Grace - 18 Months Old

It's 98 degrees, I'm super pregnant, my kid is napping, and my husband is busy. It's the perfect time to sit in front of a fan and write a blog post!

So, what is 18-month-old, almost-big-sister Grace up to these days?

Lots!

Grace eats everything including seaweed, broccoli, vegetable juice, raw onion, uncooked beans, uncooked rice, dirt, and gravel. She's even begged for raw chicken, but I've drawn the line there. When I cook, she begs to try whatever I'm preparing, hence the onion and uncooked rice and beans. If she's playing outdoors and snack time rolls around, she'll put a fistful of whatever into her mouth, hence the dirt and gravel.

When we are out of the house, especially in social situations, Grace is usually very quiet, keeps to herself, and observes what's going on. But, the moment we get back into her safe, little home bubble, she fills any silence with talking, singing, helicopter noises, dog barks, etc. She practices talking so much, she's pretty amazing at it! She uses more words than we can possibly count. The other day, when I put her sandals on wrong, she pointed at her feet and said, "Shoes uncomfortable!" She's also been saying some simple sentences like "Mama's shoes are off" and "Dada put red shoes on." Yes, a lot of her best talking is on the topic of shoes.

What are some of Grace's favorite things besides eating and talking?

• Finding polka dots everywhere. I didn't even know there were so many polka dots in the world until she started pointing them all out.
• Doing things "All bah fahFAH." (all by myself)
• Letting us know she doesn't want something: "All done mama hug." "All done outside." "All done water."
• Helicopters, trains, airplanes, and the trash truck. In fact, we finally got her to accept childcare at church without too much crying by switching her from the nursery full of baby toys to the toddler room which has a train set.
• Playing with dirt, gravel, water, and sand.
• Finding mommy and daddy's red car in the parking lot.
• Telling us things that she thinks are beautiful. So far, clouds, trees, my colorful shoes, my colorful bracelet, a golf cart, and several songs.
• Singing songs, especially songs with motions, and especially "The Wheels on the Bus" and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."
• Counting. Which goes something like this: "one, two, five, FIVE!"

Grace, you are fun, goofy, sweet, and affectionate. It's so fun watching you become more and more independent and brave. We love you sooo much!