Brady at 18 Months

So, Brady is actually a few weeks past 18 months now, but I need to stop a minute and document a little bit about this bundle of joy! i wish I could just remember what each of my kids were like at each stage of development, but the truth is, I can't. So I need to write it down. Because I WANT to remember this time.  He is so fun right now!  He truly makes me smile and laugh more than anything else in my life at this point, and I am so grateful to have this cutie!

So at 18 months, Brady is about average size. He is at the 50th percentile for height and about 40th for weight. My favorite physical features on Brady are his big, blue, expressive eyes, his mischievous grin with the slight gap between the front teeth, and, of course, his HAIR! We have cut it twice now, and it's about ready for another cut. People have asked how I get his hair to stay like that, but I don't know how to get it to do anything different. It wants to stand straight up, and so that's what it does!

Brady is very active. He loves to run, climb, kick, shoot, throw, catch (well, try to catch), and jump, especially OFF of things. He scares the crud out of me. He can climb ladders, which gets him onto the top bunk all on his own. And one of his favorite games is piling pillows up on the floor and then running and belly-flopping onto them.  He has recently started doing this off the couch as well! He's a little dare-devil! And he loves the kids to laugh at him, and will do about anything for a laugh.

For as active as he is, he also likes to sit on my lap and read books and will sometimes look at books all on his own, too. He especially likes books about animals, tractors, and sports. He also has gotten into watching shows lately and always has to sit in a "seat" while watching.

Here he is combing two of his favorites: climbing and looking at books. 

Yes, a book about QBs.

Watching a show in his favorite seat.

Another thing Brady is doing a LOT of lately is talking! It is so fun seeing his vocabulary grow every day. He seems to understand almost anything I say, and is saying so many things on his own as well. He says the names of everybody in our family, as well as some cousins' names. He also says the names of lots of animals: cow, horse, dog, cat, deer, fish, turtle, pig, duck, and more as well as all the animal sounds, which he loves to do multiple times a day. He says several body parts--eyes, ears, nose, mouth, feet--and clothing--shirt, pants, socks, shoes, boots, coat.  Foods--drink, bottle, yogurt, smoothie (moo-ie), apple, chips, bread, meat (which is about all he eats anyway, the picky little guy).  I guess I really can't list all the things he is saying, but it's fun now to see him starting to put words together. When he finds something we have been looking for, he exclaims: "Here are!" This morning, he handed something to Mariah and said, "Here, Yiya. Gank oo." Translation: Here, Mariah. Thank you. (Truth is you might need a translator, like me, to understand a lot of the words he says, but he is not afraid to try!) After Mariah, who was very slow to talk, this has been so fun for me! Plus, he usually tries to tell me what he wants instead of just whining. SO wonderful!

Brady also loves to help me in the kitchen as well as play kitchen on his own. One day I told him to go make dinner. When I went in to see what he was doing, I found this. He had set the table and had the pots of food on as well. Observant little guy!

Brady is very expressive and affectionate. He gives great hugs and kisses, and loves people. He is not very shy (yet, anyway) and shows a lot of emotion with his facial expressions. As a biased Mom, I can't get over how cute he is, and I love spending my days with him! Part of me wishes he would never grow up, that I could just freeze him right now in all his 18-month-old cuteness, but having older kids, I also know how much fun each new phase is and I would never want to miss out on those either. (And I'm pretty sure I don't have the energy for an eternal 18-month-old anyway.)  His siblings also all think he is GREAT and love to play with him. We sure love our Brady boy!

And just for fun, a favorite little picture series of mine. Brady playing with water...

So proud of himself!!!