Emmi Expecting: 19 Months

Challenges: Still tantrums, caused by frustration. If something he's attempting doesn't happen perfectly the first time he gets so upset, and sometimes expresses it physically. He's also really preferring daddy right now, which is really hard on me.
Triumphs: Giving the baby kisses, crawling up a play structure's ladder on his own, going down the slide on his own and swinging on a big boy swing, "dancing" hard shoe, big boy bed (kinda), can climb onto couch
Words: "no" (a favourite right now), "ny ny" (night night), "choo choo," "feeth" (teeth), "lebbuce" (lettuce), "whoo whoo" (like choo choo), "bye bye puhpuhs" (bye bye puppies) (first phrase!)
Favourite toys: Books, books, books! His wooden train with blocks also gets a lot of use and some easter eggs, which he loves to bring you to close for him.

G is pretty much on track developmentally. His vocabulary is really good, and though they'd like him to have more phrases (he had none at our appointment), he's babbling away a storm. I swear, he's speaking in full sentences, it's just not a recognizable language.

He's still tiny, but the doctor said he'll probably grow this summer. He goes between eating well and not being interested in food. To be honest, our schedule has been crazy since we moved, and that's probably part of it. We had to switch doctors as well after we moved; we loved Gulf Shores Pediatrics but they're just too far away for my peace of mind.

He's still doing well at school. He's only bitten once this month and apparently the kid was right in his face. He does have an incredibly low frustration tolerance. If things don't immediately go right or work out, he freaks out. Sometimes it escalates into a full blown tantrum. Sometimes they turn physical. He throws things down when he's frustrated (which we then make him pick up), or he'll hit/kick/push (which always gets an immediate time out.) I don't know how to help him most of the time since holding him usually upsets him more or brings on the physical part. Plus I'm not exactly the best at dealing with frustration either. Though I do usually refrain from tantrums, haha.

There's so much going on and so many things changing that it's hard to keep him on a consistent schedule. A new house, with things constantly in flux, and we're going on vacation soon, moving to camp, changing daycares/amount of time in daycare, moving back to a remodeled home and then along comes a sibling. I think things aren't really going to settle down until we get settled back into the house with baby girl. Hopefully during camp we'll settle into more of a routine too, but I know that'll only be a month or two at most.

Other than still living with boxes and work on the house, it's been a relatively uneventful month. He fingerpainted and we discovered that G is fastidious and doesn't like "gunk" on his hands. We've struggled with the big boy bed, ending up asleep on the floor most nights and sleeping horribly with mom in the bed during storms. He came to dance with me for the first time and had fun, though he was a big distraction. He grows up and changes more and more every day. He babbles nonsensically and non-stop, dances to music and loves to be sung to. He is fussy and tantrum-prone, often for no obvious or apparent reason. He's started cuddling the giraffe I made him as he falls asleep and gets upset when he can't find it. He seems to be right on track for his age, and we're doing our best to handle the challenges and enjoy the little daily triumphs of a new word or new understanding. Cherishing every cuddle and kiss and climb into your lap with a book (Goodnight Goon parody anyone? I have it memorized!) I can't wait to see him grow into his role as big brother!