Keeping Up with Kallen-- 18 Months Old!

Kallen Gentry...
A year and a half  (18months on July 3rd) !? Crazy how that happens :) You are still the sweetest, cuddliest baby. I so love my time with you. You are such a Mama's Boy and I love every minute of it!

You throw EVERYTHING. When we play with you, or really, anytime we're around you we have to watch you because you'll throw whatever you have at us. A ball, a cell phone, a sippy cup, an iPad. You name it. Theres already been a handful of times you've thrown something at me when I wasn't looking and got me good. The other night you threw a big 'ol light up play toy thing that was super heavy and hit me right in the ankle and hurt like a mother! I think something like that happens weekly. So we're guessing you're either going to grow up to be some sort of athlete that involves throwing (maybe a pitcher?) Or you're going to be a professional dancer. LOL. I'm gonna guess Daddy hopes for the first of those 2. And you don't just throw it...you look at me, or whoever you're throwing to and get it right to us. You also say "Catch" but that's usually after you've already chucked it. You have great aim and an incredibly strong overhand throw.

You have tons of words. Raya didn't have this many at your age. You say all kinds of things and you also mimic people really well. I remember getting the weekly Babycenter updates with Raya when they talked about "Oh at this point your baby is probably mimicking you." Raya never really mimicked, but you do a lot. Many times we can say a word and you'll say it right back (or at least attempt to ;) You say Mama, Dada, Raya (which sounds like Yay-Ya- so cute!), Jack, Dog, Nana, Bubble, Pop, Bye, BALL!, Catch, BBall, Tree, Jump, Mike (for Mike the Knight), bottle, just to name the ones I can think of. Oh and my 2 favorite words are Mickey Mouse and Chip. Mickey Mouse sounds like Mick Mou and Chip sounds like Chipeyy. Its hilarious and SO CUTE!!! You also do the sounds for Cow, Cat, Monkey, Frog, Dog, Bird and are getting pretty good at knowing all your facial features. You're just a little sponge these days!!! Raya wasn't very "babyish" and seemed older at this age, but word-wise you say a lot more than she did. You have 3 phrases and they are "Oh, Wow" "Ah Man" and "WoooW, Cool!"

You can jump with both feet at once. In fact you jump off your chair and stick the landing every time. You're a fast little runner. A great thrower. Love to do summer-salts. Love to swim. You let me take you under water occasionally and you have no problem jumping in. You LOVE the water. You hate any kind of floatie device and try to get me to let go of you. Obviously you can't swim by yourself, lol, so we are definitely working on it!

You have all of your teeth, except your molars. You've become a better eater....kinda. I still give you baby food because its the only way you get all your nutrients. You'll eat just about any kind of potato: fries, hash browns, baked potatoes, chips. You still drink 4 bottles a day. You'd probably drink milk all day long if I let you. You LOVE your milk. You also love fruit snacks and dum-dums. Dum-dums are my bribing tool with you. You are so content when you're eating one. Best idea ever!

Your Stats: You weigh 30.5 lbs and are 34.5 inches. That's the 95percentile for weight and 75percentile for height. You're in size 24month/2T clothes. You can still fit about half of your 18mon clothes, but for the most part you went from 12mon to 24mon, so I don't have many 18mon items as it is. You're in a size 7 shoe. You're in a size 4 diaper...I could probably put you in a 5, but you get more in the size 4 box ;) You are a solid kid. A Tank!

You have quite the temper, but that's not new. You've had a temper since you were in my belly. I remember trying to sit really still, or bracing myself in the car so I wouldn't move because you'd kick/punch me so hard and I thought if I moved less I'd be less likely to make you uncomfortable. HAHA!! You just get mad really quickly. And frustrated pretty quickly. You get over it just about as fast as you get worked up, but its still quite the fit.

You're a very happy boy. Typically you're pretty calm. You're not going 24/7 like your sister. You enjoy cuddling or sitting with me and watching TV or sitting out in the back. You make me laugh all the time. You know how to be funny and the faces you do are hilarious. Right now you're really into hugging and kissing me. Its the SWEETEST!!! You love your sleep and generally fall asleep really easily. Especially in the car. Sometimes you'll be asleep before I even start the car. You're down to 2 naps a day, morning and late afternoon. And you sleep pretty solid at night, although you HATE when you wake up in the night. You almost always instantly cry or holler. But as soon as you find your pacifier you fall right back asleep.

And you are still a huge DANCER!!! You dance all the time, especially to your Daddy's mixes. Lol. Your favorite show is The Fresh Beat Band. You stop everything you're doing and run to the TV and start dancing as soon as you hear the theme song. Its pretty hilarious. I have a ton of videos of you dancing. Its my favorite!!! 

I so love being with you everyday. I'm so lucky to have such a sweet son. You are my heart and I just can't believe I have a child that loves me as much as you do. Thank you for being so perfect!!! I love you!!!
Xoxo,
Mom