I always tell myself that I will always remember what cute things Matthew does or how he acts because that's what moms do, right? Wrong. There are things I swore I'd remember when he was smaller, but for the life of me, I can only call up a few things instead of the big list I know is in there, somewhere. So hey, I have this blog... it's for, you know, writing stuff down. Kind of like a list, but more public, and probably more coherent. Probably. Anyway, here's my Matthew List at around 18 months old. :)
He is always on the go. I think the only time the kids sits still is if you strap him into his high chair, or when he's sleeping. And the being still while sleeping is debatable. I don't know for sure, because I try not to go in there if he's sleeping. Because...
He wakes pretty easily, and almost completely. Occasionally, I have to wake him from his nap since I kind of want him to have his normal bed time. I just have to say his name, and he's up. He goes from sleeping soundly, to eyes open, to standing up. All within 3 seconds. And if I set him down, he immediately starts to play. I'm kind of jealous actually. I'm useless for the first hour that I'm up.
He is soooo sweet around other kids. Especially the younger ones. He loves babies, and wants to hold them. Wants to have them sit in his lap. Wants to share his pacifier. Loves to pat their heads and give hugs, which often times looks like he's trying to smother them. He will bring his toys over to them so they can play, too. He will gladly share his food & drink... even going so far as to put food in their mouth (done with a girl his age, and NOT a baby baby). With the older kids, he loves to run after them to see what they're up to. Most of the time, they're just running in circles or playing hide & seek. Doesn't matter... he loves it all. So through all this, my initial impression I have of him is that he's going to be that kid in school who likes everyone and everyone likes him.
He is super helpful already. If there is a crumb on the floor, he will pick it up and take it to the trash. If you ask him to throw something away, he will. His first actual chore has become refilling the extra toilet paper roll holder. It holds 3 rolls, and if we're not replacing a roll right away, we'll put the 4th on top. He's so excited to put the rolls in the holder, that he'll eagerly point to it if there are no more rolls in it. And while we're in the bathroom, if the used washcloths that we use to clean him with after a meal are dry, I'll hand them to him, he'll run to our closet where the dirty towel basket is located, and add them to the collection. He's also taken to help me carry laundry baskets full of folded clothes back to the closet to be put away. He also does this with the small basket I use to store his cloth diapers. He'll grab one end and I'll grab the other, and together, we take our load to where it needs to go... with me carrying most of the weight, obviously. He will put his shoes back where they belong, generally pretty straight. He will try to put the tray to his high chair back on after a meal, though he's still a little too short to actually get it up on top the arms. He also likes to put clothes in the washing machine/dryer, though he's a little too short for this chore, too. I love that he loves to help, and I realize that it may be just a phase, especially since we're heaping on the praise when he does something helpful, and that it probably won't be heaped on as he gets older. But something tells me he has gotten his daddy's sense of helpfulness and orderliness, and so he will always be this way.
He's very thoughtful, too. In this dry winter air, the tops of my legs tend to get itchy, so I scratch them a little. He'll come over and start lightly scratching, too, helping a girl out. It actually kind of tickles, it's so light... so I can't say it helps matters. But it's the thought that counts.
If DH & I hug, he insists on being involved, too. I'll be holding him and he'll put his head on my shoulder. Then DH will put his arms around both of us and lay his head on Matthew's shoulder. Then I'll lay my head on DH's shoulder. It's adorable, and we love doing it.
At night after I nurse him, I cuddle him for a bit before I put him down. He'll lay his head on my shoulder and after a bit, I start to feel him rubbing my arms and patting the back of my shoulders. It just makes my heart melt and not want to put him down.
Anyway, there is more, I'm sure. But it's late and I don't want to gush too much. :) So I'll end this post by saying I have one lovely little dude on my hands!
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*I'm still in the process of finding the perfect blog template, so things might be a little wonky as I try new templates out. Have patience!
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