According to the NIH, these are a few milestones that the "typical" 18 month old should be hitting:
- Is growing at a slower rate and has less of an appetite compared to months before - Definitely. The Boy has been in the same size clothes since he was 9 months. Granted, it's 2T, and he's still on the 99th percentile growth curve, but he's definitely slowed his roll in the growth department.
- Is able to control the muscles used to urinate and have bowel movements (sphincter muscles), but may not be ready to use the toilet - Uhh, right. We are so not ready for the potty training. Truthfully, I can't even wrap my brain around it, yet. The Boy totally knows when he's having "movements" and he usually thinks it's hilarious. He loves to stand up and pee in the tub, but I don't know if I would call that control of his pee muscles - is the Boy practicing Kegels? I dunno. Oh, and he thinks farts are awesome. Total boy.
- Runs with a lack of coordination and falls often - Yes. And might I say, what a funny little milestone. Like, "Completely spastic with no control over his own limbs." Uhh, I think we hit that milestone at week one.
- Is able to get onto small chairs without help - Absolutely. This boy is the love child of a monkey and a mountain goat raised by Evil Knievil. He climbs everything and has no fear. Thankfully, he has yet to attempt escaping from his crib. He loves his crib. Why would he want to escape his crib? I have caught him trying to climb into the crib...
- Walks up stairs while holding on with one hand - Yes. He loves stairs. He's getting better at going down stairs, too; although, he's having a tough time deciding on a technique. Sometimes it's the butt slide. Sometimes it's the tummy slide. Sometimes it's the "hold-my-hand-I-can-do-this-like-a-big-boy" technique. They're all adorable, and they all make him giggle. And they all take about three hours to complete.
- Can build a tower of two to four blocks - Yes. Jack loves building towers almost as much as he loves knocking them down.
- Can use a spoon and cup with help to feed himself - Yes, "with help" being the key phrase here. He often prefers to eat applesauce and yogurt with his hands. But he loves to drink out of a grown-up glass. On a side note, is it wrong that I can't make myself drink out of the cup after he's gotten to it? Is that part of what you sign up for when you have a kid? Drinking out of goobered up glasses and subsequently having to chew your iced tea before you swallow it? I just can't do it. Sorry, kiddo.
- Imitates scribbling - Yup. He's not in love with coloring, yet. Mostly, he just likes to eat the crayons. But he can do a scribble.
- Can turn two or three pages of a book at a time - Yes. He loves books. He'll often bring me books throughout the day, and just sit on my lap and read. I hope this behavior lasts a long, long time.
- Shows affection - So much lovin'. When you ask him to give you a hug, he'll stand in front of you, stiff as a board and let you wrap your arms around him, briefly. When you ask him for kisses, he'll gently head butt you. But on his own terms, he'll snuggle up and lay his little head on your shoulder and love on you. I also hope this behavior never ends. Oh, the sweetness.
- Listens to a story or looks at pictures - He loves looking at pictures, but he really likes to turn pages and often doesn't have enough time to listen to the story. So, I find myself paraphrasing, or just pointing to the pictures and naming things for him.
- Can say 10 or more words when asked - This is where the milestones get a little rocky (no pun intended). Jack babbles a lot, but he doesn't have a lot of words. He says this, that, go (which I think means good?), and sometimes mama and dada. He signs please, thank you, and sometimes more and milk. I'm not too worried about it because at this point as he's meeting all of the other language-related milestones. I'm sure one of these days he'll start conversating and just never stop.
- Identifies one or more parts of the body - Oh, yeah. He knows head, nose, eyes, mouth, ears, cheeks, chin, belly, knee, leg, foot and toes. I quiz him on it every day. He probably thinks I'm cray-cray, but I'm just amazed at this particular achievement.
- Understands and is able to point to and identify common objects - Yes, and he surprises me everyday with something new that I didn't know he knew.
- Often imitates - Yup. When he hears someone crying, he does this weird little fake cry. And he often laughs when someone else is laughing, as if he "gets" the joke. Also, when he sees people applauding on TV, he claps. Yes, the Boy sometimes watches TV. Please don't tell our ECFE teacher.
- Is able to take off some clothing items, such as gloves, hats, and socks - Constantly taking off his socks and hat. We're going to have to work on that before the snow flies. By the way, who puts gloves on an eighteen-month old? Really?
- Begins to feel a sense of ownership, identifying people and objects by saying "my" - Ehh. Sort of? He identifies people, but he doesn't use the word "my" or really seem to get that concept. Unless this is just fancy talk for "doesn't like to share his stuff with peers." Then, yes. We've hit that milestone.
John Alexander Lushbough...you are eighteen months of amazing.
ReplyDeleteI am totally with you on the potty training! I'm SO not there mentally yet. Sorry kiddo, you'll have to wait for mom on this one!! ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, isn't the mimicking just fun and hilarious? I really love it. The funniest thing to me is when Levi "puts on make-up" with me. I give him a couple of small brushes and some empty eye shadow pots and some chapstick and he goes to town. Freaking hilarious! (Poor kid.)
Endless entertainment, these little guys!!
Adriel - Jack loves make-up, too! I have a good friend who is a make-up artist and I keep telling him that we're raising his next apprentice.
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