The Ryan-Ortiz Family: All About Kiley at 17 months

Kiley and Papa ~ 40th Birthday!

I knew that once Kiley started talking she likely wouldn't stop, and in the last few weeks she's proven that theory. Almost every day is a new word. She says Mommy and Papa clearly, Sydney is nih-ney, and she doesn't really say Jake, but when she's tried it's come out as Gay (not ideal for a 10-year-old boy, but thankfully baby sister can do no wrong).

Kiley likes to lie on the carpet with her feet on the tile floor of our bathroom

- and she loves to brush her teeth.

Kiley is independent and determined. She knows what she wants and doesn't want, and can definitely hold her own. I'm trying to respond to her strong emotions with redirection and by firmly telling her to user her words; that she doesn't get what she wants by crying. It's hard sometimes to remember and not give her what she wants when she's shrieking and I just want her to stop, but I'm getting back in the hang of it pretty quickly :)

Kiley can communicate well. She says 'taco' (breakfast taco - can you tell we go to Rudy's one morning a week?), 'wa' for water, and 'chee' for cheese. She has said 'no mo' for no more - the first two word combo that I heard. She doesn't have a word for peanut butter, but it's a favorite right now. Sometimes she open her sandwich and presses the pb bread against her mouth (read face) - to eat it. And then, she'll put her hands in her hair, which drives Mama CRAZY and is probably all the motivation she needs to do that every chance she gets! When I tell her not to put hands in her hair when she eats, she still sometimes cries like she used to every time you said 'no' in any way, shape, or form, but something she gets mad at me and sometimes she just seems not to understand and puts hands flat on her head and looks at me - hmmmmm.

Kiley says 'baa' for bath, and then 'out' when she's finished. She says 'car' and 'key' and 'go go go' when she's in the car or the stroller. She says 'baby', 'book', and 'hello' for the telephone (which can be a phone, remote control, or calculator help up to her ear, baby's ear, or anyone nearby really). She says 'toe', 'eye, 'no' for nose and NO for NO. That and 'mine' are still favorites. She says 'broo' for 'broom' and 'boo' for 'balloon'. She says dog and puppy and then follows it with panting and barking sounds, and I've got to get that on video. She does this crazy thing where she raises her eyebrows at people and inevitably they raise them back and the game is on. She says 'walk' and will come grab your hand and pull you where she wants you. She says 'pee' for please and 'tank ta' for thank you. She says 'buckle' for the buckle on a car seat or high chair. She tells me when she has 'poo poo' and needs a new diaper. She asks for a 'wipe' to clean her hands. She says 'hot' and blows on food when it's warm, and 'co' for cold. She asks for a 'bow' for her hair, has said 'jacket' very clearly, and she loves shoes. She can be in her diaper but want to try on various shoes, and thanks to Aunt Jacqueline and cousin Mia, she has plenty to choose from. She gives kisses to everyone before bed, but once in awhile will decide that she doesn't want to kiss one person and will just throw a fit when it's that person's turn. Sometimes it's your lucky day and you get a sweet Kiley kiss; sometimes not! She's gotten better about hitting when she's mad, which she did for awhile - mostly with Jake and Syd - and now she just screams NO and shrieks loudly. I was trying to load a video of that, but I think it's too big. I'll try to put it on facebook. It's a little hard to claim the screaming 'NO' as progress, but I suppose it's better than hitting.

Random photo of the clipboard craft we did for Sydney's 9th Birthday party~we had lots of fun at her monkey/spa sleepover :)

Yesterday, Kiley opened the fridge and pulled out her milk. She tries to wipe her own hands and blow her own nose. She often picks a book, plants herself in a seat and then pats where you are supposed to sit to read to her. Once you sit, she'll climb into your lap for story time. She knows that pens are for writing on paper, and will carry around a paper and marker, stopping periodically for a coloring break. In the span of 60 seconds she can hug three dogs, climb in her car and say 'go go go', climb out, say 'bye-bye' and head to the next room. She's a girl on the go! She is very persistent and has a high tolerance for frustration. Yesterday I watched her try over and over and over to climb up into one of our adult size deck chairs. She finally made it and turned around to sit, kick her legs, and enjoy her accomplishment. She can throw a ball and kick a ball, and thinks it's hilarious. And, she does something that I don't remember either Jake or Sydney doing - she sings! Well, I guess it's humming really since she doesn't have words, but she definitely knows the tune to 'twinkle twinkle' and 'row, row, row your boat' - and she sings them over and over. When it's time for bed she sings row row because her music box in her crib plays that one. She has these little finger puppets and she puts them on and then the puppets talk to each other (like they do when I wear them), but they just babble and babble, which is another thing I really hope to catch on video.

Kiley hanging with the big girls at Sydney's party