Rachel is 18 months old!

Friends

Our little turbo-toddler is a year and a half old, can you believe it?

Fearless, Charming, Stubborn and Clever are the words that first come to mind when thinking of Rachel. She has stunning blue eyes and an infectuous smile.

Her favorite activity has shifted from "anything Daniel is doing" to reading books. Every morning she crawls into her parents bed and wants to read books. All day long and every evening, you can be pretty sure that she'll come over to you with a book in hand and say "Book!" or "Book pease!" (please). This is followed by "uppease!" (up, please).

Her hair is getting long in the back and slowly filling in on the side. Another 4 teeth need to come in to fill out the 12 that are there already. She's stretching out and the baby belly is receding.

Rachel has amazing balance - she's just very steady and confident. Her perpetually-skinned knees seem to tell a different story, but that's just because she doesn't know her limits. She's tough, and gets up quickly after a fall.

Mere statistics aren't all of course, but for the record, she checks in at:

Weight: 24lbs 15.5oz (60th percentile)
Height: 33.5" (93rd percentile)
Head: 18 7/8" (85th percentile)

Rachel's spoken vocabulary is growing, and she whips out the occasional two- or three-syllable word, but what is really notable is that she understands absolutely everything. You can ask her to go to a different room to pick something up and be reasonably certain that she will. She's very excited about washing her hands these days and will say "Hands, hands!" until someone helps her turn on the faucet. We don't always understand her, or do what she wants though, and when she doesn't get her way she'll stomp her feel in frustration and scream. She has the makings of proper manners - she'll say "tick ooo" (thank you) when she gets something she wants....

Rachel's favorite animal these days are the bunny rabbits that roam our neighborhood. Her favorite food is - well - everything, but the more colorful the better. Her favorite person is still Daniel.

The last 18 months have been a lot of fun, and we're certain it's going to get better and better with time.

Happy 1-and-a-half Rachel.

Love,

Mama, Papa and Daniel.