15 months: In Luke's words

Luke will be 15 months old tomorrow, July 7, and he has changed so much since becoming a toddler.

Nothing has changed more rapidly than his vocabulary- he amazes us with new words everyday... and uses some of his favorites daily. With a peek inside Luke's days since turning 1 we will share some of his favorite words and activities of the day.

He loves to be "outdoor":

Playing on his kangaroo climber, he climbs to the top and stomps his feet with delight that he made it- then without much comtemplating slides down head first with a spirited "Weeee!".

'Outdoor' always includes a trip to the very edge of the lawn in attempt to this time maybe make it past the point he is allowed (and because his little legs can be quite fast when on a mission- he has made it a couple times).

• From one end of the yard to the next- Luke is always also on a quest to reach past the driveway to the street- I guess that want for what you can't have starts young.


• A boy- he already likes to play with rocks, pick and taste the grass, bugs, frogs, and any other unknown dirty object on the ground.


• He must always be on the lookout for birds- because he'll point up to he sky or trees saying "Bir,bir" when we would have otherwise let the birds get past us unnoticed.

"Bubbles" and "Wawa"

• Luke LOVES bubbles, he can not get enough of them- even more than playing with them he loves to say "bubbles"- one of his first words.
  
• "Bubbles" can refer to any fountain of moving water, and is just as exciting as real bubbles.


• He also really loves swimming -especially if the pool has an airjet blowing bubbles, or any source of flowing water. Swimming for Luke is more or less splashing around and seeing how long he can stick his face in the water before parents will pull him up. His fearlessness has put the fear in us.

"Mo","Dir","Eat", "Apple":

• Luke picked up on using signs pretty easy and still uses them mostly to ask for what he wants-which cuts down on the 'I want something' whiny cry, and i don't think i could take too much more of that- Thank you baby sign language!!


• "More" or as Luke says "Mo" was the first sign he learned. Now it is used to mean he wants something- not just more - and not just food. So, when he says 'mo' we know he wants something- now we just need to figure out what that is- Thankfully he is starting to say words for what he wants: "chicken, cracker, budabo, nini," (with some diciphering we are starting to better understand exactly what he might be asking for).
  
• One word he says clear as day is "APPLE"- seriously! Fruit of all kinds are definitely his favorite, but he loves to bite at a whole apple- which is quite funny to see such a little guy do.


• He has always liked seasoning to accompany his meal- olive oil with oregano, marinara sauce, and ketchup are his prefered choices. Now, he has figured out how to dip his food into his sauce, and is even using a spoon and fork quite well on his own. But, he loves the sauces so much that he usually ends up just spooning that into his mouth.


• "Dir"- Drink- and i swear the kid is always thirsty- always asks for a drink-usually "wawa" once he learned this sign he was using it so often i felt so bad i hadn't been offering more to drink before.


• But being a good eater- does not in anyway mean being mess-free!

"HOT!" and Cold

• Early on Luke picked up how to blow on his food when it is hot (Sooo cute!). Now he will tell us if its hot, and has translated this important word to other things that might be hot: the ground, patio chair, carseat, car tire, coffee cup, laptop computer, oven, or anything that is even slightly warm.
  
• "Brr" really means cold... and is even cuter than hot- complete with a shoulder shrug and scrunchie face-brr is also used for sour.

its so cute you have to see it:

"NO!"

As you saw in the last post- the word No is a funny one to Luke. He loves to say 'no' but it is usually more like "no,no,no,no," as he shakes his head and gives a big grin.

• Luke uses 'no' most often as he is doing something he knows we would most likely say no to: dropping food on the floor, playing with the stereo, etc.


• He will actually answer "no" appropiately if you ask him a question- but now you have to be careful what you ask him! Parenting 101: do not ask if he is ready for bed when it's bedtime and he really doesn't get a choice.


• He is finally starting to understand and use the word "yes"- YEAY!

"Daddy" aka "Andy"

• He has learned to say and do a lot over the last few months for a large part because he copies anything he can- sweeping the floor, brushing his hair, dipping chips, and especially saying new words.



• One day I was calling to andy from far away, "Andy! Andy!" quickly the parrot on my left calls for him too "Andy!" but it was a drawn out "And-eeee!" Now he actually will call daddy Andy... cute. and i am just glad it wasn't something else i could have been saying.
  
• "Daddy" however, is still one of his most favorite words- saying often throughout the day- maybe questioning where dad is? i am not sure. I do know that Luke sure does love his Daddy though!

"Momma?":

Me: "Luke, say mommy!"

Luke: "Daddy" (No- i am not kidding!)

Me: "No, daddy's not here. Mom-m-y!"
Luke: "Daddy?" as he runs to the front door to find daddy.

Me: "No, baby. Daddy's at work"

Luke: "Daddy?" now turning to look at the back door. "DADDY?"

Me: "Oh no, honey, Daddy's not here" (Feeling bad now that i brought up Daddy- wait-no, I did say Mommy right?!)

Instead of mommy i usually here "MO" (which means more-not mom, him- asking for something- but sometimes what he is asking for is in fact Mom!)

"Beh"="Bed"

• Luke signs for the word bed more than he says it-"beh". But it is a wonderful thing when your child comes to like his bed. Although we usually know its coming- he will say bed when it is that time.


• Some of you were there when my baby was not so affectionately called "my little catnapper"- you could set a timer to his 40min naps- and it took that long just to get him asleep. Well, months later (i guess just about the time we had stopped traveling and settled here in our new house) he started to take real naps-on a schedule- & sleep through the night. It was long overdue- but blissful still!
  
• Now, Luke is real napper- from 9-11 am, and 1:30-3:00pm. Down for the night at 7:30. Like clockwork! and it takes nothing more than telling him its time to go to sleep and his bed.
  
• Sleep makes everyone happy!
  

I am blessed to spend his days with him- watching him delight in little things, grasp an understanding of the world around him, and use words to express himself. I will say it every month- but I can't believe he is 15 months old! Each month it is getting harder to keep up with him and all the ways he is changing.