Wow alz your first one was putting several words together at this age - that is really impressive! We are a long way short of that! DD has a few words - alot that she says when she is copying what we are saying and a few that she says unprompted, and yes, a few animal noises. Trying to think what they are....mum, dad, nanna, book (ba), bath (ba), ta, cake, cat, baa baa, duck, moo, bye, clap (she says clap when she claps - quirky!) hooray, tickle. I think that is all of them.
When Alannah was going to a speech pathologist (for eating issues, not speech) she asked what words Alannah was saying and said that at about 13 months just mum and dad and perhaps 1 or 2 others was fine. So yeah, very few words is fine at this stage.
And I think what you are saying about talking and motor skills is right, they seem to have their mind on one or the other and excel at that. Alannah is going fine with talking but isn't walking yet so she fits that rule also.

For christmas we are having a day this weekend with my family and then christmas day with DHs family, so we are not hosting anything. My family do is about 4 hours drive away and DHs family is about 2 hours away so travelling for both but not too far.

Fleur - the animal noises are very cute aren't they, we also get trumpeting elephants and fish that go 'moom moom moom' (that makes sense if you remember Ernie and Bert and their gold fish on Sesame Street).

Leesa - What a cheeky little one, and a bit sneaky also? Hope he is enjoying the car bed!