Last weekend, Mommy, Aunt Hilary, and I went to St. Louis for a girls' weekend to visit Aunt Meredith and Jess, Mommy and Hilary's roommate from college and Hilary's best friend. Aunt Meredith is staying at Jess's house right now while she does a clinical rotation there for school (that's basically where you work but don't get paid).
We had so much fun! The best part was on Saturday morning when we went to the zoo. A zoo is this awesome place where they keep lots of animals that usually live in the wild so that people can come and see them. We saw all kinds of cool animals! It was sort of cold outside, so we had to bundle up. My favorite part was the monkey house because it was warm inside, and I got to run around by myself looking at all of the different kinds of monkeys behind the glass. I kept trying to talk to them, but I don't think they could hear me!
The elephant is Aunt Hilary's favorite animal.
Watching the little monkeys
I loved watching the monkeys swing in the trees!
Talking about the monkeys with Aunt Merf
If you look really close, you can see this Mama monkey is holding her baby!
Peacocks are so colorful! They were out of their cage, just walking around!
Talking to the gorilla.
Checking out the giraffes, who were inside for the day because of the cold. They were bigger than I thought!
Snoozing in the stroller.
After wandering around the zoo all morning, I was pretty tired. While Mommy was waiting in line to buy lunch, I fell asleep right there in the stroller in the crowded restaurant. Learning about real live animals is exhausting! I can't wait to go again in Kansas City this time!
We spent the rest of the weekend hanging out at Jess's house, eating out, and shopping. I also said Merf and Jess for the first time (and the second, and the third, and the fourth…). I had so much fun being one of the girls!
Lately I've become quite the little "helper" for Mommy. I love to help her do absolutely everything! It's one of my favorite things to say, too. "Help Mama?" Some of my favorite things to help her with are dishes, cooking, and laundry, but really I'll try to help with anything! You might remember my last post where I showed you a video of me helping Mama put away the groceries. Here's another video of me helping her unload the dishwasher:
And, here are some more pics of my helpfulness:
Helping Mama bake
Every night I put my dirty clothes in the hamper when I'm getting ready for bed.
Rinsing off my toothbrush after "helping" Mama brush my teeth.
Sometimes I like to help Daddy, too. My favorite thing to help him with is feeding Darcy and letting her outside. I think Mommy and Daddy are hoping that one of these days letting me "help" will pay off, and I can start doing these things all by myself!
Last week I turned 18 months old, which is exactly 1 1/2 years! Today I went to see a new doctor for my check-up named Dr. Moylan. The doctor I was seeing before was Mommy's general practitioner (whatever that means!), but she and Daddy decided to start taking me to see a pediatrician instead. He was really nice, and since it's a doctor's office just for kids, they have TOYS! I had so much fun playing while we were waiting and while Mommy was talking to the doctor. I didn't have fun getting my shots, but at least the doctor said I'm all done with shots until kindergarten! Woo-hoo! Afterwards, Mommy took me to Chick Fil-A for a special lunch. Yummy!
Enjoying my Chick Fil-A lunch after the doctor's office
18 Month Stats
Weight: 28 lbs 11 oz (98th percentile)
Height: 31 in (26th percentile); Not sure about this since I was supposedly 32 in when they measured me at my 15 month check-up… They measured a different way at the new doctor on a special table, so maybe that's why it was different! Hopefully I'm not shrinking!
Head circumference: 19 in (93rd percentile)
Clothes size: 18-24 mos/2T
Diaper size: 5
18 Month Habits
Eating: I'm a little bit more of a picky eater these days. I'll still pretty much eat anything, but I might gobble something up one day and then refuse it the next, especially fruits and vegetables. I'm just enjoying being able to make my own decisions and make Mommy and Daddy a little crazy! ;) I'm getting better at using a fork and spoon by myself, too.
Favorite foods: pasta, macaroni and cheese (still my fav!), rice, mandarin oranges, bananas, yogurt
Sleeping: I still go to bed at 7:30 and sleep until 6:30 or 7 in the morning and take 1 nap in the afternoon from about 12:30 until 3. Although, about a week ago I skipped my nap for the first time. I just stayed up in my crib playing the whole time. I think Mommy and Daddy got kind of frustrated, though, because after that, they took me over to Nana and Papa's house to play and disappeared to the hot tub for a while. Daddy hurt his back that weekend, too, so I guess maybe I was wearing them out!
Play/skills: These days I'm pretty busy! I pretty much don't like to sit still unless I'm watching a movie or sleeping. I like to walk up and down the stairs holding Mommy or Daddy's hands instead of crawling sometimes, and I can push my ride on toys forward now instead of just backwards. I still like to read books a lot, but I prefer to hold them and turn the pages myself instead of letting Mommy and Daddy do it most of the time. I also know how to hold a marker or a crayon and color on a piece of paper. I love to play peek-a-boo and will sometimes make you wait for a long time before I pop out (it's more dramatic that way!).
Favorite toys: puzzles, balls, toy food and shopping cart, my slide, and Baby Abby (my baby doll)
Communication: I LOVE to talk and have lots and lots of words and signs. I've started putting 2 words together, and one of my favorite phrases is "Help Mama." Whatever Mama is doing, I like to help her with it: sorting and moving laundry, cooking, cleaning up, unloading the dishwasher, or even putting away groceries, like here:
Other Favorite Pics:
Swinging at the park all bundled up in the cold!
Snuggle time with Mommy
Playing on Aunt Hilary's stairs
Playing peek-a-boo behind my toy bowl
Trying on Daddy's hat
Playing peek-a-boo again behind the wall this time.
