15 months.

Er, well, 15 and 1/2. I'm kind of a blog slacker these days, it appears. Theo had his 15 month check up last week and he's doing great! He's kind of a peanut (though he has roly poly thighs) and is in the 15th% for weight and the 27th% for height. Dr. R was very pleased with his growth and our report of how he eats, so we aren't worried. We talked about the next steps on his vaccine schedule and he didn't get any this time. We talked about possibly starting the DTaP, but while she was discussing the side effects and as my research was running through my brain, my breathing got heavy, my heart was pounding and I may have started to break out in hives. So, she said she would not give it to him today because I was obviously uncomfortable and she wasn't going to do anything I wasn't totally ok with. Have I mentioned how much I love our ped? So, I think we are going to wait until 2 when then blood brain barrier is closed to start it. The side effects for that one are neurological, so after our risk/benefit analysis, we decided to wait. The only other one we chatted about was Prevnar, but she told us that there is a new strain out there NOT covered by the current Prevnar, rendering the current vaccine useless. A new one was just approved yesterday, but it's not available yet. We'll revisit when it is. So, no shots for the big guy!

Here are some highlights for Theo's little life at 15 months:

- Finally seems to have caught on to sign language. Can sign "please", "more" and "all done." You know, the important ones.

- Says "dog", which sounds like "duh."

- Can identify a few things in his favorite books.

- Is a rockstar at the shape sorter.

- Can do two puzzles, the wooden kind with the knobs.

- LOVES to read. Will bring you book after book and sign "please."

- Has still not been given cow's milk.

- Is still not allowed to see TV. (Mean moms!)

- Can follow directions.

- Is in love with his pets.

- Goes to sleep beautifully, but thinks 5am (or earlier!) is a fabulous time to wake up.

- Is undergoing more Sleep Lady work to learn to nap in his crib for more than 40 minutes.

- Loves to be outside.

- Eats things I am sure Susan didn't even try until she met me: enchiladas, mexican lasagna, shrimp curry, meatloaf, homemade mac and cheese, veggie dogs, etc. The boy will eat just about anything.

- Will be an engineer one day. He is fascinated with how things work.

- Is still breastfeeding.

And, about that last one. I have a feeling this will be ending soon. A few weeks ago, I noticed he had no interest in the morning or afternoon nursing. He'd latch for a second, all the while looking around and then unlatch and squirm to get off my lap and onto something much more interesting. We are down to nursing only before bed or in the event of a major tragedy (hitting his head or being told we don't want him to reprogram the dishwasher). The baby who used to nurse every 1.5-2 hours around the clock, is now down to once a day.

I have mixed feelings. My goal before I ever had kids was six months. Then I got pregnant, did research and decided my goal was a year. Then he was born and we started off on the long road of breastfeeding hell and my goal was just to make it through the next feeding. Then I decided I'd love to make it to 2, but would let him take the lead after a year. And, I have. I feel good about following his cues with nursing and letting him set the pace. When it ends, I will be sad. I have a lump in my throat now just typing this. On the other hand, it will be nice not to have to be here every single night at 7 because I have to put him to bed (not that I will probably be anywhere else, but options are nice). It will be nice to have my body back. I will have a twinge of failure if we don't make it to 2, but I can't MAKE him go any longer than he wants. I'm available until he's two, but if he decides he's done before then, so be it. A year was the finish line - the last 3 months have been a victory lap. I do hope for a few more. I even whispered to him tonight as he was more distractible than usual, "please don't end it yet, buddy. Mama's not ready." He smiled.

So, that's his update. Growing, laughing, loving and we are enjoying every second!