Both boys are at their 'Half-birthday" mark this month and it's hard to believe we are on the other side on our way to 4 and 2! Time to start planning the next birthday party - HA! J/K! (Though I DO love throwing a big bash for my boys, no doubt!) But really, it's just hard to believe we are there already. I keep thinking about when Drew was Noah's age, we were getting ready for Noah...hard to imagine really! And no, that doesn't mean it's necessarily time to add another, though I know a Grandma and Nana that would certainly beg to differ! All in the Lord's plan and timing...for now, here's the latest...
Drew is just growing up to be such a good little boy! In case you thought I have this incredible memory to help me write this monthly blog, I will disappoint you and let you in on my secret - I have a calendar I keep for both boys and write what they did for the day, things they are doing this month, etc. And I've noticed something lately here - while Drew is changing and learning on a daily basis, his seems quite a bit harder to objectively record I guess...it's more of an abstract process...he's able to follow more abstract thought a little bit, and we are working on some 'higher level' cognitive skills rather...the concept of time and days/weeks/months - we are still far from understanding this, but something we are working on for sure and he's certainly trying hard to get it! We are working on more difficult puzzles and mazes as well as reading and writing. He's much more active at role playing and getting more creative with it - it's not always the same story over and over! He's more into games, etc. and in general able to follow more complex directions, and even able to accept some delayed gratification like you do in games, etc. He's getting better at sharing a taking turns with Noah and not immediately reacting negatively when things don't go his way, though there's still alot of progress to made in this area, but I feel like he's doing great for his age!
He's also a much better listener, at times of course, and a GREAT helper at home and school! We are so proud of him! We talk alot about making good vs. bad choices and it's really worked well for us...he comes home from school and it makes us so happy to hear "I made good choices!" It's great to realize how much more flexible he is and we can 'trust' him in different situations and environments versus the short-lived temperament and behavior in an environment besides those tailored strictly to children...it's just wonderful! There's a little glimpse of being able to do more and more enjoyable and different activities rather than contain and control the chaos...YEAH! (Oh, but then there's Noah!)
Some things Drew has been enjoying playing lately: Riding more on his big boy bike - he still prefers his Big Wheel no doubt, but is gaining confidence little by little on the big bike. Playing Wii games - he likes the Mater Tall Tales, but only because it's Cars, in reality, he enjoys PLAYING MarioKart much more...if they could just make MarioKart with Cars characters we'd be set! Loves to play "I Spy" games - either the books/games or in the car. Playing soccer! He even tries to hit headers sometimes... he can't wait for March to come (we signed him up for a Fort Worth team!) Enjoys crafts - painting, stickers, coloring, writing, play-doh, drawing...it's great to see him play like this and see how he interprets things! Playing outside in the driveway with all of our 'wheeled' toys...both boys love this part of the day when it works out! He enjoys playing and creating with Legos when the mood strikes him - a favorite is to build a zoo of course! He likes to role play with his animals some, but also his 'action figures' and Transformers. And then of course there are cars...cars, cars and more cars! Can't go wrong there...they are everywhere!!!
Some milestones per se are he is able to completely get himself ready for school in the mornings and more independent with some of those self-care items, which of course, is wonderful! He can buckle himself in the carseat, help with some things in the kitchen - we just need to more proactive about getting into that habit! He is getting more excited about trying to read by yourself...there are several stories he of course has memorized, so he'll read the story and he is SO proud of himself!..."I can READ!" he'll exclaim! It's just greatness! We will just encourage this as much as we can!
Drew still takes around a 3 hour nap in the afternoon, and usually no fuss or fight, but nighttime has been something altogether different...there are so many delay tactics and he moves SO slow, getting distracted by everything in sight! We try to keep it calm and quiet the hour or so before his bedtime (for his sake, but also b/c Noah is trying to sleep) but he still is so wired...it on average probably takes him an hour to fall asleep, but sometimes longer - meaning he's tossing and turning or singing, or playing, or kicking the walls, until 10:30 at night! And then of course, up at 6:30, ready and raring to go! UGH! So here just a few days ago, we've started using a CD our pediatrician has recommended several times to calm him down - it's a few relaxation bedtime stories and then calming sounds...fingers crossed it helps!!!
The boys are certainly beginning to enjoy each other's company more and more and really playing together - it is hilarious! They are able to share/take turns/play nicely together quite a bit, though there's still lots of quarrels...and Noah is starting to fight back - hitting, pulling hair and screaming are his favorite strategies, short of crying to Mommy to take his side...a somewhat welcomed and inevitable growth phase for them, but it does bring another aspect of discipline to the table. Drew is in general doing better about not immediately using his strength and size and while he screams in frustration often, is doing much better about not striking back - whew! Hope that sticks!
Noah's big milestone progress this month is all of the words he now can say! We are so excited to watch, teach and hear his vocabulary grow! It's so cute how he says his little words! :) Our pediatrician was surprised and pleased to hear he is doing so well in this area - I guess 2nd kids have a hard time getting a word in edge-wise, but Noah's making sure he is heard too! Words I can think of for now: "Brr" for being cold, Mii (milk), Ni-ni (goodnight), Be-be (baby or blanket), Bu-bu/be (brother), Ga-ga (ball - we have NO idea why this is how he says it, but it's very clear that's what he means - we are working on correcting it! HA!), Ba-be (Bradley - his buddy at school!), Ga (Car), Du (Drew), Go (Go - usually when playing cars :)), Pu-py (Puppy- his snuggly for bed/nap), Choo-choo (train). He can also say Nana and Papa, and is working on being able to Grandma and Grandpa. I know there are more and he knows all sorts of sounds for animals, etc. and he LOVES to repeat sounds and noises with us...there was one night we were seeing how many different letter sounds he could mimic and he got so into it, just waiting for the next one and so excited - it was adorable! Toward the end of the month, he has started to shake his head "Yes" now as well, where before, regardless of the question, it was always "no".
He started saying the word "No" this month, though he's been shaking his head no for quite sometime now. The first 2 weeks or so when he said it, it was the most adorable word in how he said it - it was very clear and annunciated with a perfect "O" shaped mouth! We giggled every time we heard it...well, it's not so cute any more - he says it ALOT and it's not as drawn out, etc...oh well! Cute while it lasted. When we were visiting in Houston one weekend, there were lots of things not to be touched, but certainly on the boys' level, so they both heard "No" alot while they were there, and apparently it was a very specific way because by the end of the 1st day, Noah would walk over to a particular item he had been told several times not to touch, he got close to it, stopped and said "No-no" while shaking his finger back and forth - just like we had been doing to him - we were all cracking up! But glad he learned that lesson - we'll be using that for sure! :) He also learned the word "Ow" while there, and learned to just rub whatever got bumped and move on - he's certainly our tough little guy!
He's also gesturing more and trying to communicate even when he doesn't know the words...he's learned to get our attention and then motion to "come here" or "follow me" - which quickly turned into coming and pulling on our hand or clothes to go where he wants us to! He's doing more of the same at school as well, and they are excited about it too! Matthew has played the game of "Noah, where's ____ (Daddy, Mommy, or Drew)" for quite awhile now, usually at the dinner table, and he's now starting to understand the game and will point to us correctly, and we are working on him getting to point to himself - that's really kind of a hard one!
He's able to point correctly (most of the time) to quite a few body parts, which is always a fun game and good distraction in waiting rooms or restaurants! He knows eyes (which he nearly pokes out every time!), ears, mouth, teeth, tongue (which he sticks out), nose (which he 'honks'), hands, fingers, feet, and head! He is figuring out how to make silly clicking noises with his tongue as well. His favorite book for a long time was his big "First 100 words book", but has lately been picking the Star Wars book (yes, of course we have a board book about Star Wars) and he turns as quickly as possible to the Yoda page, and also likes Chewbacca...Matthew has already asked when he can show the movies to the boys...I keep deferring or changing the topic of conversation! :)
Noah LOVES to play with doors, and we can't stand it! He loves to open and close the doors - which I'm not opposed to this, but I know how easily fingers can get smashed and it scares me every time for either boy...ugh! Also, he'll shut himself in a room by himself and then get mad...well, don't play with doors! He continues to love to climb up everything, but thankfully he's starting to figure out how to get DOWN safer by turning around with feet first - we obviously still have to keep a close eye on him, but I'm glad we are moving in that direction...to not have to fret about him falling off everything will be such a nice relief! He's also starting to insist on walking himself down the stairs - but of course with help...he fights us holding him to go down, which is good, but it's so much easier when they just let us carry them...until they learn to do it by themselves of course, which he can't do unless we teach him...I get it!
He such a mess - he loves to dump out a big bucket of toys into a big pile (our bucket of balls is a favorite, but he also likes Legos and Little People figurines) and then walks/kicks through the pile over and over to spread all the toys out over the whole room - great! Thanks Noah! That's perfect! :) Another random thing that just started at the end of the month - he's started to try to blow his nose into tissues - which is pretty hilarious and also seems pretty smart - obviously he's got 3 to watch and learn from, but still, we didn't try to teach him this one yet, and he's already trying! Funny!
I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but Noah is very much a Mommy's boy...sweet and fatiguing. Well, this month we are starting to see small signs that he's moving away from it just a little bit! When people/family come by to visit, instead of clinging to Mommy because he thinks I'm leaving and they are staying, he will run up and play with them, giving them hugs and letting them hold him, etc. - it makes my heart smile so! I love to see him interact with others, and for others to get to play with him like I get to, but also, to know he can feel safe, secure and happy with others - only a Mother knows how important this is! :) But of course, we aren't there 100% by any means - he still looks around for me when he's unsure...what a mess!
We are starting to give Noah a bit of discipline and limits and his response has been interesting...there are times he thinks it's funny and laughs, and others when he will cry - he will just start to bawl! Our reaction to his reaction is just the opposite - when he laughs, we get upset, and when he cries, it's somewhat humorous. I do hope the fear and dislike of being reprimanded will outweigh the other of course, but only time will tell...
We had our FIRST SICK visit for Noah this month - that's right, almost 18 months! We were all impressed and happy about that! Now, don't get me wrong, he's had his share of colds, etc. and fussy moments of course because of teeth and such, but nothing giving cause for a Doctor visit until this month! Thank you Lord! It turns out it was just a random virus making Noah run fever for about 3 days, so not a big deal - we are so blessed to have such healthy little boys! And what a true blessing for Noah being so healthy so far! :)
He is starting to get a bit better at church these days, which is great, since the nursery continues to not be an option for him - nothing against the nursery, Noah just won't do it...so it's been a nice relief to actually be able to stay in church this month, though it's not like we aren't distracted of course...baby steps! But his tolerance for haircuts aren't changing - got another one this month and it was a mess, just like the others, and just like Drew...goodness, he's a screamer!
Noah's been able to experience some new, bigger boy activities this month at home and at school - he's old enough to play on the playground at school which he loves! He got to walk and run around at the zoo some instead of always being in the wagon and he did pretty good, and loved it of course! They've started to do more crafts with him - painting and coloring at school. And I let him play with Play-doh for the first time - so it's been fun seeing him get to start into more of those things and I'm sure he enjoys it all too!
We did have a wellness visit for Noah this month, so I have updated stats on him: Height: 34 in. (90%) Weight: 24 lb. (25%) A growing boy!
Another month gone by so fast, the next will too...until then!
