18 Months

It is hard to believe that Chloë is a year and half old now. She is such a big girl, and I know she is going to be a big help (or at least do her best trying) when the baby arrives.

She rarely walks anymore. But only because she prefers to run as her main mode of ambulation. She and her daddy made up this game where she stands by the couch, he asks "ready?" and she nods. Then he slowly counts to three, and then says "go go go!" and she takes off running into the kitchen, only to return a few seconds later to start the game over. She also likes to stomp and walk on her tip toes if she isn't running. And she likes to jump, or "dump," as she calls it. Since she hasn't figured out how to actually jump off the ground, this works best if she's on a soft surface, like a couch or bed, and she happily bounces.

She can be a very silly girl. Here's a funny face she makes sometimes.

And then the next one is what we see when we ask her to show us her teeth.

And then there's the classic silly-teeth-smile:


If we ask her where something is, and she doesn't know, she'll hold both of her hands up above her shoulders, palms up, fingers curled and shrug her shoulders. If she wants to know where something went, she asks "ah go??" She also picked up on our "be right back" when we leave the room. So she'll run off into the next room yelling "be back!"

She's put together her first basic sentences recently. Last week in the car, she was eating pretzels, and long after they were gone, I was searching around for her pacifier and found a half eaten pretzel. I held it up to see if she wanted it, and with great delight she exclaimed "Oh!! It's a pets-ul!!!!"

In the last couple of weeks, she decided she is skilled enough to handle eating with no help. I was hesitant to let her have the spoon with things like cheerios, but she sweetly asks "do it?" and she's really gotten pretty good at it. Bibs were a great invention.

She likes to be neat while she eats. If a drop of milk spills from her spoon onto her tray, she points at the napkin I likely have close by, and says "mess. Wipe?" Sometimes we'll let her entertain her OCD tendencies and wipe it up right away, but sometimes we want her to wait until she's all done eating, and have to reassure her that everything will be okay if we leave the mess for a few minutes.

Chloë has become quite attached to her Bear, blanket, and binkie. (I have to admit, I was secretly pleased when she started forming at attachment to the little blanket I crocheted for her before she was born.) If she needs a little down time, she'll get Bear and blanket (and binkie if we let her), and cuddle with them for a while. Sometimes she'll get a pillow and lay down on the floor and re-charge for a few minutes. Then she's off finding something to get into. Cupboards are fun to slam, chairs make a delightful noise when pushed across the floor, and Mama's makeup drawer has all sorts of great things in it.

She's still our cuddly kid, and is happiest falling asleep on someone's lap.


Chloë is becoming more shy, especially around adults, particularly men. She used to just eat up attention, and would be anyone's new best friend in a matter of minutes, but lately she is much more hesitant around new people. Especially if we're in a room of new faces, she prefers it if Mama or Daddy is holding her. Any time she wants to be held, she'll say "hoed you?" and reach towards the person she wants to hold her.

She does still enjoy getting out of the house, and likes exploring new places. We were at the bookstore last week, and she wandered a few feet away and grabbed what we thought was a good choice.

A true North Idaho girl, and certainly her father's daughter.

She just likes books, and usually spends a good half hour every day pulling books off the shelf and "reading" them to herself.


And then there's technology. She'll keep herself busy for a long time with an iPod or cell phone. (We may or may not have caved and gotten her a little toy cell phone for Christmas. I know she'll love it, but part of me is so ashamed of myself.)


I didn't know Chloë could beat box until yesterday afternoon. While driving to the store, the radio was quietly playing something contemporary in the background. I didn't notice. Chloë, on the other hand, decided it needed more of a beat: "Ppp, chhh, ppp, chhh, ppp, chhh..." in perfect rhythm. I couldn't stop laughing at what I was hearing. So later when we were home, I thought I'd see if I could capture it on camera.


We went to the indoor playground at the Eastside Marketplace last week. I've been meaning to take her ever since she's been able to walk, but we just needed a little encouragement from our friends Mary and Louella who were visiting.

Louella and Chloë in the canoe.

Chloë absolutely loved the slide. She climbed up the stairs, sat at the top for a second, and then spun around, flopped on her belly, and slid down. She thought it was fantastic.

She did it over and over, each time exclaiming "weeeee!" on her way down.

So much fun!

Sometimes I have to rub my eyes to make sure I'm seeing straight. Yes, that really is my little girl running around, playing with other kids, climbing on things, and having fun.


It's a blurry picture, but we got a shot of Louella and Chloë holding hands in their car seats. They did this every time we went somewhere in the car. It was so cute.

It's amazing to me how affectionate our little girl is. When she's being particularly sweet, she'll cup my face in her hands and softly say "Mama!" That kid melts my heart. Several times in the last few weeks, she'll position herself behind me, grab my shoulders with her little hands, and give me a surprisingly decent little massage for a few seconds. And of course there's all the affectionate pats and kisses.


She really likes the orchid Bryan brought me. It is such a joy to see her finding beauty in God's creation, and she points out when she think something is "pretty."

For the boring stats, she had her 18-month well child visit a few days ago. (When the doctor asked if she had a 7 to 20 word vocabulary, I laughed a little. I can't keep track of all the words she uses. A few days ago, she was gazing at the Christmas tree with all its lights and ornaments, and softly said "ah-sum." She frequently uses words I didn't know she knew.) I'm proud to report that for the first time in over a year, her height and weight stats have gone up. So instead of being in the bottom of the 10th percentile for weight, she's at the top of it! The occasional half-and-half in her cheerios might have something to do with it.