Miles is 18 Months Old

Miles had his 18 month checkup last week and the pediatrician was very happy with his skills and size. He may be a finicky eater but "it doesn't show." Miles is 33 inches (75th percentile for height) and 27 pounds (50-75th percentile for weight). The pediatrician said "he's a big boy." No kidding - I hardly need to work my arm muscles after picking him up several times a day. The kid is more than a quarter of my weight and over half of my height!

It's hard to keep track of everything Miles can do. He's super baby but then again I'm a tad biased. I also can't remember what I have and haven't shared, so forgive me if this is old news.

Miles is a puzzle pro. If you place any chunky wooden puzzle in front of him, he'll put it together with practically no problem. Occasionally he'll have a problem and we'll need to tell him to spin it or turn it around. It's pretty amazing to watch him (again, I am biased).

He's also talking up a storm. If you say a word and ask him to repeat it, he'll do his best to get it right. Sometimes the words come out crystal clear and other times everything sounds the same. We've heard him say ABC and 123, peanut butter, jelly, lion, zebra, brown bear, polar bear, panda bear, blanket, train, puzzle and quite a few other words loud and very clear. However, most of the time Mike and I are the only two that understand him but that's okay — we don't mind translating.

Miles continues to be a finicky eater. His favorites continue to be cheese, fruit, yogurt, eggs, apple sauce, oatmeal, pasta and bread. Mike and I are working on getting him to eat other things but, as his pediatrician said, he's not malnourished. Over the holidays he actually ate a turkey sandwich and, just recently, he ate asparagus. One day this kid will eat vegetables...I hope!

There's no doubt Miles is a musician at heart. He LOVES playing any instrument he can get his hands on. He has a xylophone, drum set, tambourine, bells and a piano at home and I'm sure I'm forgetting a few instruments. He just recently started singing too — turn on a Sesame Street song and he'll sing along. It's the cutest darn thing! I'm hoping to get a video of it. Miles even sings at church with the contemporary choir. It doesn't matter what they are singing. When they start, he joins in with the rest of the congregation. (It keeps him occupied and prevents him from roaming around in search of another fire alarm.)

It seems like every month Miles gets faster and faster. He's into everything, on top of everything and climbing up everything. He's going to introduce ottoman surfing to the Olympic committee one of these years and win the first gold medal in the "sport." Hide-n-Seek is his favorite game. He hides and we seek — but he often forgets to tell us he's playing.

Mike and I are physically exhausted by the time Miles falls asleep but we wouldn't trade a minute.