At almost 17 months, Ryker is so adorable and fun I could just gobble him up. I would love to freeze time for awhile for him to stay at this stage. He is engaging, fun, very communicative, and independent, but not yet at the difficult, tantrum throwing, persistent toddler age. He throws little fits and will cry, roll around on the floor, and occasionally bang his head out of frustration, but it never lasts long. I'm sure there's worse to come, but in the meantime, some of my favorite things right now...
Walk-a-walk-a :: Ryker's expressive language continues to impress us daily. He is a really good imitator of both actions and words, and still repeats most things we say. But what's different from even 6 or so weeks ago is that Ryker independently uses a lot of words to tell us what he wants and to make comments about what is going on around him. He will say "eat" when he is hungry and can identify, with words, a lot of different foods that he wants. He will use words like "up, down, more, done, outside, park, go, book, color, play, please" to make requests. Ryker says, "walk-a-walk-a" when he wants to walk rather than be carried (which is always), and he identifies a lot of animal sounds. His high pitched "cock-a-doodle-doo" is the best!
He listens! :: Ryker can follow many one-step directions (throw something away, get shoes, clean up, come to the table, go up for bath), and actually listens when we ask him to do something! He is humorously mischievous at times, and I'm sure he will test his boundaries in the future, but for now he is so proud when he completes something we ask him to do.
Pre-sleep time :: Ryker LOVES books. Before nap time and bedtime he urgently says, "books," and picks out a couple for us to read to him. His favorites are Big Red Barn, I Went Walking, and Everywhere Babies. When we lay him down in his crib after reading, he likes to have a book with him to flip through before falling asleep, and will look at it again after waking up until we come to get him. Even at night, when it's pitch black in his room, I'll give him a book that he contentedly holds despite not being able to see it! His love of books makes my heart happy.
Cuddles, kisses, and hugs :: Ryker is getting busier and busier
exploring his world, but he is still up for cuddle time when he's
sleepy. If we ask for a kiss, he'll come over with lips puckered and
lean right in. And it melts my heart when he says, "I wuv ooo," right after we tell him we love him.
His overall personality :: I hate to be the endlessly doting mom, but Ryker has such a great personality. He is cautious of new people, but quick to feel comfortable and engage with them. He appreciates a good teasing, adapts to new situations well, and is overall very easy. He does stand his ground with his siblings and will pitch a fit when they (Sydney) take something from him, or if they (Myles) handle him too much. There is a steady stream of sibling quarrels in our house, but at the end of the day, they are all each others best friends.
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