Monthly recap @ 19 months

In a blink of an eye, he turns 20 months today! Gosh! He still has 16 teeth. The last four molars are nowhere to be seen yet. Waiting.....

Now, let's recap his journey when he was 19 months. :)

Wearing his infant safety belt on my lap.

One memorable achievement was that we brought him with us to our 6D5N Taiwan trip in March.

In case you missed, here are the links:

Part 1: Our 6D5N Taiwan trip itinerary
Part 2: Eat & drink in Taiwan
Part 3: Sheep-ish Escapades at Cingjing Farm
Part 4: Taiwan - breastfeeding heaven

Day time.

Night time.

Quaint apartments in Caotun, Nantou.

Monthly recap @ 19 months

From babycenter.com:

When you're out and about, your toddler may run away from you as fast as he can, squealing in delight as you rush to catch up. Most children this age are oblivious to danger, so you'll need to be extra watchful of cars, bicycles, and dogs when outside.

Note to self: Including those darn escalators. Need to be watchful all the time, no excuses, really.

I couldn't believe my eyes. He adores mascots!

Toddlers are natural-born helpers. So why not get yours to help around the house with chores? It's a great way to teach your child responsibility and instill good habits for the future. You may find that him help makes chores more fun – or you may find yourself dismayed by how long it takes to get anything done. To avoid frustration, save important tasks for times when your toddler is asleep or away. When he's around, let him help with small chores like putting his plastic cup and bowl into the dishwasher, or tossing wet clothes into the dryer.

Note to self: Yes, he LOVES helping around. So, I will ask him to keep his toys after playing, putting his milk bottle into the sink. Believe it or not, he loves the vacuum cleaner.

He sayang the mascot.

Even the most cooperative, cheerful, and outgoing young toddler will whine, cling, and cry sometimes. These behaviors are your child's way of saying "Help! All systems overloaded!" Your 19-month-old is learning new things and refining skills at a dizzying rate. Frustration is inevitable and manifests itself in different ways, depending on the child. Accept these signals for what they are: a cry for attention and TLC.

If it's feasible, respond and let your child know you can tell he's upset. Acknowledge his feelings but don't make too big a deal out of these short-lived emotional storms. If he's crying and clinging, a few hugs and then simple distraction might work. If he's whining, you might explain, "I can't understand you when you whine. Can you show me what you want?"

Note to self: Yeah, I can't stand all sorts of whining. My zen-ness will become zero. I'll do my best to quiet him down. I'll distract him by making funny sounds or singing his familiar nursery rhymes loudly. He will stop whining and join in. If he asks for nen-nen, I'll ask him, "Which nen-nen you want?" If he points at me, I'll straight away breastfeed him. If he points at his bottle, I'll make a bottle of milk for him.

Reading his big book of trucks.

Monkey see monkey do. :P

Now that your toddler can sit still for longer periods of time, reading together is more fun than ever. Asking your child to point to objects on a page is a good way to find out how much he understands, even if he can't say the words yet. A vocabulary of anywhere between ten and 50 words is normal for this stage of development.

Words & phrases that my little one can say so far:

Calling people: Ma-ma, pa-pa, mah-mah (means grandma), gan-pa (means grandpa), yi-yi (means his auntie, my younger sister), boy (means himself)

Singing nursery rhymes: baa baa (when we sing 'baa-baa-black-sheep'),
boo (when we say 'pee-ka...'), bot (when we sing 'row-row-row-your-boat' and 'ro-ro-ro-bot'), back (when we sing 'the-driver-on-the-bus-says-move-on-back' and 'bring-back-my-bonnie-to-me')

Meal time: mam-mam, nen-nen, ter-ter (means water), boon (means spoon), fog (means fork), bo (means bowl), hot (when he touches hot food)

Shower time: bom-bom (means shower time), uk-uk (means poop), gi-gi (means teeth), kok-kok (means the little cedok in the bathroom)

Play time: bao-bao (means he wants to be carried/hugged), bo (means ball), book, boon (means balloon), bike (for both bicycle and motorbike), boooz (means bus), dog (when he points at a dog's picture or plays with his Duplo dog), duck (when he points at a duck's picture or plays with his rubber ducks), akk-akk (means quack or duck), jeep (when he plays with his toy jeep)

Sleep time: du-du (means sleep), door (means close the door), dark (means the room is dark)

Others: bug (when he points at insect bite marks on his hand and leg), there, dirty, no more, one more, neck, back, bag, hi, bye-bye, uh-oh, ang-bo (means angpow), key, ditch (I think he's trying to say the word this), bom (when he knocks his head on the edge of the cupboard), booot (when he imitates the sound of his fart)

He can say so many words!!!!!

Singing row-row-row-your-boat while playing with a boat.

You're no doubt getting plenty of unsolicited advice on disciplining your child from relatives, friends, and even strangers. It's understandable if you're confused: Is occasional spanking ever okay? Do time-outs work at this age? How many rules can your child handle? Whatever approach you adopt, child behavior experts say that consistency coupled with unconditional love is the key to raising a confident, well-behaved child.

His play area. I love the giraffe toys rack!