours in length and typically happen from 1:00 to 2:30 pm.

Arlo is still sleeping in his crib, and we plan to keep him there for as long as it is safe for him to be in it.  I have caught him trying to climb out of it a couple of times in recent weeks, so I think by his second birthday we will probably have to upgrade to a real bed.  On our recent trip to NY, we wanted to avoid taking any unnecessary baby equipment as we traveled by plane and didn't want excess stuff to haul around.  So we opted not to take the pack-n-play, where Arlo has traditionally slept when we have traveled.  Surprisingly, Arlo did great sleeping on his own in a queen sized bed at the hotel.  I surrounded the edge of the bed with pillows so he couldn't roll off, and he pretty much stayed right in the middle anyway.  So, I am hopeful it will be a pretty easy transition when we do upgrade his bed.

Eating:  Not too many changes in this area either.  Arlo still eats pretty much the same foods as he did at 18 months old, which pretty much include everything that Erik and I eat.  I recently started giving him cereal with milk some mornings for breakfast, which he eats on his own with a spoon.  He does pretty well but he is definitely much more skilled with a fork.  That being said, I really haven't let him have much practice with a spoon up until very recently, because it was always more important to me for him to eat more food than learn to use a spoon.  He always ate a lot more when we would spoon feed him the foods that required it (oatmeal, lentils, soup, etc.) but now he is very determined to use it on his own.  He still drinks his plant-based milk mixture, and gets two servings daily unless he asks for more.  He averages around 18 oz of milk per day.

Favorite foods at 21 months:  clementines (we call them oranges because it's easier to say), nuts, hummus on crackers, raisins, and raw bell pepper strips.

One change we have seen in the eating department, is what I think is the start of the toddler food pickiness.  He used to eat pretty much anything we gave him, but is now becoming a bit more selective of what he wants to eat.  He will immediately remove things from his plate that he doesn't want to eat ("don't you know I am not eating cucumbers this week, mom!?")   It's kind of cute until he starts launching the unwanted items on the floor for Lucy to eat.  Still, he eats a well rounded diet and a good amount of food throughout the day. 

Weight and Length:  not sure, as the next pediatrician appointment is not until he turns two.  But I know he has grown, see below...

Wearing:   With cooler weather quickly approaching, I recently pulled out all of Arlo's 18-24 month pants, shirts, and jackets I had picked up here and there when I found a good deal.  And guess what?  Not a single pair of pants fit him!!  They are all way too big in the waist, even though the length fits just right.  I had to make a trip to the local consignment store last weekend to pick up a few pairs of smaller waisted pants.  The solution I have found, is the pants which have the adjustable elastic tabs inside the waist.  I can cinch them as small as they go, and then they fit.   So, current pant and shirt size is 18 month or 18-24 month size.  Pajama size is 18 month (although those are very snug fitting), 24 month, or 2T.  Shoe size is a 6, although his 5.5 sandals still fit as well. 

Likes and dislikes:  

Likes:  Balls (huge obsession here.)  We go for evening walks around the neighborhood and the nearby cul-de-sacs all have basketball hoops and random balls hanging around.  Erik helps Arlo "dunk" the ball which Arlo thinks is amazing.  Arlo is also really into cars, trucks, planes, and all things that go.  One of my very favorite things that he started doing is making truck noises when he plays with his toys.  He knows the firetruck makes a "wee-oooh-wee-oooh" sound,  the car says "beep beep," and other trucks make another sounds as well.  His very favorite thing is books, and he wakes up asking to read, and goes to bed asking to read.  Favorite books include: Bing Bedtime (I wish I could say I love this book but after reading it 1,000 times I am quite annoyed with it!), A Lighthouse Saves the Day, Tip Tip Dig Dig, Where is Little Mole, The ABCers, First Words picture books, his Highlights Hello magazines, and anything to do with the Pixar "Cars" Movie (he hasn't ever seen the movie but loves the books.)  He also still loves music and dances whenever a song he likes comes on.
 
He also loves to help me do things around the house.  He is a great laundry helper.  Earlier this week, he put an entire load of towels into the washer, carried the basket back to the hallway where I had it earlier, closed the washer door, then randomly started pushing buttons on the machine.  He knows which doors we typically keep closed in the house (closets, laundry room, etc.) and will close them immediately if he sees them open.  Oh, and he loves to knock on doors.  Sometimes he will leave the room we are in, close the door, stand on the other side and knock until I open it.  When I do he will smile and laugh so hard.  Sometimes I do it to him (close a door and knock) and he thinks its hilarious.

Dislikes:  When things don't go his way.  The cereal keeps falling off his spoon??  Well, THAT IS JUST AWFUL.  He gets somewhat easily frustrated and is not afraid to vocalize it.  He also dislikes coming inside if he is not yet finished playing in the yard.  He also dislikes it when he picks up one of Lucy's toys and she tries to grab it and play with him.  I think he knows that they belong to her, but he doesn't always like to share.  He is also starting to protest riding in his stroller during our morning walks with Lucy.  He will squirm and cry yelling "walk! walk!" when I put him in the stroller if he doesn't want to ride that day.  If we are not in any particular hurry, I will let him walk alongside the stroller, but it's a slow process.  He has to point out every truck, pick up leaves and sticks along the way, and smell all the flowers (which is actually adorable and a much needed reminder for me to slow down and do the same sometimes.)

New milestones and developments: 

So many things...  At my last update, Arlo still wasn't saying a whole lot.  He had a handful of words, but didn't seem to be in any hurry to expand upon his vocabulary.  However, at 19.5 months, we had something of a language explosion.  He started saying a whole bunch of new words, and then would say 1-3 new words every single day.  At this point, he has a pretty well-rounded vocabulary for his age.  There are many words that he can say spot on.  Mommy, Daddy, house, bubbles, ball, truck, boots, and boat to name just a few.  Others are his version of the actual word.  Those are my favorite!  Here are some "Arlo words:"

Cars are "daa-ee" which kind of sounds like "daddy" (we have no idea where this came from)
Says his name "Ar-o"
Play dough is "me-mo"
Remote is "mote"
Beetle is "bee-ble"
Teepee is "pee-pee"
More is "mo"
Spider is "pie"
Potty is "pa-ee"
Smoothie is "moo-ie"
Pumpkin is "mum-ee" haha!
Scott (as in Uncle Scott) is "cot"
Lighthouse is "house"
Sock is "dock"

I love his sweet voice and the words he comes up with on his own.  There are times as well, where he is clearly trying to have a conversation with you, but the words are certainly not English.  Those are the times when we say "oh yea?" or "ok!" and try not to laugh out loud at the cuteness.  Two words he has learned that have made our lives easier, are "more" and "help."  It's so much better than the whining and pointing he used to do (not to say he never does that, but it just happens a lot less frequently now.)  He is now always asking if things are "hot" before he eats them, and if something is so much as lukewarm he will tell me it's hot.  Sometimes cold things are "hot" too.  Silly kid.  We just started working on learning colors, and he will say white and yellow with some accuracy.   Other times he will call black things white, blue things yellow, and so on. 

In the teething department... They have ALL come in and I feel like in some ways, we have made it.  Teething was an absolute nightmare at times, and I am quite relieved we are done with it.  His bottom two-year molars came in when we were up in Michigan, Arlo was 18.5 months old.  The top molars came through in the following weeks, and they had all come in by 20 months.  While I wouldn't call it a walk in the park, these molars certainly didn't seem to bother him as much as the first set did.  We didn't need to use medicine of any kind, just distraction to help him through the worst of it.

Something else that is new - we are slowly, in a very laid back fashion, working on potty training!  Right about the time Arlo turned 19 months, I got out his potty chairs and the seat I bought that sits on top of the toilet in his bathroom.  I started by just having him sit on it before his bath, because he always pees right when his feet hit the bath water.  It took him a few times of sitting there for him to realize what I wanted him to do, but he eventually realized that he could make himself pee.  Then I put one of his potties in the downstairs bathroom, and he started sitting on it randomly.  Every time he does, I take off his diaper tell him to go "pee pee," and most of the time he will.  Sometimes it's a lot but most of the time he just tinkles.  If he is sitting on the toilet with toilet paper nearby, he wants to wipe.  I think it's because he has seen me do it?  (And no, there is no such thing as going to the bathroom by yourself when you have a toddler...)  He hasn't yet done a #2 on the potty.  I didn't have any expectations that we would work on potty training anytime before the age of 2, as I was under the impression that most boys don't toilet train until closer to 3.  But Arlo has surprised me with his willingness to go on his potty chair.  Oh, and he also requests a book every time he sits down to go, ha!  Like I said, right now we are taking a very laid back approach and letting him go randomly, but probably in a few months we will get a little more serious about it.  The good part is that he is getting used to going on the potty, and loves to do it.  So that's a pretty good start.

I can't believe that my next update will be when Arlo is two years old.  Two!  It wasn't long ago that I was all excited to be coming up on his first birthday.  It really seems that older he gets, the more fun we have together.  Arlo is my little sidekick, partner in crime, and best bud.  I wouldn't trade this kid for the world.

 

 The photos for this post were taken on the green-way near our house that we walk on everyday.  And yes, he insisted on wearing his boots!

Arlo: 18 months old

And just like that, here we are celebrating another milestone, the big 18 months!   Our sweet little boy is just that - ALL boy.  He is fearless, loves getting messy, climbing on everything, and is really starting to assert his toddler independence.  Here is what we are up to at 1.5 years old:

Sleeping:  Woot woot, sleeping is one thing that Arlo is a champ at, and I am so thankful.  We start the bedtime routine around 7:15pm and he is usually down for the count by 7:45pm or so.  He sleeps solidly until 6:15am, give or take a few, and will wake up "chatting" with himself before he calls for me shortly after.   I wasn't sure how the transition to the new house would go, and we did have a week or so where Arlo would wake in the night and cry because he was in a strange place.  But that quickly resolved once he settled in to his new space.  Naps are for the most part once a day, from around noon to 2pm, but periodically he will want to go down a bit earlier or fall asleep in the car on a morning outing, and then take another late afternoon nap.  I used to care so much more about his "schedule" and now I let him sleep when he's tired and run like a wild animal when he's awake.

Eating:  You wouldn't know it by looking at him, but this kid eats everything.  All, day, long.  If his current eating habits are a sign of what is to come, then by his teenage years he will be eating us out of house and home.  He literally eats something every 60-90 minutes, and sometimes I just leave snacks sitting out so he can eat as he desires.  He can climb up and sit at the big table now (although regular meals are still served in his high chair) so I sometimes leave out things like crackers, dried fruits, or anything else that's not to messy.

When my parents where visiting to help with the move, my mom introduced Arlo to nuts.  I don't know if this was a bad idea or the best idea ever, as it's now the only thing he asks for.  Like 10 times a day, he points to the cabinet where the nuts are kept, and says "nuts!  nuts!"  Yes, according to the books he is too young for nuts.  However, he has always been advanced in the eating and teething department, and we only feed him softer nuts (macadamias, walnuts, pistachios, cashews) under very close supervision.  He always chews them up well and never gets more than one or two at a time.

His favorite foods right now are fruit, tofu, nuts, seeded crackers, peas, raw cherry tomatoes from our garden, and raisins.  The only thing he absolutely will not eat, no matter how they are cooked or seasoned, are green beans.  We recently discovered his love of Ethiopian food when we took him out for dinner last weekend.  The traditional Ethiopian meals are served family style without utensils.  All of the "sauces" (which are really just various lentil dishes and salads) are scooped up with bread called injera.  I was feeding Arlo bites of the food to keep him from making a mess, but gave him some injera to eat on his own too.  When he noticed we were scooping up the sauces with our bread, he insisted on doing the same thing, and would not eat a bite until he could "dip" it in the sauce.  So stinking cute.  Not only was the food amazing, but Arlo ate a ton of it.  We will definitely be going back.

Also, we have fully switched over to sippy cups for his milk, and have said goodbye to the bottle.  We use his metal pura kiki cups with the silicone spouts so they have a similar feel to the bottle, and he had zero issues with this transition.  He drinks his usual milk concoction (hemp, oat, flax, and soy) 8-9 oz twice a day, and more if he has a smoothie or asks for it mid-day, but usually is content drinking just water.  Grandma also spoiled him with some diluted OJ when she was here, but juice certainly isn't a regular part of his diet, just during special occasions.

Weight and Length:  Long and lean, Arlo is now weighing in at just over 23 lbs putting him in the 35th percentile for weight.  I don't think we have an accurate length on him, as he measured 1/2" shorter this visit than he did the last, but I think it was due to the fact that we are at a new pediatricians office and they used this weird device to measure him... Anyway, I know he has grown because clothing he was wearing three months ago is now too small for him.  Head circumference is at 50.2 cm and our large headed child remains in the 98th percentile.

Wearing:   Still staying true to size, at 18 months he is fitting just right into 18 mo clothing.  Pajamas always seem to run small and he wears 18 mo, 24 mo, or 2T sized jammies.  He recently sized up to a size 5.5 shoe, but still has some room to grow in them.  Also, those little chubby feet have started to thin out and he no longer requires a wide shoe.

Likes and dislikes:  

Likes:  Food!  Being outside.  Playing and splashing in his water table or at splash pads.  "Reading" books (by himself or with us.)  Playing with Lucy.  Balls of all sizes.  Cars and trucks, which is a somewhat recent thing - I know Erik is hoping that Arlo is a kid that loves cars like he does!  Watching the garbage truck drive by.  Helping us water the plants outside.  Blowing bubbles (he has been successful with blowing them on his own a few times too.)  Climbing on all the things.  Pressing all the buttons (seriously if he sees a button, it must be pressed.)  Closing doors and the stair gates - if I forget to close it the first thing Arlo does when he notices it open is shut it immediately.  Doing laundry - he loves to put the dirty clothes in the washer and wet clothes in the dryer when I ask him to help me (and in the process he also hits the on/off button no less than 75 times.)  And.... I almost forgot about the dancing.  He loves any music with a good beat and if you show him a music video with people dancing he will dance right along with them.  He also does this thing where he points his right index finger and bops his hand along with the music, I have no idea where he learned it but has been doing it for many months now and it is seriously cute.

Dislikes:  Still dislikes getting his face washed after his meal.  Mom and Dad doing something for him that he wants to do.  Laying down for a diaper change.  Getting his teeth brushed - but only sometimes.  Other times he is totally fine with it, go figure.  #toddlers.

New milestones and developments: 

I feel that the last three months have really been about building on the skills he has already acquired.  He can now run faster, climb higher, and is even steadier on his feet.  He has also figured out how to open door handles and knobs, and I have since had to research and install even more babyproofing measures.  He can say quite a few more words than he could a few months ago, but still isn't really talking a whole lot.  He often repeats a word he hears (I'm sure he said raspberry yesterday after I gave him one) but then won't say it again when I ask him to.  He understands so much of what we say though, and consistently shows that he knows what I am asking to do.  His favorite word right now is "buh-bye" and he insists on saying it to Lucy every time we leave the house, or even go upstairs.  If he forgets he turns around, goes back to where she is, and waves saying "buh-bye!"  It melts my heart every time and also reminds me to slow it down and pay more attention to the little things....  He knows a lot of animal sounds and can point to various body parts.  He has become quite skilled with a fork and can feed himself quite well.  In the teething department, we are still waiting for those final molars to make their appearance.  He has shown teething signs off and on for months, but never have they actually surfaced.  He has been so early with his teething thus far, I had expected to see the two year molars by now, but am happy to delay they them for as long as possible.  Arlo is a much happier kid when he's not teething!

And that's pretty much the scoop at 1.5 years with this little man.  I know I took a little time off from this space after our move, but now that we are pretty much settled into our new place I will have a little more time to do some things for myself - blogging included.  Will be back soon with a little life update!