These periodic updates will serve to fill your baby book some day.  They will serve to help me remember the tiny humongous milestones you achieve so quickly.

Since summer is upon us and the days are lighter longer we’re keeping you up until 8 PM.  This typically means you sleep until almost 8 AM but I sometimes hear you wake earlier and play with the few toys I keep in your crib.

You are eating better these days and still love using your fork.  You’re still in love with chicken fingers, Teddy Grahams and Goldfish.  We’re been getting more adventurous with what we give you and you’ve had tomatoes, cucumbers, hot dogs, and meatloaf for the first time this month.

You’re still a dancer and are always picking up new moves, although we’re not sure where you get them.  You love to imitate us and no matter how silly we act you are eager to mimic us.

Your eating habits are still similar and have been since we returned from the States a few weeks ago.  You love to eat on the run and get antsy in your high chair after a while.  All the travel has made our eating habits fall by the wayside so Daddy and I are trying hard to get you back on track.

Touch and Feel books are your favorite right now but will sit and listen to anything we read to you while you’re having a bottle at night.

It seems like you’re attempting to say new things everyday.  You’re now saying “Ba-ba” for bye-bye, “baww” for ball and “nigh-nigh” for night night.  One day it sounded like you said, “I did” when I told you to listen to me.  It was hilarious and you couldn’t understand why Daddy and I were laughing so hard.  You still babble and giggle to yourself all the time.  It’s one of the best sounds a mommy can hear.

You’re still listening relatively well and Babywise says that we’re on the right track if children under age 2 listen 60% of the time.  I think we’re on the right track and are still working on your listening skills.

Your morning routine is still pretty much the same: you wake up babbling and playing in your crib most mornings around 8 AM.  We come downstairs where we sit and give you a bottle in front of Sesame Street.  After your bottle you like to eat breakfast and get out as many toys as you can.  You’re taking your morning nap about 2.5 hours after you get up and are sleeping at least 2 hours but that could be a remainder of your jet lag from our trip to the States a few weeks ago.

Your bedtime routine is still a sacred part of our day.  Jammies and diaper, bottle and snuggles on Daddy’s lap while Mommy reads a story from the library.  Prayer, love sandwich (our term for a group hug) and night night kisses.  I miss the nights I don’t get to tuck you in b/c I’m out with friends, it’s such a special bonding time for all of us.

You’re still such an easygoing baby.  Infrequent 2-minute temper tantrums but nothing resembling the terrible twos yet (knock on wood).  You laugh and giggle all day long and we have so much fun with you.

Your favorite thing to do these days is to play outside and your favorite toys are anything you can use outside.  You are currently obsessed with golf clubs and now have 2 toy golf club sets, a wiffle ball bat, numerous balls, a wagon, a smart trike and a kid-size broom and dustpan.  You also became very fond of a play CD player we got for you in the States and would carry it around, press the play button and dance while holding it.  You’re quite the entertainer.  Daddy says you actually have a pretty good golf swing and love to hit balls with your golf clubs and wiffle ball bat.

You are now wearing 18 month clothes, although the pants are slightly too long.  We’re mostly in shorts now anyway here in Spain in May.  You’re wearing size 5/6 shoes and love to run to your shoe basket to get your shoes so you can play outside.  You still hate getting dressed and I have to wrangle you to change your diaper and put your clothes on but you try to be helpful by giving me the correct arm or leg for your clothing.

We just got back from a month in the U.S.  You’re such a well-traveled baby having flown 14 times in your short 17 months of life.  You do great on the plane, for the most part and adjust better than Mommy when it comes to the time change.  You slept well most places we stayed but prefer to sleep in bed with Mommy and Dady in hotel rooms for some reason.  At relatives’ houses you prefer your pack and play.  Not sure how you can tell the differnce all the time but I guess you’vestayed in enough hotels to know what they are by now.

You are a great communicator with your baby signs and use 5 words pretty frequently.  You know the signs for, “more, please, all done, night night” and we’re working on “help” (which resembles “more” quite a bit) and “I love you.”  You love to sign and are quick to use them.  They also help stave off a lot of would-be temper tantrums.  You even use them in short sentences sometimes when you sign, “more – please.”  You also love to wave “hi” and “bye-bye.”  It’s adorable!

When we warm up your bottle we count to 20 together and you love to act like you are counting along with us, holding up your fingers to show the numbers.  Although the number of fingers you hold up are never correct, it doesn’t matter to us, we think it’s adorable.

You love to give hugs and kisses and will give them willingly to anyone who asks for them.  You even hug and kiss other kids when you’re not prompted to do so.  You still don’t love to be picked up, unless you need a snuggle.  It inhibits your mobility and you let us know by shaking your hand and your head “no.”

This month we found out you are going to have a little brother come August and you love to touch and kiss Mama’s baby.  You think all bellies are called babies and when we ask you to show us your baby you lift up your shirt.

Happy 17th months Little Buddy.