Moose: May baby

How Big?:  Officially 13 months and a toddler... Woohoo. This man is 24+pounds and over 30 inches tall. 

Clothing Size?: Every time I turn around this kid is growing more and more. I finally cracked the clothing size code for him (at least for the next twenty minutes). Target brands which are mostly circo, cherokee, or carters seem to fit pretty similarly. (The superhero clothes can be a little different, though.) He is wearing a 12 month shorts because the 18 months are just so so so long, and my little dude has short legs. He is wearing a 2T top, now. They are longer, which is better for Moose because his torso goes on forever. I bought him a pair of 3T pjs that were carter's crabby pjs, and they fit very well. I think we are stocked on 18 month size things, and I am now looking towards buying things in the 2T category for him as we move forward. 

What/When is he eating?: Dude loves pasta. Spaghetti nights are awesome because there is inevitably marinara sauce in his hair and occasionally his eyebrows. He is finicky about when he wants to eat, though. There is no rhyme or reason to it ... much like the sleeping. He is on some schedule that the rest of us are unaware of that changes each day. Sometimes dinner is like eh whatever and others he wants to eat half of my plate. He can eat just about anything now, though he sometimes forgets he knows how to take bites and stuffs a whole lot in his mouth. The bottle weaning is not going as planned.... We are basically not weaning, yet. He loves his baba. We have cut back, so I guess technically we are working on it. 

Movement?: He has learned to climb on furniture. Please watch out! 
Milestones?: There are so many things happening for him right now. I see his sense of language developing and changing. He is attempting words like doggie, which comes out more like a high-pitched squeal-y sound but if you are around him enough you know what he means. He will say baba, and he will definitely respond if you ask if he wants one. (Try him bolting towards his bedroom door at night to go get it when asked.) He also shakes his head no when he doesn't want what you are offering him. He has learned to return his sippy cup to the table, counter, stool, whatever that he got it from or to hand it to someone near. It was previously discarded to the ground. He attempts to put lids on things when he is done with them. It is incredible to see his brain developing in all these cool ways! 
Hardest Moment(s) of the Month: Well, with all that cognitive development that I am so very excited about comes the other side. Moose has learned the power of throwing a fit. That melt down, cry my eyes out stare that makes mommy feel like she's actually hurting him by not letting him drink from HER cup. Yes, the 1 year old is trying to guilt me into giving him what he wants. It is so hard as a mom to learn to tune out the whiny cries of a boy who needs to learn better, when you have spent months catering to this human when he cried. It's tough to know that crying used to be a communication tool and sometimes it still is, but with each passing day it's less a tool and more a crutch. Learning how not to enable your kid is tough parenting stuff. 
Best Moment(s) of the Month: We have had an incredible month full of fun! There are pictures at the bottom of the post. He is so much more aware of the world that going places has a whole new meaning! 
Looking Forward to: In a very short time (one week), we will be home with our boy for summer. I cannot wait to watch him grow and change over these next few months. I am looking forward to soaking it all up with him before his baby brother arrives in the fall.