Ryder at 18 Months

Could he get any cuter?

Our big boy is 18 months now and definitely has his own personality. He is 30 pounds of fuzzy head, chubby cheeked fun! Here are some of the things we love about Ryder.

YAY!

Ryder has a cute little habit of saying "Yay!" to anything the interests him. He hasn't learned the word 'yes' yet, and we like it that way. Anytime you ask Ryder if he wants to do something fun or eat something yummy you get a big ol' YAY! 

"Ryder do you want a cracker?" "Yay!"

"Ryder, do you want to go for a buggy ride?" "Yay!"

"Ryder, do you want to go see Daddy?" "Yay!"

How can you not be happy around this kid?

Vertical Hair

Ryder's hair also has its own personality. Freshly washed, it stands straight up. It's probably the number one thing that strangers comment on in the grocery store (#2 would be his eyelashes). One guy at church referred to Ryder's fluffy gravity-defying hair as his feathers.

Shy

Ryder is a bubbly little man at home and around the people he knows and trusts. But if a stranger tries to engage him when we're out and about, Ryder will switch to "If I don't look at you maybe you'll go away" mode. People find it pretty funny that the harder they try to get his attention the further he looks away from them. He also does something similar when he's mad at his mommy.

Right before I took this picture I didn't let him have something he wanted so he retreated to the wall and stuck his nose to it. He refused to look at me no matter how many times I called his name. Funny man.

Boats and Tractors

Two of Ryder's favorite things are boats and tractors. We can't pass a trailered boat on the highway without him noticing it. He gets hysterical when daddy leaves in the boat without him. Anything that looks like a tractor (golf cart, 4 wheeler, lawn mower) IS a tractor to him and he wants to see and ride them all. Actually he is more of a driver than a RYDER. He's always got his hands on the steering wheel and if he's not in the driver's seat he knows how to wiggle his way on over there.

And More

He loves to show off his belly, he can eat his weight in raisins, he knows loads of animal sounds, he loves to sing songs, he goes to sleep with an armfull of stuffed animals, he can count to 2, he misses his sisters when they're not there, he's been known to call his daddy "Steve", he's not a big fan of swimming or bathing, a lollipop with instantly quiet any whining, he has no volume control, he's bilingual (Steve taught him how to say "Uno mas" to get more of something), and he's a fan of You Tube.

We love you big man! Thanks for all the endless entertainment.