Lenore at 16 Months

16 Months Old

Today is Lenore's 16 month birthday, and it dawned on me the other evening that she normally would have to celebrate such an occasion on March 1. Today is Leap Day!

We started the day/week out at the pediatrician's office this morning. I was on the fence about whether to take her in, once I realized her thick, yellow-greenish snot has been around for two weeks. I decided to take her, and it turns out it's just a cold. :( Her ears had a little bit of fluid but no pus, and a strep test came back negative. The doctor said since it's been so long, we could try antibiotics for a sinus infection, but I decided to just wait it out and see if we can clear her up with saline and the NoseFrida (snot sucker). Unfortunately we had to wait in the room for an hour before seeing the doctor, so it's kind of a crummy way to start our week, but oh well.

She weighed 26.5 pounds [75th-90th percentile] and was 31.5 inches tall [50th to 75th percentile] this morning.

What she's been up to:

• She's had this runny nose for a few weeks now, and before that, she was in a lot of teething pain. I still haven't seen any new teeth, but they're apparently on their way. Must be those terrible, awful molars coming through.
• She is sleeping well (probably from feeling crummy). She's still going between one to two naps a day, depending on the day. If we have to pick Lewis up at 12, I keep her up until after lunch. On days when he stays until 2, she'll take a mid-morning nap that is usually 10:30-1:30ish, and that's it for the day. If her morning nap lasts 3 hours, that's all we'll do, but she's had a few days of napping 1 1/2 hours in the morning and again in the afternoon. She is clear with communicating her napping needs, way more so than Lewis ever was.
• Her appetite has been a little puny from the snot, but she continues to eat pretty well. She HAS started to throw food on the ground once she's finished, which is super annoying. She has also started gagging herself at mealtimes, which I remember Lewis doing as well. I haven't seen her do it since last week, so hopefully she's forgotten about it.
• At certain times of the day, she might point to a banana, go to the pantry and grabs raisins and bread, and wants in the fridge. All at once, in that moment, she wants it all (though she rarely eats much of it, she is very demanding). She eats way more than Lewis does, overall, though he drinks milk and she still doesn't. 
• She's getting better at feeding herself with a spoon. She's got the scooping part down pretty well, but then she flips the spoon over and dumps out its contents half of the time. She's getting there, though.
• I might have said this last month--she loves to pick up little pieces of trash, dog hair, etc. around the house and take them to the trash. She loves to 'clean up' with a wash cloth or paper towel--she'll wipe her face and her body, wipe off her high chair, clean the floor. 
• She is back to waving. The other day, I was at the computer and she was playing next to me (we were by the front window), and I saw that Kevin was pulling in the driveway. I said, 'Who is here?' She looked out the window and started full-body waving like crazy, saying 'Dadadadadada!' The cutest thing.
• She doesn't say much beyond an occasional Dada, Bubba, or Mama. She has started trying to say Peter and Hattie--she'll point to one and say 'Buttah' for Peter or '___' for Hattie (I forget). She's got shrieking down pat. Otherwise, she gets around pointing and grunting at us. Oh, she also says 'woof' when reading one of her peek-a-boo books. Two cute, little 'boof boof' and that's it. 
• She looooves to play outside. I keep having to wipe down her shoes because they're constantly covered in mud. Or her socks or pajama feet. I did find some outdoor shoes for her over the weekend, so we'll try to keep those as the designated muddy shoes. I'm definitely looking forward to consistently nicer weather because Mama loves being outside, too!
• In clothing, she is still wearing 18 months for the most part (a few sleepers are getting snug). She has a few smaller 24 months/2T pieces that are working, too.
• Current Tooth Count: still 12, but I expect some molars to make their grand entrance soon.

Lewis at FIVE!

Five Years Old

----------Updated 2/23/16 with doctor's appointment findings:

His stats from the doctor:
Height: 46 5/8 inches [96.4th percentile]
Weight: 54.1 pounds [99.6th percentile]

His appointment went very well. They tested his urine and blood and screened his vision, hearing, blood pressure, handwriting, colors, walking on toes/walking on heels, touching his toes (to check for scoliosis), and a few other things I'm probably forgetting. It took longer than any appointment we've been to, but Lewis seemed to enjoy the tasks, except for the finger prick. He was VERY brave while the nurse pricked and then squeezed his finger, but after she left, he was VERY upset that there was a hole left in his finger. I'm talking sobbing tears, upset about why there had to be a hole left in his finger. I tried to calmly explain to him that his body would repair the hole right away (definitely by bath time), but he was soooo upset! 'But why does there have to be a hooooole?!' Thankfully all looked back to normal by bath time--phew!

All checked out well except for his iron. It was just a little low (11.8, and the minimum should be 12), so we are going to get him back on a multivitamin with iron. He didn't have to get any shots and is up-to-date until 2022!
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It's hard to believe that Lewis is turning five years old. My memories are a little foggy from his birth day now that time has passed and Lenore has joined our family, but it definitely feels hard to believe he's been with us for five years. Kevin and I have been parents for five years! [Ten years, if you count the dogs, I suppose. ;)] 

Here's what he's been up to lately:

• He is doing very well at preschool. We had a parent-teacher conference in the fall, and they said he was pretty much on track, as far as Kindergarten-preparedness goes. At the time, he did need to work on gripping a pencil and using scissors, so we've been working on those. He's just starting to want to color and draw more--it's just not been something he's been interested in before. His handwriting needs some fine-tuning, as well. In time. ;)
• We have applied to his elementary school, which is a whole process here in Louisville, even with the public schools. Everyone lives within a cluster, and you rank your choice of schools within your cluster, and you hope that you get your #1 (or #2) choice. Our #1 is just a mile away from our house, so I really hope we get it. There is a more well-touted school in our cluster that we hope others will try for, so that should leave us a better chance of getting into ours. We will find out in March, I think.
• He has played soccer at school last fall and this spring, and we are going to sign up for T-ball this summer with one of his buddies. I need to sign him up for swim lessons, again, too.
• He very much loves his trains. He caught Hand Foot Mouth disease at school right before Christmas break, so we were home in quarantine for a week, and his love of trains kind of got re-energized then. He spent hours working quietly and built the most elaborate set-ups. He can be so meticulous and patient when he is in the train zone, unless he gets frustrated or Lenore gets too close. We actually got him a beginner's model train set for his birthday that is meant for a slightly older age group, but he can handle it.
• He loves to play outside in the yard, either digging in the dirt or playing in the sandbox. He likes to pretend that he's camping, and he loves when we build a real campfire. He loves to collect things he finds outside in the yard and/or on bike rides, and he brings them home and puts them in a treasure box (a small box he made at school). He has feathers, acorns, rocks, pine cones, etc.
• He does have some angry outbursts at times, which are usually followed by a big hug. I feel like he is definitely working through how to express his emotions properly, so we work on using our words. Sometimes he tries to hit or kick/trip Lenore or twirl her hair aggressively, hits a toy, shrieks, or stomps around. We, of course, are trying to teach him that it's not okay to put his hands onto other people out of aggression, but it's an ongoing battle. He has twirled my hair and her hair as a comfort thing for a while now, which is fine, but it's not fine when he pulls her hair as he does it.
• He has started saying he wants to be a firefighter when he grows up. We have started seeing a particular fire truck more often on our way to/from school, one with a REALLY long ladder on top, and he wants to have the job of the 2nd driver of that truck. Someone sits on the top of the back of the truck to help the truck turn corners.
• He's starting to try to tell jokes, which is funny in itself. He hasn't quite gotten the comedic timing down yet, but he's trying. And he cracks himself up, just walking around saying silly words.

Outtakes from this morning:

 Snuggles

His CHEESE Face

Lewis's Favorite Things at 5!

What is your favorite...

...color?
red and blue (It was just red for a while--blue has been a recent addition.)

...toy?
my Polar Express train

...stuffed animal?
my big brown puppy dog in my bedroom (The one we take monthly/yearly pictures with)

...thing to sleep with?
same as above

...fruit?
grapes

...vegetable?
broccoli and  carrots

...cereal?
Lucky Charms (he hasn't had them for a long time--he has a bowl of Cheerios most mornings these days) 

...thing to eat for breakfast?
Cheerios with milk and plain Cheerios ('plain' meaning just dry, without milk)

...thing to eat for lunch?
peanut butter and jelly

...dessert?
candy

...candy?
Skittles

...drink?
chocolate milk, especially from Red Robin (We just went there the other day.)

...restaurant?
New McDonald's PlayPlace (His first answer, which is skewed because they have a cool new play area.)
McAlister's Deli (He likes to eat there because they make a mean PB&J.)

...animal?
tigers (This is a new one. We went to the zoo a few weekends ago, and he laid down on some rocks by the tiger exhibit and starting roaring at people. It was pretty funny!)

...book?
Superhero ABCs (He and Kevin read this every night at bedtime. He identifies the letter, and Kevin reads the alliterative superhero's name.)

...song?
The ABC Song

...game/sport?
Riding my bike

...TV show?
Paw Patrol

...movie?
I think I love Monsters University.

...thing to do outside?
Play in the snow (It's snowing as I'm asking him these...)

...place to shop?
Toys R Us

...shirt/outfit?
I think I love the Star Wars shirt that I got for my birthday.

What do you want to eat for your birthday dinner?
Brownies
Chicken Banana Butt
Banana Bread
(That answer pretty much sums up my life with him these days...)

Who is your best friend?
Mathilda and Lily

What do you want to be when you grow up?
A firefighter


Here are his answers from Age 4.

Here are Age 3.