AwesomeCloud's growth spurts (plural)

First, a literal growth spurt. After losing two precious pounds due to surgery, AwesomeCloud is shooting upward yet again. I swear he grew an inch in April, and now he's back to eating ravenously and being scarily obsessed with food. He's gearing up for a super-sized growth spurt, that will start any minute now.

His favorite food obsession is muffins, with cake being an acceptable alternative. Cakelike cookies also get him worked up. He's so obsessive that I've decided to cut us back on baked sweets for a while. If they're not in the house and they don't become part of a routine, maybe his obsession won't get out of control. I may even consider banning muffins and cakes entirely if he can't lighten up a bit. I hate to do that, though. Muffins are yummy. I'd feel like I'm depriving him.

(I seem to have forgotten all about Amazing Organic Food Mom already. How typical of me.)

I took the kid clothes shopping this morning. He enjoyed the outing and didn't put up a fuss. Why not? Two reasons: I didn't keep a tight rein on him and I didn't make him try anything on. Someday our shopping trips won't be as pleasant, but for now I'm just buying up anything cheap that says "2T" on it.

I only got 5 items, however, and two were pajamas. I hate buying baby clothes. It all gets outgrown so quickly, and then I give it away to a friend for free. I like giving hand-me-downs, but I want to get some, too.

The second growth spurt is in language. Can I say he's talking yet? He has a vocabulary of maybe 40-60 words, but very few of them are comprehensible.

Today he asked for something - a toy car - by name. That was a new development. Usually he says, "Doo?" for everything, no matter if it's food, toys, or the lid to the Aquaphor. This method gets him what he wants 60% of the time, sometimes after some trial and error during which he gets impatient for Mama and Dad to hurry up and pick the correct object.

This time he said, "Doo?" Then he thought about it for a few seconds and added, "Cah?"

I'm not worried that he'll rely on pointing to get what he wants and thereby be unmotivated to learn words. A 60% success rate isn't good enough for him. However, it's genuinely the best his Dad and I can do. We're both bad at guessing.

I also don't think our failure to teach him any sign language will affect him one way or the other.