Baby Mac - 20 Months

Dear Baby Mac,

Please stop growing up so darn fast!  Your poor mother can't even keep up with all the awesome things you are doing and saying these days.  You are truly amazing and I am so grateful every single day that I get to be your mama.  

You are still an excellent eater.  Everyone that dines with you comments about what a good little eater you are for a toddler.  You can be picky (and you'd rather have cake than anything else, although I can't blame you there), but for the most part, you eat well and quite a bit.  You still love pasta and noodles (mac & cheese), fruit and rotisserie chicken.  You'll eat anything you can dip in ketchup (or sometimes you just eat the ketchup off your fingers).  Veggies are a little tougher to get you to eat, but I think we're doing pretty well there.  I really hope you keep it up.  You love feeding yourself and are really good at using a fork and spoon.  Although, you'd much rather use the grown-up fork and spoon than your little toddler ones.  Go figure.  

Sleep has been better...and worse.  You're going through a phase where it's nearly impossible for me to do bedtime with you because you won't let me leave the room.  Every time I get up to put you into your crib, you grab onto my hair or necklace and say, "mama, rock."  So we go back to the rocking chair and snuggle and rock.  I'm a softie and it works everytime.  Your dad has been having to do bedtime for the last week so we can avoid this hour-long power struggle and we can get you to bed at a decent time.  But once you're down, you usually sleep for a solid 11 hours.  It's wonderful!  Of course, occasionally we have a few setbacks when you're sick or not feeling well.  We had one middle-of-the-night puke clean-up due to a stomach bug and the last couple nights have been absolute doozies, with your dad and I taking turns holding/rocking you due to a nasty cough and lots of snot.  We hate it when you're sick - not just for the lack of sleep, but it's just so hard seeing you struggle and not feel well.  Breaks my poor little heart.  

You still sleep with your little stuffed puppy and kitty (whom you sophisticatedly call, "cat" and "dog").  They are your constant companions and dog goes lots of places with you.  You also have a giant stuffed St. Bernard the lives in the playroom that you affectionately named "Boo Boo" that you love beyond words and spend a lot of time tackling, hugging and snuggling.  You got a giant stuffed horse from Santa that you call "Bed Bug" (or something like that) that you like to ride and make horsey noises, which is adorable.  And there's another small dog and giraffe that make random appearances at naptime and both receive lots of snuggles.  You are so sweet and just adore all your animals.  

As for your real animals, you love them too.  Maybe too much at times.  Sage (the golden retriever) is great about putting up with you riding her like a horse and using her as a stepping stool.  She probably knocks you over as many times a day as you torment her, so you're even.  Mally (the sheltie), on the other hand, is not your biggest fan, unfortunately.  She is getting pretty crotchety in her old age and doesn't have a high tolerance for your shenanigans.  She does, however, love you when you eat because you're a mess and she reaps the benefits.  Jigs (the cat) is by far your favorite pet and you are OBSESSED with her.  You stalk her, you tackle her, you chase her, you love her SO much.  She puts up with it, but spends a lot of time in hiding (poor kitty).  You also help me with our fish.  They are horny little devils and we've had a recent population explosion in our tank.  We must be up to 80 baby fish these days!  (Also, what the hell am I supposed to do with 80 baby fish???)  You love watching them and helping me feed them.  

Your two favorite things to do right now are play in the sink and on the iPad.  One is a total disaster and ends with my kitchen flooded and the other makes me feel guilty that you're getting way too much screen time for a toddler.  We try to limit both activities, but you are pretty insistent and sometimes it's necessary to give in so we can get anything done.  You're insanely good at using the iPad, which both worries me and makes me think you might be a "Mac Genius" (obviously).  Your favorite apps are ones about trucks and puzzles, which I feel like are relatively harmless.  However, you've recently discovered your dad's "Buck Hunter" app and you love to shoot the moose, which has me slightly nervous.  You turn it on and yell "SHOOT SHOOT SHOOT!"  I guess you come by that honestly, though.  In this family, you're destined to be a hunter.  

Your "Papa Golf Cart" (my dad) made you the most incredible kitchen helper stand, so you can stand up at the counter (or sink) with me and you love it.  What a game-changer  and blessing that thing has been.  You love being up high so you can see what's going on in the kitchen and this way I don't have to hold you the whole time or worry about you falling off a stool.  Thank you Papa!  You love standing on it at the sink and washing dishes.  You have a particular cup with a handle that you request and no other cup will suffice.  It's blue, but you insist it's purple, so we call it "purple cup."  You have a hard time keeping the water in the sink and you love dumping entire cupfuls of water on the floor to see us freak out, so sink time usually ends in taking the privilege away and tears.  We are the worst parents ever.

You're also really getting into trains these days.  Seriously, what is it about toddlers and trains?!  I do not understand, but you sure do love them.  Your favorite phrase in the world is "All Aboard!" and you probably say it a hundred times a day (see a video here).  Some days I wake up to hearing you shout "All Aboard" over and over to yourself in your crib in the morning.  It's the cutest thing ever and puts a giant smile on my face every time.  We have a train table in the playroom and you love pushing your train around the tracks, making choo choo noises and shouting "All Aboard."  And riding the train at the zoo is the biggest thrill of your life!  One of these days we need to do that "conductor for a day" program where you ride the train and say "All Aboard" over the microphone all day long.  That will probably be the greatest day of your life. 

I absolutely love all the talking you're doing these days.  I understand the majority of it and it helps so much knowing what you want and what you're thinking.  You've got words for so many things and they are all adorable.  My favorite is you say "chair" and point to where you want us to sit.  Kills me.  And all of a sudden, you're putting words together.  I expected you to start doing this a month or two ago, but you're just now starting...and you're good.  Instead of starting with 2 words, you put together 4 or 5 at a time.  You basically just skipped 2 words and went straight to sentences.  It's amazing.  One day you wanted me to sit by you and throw the ball and you said, "Mama, chair, more ball."  And then I swelled up with pride and exploded.

Alright, enough gushing.  I just want you to know that you're basically the most amazing child in the whole wide world and you make me proud beyond belief.  I still can't believe you're mine.  

Love, 

Your mama

Likes:

• trains
• iPad
• pooping in the bath tub
• your grandparents
• the mailman
• tractors
• stuffed animals
• hopping
• jumping off of things
• playing in the sink
• Mally, Sage and Jigs
• peeing in the potty
• horses
• chocolate cake
• chocolate anything 
• music
• books

Dislikes:

• diaper changes
• getting dressed
• not getting to eat the lotion
• ouchies/boo boos/bandaids
• getting out of the bathtub
• wearing socks
• getting your nose/face wiped