Logan is 19 months old!

Tomorrow Logan turns 19 months old. In the morning we leave for Japan to see my parents...Amanda has shut down her computer already so I (Katsu) is posting this instead. I read this blog all the time, but I don't exactly recall how exactly she narrates the updates. Well, let's give it a try.

Logan seems skinnier, but he does not weigh less, so he must be growing taller and better-framed. He is active, running around a lot, jumping a lot, screaming tones, so a lot of that energy he's burning is probably going there also. It reminds us of when Andrew was little. His face has become more boyish rather than babyish-though he certainly is still a baby to us. His face is less round, with more pronouncements on his nose, jaw and temples. So as his shoulders, ribs, hips, knees and elbows. I am no Michelangelo, but his anatomical features resemble more of a man than a blob he was only a few months ago.

He eats rather well. He doesn't always, but when he does eat he eats more than Seth (still less than Andrew). When he eats little, he eats less than Seth (still less than Andrew). He likes scrambled eggs in most mornings (whereas Seth wants an over-easy), and for the rest of the day he just wants whatever his older brothers are having. He wants to try everything, though he often dislikes them. He has mistaken cherry tomatoes for grapes several times this past couple of weeks when we had them for pasta salad or just plain salad. He seems me snacking on them and would not stop screaming unless he has one of his own, only to spit it out. We think he is getting a hang of eating rice. Because Andrew and Seth both love rice, Logan naturally thinks he does. We see no sign that Logan dislikes them, but it's kind of hard to say. He thinks he loves them for sure, and asks for a soy-sauce on it just like his older brothers do. He tries most things we eat that Andrew and Seth resist, such as most new kinds of veggies on the table. Most of the time it comes back out of his mouth, but sometimes it stays there. For example, he seems to like grilled Asparagus.

He still nurses, not as often as he used to, but still more often than Amanda likes. It's mostly to do with his teething and our recent travelling and irregular schedule that we haven't completely weaned him. After we come back from Japan we probably will. Andrew and Seth both weaned at 19th months I think. He usually brings a book and points to a pillow and says "da" or something like that. Regardless of nursing or snacks or toys, when we deny him of what he wants he goes on a screaming tantrum...this he has been doing for the last couple of months I think. We can't wait till he can talk more. He certainly understands almost everything we tell him.

His speech is coming along, and I think I can tell that he is beginning to try to pronounce things more clearly when he is not understood. Train, trucks and cars are his three favorite words. He says a lot of "da"-related words that I have hard time differentiating, including dad, that, there, done, etc., though I think Amanda understands him better. We don't want him to keep screaming because it can be really unbearable. It's unbearable to me and I am only there part-time. It must be most agonizing for Amanda.

All things considered he is a very happy baby with much love to share. He has learned to hug and kiss, though the latter he's still learning. He gets his feelings hurt when he is being told "no" or mistakenly thinks he is told "no". Either way, he pauses for a little bit, and thinks a little bit and looks down or around and his eyes get teary and his mouth makes an inverse U and then he goes. It's quite adorable and a poor thing, I can tell that he just feels bad, sad, unsure and guilty for whatever reason. He is a gentle soul just like Andrew, and how I used to be when I was baby...at least that's what my mom tells me.

There were a lot of events for Logan this month, big events. We went to Greenville to stay at two different hotels and get in a strange car and ride on a three different airplanes and meet random people, and Oh yeah, look for a house to live! He wanted to be held or follow after his older siblings who mostly wanted to just run around looking at homes. Logan did very good considering all the ins and outs from his carseats and unfamiliar environment, etc. He loves the airplanes, like his brothers did.

We also had Grandma/pa Crookston visit us last week and they went to Grant's farm, transportation museum, eating at restaurants, going to multiple parks, etc. There was a Magic House, Seth's last day of preschool and Mother's Day breakfast, Andrew's end-of-the-year carnival and last day of school. A lot of landmark events that to Logan, mostly meant little but was just one long sequence of craziness, fun and chaos.

And we are leaving to Japan for a little over two weeks starting tomorrow. The long airplane rides. Ji, Ba and Izumi. Trains. Disneyland. More updates next month.