16 months

talan cash turned 16 months old today and we're as happy with him today as we were the day we brought him home. that's saying something.
he is still a relatively easygoing baby, however, he has been presenting some challenges as of lately.
within the past week he has started growling. when he's mad or frustrated, or like yesterday in the car when he just wanted grandma to give him more fruit snacks. no reason to say "more" when you can simply growl, right?
he doesn't like to hear "no" and will often cry and throw himself on the ground. but thankfully that usually only lasts a couple of seconds and then he's off to something new.
he still isn't saying any new words and pretty much everyone is called "mama" especially "dada." he loves to look at the family pictures and point to everyone and say "mama." he most recently has started singing "mama. mama. mama."
one of the only people he doesn't call "mama" is jessica. she is now known as "caca." we all think it's great that he calls her "poop."
because of jessica's upcoming wedding we have had all sorts of invitations and pictures of jessica and justin on our refrigerator. so whenever we ask "where's jessica?" he'll immediately go to the refrigerator, look up and say "caca." even when jessica is standing in front of him.
he also tries to say justin but i can't really put in writing what it comes out like. not because it's obscene, just because i can't make out his mumbled talk.
justin. oh justin. how talan LOVES justin. he always has loved him but his love seems to be growing for him each time he sees him. justin has always been able to put his hand on the side of talan's head and talan goes into a trance like a shark when you touch it's snout. he'll stay there, perfectly still, for minutes. and he, of course, always wants justin to pick him up.
yesterday we went to muskegon to watch justin's band play. we haven't seen him in about a month and talan immediately went for him. at one point justin had to hand talan off to me because he had to go do official band things. once talan was in my arms he started crying and trying to get back to justin. it was sick. and at the end of the nite, after only having a 20 minute long nap and being up past 11pm, justin was the only person that could hold him and have him lay his head on his shoulder and start to close his eyes. justin the baby whisperer.
talan continues to be a overly active child. he never wants to sit, not even in a stroller while being leisurely pushed around. i don't know if it's a boy thing or what, but even as active as rainah is, she at least sits and sticks around her parents. neither of my children have been this way. i was chasing talan the entire day yesterday. he even moves while he's sleeping.
he continues to LOVE music and loves it even more when it's loud. he will immediately start headbanging and dancing around if he's not in the car being held down by straps. he will often go to the cd player and sit in front of it until i put music on.
he eats fairly well, although he doesn't want to be bothered to have to sit for a meal. he tends to eat far more if he can roam around and eat. but at least he's not a picky eater. for now.
he gets shy when you first walk into a room with people in it. he won't want me to put him down and he won't look at people for a few minutes. but that quickly wears off and then he's off and running again.
we took talan to the ent the other week and found that he will need to have tubes put in. we were told after having 4 ear infections in the first 15 months of his life means getting through the next winter without any would be next to impossible. luckily we are able to do it when ever we want and we figure we'll wait until january so we can use our deductible up and then have the rest of the year not paying for dr. visits. we will probably have the cyst removed on his nose at the same time.
he continues to wear mostly 12-18 month pants but has been wearing some 18-24 month which are a little long, but i'm a fan of shants anyway. he also typically wears an 18-24 month shirt and size 5 or 6 shoes if you can squeeze his fat feet in them. at least it's summer and most sandals are a little wider...but even sandals don't usually fit him. he continues to wear a size 3 diaper but we'll probably be buying the size 4's in the not so distant future.
he still goes to bed around 7 each nite and wakes up around 7am. i guess we are officially down to 1 nap a day at 1pm but he typically sleeps anywhere from 3-4. he goes down immediately for naps usually without making a sound, and pretty much does the same at bedtime although there are evenings he cries for a few minutes.
he loves to throw things, especially wooden blocks. he loves drinking bottles of water and does really well with it as long as it's a sports bottle style. every animal (and even some objects) are now cats and he meows at all of them. he loves to drum. one of his favorite things to eat is lucky charms, although he usually refuses to eat the cereal, opting for the marshmallows only. if you try to get him to repeat the alphabet with you he'll say "a" and when you get to "b" he'll sting himself with his finger. he is liking to be read to more and more, especially by papa. the house is always a disaster because of talan. he loves to push things. his favorite place in the house is the basement and he'll stand at the top of the stairs waving his hands around until you bring him down. he loves brushing his teeth which is basically just chewing on a tooth brush, hayden's preferably. when looking for or calling for hayden he yells "MA" at the top of his lungs.
talan continues to make us laugh on a daily basis. we can't wait to see what this next month will bring us. happy 16 months, baby talan! we love you.