22 months

Dear Aidan,

Today you are 22 months old and it is so hard for me to believe how grown up you are becoming. This is not the best or most recent picture of you, but it seems that we have really been slacking in that department lately, so it will have to do.
You are so silly and sweet these days and even though we had a couple rough weeks of sickness this month, and another ear infection, you have come out of it with such a happy and content spirit about you.
You are constantly repeating us these days and some of my new favorite words you say are: helicopter, avacado, and ambulance. You have a great vocabulary, but still struggle to put words together. You want to communicate about everything and still jabber on to us constantly.
I love the way you are so aware of your surroundings and how you notice landmarks when we drive around. You have a little routine with noticing the library and then McDonalds right after that and then when we turn towards home and it is naptime or bedtime, you always start saying "night night." I love the fact that you can fuss and whine all day and seem to need me every minute and then lay in the laundry basket with your blanket for 45 minutes. You now believe that you are supposed to stand in shopping carts since your Daddy started that whole thing with you, but you are so good at the store, just standing and holding on. We do have to watch you carefully though because you are amazing with child-proof bottles and you like to play with the eggs when we aren't looking.
Aidan, you are an extremely picky eater and I just can't seem to get you to try new things. It just baffles me some days. However, you eat pretty well when distracted with Elmo, the love of your life.
You watch way too much t.v. these days, but I am busy growing your baby brother or sister and that process just takes the life out of me. Speaking of which, you are going to be a great big brother. You absolutely love Oakley and I think that even though watching him every day can be tough on me, it has really prepared you for what lies ahead. You are so aware of how to be gentle and you love to play peek-a-boo and make him laugh. I can't wait to see how you respond to your own sibling.
You are still an incredible sleeper and I am so blessed. You sleep well over 12 hours a night...more like 13 and still manage to take a good nap most days (2-3 hours). Right now, you have been sleeping for 2 1/2 hours and I haven't heard a peep. I love it!
You are handling things well with Daddy being gone in the evenings and you seem to sense that Mommy is not feeling well right now. You have been especially sweet at times and it has really ministered to me.
You are becoming much more obedient and I can trust you so much more than before. Your new word is "obey" and once we get you to say it, you are stuck with following through. You so want to obey us, even if you do love to push our buttons. I am so grateful that you are listening better and trying harder to follow commands. You seem to really respond when we treat your feelings with respect and it has been a positive change this month.
I could go on and on about you and all the cute little things you do. I am so glad I am your mom and can't believe that this little one in my belly is going to be another wonderful being to enjoy as I have you.

I love you dearly,

Mom (your new word for me)