monthly noah: twenty-seven

oh wow... 2 years and three months... are we really here?

Every parent says this, but toddlers are constantly changing and it's CRAZY.  The things he says just amaze me.   "You can make me a snack... if you want?" "The man is at our door" "The tool is broken" "The bucket is closed".  We are still working on getting him to use first person.  Most of the time when he wants us to do something he asks a question in second person.  "Are you hungry?" That means Noah is hungry.  "pick you up!" That means pick Noah up.  I don't know why he does it, but we try and gently correct him but it still hasn't clicked just yet.  Even still, his language skills are simply amazing to me.  It's probably because I can still see him as my tiny baby that could barely move and needed to be held most of the hours in the day.

Noah can count to 20.  He does it over and over again throughout the day. He knows most of the alphabet... A few letters get left behind here and there but it's never consistent which ones he leaves out so he very well could know the entire alphabet but I'm not testing him or anything so based on my observation he "mostly" knows it.

He retains information instantly.  If he hears a new word he will remember it forever.  He learns very differently than I do.  He is also very visual and can learn something after seeing it one time.  I am a repeater.  I need to say it, hear it and do it a million times for it to click.  It is almost annoying to me how quickly he picks things up because learning facts will come so easily to him when it was always such a struggle for myself.  I guess I should be happy that he will be such an instant learner?

We are working on "using words" to deter him from having tantrums/whining and to help him express his feelings.  I know every kid whines but since I stay home with him day in and day out it, the sound of him in constant whine mode drives me batty.  So we are constantly discussing how something is making him feel.  What can we do to make it better.  Let's not fuss about it... let's fix it.  It's definitely a CONSTANT battle, but seeing him able to express himself is definitely worth all the work.

Noah is still a VERY active little boy.  He climbs everything.  We are still in the state of half packed in our house.  His room is pretty bare and there is minimal furniture in every room.  Anything that could be climbable still has bubble wrap or packaging tape around it to discourage it.  I know it seems like overkill, but there have been a few close calls with almost needing the emergency room and I really can't handle the stress right now.  So we SLOWLY and fully unpack things.  Everything has to have an exact place (with a way to strap it to the wall... hah) or it stays packed up in the garage.  I am sure everyone thinks that is nutty, but who cares... my kid and my house.

Noah spends most of his days roaming freely in the back and front yard.  He plays in the baby pool and water table.  We write with chalk.  We water the plants and tend to the garden.  We sweep.  We play with bubbles.  We eat at his mini picnic table.  He LOVES being outside so much.  He is also a lot less stir-crazy when we play outside all day vs. being stuck indoors and I can't say I blame him.  This house is really great for giving him the play time that he needs.  I signed Noah up for two summer swimming sessions and gymnastics class.  They start in June which means I will be in my third trimester.  I think it will be a great way to exhaust the little guy since I will surely be on my last leg.

Noah is still the cuddliest sweetest thing ever and for that I am grateful.   He climbs in my lap multiple times in the day and always begs for cuddling with mommy and daddy at bed time.  We sit in the rocker and say prayers and blessings and he has really grown to love that tradition.  I think the fact that he can participate in it is very exciting to him.  As soon as the lights go out and we start rocking, he reminds me that it's time for blessings.  I think it's so sweet to hear him listing and loving on all the wonderful people that spend time with him or even those that are far away.

I really don't even know what else to say about this sweet boy that is ours.  We are so lucky to have him and although it is sometimes difficult, this is an exciting time in his life.  We are constantly seeing blessings through this child we were given.  Makes my heart oh so happy.