17 months

In just a week, Henry and Norah will be 18 months old. People always told me that time flew by when you had kids, but I'm beginning to understand. It's hard to believe they are running around and jabbering away now when they were once so tiny.

Here's what's new now that they're 17 months old:

Henry:

• Probably weighs about 26 pounds and has gotten a little taller (we'll find out at his 18-month appointment)
• Loves green beans, macaroni and cheese, string cheese and bread but has gotten tired of bananas and yogurt
• Mainly wears 18-month clothes now but still fits into 12-month pants
• Adores the red Cozy Coupe and loves being pushed down the driveway in it
• Likes to try to hide in his closet or climb under the table
• Loves pushing chairs around the kitchen or the rocking chair around the basement
• Generally sleeps really well at night and doesn't usually wake up unless Norah screams
• Likes Dad to lift him up so his head bumps the ceiling
• Says "hi," "bye-bye" (to everyone when we're leaving) and "nana" for "banana" now
• Waves wildly at his teachers and grandparents when we're going home
• Has strawberry blonde (it looks slightly red in the sunlight) hair that's curling in little wings above his ears now, which I love
• Loves climbing on the couch and playing with the remote, phone or computer
• Is a very messy eater and has to put his hands in his mouth to feel foods while he chews them
• Likes opening and closing doors and pounding on the toilet in the bathroom when he somehow gets in there
• Hates getting water in his eyes in the bathtub but loves to splash as hard as he can and play with his sailboats
• Likes to play with his pretend phone or the remote and say, "Hi! Hi!" into it
• Has a few more teeth, including another one in the bottom front and a molar
• Looks forward to pushing the button to close the garage door and watches it with wide eyes the whole way down the track
• Is obsessed with the stairs and loves the climb up and down them
• Loves holding water from his sippy cup in his mouth and letting it drip down him
• Likes pulling books off the shelf with Norah and looking at them

Norah:

• Weighs about 22 pounds and has definitely been getting taller (but I just wait until their checkups to see how they've grown)
• Wears 12-18 month clothes and a few 18-month shirts, but she drowns in most pairs of jeans (even the 12-18 month ones)
• Loves shoes, necklaces and hats and tries to grab my necklaces in the morning if she sees me putting them on
• No longer likes bath time and will start screaming after a few minutes in the tub when she knows it's time to be scrubbed
• Loves to dance and bob up and down or stomp her feet whenever she hears music
• Has been getting more teeth, including another on the bottom
• Likes stealing toys away from Henry, but we're working on learning to share
• Says "hi" a lot,
• Loves to pick up her play phone or the remote, hold it like a telephone and say, "Hi! Hi!"
• Is very independent and insists on walking and eating by herself (unless she's being fed yogurt or applesauce)
• Likes pulling all the books off the shelf in her room and pawing through them and babbling
• Refuses to eat green beans and yogurt most of the time, but loves PB&J sandwiches, bananas, melons, pizza, string cheese and soup
• Loves to play on the stairs with Henry
• Learned how to blow bubbles with her sippy cup from Henry and likes to let water run down her chin
• Has light brown hair that's finally starting to grow, but she likes to pull on it when she's nervous (and yanked out a few hairs last week)
• Loves to carry both Henry and her sippy cups around and drink out of both of them
• Usually sleeps pretty well but has been waking up in the middle of the night lately or screaming in her crib until we grab her and then playing with toys until 10 p.m.
• Likes to run with her arms straight back behind her and cackle as we chase her
• Loves to climb on my legs and have me lift her up or throw herself on my stomach when I lay on my back on the floor
• Gets so excited when she sees Andrew walk in the door after work and comes running to him
• Has become a little Linus and loves grabbing her blanket out of her crib and dragging it around the house

I love these babies so much and feel so blessed that they are ours.