March 2008 - Houston, We Have a Toddler!

Guest Blogger: Bryce's Mommy

Hello everyone,

As promised, I wanted to check in with everyone who reads Bryce's blog and let you know what's been going on with him (and us!) Bryce is --unbelievably-- almost 18 months old now, and is no longer a baby, but a busy little boy. He is walking, talking, running (for short bursts - usually until he trips over his own feet), and intently investigating the world around him.

His first word (for a long time) was "uh oh", which he's been saying since he was barely a year old. But the first object he really named (back in December) was an "apple"; now this is also his name for bananas, oranges, avocados, etc. In fact it has become a game now, so that if I say "orange," (or hold one up) he replies "apple!" Other words include: ball (his favorite toy), balloon, bubble, bath ("ba"), mama, and lots of babbling we don't understand yet. He imitates and understands far more words than he can say on his own, and happily responds to simple requests like, "Bring mama the book," or "Where's the kitty?" And one of his new favorite games is pointing to his (or my) body parts, when I say "Where's your tummy?", or head, toes, nose, eyes, fingers, etc.

Speaking of body parts, Bryce now has 16 teeth and continues to be a champion eater for the most part, eating pretty much whatever we do (including spicy foods.) However he does have his "toddler moments", like when he decided last week that he doesn't like peas anymore (?!&*?), or wonders what kind of noise the spoon will make when it hits the floor....

Ever since he's been mobile and talking, Bryce is constantly pointing at things and now saying, "iss-iss", which we think is "What's this?" It's as if he's realized there's a code for all these things and he needs to know how to label them. When he was younger, I wondered if he got much out of the stories we read him, but in the last several months he's developed a real interest in books, especially now that he can point at things in them and we'll name them for him.

Besides his books (or pointing at lights or airplanes or birds...), Bryce is also engrossed with his new Legos (building and taking apart things), blocks (he builds towers but knocks them down once they're 2 or 3 high), and shape sorters (he knows to put shapes through the holes, but not yet how to distinguish triangles from circles, etc.) He's not a big fan of cuddly toys (except for Ugly Doll, whom he sleeps with), so I tried teaching him to hug his panda bear - which he does, right before gleefully throwing it on the floor. * Sigh * At least he gets along with the cat: we've taught him to pet her gently, so she tolerates him, at least till he gets overexcited and starts yelling, at which point she scrams.

But Bryce's favorite thing of all? Balls. Big ones, little ones, bouncy, squishy, whatever -- as long as it's round and he can carry it, roll it, throw it or even kick it. (I think his fascination with bubbles and balloons is because they resemble balls....) He can't dribble yet, but he has discovered Daddy's basketball, and loves when Daddy will play with him.Speaking of Bryce and Daddy, they've been spending a lot of quality time together, since I was gone on business (to Las Vegas and Barcelona) for 2 of the 4 weeks in February. It's hard for me to be away, and Daddy has to play Mr. Mom 24/7 (in addition to his day job.) But the boys are troopers, and unlike last time I was gone, nobody got sick (well, no sicker than before I left) and most everybody slept through the night! It does make my time at home all the more precious, and we easily fill our weekends with fun family activities: hiking, playdates, museum visits, and sometimes just simple stuff like pancakes and coloring (though not at the same time.....)

So that gives you an idea of what our lives are like these day with Bryce the toddler. To wrap up, I'm including something new: a multimedia slideshow including pics from last December up through last weekend. Highlights include Christmas in Utah, plus new activities like fingerpainting and puddles. To see all the images, click here (don't use the links in the slideshow). Enjoy! and if you have any requests or comments, feel free to add them below, or email me directly.

Love,

Bryce's Mommy