Peanut is 17 months old today and he has really turned into quite a little boy. He seems to understand and communicate more and has definitely been moving more!!!

Highlights from this past month:

• Speech/Communication: Peanut can say “uh oh”, “apple”, “open”, “cheese”, “choo-choo”, and “up”. He’s signing “all done” and “please”. He is also nodding “yes” and “no”. He imitates lots of sounds and babbles with so much intent and variety in his tone. In Hawaii, he learned how to wag his finger to make a “no-no-no”. He also expresses himself with lots of facial expressions — he’s like a walking emoji.
• Comprehension: He follows simple directions such as “wash hands”, “put in”, “sit down”, “no scratching”, and “go neh-neh (sleep)”. He waves bye and can do the Thai greeting of putting his hands together toward his face.  When we ask him to give a kiss, he lowers his forehead toward the person he’s “kissing”. He also gives hugs when his sister says “give me a hug”. He is also imitating lots of gestures and sounds – especially his sister’s.
• Gross Motor: There’s definitely been a surge in his walking and balance. He walks with greater speed and can make turns quickly without falling (most of the time). Now that he can get up from the floor and squat down to pick things up, he’s always on the move! Climbing has also become a fun pastime for him. He learned how to climb onto his big sister’s bed and onto the couch with a little help from the reading chair. In Hawaii, he figured out how to walk on sand and in the shallow waves. He also enjoys dancing any time he hears music.
• Fine Motor: This guy loves using a fork when he eats and can poke lots of stuff on his own now. Some of his favorite things to do right now are stacking, putting things inside of containers, using sticks to drum anything in sight, pressing buttons, and pointing.
• Eating: He’s gotten pickier this past month and will spit out certain foods that he doesn’t like such as mashed potato, carrot, spinach, tomato, and rice (sometimes). Generally, however, he still enjoys eating and does it with gusto. His favorites right now are noodles, broccoli, any meat, bananas, and apple slices. He’s also learned how to suck puree out of fruit pouches. It definitely came in handy on the plane. He also enjoys drinking out of a plastic disposable drinking cup and straw (what he and Janie get at restaurants). He’s also figured out how to drink from an open cup as well.
• Events: Hawaii was one of the highlights of this past month. He LOVED the pool and ocean. He got spooked by the waves at the beach one day but overcame it the next day. Another highlight of the month was Christmas and spending the week in Cerritos with family. He went to Disneyland for the 4th time and had the best time! He loved riding “It’s a Small World” and “Dumbo”. He also loved the parade and the music that is played all over the park.
• Health: He’s had a few colds and even had a fever one night in Hawaii. His skin is still a problem but it healed after a week in the ocean and pool. Unfortunately, the rashes flared back up again once we returned to SF.
• Sleeping/Habits: He’s still a champion napper and goes to bed without much of a fight at night. He still wakes up very early in the morning but somehow adjusted quite well to Hawaii time.  He also sleeps on his tummy or curled up like a turtle more frequently now.
• Social: Peanut has truly come out of his shell as a full-fledged toddler. He has started to protest by laying down on the ground (just like his sister did) so we will be seeing more photos of him being what we like to call a potato. He’s also a feisty one and will throw, arch, cry, and hit if he’s really upset. There have been a few fights between him and his sister lately and much of them are started by him. He has also become territorial with Mama. If Janie tries to hug her, he scurries over and tries to pull her off. Ridiculous.

It’s hard to believe that our baby boy is just a boy now. He’s definitely a handful but we love him to pieces. Happy 17 months, Peanut!!