Our Growing Mac

I wouldn't say January has been my best blogging month to date - would you?

I'm beyond tardy on my monthly Mac posts, but I'm going to write about these last few months anyway. This virtual baby book is one of the only ways I can look back and visualize our teething, toddling little man as a newborn.

I know one day I'll look back on him now and think he was just a baby, but today he seems far too grown up for my liking.



I'm going to wrap up Mac's 14 and 15 month posts into one; before I know it (read: two weeks) he'll be 16 months old and leaving this old milestones in the dust.

At his 15 month well visit, Mac was 26.4 pounds (74%) and 32" tall (82%). He's a milkaholic (cue this commercial) and may well turn into a Cheerio one of these days. As far as his toddler-sized palate, it hasn't expanded to include the likes of actual fruits and vegetables. He'll eat any baby food in a jar, however unusual the concoction, but he sticks to a fairly bland diet now that he's moved past his Gerber days.


We go through quite a bit of yogurt, cheese, turkey, bread, Cheerios and bananas, but Mac hasn't taken a liking to much "grown-up" food besides Fritti pizza (anyone care to "import" this for us?), muffins, sweets, breads, carbs and anything fed to him by a grandmother. We're working on it!

At 14 months, Mac picked up a delightful trick that lasted three or four heavenly weeks. If you handed him his blankies and asked him to "snuggle snuggle," he'd plop his sweet head right onto your chest and burrow his face there for ages. It was to die for! Sadly, he out grew that by Christmas and has moved on to the head shaking "no" sign when you ask for snuggles now. Tear.


At 15 months, he has a total of 18 words in his vocabulary and uses them frequently. His favorites, as always, are "cup," "daddy," "dog," and "blankie." Nary a "mama" in the mix, either. Double tear! I know one day I'll hear "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" on constant repeat, but today is not that day.

He also uses the signs for "please" and "more" when the mood strikes him. I'm working to have him use "please" consistently so that when he can vocalize his requests, they aren't little cave man shouts of "Milk! Blankie! Cheerios! More!" Never too early to practice your manners, right?

We applaud him mightily after each "please," so he's been doing this more often. Last night, while playing with B, he did the "please" sign for no reason. B said, "I'm looking for something to give him! Hurry! He said please!" What a genteel young monkey.


He has cut two more teeth, little nubbins up top, and it looks like one more might be on the way. For now, his four teeth are making him look more grown up by the day.



Mac is picking up new tricks, too, the little ham. He loves applause and does just about anything to get it - lately he'll point to his eyes, ears, mouth, nose, cheeks, hair, head, tummy and shoes if you ask. He'll fake getting the "chills" if he hears you say the word. (This one concerned his Mimi on her last visit - he was shivering and grinning like a bandit!)


He loves to narrate things as we drive or pass by them, pointing out any and everything he knows. Even if he can't find the exact word, he approximates: "Kitchen" (or plate or soup or pizza) becomes "hot!" with a little blowing motion to "cool" it off. Outside (or window or coat) becomes "cold!" and a little shiver. What a silly, smart boy!

Naptime still requires Mac's beloved blankies. (I give Angel Dear blankies as gifts all the time now, because we have half a dozen and are obsessed!) Mac requests two blankies now, one for each hand - and who am I to question such a good sleeper? He's still in bed at 7:30 each night and usually wakes up sometime before 8:00. He takes one two-hour nap in the afternoons.

Our front-heavy (read: giant belly!) Macky took his first solo steps in December but has yet to take off running. He's becoming more nimble, however, at navigating his way around the roadblocks we put up to keep him safe. He can maneuver his way in and out of rooms, up and down sofas and stairs, over bathtub edges and around most anything. If there's something he wants to get into, he'll find a way!

What I've loved most about these months has been watching his awareness of the world increase. I love his easy, social nature with strangers and his curiosity at new things.

I love that he hears a key in the door and yells "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" until B's face is in sight. I love that he asks for his Daddy when I get him out of the crib in the morning and that he clasps his hands together for his "night-night" prayer with us each evening. (Want to see me cry? Have my toddler bow his head and put his hands together to pray. It's beyond precious.)

I love seeing him blow kisses and giggle and grin - and even seeing him hide his face in a fake tantrum when he hears the word "no." Everything is over the top wonderful or end of the world terrible to him, and it's quite the ride to join him on each day.


I love watching Mac "growl" at striped cats on his Baby Einstein video because he thinks they are tigers. And I really love that his first animal noise, rather than "moo" for cow or "quack" for duck, was "grr" for our Tigers. Even if "grr" sounds more like radio static, I'll take it!

This boy is nonstop entertainment for me, rain or shine, and has kept me busy beyond busy so far this year. I promise to start blogging more about what we're up to and all the new things in store for 2011. So much to chat about, so little down time!

Hope you all survived the snow and are praying, like me, for a very warm, very early spring.