Howe's Life: Ella is 1 and 1/2!

She's actually closer to 19 months . . . but with the way doctor visits get scheduled, we just had her 18 month appointment. As usual, Eleanor is giant! She is 27 pounds (90th percentile), 34 inches (95th percentile), and has a 19 inch head (91st percentile). She stood on the scale all by herself and didn't cry at all when she got her shot!
At 1 1/2, Eleanor has a very clear and loud personality. She is either very happy (shown by singing, dancing, these adorable smiley giggly faces) or pissed off at everyone (crying, laying facedown on the floor, asking to be held while crying, yelling at an octave unimaginable in a small child). Ella loves to sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, Where is Thumbkin, Twinkle Twinkle. She wants to be read to and likes to try reading with you. Eleanor follows Madeline around constantly. She wants to be as big as the big kids. She gives giant hugs to everyone (as long as she's in a good mood).
Ella loves to eat. She hits Hangry and is inconsolable until the food is placed in her mouth. Ella will eat just about everything you give her, even cauliflower and artichokes. She loves a banana each morning and all junk food. Ella eats chocolate, ice cream, applesauce, fruit snacks, cookies, chips, pirate booty which Madi basically never ate at this age. Pretty much the only foods Eleanor doesn't like are yogurt and sashimi. We tell her to feed her feelings and let her eat constantly so I feel like we will be spending Ella's teen years apologizing to her for her chunkiness.
Ella watches a ton of tv (for better or for worse). She asks for shows by bringing me the remote and saying "doc" or "hot dog" (which means Mickey Mouse Clubhouse). She will sit in her chair in the living room and watch until whatever song she wants to dance or sing with. Then she is up out of her chair and bopping around the living room. Ella likes to take walks with the popper after dinner, chalk all over the sidewalk, and visit her friends. She watches out the window like Madi does and yells "Wren" when she sees Wren walk by then runs to the front door so she can go out for a walk also.
I adore how much Eleanor wants to snuggle (I also hate it when I'm trying to cook dinner or we've been snuggling in bed for an hour). She is very open to meeting people, is more comfortable going to a man than a woman, and I would describe her as outgoing. Ella loves the dogs (especially Jameson) and will pet any dog that she sees in the neighborhood. I am so looking forward to watching Eleanor's personality continue to grow (and I am already doing research on how to help her build patience with others).