Dear Jude: 18 months

Dear Judesy,

You were a year and a half old yesterday! I just can't fathom it, but at the same time I can't remember our lives without you. You are such a perfect fit into our crazy little family and you and unbelievably adored by all of us. 

I don't know your weight or measurements, but you seem huge!  You are wearing 18-24 month clothes now and a size 5 shoe. You still only have 8 teeth, you could definitely use some molars, kiddo. You eat pretty much all day long and will stand at the pantry or fridge crying. Your favorite foods are currently: yogurt pouches, grapes, raspberries, cookies, pirate's booty, cheese, and water. 

Judesy, you are a climber!  You love to test the limits of my nerves and routinely climb on top of the table. You are our little spitfire. You can open the child proofed cabinets and pull the safety plugs out of electrical sockets. You love to run and you are amazingly fast, playing outside is your all time favorite thing to do these days.  You have great coordination and a pretty good throwing arm (you are currently a leftie).  You love to shoot (dunk) baskets on your little basketball goal. 

You talk so well, I'm still surprised by your ability to parrot us so well. You say "please" and "thank you." You greet everyone you see with an enthusiastic "HI!"  You love to say "no!" to Liam and the dogs, and you tell us when you have a "stinky" diaper. We are also lucky that you say, "ready, set, go" before running or jumping off of something, a little warning goes a long way!

You are a pretty great little sleeper. You take a 2-3 hour morning nap everyday and go to bed around 7pm every night. You go down easily, you just need your paci (which you will probably have until you're 14) and your bunny and you're good to sleep. The only downfall is that you wake up first and get extreme joy out of waking your brother up. You are NOT a morning person, but you wake up with the sun (blackout curtains are no match for the Colorado sunlight) and then the hollering begins. 

Baby Jude, you are a busy, blurry, messy little boy, and you bring so much joy to our family. I love watching you grow and change. My favorite thing is to watch you and Liam develop a relationship. You are a "tough crowd" so to speak, you don't smile or laugh easily. But you smile and laugh at everything your big brother does. I love that. You are the best little snuggler in all the land, and I am thrilled to often be on the receiving end of your love. Your sweet baby voice is perfection and I'm so proud of every word you say or sing. You are our darling and we wouldn't trade you for the world. Happy half birthday, little love. 

Love you forever, and ever,

Momma