Reidy-pants - 15 months!

For the first year of Reid's life, I was on here once a month updating you on all the new things our youngest family member was doing and learning. Needless to say, I obviously couldn't keep up at that pace forever, but after three months I figured it was time for another post!

I wouldn't want you to miss out on all the fun stuff!..Like Reid being introduced to lollipops!

NaNa, what have you done?

Trying it out

Look at that face :)

No wonder he likes her

Taking it with him on the chicken wagon

He likes NaNa for more than just her candy though. Just like the other kids, he's running for the door trying to get her to scoop him up every time she comes to visit.

Really, he loves visits from all his grandparents and rewards them with lots of snuggles if they drop by to see us.

Granny's house is where he probably spends the most time aside from being at home. We try to go out to see her at least once a week, and I enjoy so much watching her delight at the new things Reid learns to do. Just like she did with the others, she appreciates the little details of his personality and they have their own little special bond.

In particular, Granny gets the biggest kick out of Reid's dancing. I can't seem to catch a good video of it, but I have never seen a baby his age with the moves our toddler has. Whether it's the chicken-wing-shoulder-shrug dance, the one-leg-out-hip-glide action, the how-low-can-you-go-booty bounce, or a little fancy foot work, Reid can move. Even sitting down he'll get the groovin' either swinging those arms or bobbing his head. Granny loves to watch him play with the Little People toy in the pic below, because when the music starts he dusts his hands back and forth as fast as he can, giggling and waiting for her to do it with him.

While it just doesn't do justice to his skills, here is one clip I was able to capture: 

Aside from dancing, getting into cabinets (and well, everything) is another of his favorite pastimes. I have a gate to keep him out of my kitchen of course, but somehow he manages to trick us into letting him in there and then goes right for the pots and pans. Granny's washed up more utensils from his sneaky baby antics than I can keep track of too. It's just something about carrying a spatula in one hand and a pot in the other. 

Here the booger is at NaNa's 

I guess it's to be expected. The nature of little boys (and babies in general) is that they are going to get into everything; they just can't help themselves - discovering is learning.

If I have fresh laundry just folded, here Reid comes. If there are crumbs all over the floor under the table, like a puppy my boy is running for them. What am I going to do with him?

He's a pretty good little fella over all though. When he isn't in an "I need Mommy" mood, he can even play pretty well with his toys all by himself or with his siblings.

After practicing at Granny's, he's getting pretty good at putting shaped blocks into their correct slots by himself. Maybe that problem-solving engineer side is starting to make an appearance.

He loves plenty of play time with Mommy and Daddy too when we aren't busy cleaning up a mess. 

We are thankful for quality time with him as well. It's interesting to see what new things he's learning to do from day to day. Meanwhile, he's watching us closely too, trying to figure out how we work the toys before giving them a go himself. I probably even need to start packing away the majority of the baby toys as he's moved on to more exciting things.

Watching what Daddy does closely

There he did it!

Even without toys we have fun! There isn't anything much cuter than a game of peekaboo with a kid who has such a contagious smile and chubby little hands smashing his round baby face. See what I mean?

The one place I don't like to see him playing is at the supper table, but even there a little independence can be a good thing as he starts learning how to use a spoon to feed himself. Reid would prefer that we just left everything on his tray and let him do it himself, but sometimes when we're having something messy, Mommy still tries to keep a tight hold on the bowl. Mr. Independent makes quite clear his opinions about what he likes, when he's had enough, and when he doesn't want to wear that dumb bib that just keeps aggravating him another second! Thankfully, he's not picky though and can be a pretty hearty little eater.

The other kids had an apple, so guess who else wanted one?

I think he may be up to around eight teeth at this point so I am not sure how he thought he would tackle this thing but he was just a clutching it.

While playing and eating are his fortes, sleeping still isn't on the top of the list for things Reid does well. Up until about a month ago, his crib was still in our room and he was nursing multiple times a night. Finally, Dave shifted him into Caleb's room so we could reclaim our space and he could learn how to sleep better. (I mean after about 14 months, enough was enough!) Dave began getting up with him since every time Reid sees me he just won't settle until he gets milk. It was rough at first but then he started getting better until...those teethers started poking through and nothing could settle him but Mommy. Back to square one...

On a more positive note, Reid is becoming a good communicator. While he can only say a handful of words (Mama, Dada, NaNa, jump, bump, water, pig, etc.), he motions or finds other ways to let you know what he wants or doesn't care for. One of our church friends was over recently and was pretty impressed with his ability to get across his preferences to her so well for his age.

Well, there's always more to say, but I guess I better run to see what he's into now. Don't worry though; God willing you'll see more posts with this adorable face soon!