Isaac is cruising on through his 15th month and moving on into his 16th month tomorrow. He is 20.8 pounds and 29 3/4 inches long. It's amazing how quickly time flies and how quickly he grows (it's actually kind of sad). I think I could sum up this month as being the best age ever!!! Although, I think I say that with every month and new stage in his life. This month has been a combination of new discoveries (for Isaac), new frustrations (for Mommy and Daddy), and joys (for all).
I am going to start with the new discoveries. First of all, Isaac has started saying many new words (not completely perfect), but he is definitely saying them, such as...shoe, hi, hey, dog, moo (for cow), duck, inny (for his aunt Jenny), uh-oh, and book. His favorite word (the past couple months) has been "dow," but we have no idea what he means by that, and he says it repetitively. There may be other words he says, but these are just are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. He says "buh," for book. He loves his "buhs," and brings them to me frequently to read. I have put a few books in his crib, and now instead of crying for us in the morning when he wakes up, he spends at least 10-15 minutes just flipping through the books in his crib. It is so precious (and very nice of him to give us a few more minutes of sleep). He is consistently sleeping from 7:30-6:30/7:00, which has been such a blessing to us. I mentioned earlier that he says "uh-oh." He uses this phrase a lot, including when he does something on purpose (such as throw something in the floor, not accidentally).
Another new discovery of Isaac's this month is the use of dipping sauces, such as ketchup, with his food. He just watches us, in particular while eating chicken nuggets, and has mastered the art of dipping his food into the sauce. Instead of eating the food with the sauce, he just licks off the sauce, and then re-dips for more, and says "Ummm" for "yummy."
There are some specific items Isaac enjoys playing with, and the first one being his daddy's shoes. He will go into our closet, come out holding Adam's size 12 shoe that looks about 1/3 of the length of Isaac's body, sticks his little foot in it, and smiles real big saying "shoe." Isaac has also learned that he loves baskets, of any kind. He loves laundry baskets, magazine racks, toilet paper baskets, and any other kind imaginable. Other things he really enjoys are balls, trucks, playgrounds, being outside, blocks, books, and coloring. He will help pick up toys with encouragement because he likes to fill up containers. He just loves putting small objects into a larger container, such as putting little paper wads inside of the toilet paper rolls, and yes, that is a sign that Isaac has been in the area.
Here are some other things Isaac has recently become more interested in: cleaning his face and furniture and other items with a tissue/cloth, drying his hands, playing with his shape sorter and pop-up toy (the one with 5 buttons that each have to be manuevered differently in order to make the animals pop-up), throwing rocks into water to see a splash (which his daddy taught him), naming as many things possible when outside or riding in the car (truck, dog, points at school buses), and offering to share his food. He always tries to feed me. It's probably because he just doesn't want to eat. No really, it is very cute when he takes a bite of something, then raises the food to share it.
His daycare teacher recently taught him to blow kisses. His blowing of kisses always seems to be in slow motion, but he definitely knows how to do it. Another fun thing he likes is giving high fives, breaking "the pickle," and giving "knucks" (bumping fists). He is very social around adults, especially men. It is so funny how he tends to favor men. We are still working on "playing" with other kids. Another thing he partially picked up at daycare and partially at home was learning song movements. For instance, he is so cute when he does the motions to "If You're Happy and You Know It," especially when he does "you're face with surely show it." He will also sometimes turn in circles when he hears "The Hokie Pokie."
Okay, so moving on to the ways this month has been frustrating. First of all, Isaac has started to pull other little kids' hair, hit, and steal toys. I have witnessed this at story hour at the library. It has only happened a few times, but still has made us realize the importance of consistency in our disciplining. Discipline in general, seems hard to do. We are trying to better define our boundaries for Isaac, especially because he is climbing (which he loves to do) and doing other things that could be dangerous. At the very end of his 15th month, he received his first bad report from school for disruptive behavior (stealing toys, hitting others, and screaming during naptime). I do hate to leave him at daycare because he still cries when I drop him off and when I arrive to pick him up. It is pitiful, and I feel so bad for him.
Another frustration, for us and Isaac, is that he is once again teething. It seems like he is constantly teething. This time, the 2 teeth adjacent to his bottom middle teeth and 2 bottom molars are cutting through. This along with having a cold/runny nose has caused a little extra fussiness at the end of this 15th month.
Other frustrations: 1. Isaac's interest in my sock drawer...I mean it looks like the drawer just exploded. 2. Isaac's interest in touching toilets and plungers...if he only knew how gross they are. 3. Isaac still throws food in the floor at times. 4. Isaac thinks he cannot be in the carseat or stroller without kicking off his right shoe (he actually started this in the 14th month). Everywhere we go people say "did you know he lost his shoe." Isaac thinks it's hilarious and gives us that mischeivious smile and laughs everytime he kicks it off . 5. The final frustration is his new whine. Whenever he can't figure something out, can't make something large fit in a small space, can't reach something, etc, he just whines. We are trying to teach him to say "help please" instead of whining until he gets what he wants.
Overall, Isaac is really pretty good. He has not been very fussy or always in demand for full attention (like the first 8 months of his life). He is constantly exploring and learning new things. He brain is like a sponge, and it just amazes me how much he picks up. I told him the other day to go find his Elmo toy. He rarely plays with stuffed animals, and has not played with Elmo recently. He went into his room and looked for about five minutes. Then he kind of whined. I went into his room and he had his hands open like he was saying "I don't know where it is," and he kept looking for it in his stuffed animal bin. Then I realized it was already packed (since we are moving soon), and he stopped looking for it once I explained that to him. He just understands so much.
We really enjoy spending time together. We spend time reading books, listening to music, playing at the playground, having piggy-back rides, dancing, laughing, praying (he puts his hands together and then claps after we say "amen"), playing with toys, giggling, waving to others, etc. Isaac is so loved, and it is so neat that we know he loves us too now. At night when he's tired or after he gets in trouble, he just rubs and pats my arm so gently. I just want to squeeze him all the time. He is so precious!!! The love a mother has for a child is so amazing! I thank God everyday for him, and pray that one day God chooses him and that Isaac chooses Him. I pray that that God grants us the wisdom to raise him how he should be raised so that when he is old he will not turn from it (as mentioned in Proverbs). I pray that I am not selfish with Isaac and that I allow God to use him fully. My strongest desire for Isaac is not that he is smart, musical, or athletic, but that he loves the Lord with all his heart and lives for Him and for His glory. I feel so blessed that God is allowing me to be a mother. The joy it brings me is just unexplainable, and brings tears to my eyes. I love that little Isaac Bopper so much!
