I'm 16 months old!

This month has been nothing short of a word explosion! Now, everyone has to be very careful about what they say around me. I also love listening in to adult conversation so I know if you're talking about me! Watch what you say...=P

Motor skills
- Able to walk up 2-3 steps unassisted.
- Able to walk down 1-2 steps unassisted.
- Able to give a hug (with a big squeeze)
- Able to give a flying kiss
- Able to putt using a golf club in the direction intended.

Hand & Finger Skills
- Able to perform "sprinking" action
- Able to assist in taking off a piece of clothing
- Able to wipe his mouth and face with a tissue or towel

Language
- My new words this month (that are used on a consistent basis) are: Bear, Duck, Wolf, Pig, Mummy (finally!!!), Dog, Cat, "Orrr..." (when he wants to blame someone for a wrongdoing), beat, out, golf, dig, two, three, dry, cold, hot, do, house, bird, big, more, shoes, down, elmo/nemo (short form = momo)
- Is able to pronounce single syllable words accurately after hearing the word once (current hit rate of 80% accuracy).
- Has begun to form 2-3 word sentences:
E.g. "Mama, out, golf!"; "No good" (when he tastes something he doesn't like); "Go out"
- More animal sounds: Wolf goes Woooo, Elephant (makes trumpet sound with raising of hand), Car goes "Brrmm", train goes "choo choo"

Cognitive
- Knows the meaning of big and small (Able to illustrate with hand actions and is able to identify big and small objects in books).
- Is able to understand the concept of waiting first for an action to be completed before he gets what he wants. (eg: Wait till mummy packs her bag first, then we will go out.)
- Able to understand what "Last one" means. Ethan loves his fruits so when we feel he has had enough, we will tell him "Ok, last one..." and he will indicate 1 with his index finger and after that shake his hand and say "no more".
- Actions:
a) Knows how to operate the CD player through observation of his grandparents. Ethan will press the power button first followed by the track button. He has memorized the position of these buttons.
b) Able to stop and give due consideration to the stated consequence of actions. (eg: if he is in a precarious position, when we tell him he will fall down and it will be painful, he will stop and sit down.)
c) Shows signs of toilet training (able to indicate when he has just pooped).
d) Has developed names for each of his favourite story books and will make requests for books at storytime.
e) Understands comic concepts and laughs when I point out to him a funny action or picture in the book.
- My helper was trying to make Ethan sit still one day whilst feeding him and told him that if he continues to be naughty, she would tell Mummy. Ethan calmly smiled and said "No. Work". (The little rascal knew that Mummy was away at work and could not discipline him there and then!)
- In another instance, my helper told Ethan that he was being naughty and he replied "No. Good." (Who knew a 16 month old could be so defensive?)
- Beginning to understand the concept of counting. (able to say the words, one through to ten). After Mummy says "One", I will starting counting. haha.
- Understands opposites and is able to verbalise the opposite. (eg: When prompted with "hot", he will say "cold", when prompted with "wet", he will say "dry", when prompted with "hello", he will say "bye!")
- Knows all the sounds in his Dr Seuss book.
--> Cow (Moo)
--> Bee (Buzz)
--> Horse Feet (Klopp)
--> Cock (Cock a doodle doo)
--> Clock (tick tock)
--> Hand on the door (knock knock)
--> Rain (Dibble dibble dopp)
--> Thunder (Boom Boom)
--> Lightning (Splatt)
--> Butterfly (Whisper)

- Able to identify nearly all the following body parts: Eye, eyebrow, nose, nostril, ear, hair, head, cheek, dimple, mouth, tongue, teeth, neck, armpit, stomach, finger, fingernail and toenail, bellybutton, genital, foot, leg, knee, toes. (His daddy is considering teaching him anatomy next!)

Social
- Has clear gender preferences for ladies vs. men
- Is willing to share his toys with other kids and will not snatch them back

Emotional
- Still trying to grasp how to control his emotions fully. Tendency to cry and shout still exists but is better managed with distraction of interests.

Needless to say, we're very proud of our little boy. Don't grow up too fast Ethan...=)