Kellan is 15 Months Old!

Kellan turned 15 months on Sunday, January 20.  He had his check up on Thursday, January 24 and these are his most current measurements.

Height: 33 1/4 inches (97%)

Weight: 28 pounds (90%)

Head Circumference: 19 1/4 inches

Totally unsuspecting baby on the way to get his 15 month shots...

This was our hardest doctor's appointment yet.  As soon as we entered the exam room he lost it.  He wouldn't let me set him down.  He fought us when we took off his clothes and clung to both of us crying hysterically.  When the doctor tried to listen to his heart and lungs, he pushed her hands away.  He refused to open his mouth and wouldn't turn his head so that she could look in his ears.  He totally remembered getting shots last time, he knew what was about to happen, and he was MAD!

It was horrible.  He had to get 3 shots and he was not a happy baby...but he survived and by the time we got in the car he was back to his little smiley self :)

Daddy said he deserved Texas Roadhouse yeast rolls after that whole ordeal...those can cure anything!

A few more statistics for this month:

Sleeping: Kellan's bed time has unintentionally moved back to between 9-9:30 pm. Some nights it is even later than that.  One Saturday this month he refused to go to sleep so I went and got him and put him on the couch with daddy watching a movie.  My 15 month old baby was laying with daddy, blankie in hand, paci in his mouth, watching Rise of the Planet of the Apes at 11 p.m.!  Not the best parenting decision we have ever made but he was totally engrossed in the "monkey movie," much to mommy's dismay.  Let me tell you...it was a far cry from Eight Silly Monkeys that mommy read to him right before bed.  He typically wakes up anywhere between 8 and 9 a.m. 

Most mornings Kellan will still take a morning nap for about an hour to an hour and a half.  I have a feeling he will begin to drop this soon.  He also takes an afternoon nap anywhere between 3-4 pm and he sleeps for another hour and a half to two hours.  We're just not "follow the clock" parents (whether that is good or not is yet to be determined) so Kellan does not have specific nap times, however he always takes 1-2 naps a day.  I still read his signals and when he starts getting whiny, falling down, rubbing his eyes, and bumping into things, I know its nap time.

Eating: I'm still making a lot of Kellan's food but he has become a much more picky eater.  He went through a phase the week of Christmas where he barely ate anything.  Everything immediately went to the floor.  I was so frustrated because this behavior was not like him at all.  We think it must have been teething because he ran a slight fever at night and also had a runny nose during this time.  The following week he perked back up and was his regular piggy self.  He is still a pretty good eater but one day he may gobble up a particular food and the next day he may throw it to the floor or spit it out.  Every meal is a surprise.

I don't know if you can see all of the carrots that Kellan threw all over the floor.  The exact same carrots that he devoured the day before.  I was one VERY unhappy mommy.

He had food everywhere!  This was a common occurrence for a few days...

He has 3 meals a day with breakfast being between 8:30-9 am. He usually eats half of an avocado (that I feed to him) and half of a banana cut up into pieces so that he can feed himself.  If I make myself scrambled eggs or grits sometimes he may have a bite of that too. 

Around 12:00-12:30 he has any combination of 3 items.  Most of the time he has cut up fruit, pieces of cheese/cup of yogurt, and some kind of vegetable or maybe even left over pieces of meat.  

Around 5:30-6:00 he has his "first course" :) of dinner which is usually something that he can feed himself while I am cooking our dinner:  cheese, cut up fruit, veggies, raisins, hard boiled egg, cut up leftover meat, etc.  Then when we sit down to eat dinner, he goes back in his high chair and eats whatever he might like that we are having.

There isn't really a point in listing the foods that he has had because by now he's pretty much had it all!  He has even had his first turkey sub at Subway.  Kellan is still in love with bread...if he sees it on the table at a restaurant, he will refuse to eat anything else.  We have to hide the biscuits at Cracker Barrel and the cracker bowls at other restaurants.  Restaurants are pretty much the only time he gets bread at all. 

I know it sounds like we just let him have anything now and although we have become much more lenient, we still avoid all processed/boxed foods and always try to make the healthiest choices for him.  The majority of the time we still stick to his same diet of fruits, vegetables, dairy, eggs, and cheese but at birthday parties and certain restaurants we still let him indulge :)  We even got him his first strawberry ice cream cone at the mall and I made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies that he liked so much he has learned the word "tootie".  He is a kid after all and to me the most important thing is that he WILL eat healthy foods and that it remains the basis of his diet.

One night Michael and I were both cleaning the kitchen after dinner.  Michael had moved the candy bowl to the edge of the counter where he was wiping and when we looked down someone was enjoying a chocolate Santa.  This is why the candy bowl is usually out of reach for little hands.

-Drinking: Kellan always drinks either whole milk or water, that's it, no matter where we are.  There is absolutely no reason to have anything else and he adores both so why mess with that?

Clothes: Kellan is wearing 18 months and 24 months, it really just depends on the brand.  Some 18 months fit him perfectly, some are a little snug.  Some 24 months fit him perfectly, some are a little big.  He is still wearing size 4 diapers and he can only squeeze into his size 6 and size 6 1/2 shoes!  His blue Stride Ride sneakers and black (enclosed) Crocs are the shoes he wears the most.

Milestones: 

1. Kellan is now able to open the doors in our house.  We have lever handles so all he has to do is pull down.  He is pretty much able to wander everywhere.  The scariest part is that he now tries to follow Michael out the back door and into the garage when he leaves for work.  As if we didn't have to watch him closely before, we have to watch him even more closely now and keep doors to the outside LOCKED!


2. His vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds and he loves to copy words that we say.  Words that he can say:  nana (banana), night-night, cheese, shoes, socks, duck, yes, no, mommy, daddy, thanks, you, car, truck, tractor, doggy, ball, paci, Briggs, papa, Elmo (much to mommy's embarrassment), spoon, milk, tootie (cookie), chicken, bath, shoot, this, hat, more, uh-oh, book, hammer, hot, cold, light, and more that I know I am forgetting.  He surprises me all the time with words that he knows and is able to use.  He talks all the time and there are plenty of words that he says that we just can't understand yet.  He still calls most all foods nana, no matter what it actually is.  Whenever you hand him something he almost always says thanks.

3. We are now up to (at least) 9 teeth. He has 4 on the bottom and 4 on the top and one molar that we know about.  It is getting more difficult to check because he bites down when you try to feel around in his mouth. 


4. Kellan can point or find the following objects when you ask for them by name:  his ears, nose, mouth, hands, hair, belly, foot, socks, shoes, duck, shirt, ball, mommy's glasses...and a world of other things that I just haven't found out yet!  One morning I was just talking out loud to myself (and him) and I asked him where mommy's glasses were...totally not thinking he knew what I was talking about at all.  When I turned around he had my glasses in his hand, holding them out to me. :)

5.  He is now able to get down off of furniture like the sofa, chairs, and our bed.  He can't climb UP yet but he can slide himself off.

6.  When Kellan wants to get up on the sofa, chair or bed he pats it and says "mommy"...even if he is talking to Michael. 

7.  I still sometimes lay down and take naps with Kellan.  I've just been so exhausted and he is such a good snuggle buddy...lucky for me he still sleeps in his crib just as easily too.

8. This child LOVES music!  He loves his xylophone, electronic drum, hand drum, and keyboard...he constantly keeps the music going whenever he can.  He loves to "sing" along with daddy.  One of my new goals is to play one or two songs for him regularly so that he can learn them.  Right now he tries to "sing" to all kinds of songs but he doesn't know the words.

9.  He still loves books and will often sit on his little couch and "read/babble" out loud to himself as he turns the pages...today I overheard him reading Are You My Mother to himself.  On each page he said "mommy," "daddy," "mommy," "daddy."  The story does not mention a dad but I'm glad he included daddy anyway.

10.  Kellan is into everything.  Seriously nothing is safe from his exploring.  He notices EVERYTHING and he does not leave a crack or crevice untouched.  Nothing within his reach is safe.  His favorite toys are anything that he can find inside of kitchen and bathroom drawers and cabinets and he is obsessed with the dishwasher.  One afternoon, I was changing Briggs in the living room while Kellan stood beside me, babbling to her and handing her toys.  While I was pulling her pants back up I notice Kellan wandering off into the bedroom.  After I get her situated, I walk by to find him.  I found him alright.  Standing in our bathroom, top drawer open, daddy's razor in hand...and I kid you not...the child was shaving his upper lip!  Thank god he did not cut himself...I don't know how we got so lucky but thank goodness he was unharmed.  It takes him one minute to get into something dangerous and it also reminded us one more time that he is watching EVERYTHING that we do!  I haven't had any trouble with him in the house plants this month...we'll see what next month brings!

11.  Right before he takes something he knows that he's not supposed to have (cell phone, TV remote, etc.) he will flash you the biggest, cheesiest grin that you can imagine with his eyes squinted shut.  Even though this was from last month I'm going to keep it because he still does this.  Now he adds a loud, boisterous NO! NO! before he touches or does something that he knows he is not supposed to do.  I should note that this does not keep him from actually doing it or touching it.  I also caught him telling Briggs No! No! and pointing to the dishwasher right before he attempted to climb in it himself.

"Maybe if I smile really big she won't notice that I'm taking this book off the shelf that I'm not supposed to have."

He doesn't like to neglect the magazine basket either...he is more caught up with Oprah magazine than mommy is!  And if you can't tell...he is actually saying "Cheese!"

I should have waited until he was "finished" with this kitchen drawer before I took the picture.  There were plastic bowls and lids everywhere.

One night while Michael and I were organizing some things in the living room we noticed that Kellan had been awfully quiet.  Michael found him in the guest bedroom, digging in one of my craft baskets, completely covered in glitter.

Who needs toys when you have the wand off of the blinds?

12.  Since the new baby will be taking over Kellan's nursery at the end of May, we are slowly transitioning Kellan into his new room on the other side of the house.  Right now it is just his play room.  Mommy is not ready to move him quite so far away to sleep and there isn't really a reason to...yet...so his crib is still in the nursery, right beside mommy and daddy's room.  He loves his new room and it is slowly becoming more organized.

Playing with his alligator in his playroom

I have moved a few things into the nursery in preparation for the new baby.  Kellan seems to think I took this chair out just for him and he enjoys reliving his infant days in the bouncer.

13.  I am letting Kellan practice feeding himself with a toddler fork and spoon but let me tell you...it is so hard because he makes such a mess!  I know it must be done in order for him to learn.  He loves it and sometimes will pick up food with his hands, stick it on the fork, and then eat it :)

14.  He still loves a bath and all that you have to say is "bath" and he says "BAT!" and runs for the bathroom.  When the water is running he tries to throw his little leg up over the side of the tub whether his clothes are off yet or not!  He loves his bath toys and can be found digging in them at all times of the day.

15.  Kellan has become such an affectionate little boy.  He will hug and kiss his stuffed animals when you ask him too and sometimes just out of the blue...especially if he's getting sleepy.  Our favorite thing that he does right now is wrap his little arms around your neck, put his head on your shoulder, and pat your back with his little hand.  It is just precious.

Giving giraffe a squeeze

16.  My sister got Kellan an indoor basketball goal and Michael plays with him all the time.  In fact, they play so much that when basketball is on TV Kellan will sit on his couch watching the game and yelling "shoot, shoot!  shoot, shoot!!"  He says the same thing while he's playing basketball with daddy.

17.  I started trying to teach Kellan a few signs when he was 6 months old.  I gave up a few months later because I just wasn't getting any response from him and I felt like I was completely wasting my time.  It has been MONTHS since I have even attempted signing with him.  Just a couple of weeks ago Kellan ran out of milk and when I turned around he was doing the sign for 'more' PERFECTLY and saying "Mo!, Mo!"  He does it all the time now to let me know that he wants more.   It just goes to show you that babies are taking in EVERYTHING at a very young age.  This new baby better get ready because mommy is not giving up this time!!

Signing for more :)

18.  Kellan was digging around in daddy's closest and came out with this hat, wearing it exactly like this! :)  Saying "hat!, hat!"

19.  He has just now discovered our see through fireplace and loves running to one side and looking at you through the glass, then running to peek at you on the other side.

20.  Another of his favorite toys is this twirly helicopter thing that spins when you twirl it between your hands.  He got it from a goody bag at a birthday party and he is in love.  He will go for hours handing it to you and saying "This!, This!" and wanting you to fly it for him.   Luckily he is just as impressed with mommy's seriously pitiful flying abilities as daddy's that go flying all over the room.

21.  My child likes Elmo.  There.  I said it out loud.  Much to mommy's dismay he is actually a little obsessed with Elmo.  I don't know why.  I have never bought anything with Elmo on it, nor do we encourage talk about Elmo or watch him on TV.  It just happened.  His Gigi bought him a dancing Elmo for his birthday but he hardly has anything to do with, so that's not it.  Gigi also bought him a pair of Elmo pj's that he wears but he never really talks about him when he's wearing them, so that's not it either.  He finds that little furry red thing everywhere.  There can be a picture of Elmo a fraction of an inch big on a pack of wipes and Kellan will find him and point him out.  He digs through all of his bath toys saying "Mo!"  I knew he did not have an Elmo bath toy but lo and behold the container of capsules that turn his bath water different colors has a picture of Elmo on the outside.  He has millions of apps on the iPad but somehow Elmo has become his favorite one...to the point that he calls the iPad "Mo!"  Lord help us all...what do kids see in that furry red animal with a lisp?!  I don't get it.  I hope its a phase...

22.  Kellan loves to play the different apps on mommy's iPhone and the iPad.  Elmo's ABC is of course his favorite but so is Peekaboo Wild, Peekaboo Barn, and the Itsy Bitsy Spider.  He plays Peekaboo Wild so much on my phone he now calls my phone "Ah-boo!"

23.  I have a confession.  When we were at the Honda dealership getting an update to our car, I played Elmo videos on my phone to keep Kellan in my lap and not wandering around contracting everyone's cold and flu germs.  He was so engrossed in the songs and videos he never budged or even looked up.  I had numerous people come up and tell me how well behaved he was...*sigh* oh the things we told ourselves that we would never do...

Here are a few more pictures from this month:

Shopping with mommy at Marshall's

Eating a grilled cheese and people watching at Panera with mommy.  He loves to watch people, grin and wave frantically at them, and then completely ignore them once they talk or wave back to him.

He is an extremely grumpy morning person...it takes one to know one.

Shopping with mommy and daddy at Sam's Club

I can't wait to see what is in store for us this month...and I can only imagine what is going to happen when there are TWO of them!!

   

Stephanie is a Nurse!

Michael's cousin Stephanie was pinned for completing nursing school at James Madison University on Friday, December 14th.  We drove up Thursday night and stayed through Saturday morning. Michael's fire department Christmas and awards banquet was Saturday night so we were unable to stay for her graduation.  

Kellan was very well behaved at first...and then he got sleepy...and instead of giving in and napping in his stroller, he decided to fight it!

He walked and crawled around on the floor for a while until he started trying to escape and got a little feisty when we kept bringing him back to our seats.  Look at that sleepy face :)

One of JMU's a cappella groups sang a couple of songs before the pinning ceremony began...

Kellan was mesmerized...the music kept him in his seat and actually focused on what was going on.  This child loves music and singing!

The graduates came in and took their seats.  There were a few speakers and I thought they all did an amazing job.  Their words reminded me a lot of what I heard during my own graduation for teaching.  I have never really noticed the similarities between nursing and teaching until this ceremony.  The jobs are different obviously but your daily impact on people and their impact on you is the same.  Just like parents send their children to school everyday and expect top notch education and care, families are sending their loved ones to hospitals and doctor's offices and expect top notch medical treatment and care from nurses.  Even though I'm not a nurse, the speakers that day spoke to me as well, and one in particular made me tear up a little (of course, it could just be the pregnancy hormones).  We were all so proud of Stephanie and I am so glad that we were able to be there to see her receive three awards:  Outstanding Student Award, an award chosen by the faculty, Nursing Student Association Most Active Award, and Member of PI MU Chapter at Large Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society.

As each graduate was pinned, a statement was read that was written by the nurses and their plans for the future announced.  Stephanie has accepted a job at St. Mary's Hospital in Richmond, VA.

During the ceremony this is what Kellan was doing...luckily reading books with Abby kept him entertained for a little while at least.  Abby is the daughter of Justin and Erin who are family friends, although they are more like family than friends.  Erin was taking pictures to document the ceremony.

Lighting their lamps to finish up the ceremony.

The rest of these pictures were taken by Erin who does professional photography on the side.  She does amazing work and she was able to get some really good shots!

This is my favorite :)  Stephanie's purple and gold heels...JMU colors

Michael's grandma Grizzard and Stephanie

Michael's cousin Chase, Aunt Tina, Stephanie, and Uncle Jerry

We all had dinner together afterwards at Union Station:  Michael, me, Uncle Jerry, Abby, Justin, Aunt Tina, Kellan, Chase, Stephanie, Lisa, Grandma, Aunt Pam, and Lauren

We had a wonderful time and were so glad that we were able to come up.  Michael graduated from JMU in 2001 and although he still claims that "college just wasn't for me," he still enjoys going up and seeing all of the changes that have been made to the city and campus.  And who doesn't like spending a few days in the Virginia mountains?  I'll be happy to go back anytime as long as we can eat at Little Grill Collective again :)  We wish Stephanie lots of luck as a JMU alumna and in her nursing career!  We know many more adventures and awards will be in her future!

Little Grill Collective

On December 14th, Michael, Kellan and I were in Harrisonburg, VA to see Michael's cousin, Stephanie, receive her pin for completing nursing school at James Madison University.  Before the afternoon pinning, we had brunch at the Little Grill Collective.  We looked at several restaurants online, checked reviews, and the Little Grill stood out way above the rest.  It is worker owned, meaning all of the workers share ownership in the restaurant.  They have unique food options, many being vegan or vegetarian, but also offer meat choices too.  

It is definitely what I would call a hole-in-the-wall (my favorite type of restaurant) and if you just judge the place by the building that it is located in, you are really missing out!  

Michael and I both chose "Beth's Favorite"...two scrambled eggs with green peppers, onions, tomatoes, garden veggies, mushrooms, spinach, and cheddar cheese.  It came with a side and I chose their grits.  Everything was absolutely amazing!

We also got their "Blue Monkeys"...banana and blueberry pancakes.  Kellan had no problem helping us eat them :)

Kellan got his own little scrambled egg.  He had already eaten his regular banana and avocado in the hotel, so I know he wasn't starving, but he still has the hardest time waiting on his food to cool off.  Here he is saying "hot! hot!" and holding his hand over it to show us that he knows he can't eat it yet :)

"Mmmmm..."

And of course I had to get one of their t-shirts!  I chose the cutest one (in my opinion) and it was appropriate since we had the "Blue Monkeys."  I wish we were there longer so that we had more opportunities to have more meals at the Little Grill Collective.  If the occasion arises in the future we will be back!

Missed Photos and Videos!

Here are a few photos and videos that I missed along the way during my "blogging break"...

One day Kellan's pack and play was still folded up from a trip out of town and I needed to take a shower.  So I just stuck him in our tub with a few toys (I was lazy, I know).  Of course he didn't even notice the faucets until I wanted to take his picture.  I kept peeking out of the shower to check on him and he just played and entertained himself in the bottom of the tub :)  Daddy came home in the middle of my shower and acted like I was endangering his life :/

Kellan and Daddy at the Farmer's Day Parade in Ellerbe, NC...Kellan loved most of the parade but he did not care for anything that made loud noises

Kellan had a blast at his girlfriend Austyn's first birthday party...as you can see above...oh the joy just tossing around a balloon will bring :)

There was a bouncy house set up but Kellan wasn't brave enough to try it out for himself...even with Daddy standing right there...

he just gave us a big grin and kept trying to climb out!  I'm sure this attitude toward bouncy houses will change very soon!

Kellan watching the birthday girl nibble on a card in between opening presents :)  He has managed to snitch some one's teddy bear AND car!

Dressing up in the photo booth at the party...Kellan was none too happy about any of the props but daddy sure enjoyed himself :)

Kellan has a new favorite snack and a very specific way of eating it.  He sits in the kitchen floor, shakes a few raisins out onto the floor, and eats them one by one til they are all gone...then he shakes a few more out and the process starts again.  This keeps him busy for awhile!  Very useful while mommy is making dinner :)

Kimberlee and Jenni gave Kellan this xylophone for his birthday and he LOVES it!  He will sit, press buttons, tap a little bit, and dance over and over again.  It is one of his favorite toys!

This was a conversation that I had with Kellan right after he woke up one morning.  I laugh every time I watch it :)

Kellan loves to drum, tap, or hammer on anything available.  Here he has turned a pair of chopsticks into drumsticks at P.F. Changs!

The Trains in Blackstone, VA!

 For the New Year I am going to stop apologizing and giving excuses for being late with blogging and when I DO get around to posting I will just pick up and carry on where I left off :)  Especially with a new baby arriving in late May/early June, I'm sure free time is going to become even more scarce!  

I'm hoping to get our Christmas posts up this week but for now here are some pictures from our trip to see the toy train display in Blackstone, VA.  My friend Lexi invited Kellan and I to go along with her two boys and some other friends and their children to see the trains.  I had no idea what to expect but I had heard lots of other people around here talk about the "trains in Blackstone".  I was curious to see what they were all about and I figured if nothing else it would be a fun outing for Kellan.

It turns out that the toy train display is an enormous and extremely detailed set up containing many different scenes and types of trains. There is a circus, a mountain village, a replica of Blackstone's downtown, a fire station and a house that catches on fire, a wintry scene and lots of others.  The display is located inside of Bevell's Hardware and the trains run from late November to early January.  You can visit this website (or the above Bevell's Hardware link to their site) to find out this year's exact dates and times http://www.virginia.org/Listings/EventsAndExhibits/AnnualRunningoftheTrains/.

Snowy scene to the left, drive in movie and baseball game in the middle

Watching one of the many trains speed by...

Circus scene

I love this reaction! :)

Watching the house catch on fire and the fire trucks come out...

Kellan, Levi, and Mason

Kellan seemed to be JUST as impressed with this set of steps right beside the conductor...he thoroughly enjoyed sitting, getting up, climbing and doing it all over again!

Kellan's first encounter with Santa...his daddy was not too happy with me that he was not there.  This year Kellan didn't seem phased at all by this stranger in the big red suit.  He didn't cry, although he did keep giving me looks like..."Uh, mom?  Do we know this man?"  We will see what next year holds!

And last, before we went to lunch at a local diner, we took a ride on this train outside that carried us around the building and through the parking lot.

The big kids wanted to ride in the back so we all packed inside.  I don't know how impressed Kellan was with this part but he just sat quietly and looked out the window.

The train display is definitely worth seeing and I'm so glad Lexi included us!  I think Kellan will appreciate it more and more every year and I hear that they add to it each season.  Can't wait to see what they might have next year!