Month Sixteen

Today Hudson turns sixteen months. This last month has been incredible in terms of growth and development. First of all, he doubled, if not tripled his milk/food intake. He can now drink sixteen ounces of milk in one sitting and not even blink. Amazing. I always wonder where it all goes and how such a little person can consume such larger-than-life quantities of turkey and rice.

Needless to say, his waistline has expanded quite a bit in the last two weeks. So much so, that I had to buy several new pairs of pants, all with elastic waistbands because it is not possible to stuff his belly into anything that has a zipper and buttons. He literally complains and pulls at his waist if I attempt to stuff him into jeans. Poor fella.

Other than that, his energy level has increased ten trillion times overnight. He now wants to bring stuffed animals, balls, styrofoam letters, and books into bed with him and when he wakes up, he doesn’t cry. Instead, I can hear him playing, talking, and giggling. This is a huge change and a very welcome one.

Now instead of taking things out of kitchen and bathroom cabinets, Hudson stashes his toys in there. Sometimes I find my empty water bottle, or his soccer ball inside pots and pans. It’s so random and funny. It really makes me smile every time I find his secret stashes.

While Hudson doesn’t really say anything other than mama (he calls us both mama, which is kind of funny), he certainly jibber-jabbers all day every day. He is never ever quiet and I love it! The other day we were at a playground and there was a two-and-a-half year old boy there. They played well together, but at one point, Hudson climbed onto a slide and said, very clearly, MINE! I was impressed because he knew to use English with the boy.

He continues to absolutely adore dogs and has added birds to his list of favorites. He points, stares, squeals, and giggles any time he sees either. Lately, Hudson also developed an obsession with elevators. When we go to the library, it’s not really about books, songs, or interactions with other kids for him. It all about the elevators. He wants to press those buttons all day. It’s very cute, but also a little trying for my patience.

From what we have seen, Hudson is very peace-loving. He doesn’t take toys or cookies away from other kids. He’s not aggressive when it comes to play time. He just squeals and gets very loud when he gets excited. And, even though he is physically bigger than most kids his age, he cries when they push him around and doesn’t quite know how to defend himself. I think he expects good from everyone, so when he encounters anger and aggressive behavior he’s not sure how to react.

Hudson now has a favorite show — Kingsley’s Meadow. My mom sent me a couple of DVD’s in Russian and we watch them literally from sun-up to sun-down. The first thing Hudson says to me when he wakes up is “K-kkkkk-K-kk.” which is his way of saying Kingsley. Sometimes we have this show going in the living room and in the kitchen simultaneously. And heaven forbid that we eat breakfast, lunch or dinner without Kingsley. That’s just not acceptable!

He now has 16 teeth and is not afraid to use them. He is slowly, but surely becoming a more adventurous eater, but still has his favorites — yogurt and cottage cheese! Among his other favorites right now are:

Bubbles
Bath time
Animal books
Giving hugs and kisses
Sleeping with teddy bears
Dragging a toy vacuum everywhere…

It’s been a wild ride and I can’t wait to see when new developments this next month will bring.