We have arrived at two...although he could easily pass for three based on how big he is. At his well check he measured 95% for height and 92% for weight. You can imagine that having such a big, strong boy is not this very pregnant's mama favorite thing right now!
Speaking of his well visit, he was less enthused to be at the doctor this time. It didn't help that the first activity was measuring his head, which he hated. This kid hates having his head/face messed with (we refuse all hats, nose wipes, etc). It snowballed from there, and he resisted the scale and height measurement too because, why not?! He was generally fine when the doctor came in...until she checked his ears. Every time we do battle over ear checks, they always comment on how strong he is - a fact that is never lost on me. We survived, but the last step was a blood draw. It was just a finger prick, which Charlie didn't mind, but man, did he throw a fit over the ensuing bandaid. He did not want anything on his hand (did I mention he refuses to wear gloves too?). He might be the only toddler I know who doesn't like bandaids. It took a juice box to calm him down, but he wasn't fully restored to happiness until he managed to remove both bandaids (which, of course, resulted in him messing with his finger and causing it to bleed all over himself later in the day). Sigh.
We were in Oklahoma for Charlie's official birthday. We had a fun day exploring the zoo, lunch at chick fil a, cake/ice cream/presents, all followed by breakfast for dinner. I think Charlie had a fun day, but he was also battling a virus that put a little damper on his day. You know Charlie isn't feeling well when he turns down bacon. Luckily, if anyone is a champ while being a sick, it's Charlie. And besides being a little low on energy and not having his usual appetite, he seemed to have an enjoyable day. We had an adorable Little Blue Truck cake in honor of his favorite book, but he was more interested in eating the ice cream.
When we aren't in Oklahoma or celebrating birthdays, this is what a typical day looks like for me and Charlie:
7:30-8 Charlie wakes up. He starts his day chatting away until we go in to get him.
8:30-9 He gets to hang out in mama and dada's room and watch an episode of Sesame Street while mama gets ready. He recently learned how to say "Elmo" and he loves the letter and number of the day songs - especially when he can identify the letter or number.
9:00 Breakfast
10:00-12:00 We leave the house most days for an activity - depending on the day it could be speech therapy (which we actually do at home), MOPS, bible study, music class, playgroup, running errands or visiting the tot gym or a local playground.
12:30 Lunch
1:00-4:00 Nap - Bless him for taking a solid 3-hour nap.
4:00-6 We usually play at home in the afternoon. We often Facetime with Shi Shi, and sometimes get to watch another Sesame Street while mama finishes dinner prep.
6:00 Dinner
6:30 Bath
7:00 Bed
He is still a great sleeper and napper. He rarely fusses when he goes down. The only time we run into problems is when he falls asleep in the car before his nap. I'm praying this pattern remains for several more months - especially once baby brother arrives.
Thank goodness he sleeps and naps so hard, because when he isn't sleeping, he's full of energy. I would definitely consider him busy, yet not hyper. He can sit and concentrate on a puzzle or read books or do another activity for several minutes, and he enjoys playing independently for long stretches. He's not constantly bouncing off the walls - thank goodness - but the challenge is that he is curious and gets into everything. And once he has discovered something, it will probably be thrown - sometimes down the stairs or into the bathtub or maybe even the toilet if mama isn't looking. He's also fast, and I often underestimate his reach until it's too late. It just doesn't take long for him to get into mischief. We've done quite a bit more childproofing in this house - including the kitchen cabinets, much to Charlie's dismay. He can still access the tupperware drawer and spice rack - both of which he loves to rearrange.
He continues to be the epitome of a little boy. He loves balls - throwing them, kicking them, making baskets, having them thrown at him (he'd be terrible at dodge ball because he lets them hit him and then just laughs and laughs). He also loves when we throw pillows at him. We'll keep working on learning how to catch.
He loves trucks, trains and all other vehicles - especially pushing them down slides or ramps. He's a big fan of his new train table. His favorite books are all about things with wheels. Helicopters and planes have become a more recent obsession. He stops whatever he is doing when he sees or hears them and then spends the next several minutes pointing to the sky as if to summon more of these magical flying objects. His favorite word in sign language is helicopter, which he often does accompanied by a helicopter sound.
He loves playgrounds, swings, slides and anything he can climb. Bouncy houses are delightful - as is pushing anything heavy around. He doesn't like when dada is out of town, but he loves when dada comes home with a suitcase for him to push through the house. He really just loves anything physical.
He's a bit of a daredevil and also pretty tough. It takes a lot to make him cry. He doesn't always know his own strength and can sometimes run into (or run over) other kids if he's not paying attention. Charlie always bounces right back up, but he's definitely been known to make bigger kids [unintentionally] cry. Luckily, he's usually pretty self-aware and good at avoiding collisions.
When he isn't running, pushing, throwing or sliding, he loves to spend time figuring things out, and can be quite determined until something is solved. He is a master worker of puzzles, and is starting to do multi-piece and interlocking puzzles. He recently became obsessed with buckles, snaps and zippers. He can't unbuckle himself quite yet (thank goodness!), but he always insists on buckling his straps after he gets out of his booster seat at the table.
Luckily, he seems to love mama and dada equally. No favorites right now. We have a distinct division of labor in Charlie's mind. Some things are clearly dada activities and other things are strictly for mama. When we are reading books together at night, he will bring certain books to me and certain books to Jon. It never fails. Sometimes when Jon isn't home, he might bring me a dada book, but I can always tell he's a little disappointed in how I read it compared to dada. Somehow I got chosen for all the wordy books - I think I have every version of Little Blue Truck memorized. Dada largely gets the books with more pictures and definitely more fun animal/vehicle sounds. :)
He likes other kids - especially playing chase. He can sometimes get really tickled by other kids and belly laugh when he thinks they are funny. It's still mostly parallel play at this point, but he does generally "share" pretty well. He just kind of moves on if someone takes something from him, but will often hover nearby until it becomes available again for the snatching. He's usually pretty good about waiting for his turn to play with something or accepting a suitable alternative. I think it's because he just doesn't care enough about any one thing to throw a fit over it. He likes a lot of different things, and therefore can be satisfied with many options.
He still eats a lot, but he's pretty picky about what he eats. Fruit remains his favorite and largest food group. I can't think of a fruit he won't eat. Carbs are also beloved, of course. He likes starchy vegetables (anything orange and roasted with cinnamon), but only does green vegetables in his puree pouches. He loves yogurt and sometimes hard-boiled eggs and cheese sticks. Of course, french fries, mac and cheese, grilled cheese, pizza and PBJ are always acceptable. Chicken nuggets and bacon are his favorite proteins. Chick-fil-A is his happy place (mama and dada can't argue with that).
He is becoming increasingly shy, and it takes him a while to warm up to people. He usually won't talk a lot around other people. He still stares intently at strangers, but clams up when they try to talk to him. Lately, he's been pretty hesitant to enter the room when we are going to music class or if I'm dropping him off at nursery or playgroup. He doesn't cry, but I usually have to pick him up and carry him over the threshold. Oddly enough, once he's in the room, he's perfectly fine and has a grand time. He's pretty reserved in new places and new situations.
I really see a lot of Jon in him. Everyone still thinks they look alike, although I do think part of that is the shared hair color. People who have known me my entire life swear he looks like me as a toddler. I just think he looks like Charlie, but there is no doubt he already shares a lot of personality traits with his dad.
He never strays too far from the equilibrium on the emotional scale. We have our moments, but the extreme highs and lows are pretty rare. He can get really excited, and he can get really mad, but most of the time he exists in a general state of pleasant observation and contentment. But even though he is mostly laid back that doesn't mean he won't let you know his opinion. He is stubborn and strong-willed. He won't eat what he doesn't want to eat. He literally turns his back and hides in the corner of the bathtub when we try to brush his teeth. Wiping his nose can be a two-person job.
Much like his dada, he can be rather particular. He can dump out a bucket of toys and happily leave them strewn about, but other things must be in their rightful place. He likes to line up his outdoor vehicles and then move them all, one by one, to another location within the yard. The other day, I set up his bowling pins slightly out of order, but he refused to knock them down until they were in their proper place. On his plate, he'll keep his food divided in each section. If I give him more fruit, but accidentally put it where the crackers previously resided, he'll generally move the fruit to it's original section of the plate before eating it.
Also like his dada, he can be a man of few words, but I'm so proud of all the progress he's made in speech therapy. Our first session was in late May/early June when he was about 18 months. At that point, I think he had about three words: mama, dada, uh-oh. Now, he says all kinds of words (and sound! He loves animal and vehicle sounds), and is just starting to string a couple of words together. He loves his speech therapist Miss Molly, who comes to our house once a week. By now, he has learned why she is there, and almost always shows off with new words during his therapy sessions. I'll work on something with him for weeks without success, and then Molly shows up and he says it right away. Typical.
The last few weeks alone have been a bit of a language explosion. Apparently this happens a lot around the holidays when kids are exposed to new things and lots of attention from doting family members. He learned everyone's names in Oklahoma pretty quickly, and liked to take roll call while we were all sitting at the table together. He recently added "baby" to his vocabulary and will give the baby kisses when asked. We are nearing 40-50 words now + several letters and a couple of numbers. The other day he walked into the kitchen and said "hello, mama" with perfect enunciation. We'd never even heard the word "hello" come out of his mouth before. It melted my heart.
Naturally, he demands to be rewarded for his efforts. He claps for himself and says "yay!" when he accomplishes what he wants. He says "yes," but we've only ever heard it in the context of an exclamation - as in "yes, I did it!" I'm happy to give him all the praise he wants if it helps him learn new words.
Every stage seems to be a little more fun than the last. I'm still in awe of watching this tiny human unfold before us. He brings us so much joy with his sweet kisses, belly laughs, boundless energy, and pure excitement over the littlest things.
And photos from his birthday celebration in Oklahoma.
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| These animals are great, but I want an energy drink. |
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