18 months old!

Happy 18 months girls! For some reason, 18 months has seemed like such a milestone to me. Maybe it is because daycare kids are considered official toddlers at 18 months or because I can now sign them up for gymnastics class.

• Quinn has started telling me when she has pooped. It seems to really annoy her now and so she wants me to change her diaper immediately. My plan was to start toilet training Teagan first, but those plans might be changing! 

• They have a recent baby obsession. Whenever we see a young baby, they point and babble. If they're able to get to the baby, they will attempt to stroke his/her hair and give kisses and hugs. Up until now, they haven't shown too much interest in stereotypical "girl" things. Funny though, they also love planes and bulldozers. We spent a good 10 minutes the other day watching a bulldozer work away. 

• Dancing and music continue to be BIG hits in our house. Music is almost always on in the background. If they hear a song that grabs them, they won't hesitate to stop what they're doing, jump up and bust a move! I took them to a drop-in music class recently. Teagan stood in the middle of a circle of 15 moms and their babies entertaining the crowd and dancing up a storm!

• Both girls have become interested in reading once again. I will sit in their chair with one on each knee reading several times per day. They especially enjoy the dictionary-type books because they love to identify common foods/animals/objects. 

• Their vocabulary is improving. It's tough to remember what words are new this month. I guess I should keep track. They're attempting more words and phrases - baby, Papa (Grandpa), oh-oh, 'yes please', nana (banana), cat. They also make monkey noises and scratch their underarms at the sight of a monkey...how appropriate! I've introduced the sign for please and help. I was finding that they were often whining or yelling at me when they needed my help. Quinn has started using both. 

• They've become much better about eating with a spoon and fork. While it creates far more mess for me, I try to give them one or the other for at least 2 meals per day. Quinn can actually eat an entire bowl of food and spill very little on herself. Teagan, on the other hand, will often purposely make a mess. She loves to transfer food from one bowl/plate to the other.