18 Months

Time. Flies. 18 months. Where did the time go? It seems just like yesterday I was greatly anticipating the arrival of my sweet little miracle thinking it would never get here. Then she arrived and I didn't remember one second of my life before her. Now, she's busy running and talking and growing faster than I could ever have imagined.

Stats:


Food: Ady is a very good eater, except for veggies :) She will eat any fruit I put in front of her. Her favorites are grapes, bananas, and strawberries. She still loves to eat the Puffs she had as a teeny baby. :) She eats cheese like it is going out of style. She no longer will drink milk, so luckily she gets the dairy in there! She loves chicken nuggets and fries (tell me a kid who doesn't!), ham, Cheetos (thanks to Biggie who got her started on that this past summer!), pretzels, Cheez-it's, bread, Cheerio, and just about anything else you hand her, she'll eat it.

She loves to dip food into other things: I.E. Teddy Grahams into yogurt, fries into applesauce, the list goes on :)

Sleep: It's no secret Ady isn't a long napper. I used to get so worked up about people who would swear by the book Babywise. Seriously, people. Children are not books. I tried everything to get her to nap longer. No two days are the same with her. But, she's an incredibly happy baby. Probably the happiest baby in the world. And guess what, I didn't follow a book! Yipee! Some days she takes a 40 minute nap, some days she get 2 about 1 hour ones, some days there's none, and rarely she will take a 2 hour nap. Yesterday, for example we ran allllll day long. I thought for sure she'd nap. Nope. Not a second. Not one. second. :) She goes to sleep between 8-9 at night and wakes up between 6-7 in the morning (although the last several mornings she has gotten up well before 6!). I can't complain. She is such a happy baby!

Development: I know every parent thinks their child is brilliant, but Ady really is :) Since she was about 9 months old she could tell you what every animal says. She knows: lion, elephant (my personal favorite to hear!), dog, cat, duck, owl, bird, monkey, tiger, skunk (well it doesn't make a sound but she puts her hand up and says 'p u'!), and the list goes on. She can name every member of the family, all of my friends names (her wonderful aunts!), and if you do something one time she remembers it forever. For example, Heather has a purple phone case. There is a baby on her backdrop. Ady loves to hold her phone and look at it. When I went to the sewing store a few weeks ago, the lady working had a purple phone cover and she kept pointing to the cover saying, "baby! baby!".

She is quite the OCD'r around here. And I really don't know where it comes from. :)

My mom often tells me she is much smarter and doing more things than she "should" be able to at her age. She has such the vocabulary and everyday is saying more. She jibber jabs a whole lot, but she has very clear words too :) Last week we went to the zoo and as my mom was holding her she clearly said, for the first time, "I walk!". Almost each day I hear something new. She has, over the last several months had several "sneak peek terrible two" moments. And I say that very cautiously. Ady is really good. But, she wants to express herself in ways she can't sometimes and it causes a few mini tantrums. Luckily her personality is so wonderful she bounces right back after a few seconds. I'm trying to teach her to "use your words." Last night, she came up to me, pulled on my pants and said "yo yo" I knew what she wanted... yogurt! Smart cookie. She also knows the ABC's and can tell you how old she is (1). She's learned this week to count along to 5. I love teaching her. She is such a good listener. :)

Personality: Independent. Sweetheart. Hilarious. Ady wants to do things by herself. Which is why I am in and out of the grocery store in 24 minutes (this is no lie). By the time we've run through the store and made it to checkout, she's donezo in the cart! We rarely take a walk in the stroller anymore because halfway through the neighborhood it's "I walk!". And I don't mind. I love that she is so active and loves to move! She has a very, very precious little heart. She loves to read her Bible books by herself and then when she closes it she says, "amen". She no longer says "m'amen". Sad :( As a matter of fact, "M'elmo" has graduated to the name "Elmo". She's so big! She has an absolutely hilarious personality. Not only is she a Josie on the outside, she is a Josie on the inside too! She is so much like her daddy it is not even funny. Such a trickster. But, such a good kid. I am really blessed. She will take her baby dolls and rock them back and forth saying "shh, shh".


She will even take my 2 Willow Tree statues and carry them like her baby dolls through my house. What toddler is gentle with breakables? Ady is!

Favorites: Gramme! She loves "Gaga". I really shouldn't call her Gramme anymore, because that name has been dethroned! She loves doing FaceTime and calling "Bampe" and getting to talk to Caden and Ray Ray :) She is very much into Elmo and anything Sesame Street, but Mickey Mouse still has a place in her heart too :) She learned to say Mickey this week. On Tuesday it was "Mick" and by last night it was "Mick-e"! So sweet! One of her favorite things to do is sit with all her toys and things stuffed behind her. It is really funny to watch! :) She loves to dance. This is a daily ritual in the Bischoff house. The girl has moves :) But, her most favorite toy of all will always be "Bear". If he's missing, she'll run through the house in the sweetest most precious sound ever saying his name. And you can imagine the look on her face when he is found :)

Milestone: Potty Training!

I'm starting this early. Just introducing it to her so it will be an enjoyable event for all of us. She loves to sit on it! And anytime I say, "Ady go sit on your potty and she will :)"But, perhaps the biggest milestone EVER was that last night she sat down in the tub for bathtime!


For a looooonnnnng time Ady was afraid of the tub. When she was about 9 months old she finally would stand in the tub. I tried sitting with her and she would, but I couldn't do it all the time! I had bought every toy known to man but nothing would convince her to sit. We decided we didn't want to make her be fearful of the water (although it doesn't make sense since she loves the pool!), so we just let her stand and play for bath. But last night...tada! She had an absolute ball! So precious :)


She was so busy dancing she didn't want to get out:



18 months sure did fly by. I am overwhelmed with gratitude at how smart she is and how perfectly healthy her precious little body is. We have been so blessed. There is nothing else in the world that has made me happier and more joyful than to have a precious little Ady to hold and snuggle each day. :)