20 Months

It seems like I haven't done a monthly update on Hayden in a really long time. But, January seemed pretty eventful and I wanted to be sure to record all of things that have happened before the memories became blurred by new events. I can hardly believe he is quickly approaching 2 years old. Where has the time gone? Our sweet little baby boy has grown into an energetic toddler that wants to be as independent as possible. His communication skills surprise us daily. He has become quite expressive and it is hilarious to hear some of the things he says. Some of our favorites include,

"nite, nite, weet dreams" used when we put him to sleep

"wove you mommy, wove you daddy"

"dunk it" used when he scores a basket

"ta da"used when he does something he is proud of

Although, we can interpret most of what he says he still uses sign language to reinforce his point or try to help us understand when it is obvious we are confused by him. He is also really interested in colors and has finally moved beyond his favorite "pink" and can recognize most of the basics. He has also loves to count. He can count up to 4, but mostly prefers skipping around "4,6,8,10, and 11" are his favorites.

This past month we also transitioned Hayden to a toddler bed. Hayden has always loved his crib and never tried to climb out so we were hesitant to make a change on what seemed like a good thing. However, we got a great deal on a toddler bed that we couldn't pass up and wanted to give it a try in hopes that we could use his crib for the new baby when she arrives. Our plan was to have both the crib and toddler bed in his room and make the transition slow over the next few months. After a few nights he seemed to settle in to this new arrangement and has been sleeping in the "big boy" bed ever since. So far we have only had a few instances where he has had a hard time staying in bed. Most nights he goes to bed as he normally would have in the crib as if nothing has changed! Phew!

Unfortunately, 20 months also marked Hayden's first ear infection and pneumonia. It all began as a typical upper respiratory virus, but after a few days settled into his lungs and one of his ears. We were fortunate that we caught it early and the antibiotics helped make the recovery quicker. He spent just over a week feeling pretty miserable and refusing to eat. Now that he is feeling better his energy to seems to be back in full force and he has an ravenous appetite!

We are looking forward to our last few months as a family of 3 and excited to welcome "baby sister" to the family at the end of April.