Jayce Ryan, 18 Months

Our little lovable guy is HALFWAY to TWO!

Favorite foods: bananas, cheese, crackers/graham crackers, pancakes...a great eater!
Favorite things: blankie (which is a white cloth diaper/burp rag), the remote, rocking horse
Favorite book: Goodnight, Moon
Favorite things to do: turn the lights on/off, dance, climb, run around the house
Some words: ma ma, da da, ya ya, on, off, please ("peas"), stuck ("uck"), cracker ("ca ca"), ball, up, eyes, buddy, yes, Lucca (you-ca), bark, button...these are the most frequent ones that come to mind, but he will pretty much try to repeat anything you ask him to.  He has also started to string two words together.


Jaycer is such a little sweetheart!  He is just growing up way too fast for my liking.  I'm trying to keep him my baby, and he's pretty much convinced himself that he's as old as his brothers and sister and will keep up with them no matter what they are doing.


At around 17 months, Jayce and I had our very last nursing session.  It is so bittersweet...the end of an era.  I had been either pregnant or nursing (or both for a short time) for six years!  I know this is silly...this sadness I have.  Kids grow up.  But part of me just wants to keep them little bitty and safe under my wings...always.


Jayce definitely loves all three big kids, but his relationship with each one is different.  He and Jax are probably the closest, each calling the other "buddy."  They share a room and love to make each other laugh like crazy when it's bedtime--the only difference is that Jayce gets tired and conks out pretty quickly, while Jax could seriously stay up all night.  I think Brody gets the biggest smiles from Jayce...he is surely a big brother who is looked up to in a big way!  Jayce recently started walking around the house calling out, "Emmy!!!" whenever he can't find her.  Adorable!


At his 18-month appointment, Jayce weighed in at 25 lbs. 13 ounces (50th %ile) and measured 33 inches tall (60th %ile).  He's not quite as tall as the twins, but they all weigh about the same.  Sometimes in certain pictures, all three of them actually look like triplets.  BUT...my baby still has a baby face.  See?  :)


Jayce has six teeth right now with several more on the way!  He still takes a morning nap (45 minutes) and an afternoon nap (1-2 hours), and his bedtime is about 8:00pm.  He runs, jumps, climbs, throws/catches a ball, brushes his teeth, colors on the walls and windows, gets a little temper now and then...ya know, normal 18-month-old stuff!  :)


Our littlest is such a perfect fit here in our family.  It continues to be so fun watching him develop from a baby to a little boy in every area...his looks, his language, his likes/dislikes, his whole personality.  When Kris told me one day recently that Jayce had said "I love you," I smiled and told him that all these milestones are just as exciting and special the fourth time around.

We love you, Jaycer!