Eleanor is one and a half!

Today is Eleanor's 18 month birthday! (I realize that it's not actually a birthday, but it's a big deal to this Mommy.) We went in today for her check-up (and shots- yuck!) She weighs 23 pounds 9 ounces (40th percentile) and is 31 inches tall (25th percentile). I don't remember the exact measurement of her head, but let's just say she's got plenty of room up there for all those brains!

We went to a new doctor (since the old one is now an hour away), and I loved her! She was really nice and perky and just loved Eleanor. I even felt so comfortable with her that I brought up that whole reading thing. At first, she just grinned and said, "Oh, okay." Then, I volunteered to show her, and she agreed. So, I whipped out the mini-magnadoodle, and Eleanor went to town reading words like "artichoke", "airplane", "shirt", and "chair." The doctor just sat there with her mouth open, and didn't say anything at first. Then, she said something about me needing to get Eleanor on a TV show. She was completely floored by the whole thing, and kept telling me to do more and more. She said she had never seen anything like that before. I felt so relieved to have confirmation from a medical professional that Eleanor has some extraordinary ability, and that I'm not just exaggerating the whole thing because I'm the mom. She said she was going to go discuss this with her colleagues, and when she came back, she brought me the name and phone number of a psychiatrist who works with extraordinary children and their families. We probably won't take her until later (if at all), but it was nice that the doctor took us seriously.

Anyway, here are some things that our little peanut is up to:

• Reading at least 75 words. (I tried making a list, and 75 is what I got before I stopped.)
• Learning between five and ten new words a day. She's starting to use phrases like "Mommy eat" and "I DO!"
• Running. The cutest little stiff-legged run we've ever seen! She's also come a little farther on the jumping- now she lifts one leg up as she says, "Dumt."
• Playing Ring-around-the-Rosies...sort of. It consists of her turning around in a circle, saying, "Ashes, ashes, DOWN!" and then falling on the floor.
• Singing all kinds of songs. My favorite is when she makes up her own songs. They almost always contain the sounds "du-pa" and "di" in varying combinations.
• Counting objects up to ten.
• Wanting to play outside ALWAYS and throwing a nice big tantrum when we have to come in! Why aren't kids uncomfortable when it's 28 degrees outside??
• Identifying shapes. She can point to them when I say the words, but can only really say "oval." She just loves the word oval, and points them out all over the place.

We love you, sweet pea!!