Our baby has grown into a full blown toddler over the past few months! He is pretty much fearless. Nathan can now get up on the couch and toy box on his own, which allows him to get into a lot of mischief. He likes to dive bomb (throw himself from a standing position on the couch to his belly, or onto one of his parents). Reminders and consequences for staying on his bottom haven't worked so far. His newest trick is getting up to the arm of the couch and STANDING UP!! No photos of this trick as we run to get him down before he falls off. Lots of climbing ability, not always so much with the balance.
He is a master of the stairs (up and down on his belly), but he desperately wants to go up and down like a big boy. He takes stairs one at a time (big steps!) when holding hands. He also likes to push toys over to the coffee table (or climb on us) to get up on the table.
Nathan is working on using a regular cup (mostly at daycare), and he is starting to use his fork/spoon more often. He also uses a plate or bowl (plastic, of course!) for most meals and his messes are (generally) limited to what he throws on the floor (see discipline discussion below! Ha!)
Disciplining a 17 month old is pretty much impossible. We're working on gentle touches - he is great with animals (not that Zack gets close enough to learn that Nathan will be gentle), but not so much with people. We've started the "naughty spot" (so that we can have a spot wherever we go), which at home is next to the gate at the stairs. This last week, he walked up to me, smack my leg, and went over to the naughty spot and sat down. Then he did the whole thing again. Yes, he's learning cause and effect, but not so much the discipline part!! Loading the dishwasher when he is playing downstairs is an exercise in patience. He definitely tests his boundaries on a regular basis. It is exhausting at times.
Nathan learns new words every day! He is a bit of a parrot and will repeat (or try to repeat) just about anything you ask him to. Some of his new words/phrases that he uses often (and mostly knows the meaning of: Stuck, thank you, sorry, no-no, hot, yuck, truck, bath, water, Nathan (nay-nay), toes, eyes, sock, shoe, nose. He can identify his nose, ears, eyes, mouth, and feet/toes and many animal noises when asked. He has also started to memorize parts of some of his books - he says words with us as we get to them. If you ask him who Nathan is, he points to himself and says Nay-nay.
He continues to be a big boy. Every time I think he is thinning out, he chubs up again. He isn't as chubby as he was at say 6-9 months old, but he is very stocky and solid. He is 30 lbs (weighs more than Sofia!) and is in 2T shirts and 24 month shorts (some 18 month shorts still fit if they are stretchy). His hats are 2-4T and are sometimes a bit snug depending on the brand. His new shoes are 7XW (extra-wide). I have his hair cut in a "buzz cut" since that is as fancy as I can get with our hair trimmer!
We've had a great summer so far and I love being off with him! Our social calendar has been very full! He started swimming lessons last week. Not that we expect him to learn how to swim, but we hope to learn what to help him with in the pool and that he feels safe in the water. Our little fish LOVES the pool. It's like a bath only way, way better. :) Here is a video from his lesson - this is a blog exclusive (nope, not on Facebook!).
We have a lot of adventures coming up this summer, including camping with Mimi and Popi, trips to the zoo, and a family trip to Crested Butte. I'll do my best to get the camera charged up to get caught up...until I go back to school in early August...!!
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