15 months

On Thursday Raf turned 15 months. I have to say that this is one of the best stages we've experienced. He is growing so quickly, and developing skills at such a rate that he masters things one day when the day before he seemed a long way off. I am not the best at deciphering baby talk, but it's also becoming apparent that he is saying words - and quite a few - but we're still a little deficient hearing them. Today he said 'Chee' for cheese (he loves LOVES a new vegan cheese we recently discovered), I think he said 'ca' for cat when Dafty, our kitty, walked towards him, he has said 'ba' for a long while when referring to a ball, and his most clear word is 'Peppa' for Peppa Pig - an English cartoon that we've allowed him to watch on YouTube. And I really need to catch on video him waving and saying 'ba ba' (bye bye).

Perhaps the most sweetest thing is that he now blows kisses.. and, when you say (well, when I say) "come and give mama a hug and kiss" - he toddles over and puts his arms around you.

Raf is also a pretty funny boy, and often he cracks himself up. This morning Sammy had his lead on waiting to be taken outside, and Raf picked it up and pretended to walk him and he was giggling so much. Sammy is the cause of a lot of Raf's laughing... when he's eating in his highchair Sammy can often be found parked right underneath him waiting for the inevitable scraps. Raf's favourite dinner time game is to drop things - not FOR Sammy, but ON Sammy - all the while laughing like a little lunatic.

Raf seems to go through toy phases. This week it's a block and shape set given to him by Aunty Bex and Uncle Habby. It's one of those wooden blocks with holes for matching shapes. Last week Raf could only consistently put in the pink, round piece - and this week he can do almost all of them. Where did our little baby go?

And on baby notes - today we got to meet a new little baby boy, Nico Alexander. Raf came with us to Mercy hospital this afternoon. He takes a few minutes to get adjusted to new environments but once he does he totters around happily and sweetly, playing on his own, but interacting with with all of us as he blows kisses, gives us things he's been playing with, and more.

What a great little boy we have.