Martin at 18 months!

This week marked Martin's half birthday (Arie, queen of half birthdays, you went home before it happened!). I can't believe he is 18 months already. So what is Martin like these days?

Somewhere between 17 and 18 months Martin figured out he could speak. He isn't linking words together or anything, but he is adding 2 or 3 words a day... lots of two syllable words too! And attempting three syllable words like strawberry, basketball, and ambulance.

Speaking of strawberries, Martin thinks he could live off said food. Particularly if things like tomatoes (which he called for a few weeks apples... isn't everything red with a stem an apple?) avocados, rice, and butter bread (for the butter) are around. He is finding cherries yummy too. I always ask him if he thinks he is a red fruit. Really, though, he is a good and adventurous eater, particularly when he isn't cutting 3 teeth at a time like he is right now (a canine and two molars). He still likes to help cook too.

He is still a big boy. We haven't been to the doctor for his WBV, but he weighs over 25 lbs I think. Still tall too... 24month old clothes fit perfectly right now, but won't for long.

Martin loves the outside. He loves to go to the park (knows how to direct us the 5 blocks to the park with several turns) where he will watch men play basketball for hours. Everywhere he goes he takes his favorite ball... a blue racket ball. It is practically his lovey. He also loves stomping in puddles - enough so that I bought him "puddle shoes" even though we are finally at the end of the rainy season here.


Other favorite toys include his push duck, pull dog, and his collection of train, bus, and planes. Justin has taken 4 two day business trips in the last 4 weeks, so we have been to the "airplane house" a lot lately. Martin loves that particular trip because we go down a major bus route, get on the freeway where the light rail runs parallel with at least 4 trains per trip, and then watch for airplanes at the airport. He even now announces when we pull into the drop off terminal "all done." That isn't to say Martin wants Papa to go; in fact, he then spends the next day calling for Papa and going to the door. During the day Mama is hardly important compared to Papa the playmate. But at night - which I think he might finally start sleeping through if these silly molars would arrive - only Mama will do.

Despite the fact that his 18 month photo shoot does not show him smiling (he was being serious because he just figured out he could sit on this curb next to the place where we bounce his ball off the wall), he is just delightful. May he be as delightful for the next 18 years as he has been these past 18 months!