A Few Things About Jude

I just wanted to record a few things about Jude and his development so that I won't forget what he's up to these days. I feel like I updated the blog every time Aubrey did something new, but not so much with Jude.... poor second child! ;)

-He is really starting to talk more. I was a little worried about him because I just don't feel like he talks nearly as much as Aubrey did at this age. I talked to our pediatrician about it when we were there about his ear infection recently. She said not only is it true that boys usually talk later than girls, but that second children typically don't talk as early as their older siblings even if they're the same sex. I thought that was so interesting! I told her Jude says a handful of words, and she said as long as he does that and "jabbers" a lot, he's right on track! Here are the words Jude says at 18 months old:
-Bo! (no) (this is his favorite word)
-Daddy
-doggie (daddy and doggie sound almost exactly the same and I can only tell the difference based on the context)
-Uh Oh
-Ssss (please)
-Ball
-He is able to say Mama, but he doesn't do it often. I think he knows I really want him to and he is a tease ;)
-His newest word is Bob-Brey (Aubrey). It's the cutest thing ever to hear him saying her name! He says is constantly, and it's really clear that that's what he's saying. Of course, she loves that he can now say her name! :)

So, I think he's fine in the talking department. Our pediatrician said that Aubrey was probably a little advanced in how much she talked, but Jude definitely isn't behind. Aubrey has always been a very vocal, communicative child, and that's just her personality. Jude has a different personality, and that's great too! I have to remind myself that just because she was an early talker doesn't mean that she's smart and he's not. I'm sure he will excel in other areas. And I think both of my children are wonderful and smart whether they're big talkers or not! :)

-Jude is super independent these days. It can get a little trying sometimes because he literally doesn't want me doing ANYTHING for him. He now feeds pretty much everything to himself with a spoon or fork. I held out on the yogurt for as long as I could, but I've finally let him start feeding that to himself too. He actually does a pretty good job of getting food into his mouth. He's still really picky, but he does eat more when I let him feed himself than he did otherwise. He still loves yogurt and cheese and most fruit. He doesn't eat ANY meat unless it's in something like spaghetti. He will eat peanut butter sandwiches and a few vegetables, but not many.

-He's been sleeping great ever since we got him back to going to sleep on his own. He goes to bed easily at 8, and he's been sleeping through the night most nights (Thank God!). If he does wake up in the night, sometimes we don't even get into his room before he's quiet, but if he keeps fussing, we give him his paci, and he goes right back to sleep. We did discover that he's getting two new teeth, so hopefully when those are completely through, he won't wake up in the night at all anymore. He's been waking up like clockwork at 6:30 every morning. That's just a little early for my taste, though. He's been great about just playing/talking softly until 7-7:30, and that's when I get him up. If he happens to sleep late, I've been trying to wake him up by 8. We're really trying to get him on a more consistent schedule. He takes his nap at 12:30, and he sleeps about 2 hours on average.

-He's in the stage where he does some major over-generalization. It's so funny! He thinks every circular object is a ball, every animal is a dog, and every man is Daddy. Haha! It's cute :)

-He and Aubrey really get along well. They have their little spats over toys, but for the most part, they love each other and love to be together. This makes me so happy!

Those are the big things that are coming to mind right now. Obviously, there is much more to Jude than these few things I've recorded :) He's so sweet and we love him so much. I can't believe my little baby is about to be a big brother! I can't wait to see how he responds to his baby sister!