18 Months

And just like that, I turn around and my baby is 18 months old.  Miles had his half birthday about a week ago.  It is strange to think that in 6 months, he'll be turning 2!  I'm sure he will change so much between now and then.  He's already grown so much since turning 1.

Miles has always been an outdoors kind of guy.  He runs to the door, encourages us to put on our shoes, and tries to open the door himself, multiple times a day.  Most of the time, he cries when we force him to come back inside. 

Miles likes to run everywhere.  Steve taught him to make a huffing and puffing sound when he sees runners pass by, and now he makes this sound whenever he runs anywhere.  If we are having a hard time getting him to follow a direction, we can usually say, "Miles, go run and get ____" and he will do it.

I'm not sure how common this is with 18 month olds, but when Miles likes a certain toy, he becomes obsessed with it.  Lately, it's been his toy car, which we keep outside (coming inside from playing with this thing has led to multiple tantrums).  He can spend a good chunk of time, just getting in and out of his car and sitting in it.  He's also become attached to his toy vacuum (as well as the real one), his toy basketball hoop, and the book The Cat in the Hat.  

Miles is also a big football fan.  He was kind of forced into it when the Seahawks were in the playoffs.  Whenever he sees a Seahawk logo, he says "ball!"and points to it excitedly.  He raises his hands when we say "touchdown" and didn't seem to mind the crazy celebrations that happened whenever our team scored.

His appetite can vary, but usually Miles is a big eater.  He isn't the most adventurous with food, but does eat a lot of it.  He loves milk, oatmeal, pasta, blueberries, broccoli, peas and pizza the best. But most of all, Miles loves to watch his dad make coffee in the morning.  As soon as he wakes up, he is asking for it, shrieking with excitement when Steve heats up the water.  Steve has been using an Aeropress lately, and Miles has seemed to learn the steps.  One morning, Miles started shaking his head while Steve made his coffee, but it wasn't clear why.  At the end, Steve realized he had forgotten to stir the grounds.  Miles had noticed that he had skipped a step!

Miles loves to go outside in the neighborhood and search for basketball hoops.  He can lead you around the block, pointing to each one and shouting "ball" "hi!" and lately, "tttt," which we think means "tall."  It's probably his absolute favorite thing to do.  Steve is his parent of choice for this activity, since he can lift him up high enough to touch the rims of the hoops.

We love watching Miles develop a little sense of humor.  We often try to get him to say his new words or animal sounds for friends, and at times he is happy to.  But recently, after Miles started saying "dots" while coloring, we tried to get him to say his new word for a friend on the phone.  He refused, running away and shaking his head.  As soon as we hung up, he came around the corner with a big smile on his face and, clear as can be, said "dots."  

He loves to be chased and tickled, and cracks up at certain pages of his favorite books (something about the "that bump made us jump" is hilarious).  He's a fun little kid, even if the majority of the time he wears a pretty serious face, observing and taking in the world around him.

We are very thankful for Miles, and feel so so blessed to be his parents.  Happy half birthday little guy.