Likes: her mom, "reading" (looking at) books, unrolling the toilet paper roll, grabbing at anything she knows she shouldn't have, her toy phone, water - be it in the bath, sink, hose, pool or water table
Dislikes: teething, people taking toys away from her
Toddlers are equal parts adorable and exhausting. Willa is learning and changing constantly these days. She is also into EVERYTHING. And the lack of impulse control keeps her pulling down every towel and hanging piece of clothing she sees. She loves climbing up on the table, which leaving nothing on it is key. She loves finding keys and pressing the remote buttons. She also loves any small toy left where she can swipe it - from shopkins to the lite brite pegs to game pieces. And she is quick to spot anything left out too.
Willa now says several words on the daily. This includes - hide, this, ball, thank you, trash, dog, teeth, keys and shoes. She also says several people's names, including - dad, mom, Jess (she stands at the bottom of the stairs and yells my name!), Isla, Connor, Papa and Riley. I may be skipping some words, as she is picking up new ones daily. She likes to make sure we know she knows the word. For instance, she points at the keys and yells "keys" several times a day. And she picks up something that needs to be thrown away, says "trash" takes it to the trash can, throws it away and then says "thank you". I have started working with Willa on her body parts and she knows where her head, eyes, ears, teeth and fingers are.
Willa currently has 12 teeth with more on the way. The 13th one is close to breaking through. She went to the dentist for the first time this summer. The dentist said her teeth look great. I don't know Willa's actual height and weight, but she is wearing 12-18 month clothing and size 4 diapers. Some 18-24 month works with room to grow, but some is still just too big to wear.
The biggest change for Willa lately (or more for me!), is Willa now sleeps in her own bed. We took the
side off her crib a couple weeks ago and it has been a game changer. It is so nice to have my room back and my evenings back. She doesn't even wake when I talk Isla in there to bed. Now to get her sleeping through the night! Depending on when Willa wakes for the day, she takes one to two naps a day. It is generally one and I prefer it to be one, as then it is one long one, rather than two shorter ones. Depending on what is going on in the house, she sleeps either in the carrier on my back or in her bed. I say depending, as it really depends on if I have the time to sit and nurse her to sleep or not. With the kids back in distance learning, sometimes having that time when Willa is tired can be a bit dicy.
Willa has taken to carrying things around and I am here for it. Usually it is her baby doll or stuffed unicorn. It's so stinking cute. And with her doll, she has tried brushing the hair after I brush Isla's hair. And she squeezes both of them like she is hugging them. It is pretty much the cutest thing ever. Like it really is.
Though it's hard to believe it has been 18 months since Willa arrived, her birth seems like such a long time ago. And that first year is already starting to feel foggy in my memory. Time and a child's growth is such a crazy thing.
Just for fun, Connor, Isla and Callum at the same age. Callum and Willa had the same amount of teeth at this age, Connor and Willa had many more.