Dear Shep,

You’re already a year and a half and I can’t wrap my head around it. You are certainly ACTING as if you’re two already, but you are still rocking your absolutely adorable baby self and well, that makes the outbursts and tantrums close to bearable.

On that note, they started. You don’t arch your back so much as you do this high pitched whine that makes the hairs on my arms stand on end all while finding the nearest surface to tap your forehead (never good when it meets the hardwood floors). Recently you’ve even added a little circular tap dance to the tantrums that’s sure to give Lord of the Dance a run for their money. This month started with a little gentle discipline which was going quite well (go me!) until you started really acting a fool and we realized you were getting your molars! Like any good mom, I let go of the discipline act and let you be however you pleased in pain. Once the 1/4 (Lord help us during the next three) had finally broken through we realized that discipline time was overdue and suddenly you had managed to forget what little you had learned pre-tooth drama. Soooooo we started time outs. No one tells you that it’s a bit difficult to give a time out to a child who’s vocabulary consists of “dada”, “car”, and “ball”. You see, the point is that the child is forced to sit in a chair or stay in a corner (we chose corners for you) for said period of time (30 seconds to 1 minute). Well, you just don’t grasp the whole “sit there and don’t move” command, so there I am forced to sit holding you down as you look at me like I’m the devil incarnate all while your Daddy is probably enjoying a nice cup of coffee enjoying adult conversation and coming home in hours to be the good guy. So yeah….it’s going well.

On a fun note, you are HYSTERICAL! You wake up each morning for breakfast with Daddy and immediately start chatting away. The moment I enter the room you light up and we begin our day together (and now that you’re down to one nap) we have a lot of morning adventures. You wave bye to your Daddy every morning and LOVE every minute of it. He of course goes will by lowering the windows and waving like a crazy person the entire way until he is out of sight. You are so mesmerized by it. As far as you and I go, we’re busy trying to soak up what’s left of the summer, so we try and plan something exciting before that nap of yours. How long is it you ask? Well, you are going to bed around 7:30, waking between 7:30 & 8:00 (cue the Hallelujah chorus) and generally nap from 12:30-2:00. 1.5 hours is far from what I had hoped for from a single afternoon nap, BUT then again I suppose you do sleep 12 hours at night, so I’ll take what I can get. And on the subject of sleep, you officially sleep away from home like a champ! You had your first solo sleepover at Dece and Shep’s this month and killed it. Not only did you break in the sleeping until 8 trick over there, but you napped for a total of 3 hours for Dece. Im wondering if you love them more or if she is going deaf and simply doesn’t hear you up there 😉 Daddy took a note from Honey and lets you look at cars from the driveway in his lap when he gets home every evening. You are suddenly obsessed with all things cars and insist on telling us each and every time you see one (imagine how exhausted we both are after crossing through a parking lot). Bedtime movies ended and now we sit in your room with your new blue blanket and read books. I say read, but I really mean you point to objects and I tell you their names. You think it’s fantastic and we go on until it’s lights out.

As far as your outsides…
Your tiny feet grew overnight and I had to go out and buy you all new shoes as well as pajamas since that growth spurt happened all over. Footy pjs are slowly disappearing and I’m realizing that you are not a little baby anymore (for some reason losing footies has been rough on me – I know, I’m strange). You got your second hair cut (first in a salon) from Mrs. Molly and did amazingly (thanks to a strawberry dum dum). Dad and I about lost it when we saw how grown up you looked and have since sworn off all hair cuts until you’re 20. Your killing it at mealtimes with a fork (finally found you a bowl to suction to the table – Aspyn is super bummed) and you’re quickly making it evident that you love all things fatty, sugary, and loaded with preservatives. So glad I spent so much money and time prepping your pallet for organic goodness.

All in all it’s been a month. That’s really all I can say for it. You are so much more difficult all while being so much more fun that I honestly can say by the end of the day I am relieved when you hit the crib – then suddenly super bummed that I can’t hold you one last time and secretly pray that you will wake up and want me for one last snuggle. You make everything an adventure and I wouldn’t change any of it for the world. Well, maybe I would add in a hot cup of coffee every now and then and possibly a supermodel body….. well, I digress.

Xx Mommy

Updates:
diapers – size 4
weight – 22 pounds
shoe size – 4
favorite food – veggie sticks and dum dums
favorite fun drink – coke icee or sweet tea
favorite show – curious george still reins but we added buzbee and you love that too…just not as much
new words: “dada” still means bye but it also is starting to mean daddy as well….or so we think. “car”, “baball” for your new t ball set that you LOVE, “do it” which doesn’t mean do it and sometimes sounds like a quick squeak, but it’s hysterical none the less. And lastly, you have a deep conversation with your reflection in the tub that consists of “yayayayaya ooooooooooooooh” over and over again. We are loving that.