Eli: 15 Months

Eli is a walking, talking, fit-throwing machine. His 15 month well check was great. He got 3 shots and I'm sure the people in the building next door heard how he felt about that. I have always said I am so thankful that he doesn't cry much because, when he does, it literally hurts my ears. He weighs 22lbs (40%) and is 31.5in long (60%). He still looks so pudgy to me so those stats are surprising. I was so glad I was able to tell his doctor that he is walking, just in the nick of time! He is still wobbly but can really get going and almost gets into a run before he realizes it and chickens out. I love that he is so careful though. Jay is going to cost us a fortune in medical bills from his ridiculous stunts so we won't have much left to repair poor Eli's mishaps!  And he really does love walking. The only time I've seen him crawl is on the stairs or when on hilly ground. Anytime we go somewhere new the first thing he does is walk in circles through the room and has such a proud look as everyone praises him.

He has really clung to "lovie" during this scary time of new milestones. He does not let it out of his sight and must have it in hand before beginning a walking venture. 

For other things...he says several words: "mama" but doesn't call me this anymore. He switched it to "baba" a few weeks ago. I don't care what he calls me though, it's precious in any form.
"papa"- started this after visiting Papa Tim back in January. Anytime Jay and I mention Papa, Mama Ross, or Mimi he just starts repeating, "papa! papa! papa!"- I'm not sure if he thinks they are all Papa or if he just associates papa with any grandparent. I'm sure they all feel the same way as I do about what he calls them though.
"Dink!" (drink) I put the exclamation point behind it because he always yells that word with passion. And will keep saying it until it is in his hands. I am rushing around, looking for the sippy cup, pouring the milk, managing Jay's demands, while the whole time hearing an urgent "dink! dink! dink! dink!"....funny and nerve wracking all at the same time.
"Day" (Jay) If Jay is out of sight Eli yells for him. He always has to be right with his big bro. When I tell Eli it's time to go pick Jay up from school is gets so excited and the whole way there yells, "Day! Day!"
"Dake" (Jake) , "Tishy" (Kitty), "Tuesh" (Shoe), "Uh Oh (still a fav), "tee" (tree), "Laya" (Malayah from next door), "Dayee" (Daddy), "hey", "be bye"
Wes mentioned last night that he doesn't seem to babble as much as Jay did. Jay talked for the sake of talking (big surprise, right) but Eli speaks only when there is purpose in it. Uhhh, is that me and Wes or what!? :)  

He loves being pampered. Back rubs, brushing his hair (because you know that is so necessary), rubbing lotion on him, even brushing his teeth. He likes doing that on his own sometimes too.

He eats anything he can feed to himself. See the picture above...eating some cake while doing serious police work. He has a good life.
It is rare that I get to feed him with a spoon these days. His favorite foods are bananas, blueberries, black beans, lima beans, chicken, yogurt, and goldfish. And he enjoys Moe's Monday just the like rest of us. ;) 

He loves faces and points to the nose, eyes, and mouth. He gets them mixed up some but normally will point to whatever you call out.

I love this wooden baby swing! It will be Wes' first project when we move. 

He unloads drawers constantly (and I load them back up constantly, fun times). Even with his toys the sole purpose is to empty them all out and move on. No need to play with them, just destroy each room, wait until I clean it all up, and start again. And, can I remind you, that we have the house on the market...makes for some long days!

These next few are from the zoo. It was so much fun for Eli now that he's walking. The two of them just went off exploring together.

Walking around in circles in this big room

Making a break for it

Mesmerized by the penguins

I know I mentioned how crazy he's been lately. Well last week I noticed his top two molars had come in. No wonder he was acting possessed!  He has definitely been better since then. So he has 8 teeth total (6 on top, 2 on bottom).

Malayah brought Eli some cotton candy. Because I love it when people give my toddler mouthfuls of sugar. ;)    I was happy to see he wasn't a fan.

And this is why you don't leave soda cans within his reach. (the neighbors caught this on camera and I just saw them! haha)

He loves outside. Thanks to Jay, we are outside several hours a day, especially with the nicer weather lately. He just walks all over the yard chasing balls and following Jay around. He loves stroller rides and loves police car rides even more. Unfortunately there is not always room for Eli due to the large assortment of police tools that Jay feels are critical for the job at hand. Soon, Eli will start fighting for his seat so Jay better enjoy the solo rides while he can.

These next ones are at Monkey Joe's yesterday. A few months ago Eli screamed bloody murder if I sat him in a bounce house. Yesterday he loved it. It was quality time with just me and Eli as I only saw Jay racing past me to get to the next thing.

He would occasionally go up to the big slides and yell for "Day!" to come down. Sadly, Jay was way to busy to give baby brother any mind.

Speaking of, Eli has learned how to fight over toys. There have been several times that I've been in another room and hear the most dramatic, ear-piercing, devastating scream from Eli. I run in thinking something horrible happened only to find the two of them pulling a ball, car, etc back and forth. It only takes a few screams until Jay usually gives up and decides the toy isn't worth permanent hearing damage. Yesterday morning they had it out over Jay's new soccer ball. Eli claimed all of the balls in the house long ago and Jay went along with it since he is into trucks and superheros right now. But this was his new soccer ball. He was not letting Eli take this one!  And, oh my, they were pulling and screaming over that ball all morning. And I didn't fuss at Jay because it was his ball but you can't really explain that to a 1 year old. It was fun.


That's all I can think of and Eli will be up soon but here is a short video of Eli practicing his soccer skills while Jay had his first soccer practice. I just caught the end of it but he kicked the ball around for a while. I think Eli may just make us rich and famous with his athletic skills one day.