Dear Graham,
I’ve
told several people that you are in my favorite stage yet and it’s so
true. While all stages are magical and wonderful in their own way, right
now you can communicate what you want (and clearly don’t want) but you
don’t yet know how to talk back. This communication stuff is a glorious,
glorious thing.
One
of your favorite things to do is to be outside and you will say “side”
and then grab my or your daddy’s hand and lead us to the door. Wagon
rides are also a favorite, but we’ve learned not to say the word “wagon”
until we are walking out the door to it as you clearly don’t have the
patience for mom and dad to get their shoes on once you’ve heard the
word wagon. You also love to push your toy lawnmower down the sidewalk…one
day we walked the entire cul de sac and then you got upset when we
couldn’t keep going further.
You love to roughhouse, especially with your daddy. You’ll grab our hands (see a common theme here?) and pull us to hallway where you try to tackle us or push us over. I know it sounds like a version of the WWF going on inside our house, but instead it involves a lot of laughter and tickling.
I
haven’t talked about your sleep in a while (because I clearly know not
to say anything positive about it in the event of being jinxed), but
there’s really nothing positive to say, so here goes. You love waking up
early. And during your 19th month early meant anywhere from 1-2 hours before the
sun comes up. Fed up after one particularly early morning, I went to
Amazon to purchase the Good Nite Lite. While it’s not the magical wand
that I hoped it would be in terms of getting you to sleep in later, it
has caused you to be aware that when the moon is on, it’s time to sleep
and when the sun is on, it means good morning. When we ask you what the
moon or sun mean, you reply “night, night” or “morning” just as clear as
can be. When saying good night to either mommy or daddy, you then say
“buh-bye” as you know we are leaving for the night. I still love your
sweet cuddles and know that they will someday be rare, so I try to
implant that experience as clearly as I can for my brain to forever
remember.
You
now know most of your shapes and point them out to me when we are
reading or playing with your shape sorter. Speaking of reading, you like
to get every book that you own out and then sit on our laps as you flip
through one and then move on to the next. Anything with animals
continues to be your preference as you make the animal sound while we
flip through the books.
During your 19th month we celebrated Valentine's Day and you loved playing with all of the valentines you got from school, which totally proved your mom (who thought they were a complete waste of time at a year old) wrong. We finally had to throw the bag that they came in away because it ripped beyond repair after so many times of you taking your valentines out and putting them back in. Apparently I need to buy you a deck of cards and a paper bag and you'd be good to go for hours.
We
also often play music for you off of the Toddler Tunes from our TV and
you have become quite the little dancer. You twirl around or bend your
knees or sway side to side, depending on the beat and your mood. And
normally your daddy or I are right there next to you, doing the same
thing and encouraging you as you go.
You completed your transition into the next class at school during your 19th month and you’ve done so well. It normally takes you a few days to acclimate…you like to study any situation before you decide how you’re going to approach it and new classes are no different. But once you’re comfortable with your surroundings, you’re good to go. This new class features art every day and more structured time at centers and with themes. I always feel like you advance so quickly in the first few weeks and months of starting a new class, and this time is no different.
You completed your transition into the next class at school during your 19th month and you’ve done so well. It normally takes you a few days to acclimate…you like to study any situation before you decide how you’re going to approach it and new classes are no different. But once you’re comfortable with your surroundings, you’re good to go. This new class features art every day and more structured time at centers and with themes. I always feel like you advance so quickly in the first few weeks and months of starting a new class, and this time is no different.
One
of my favorite experiences last month came during a routine night of
getting you ready for bed. We do the same thing every night as part of
your bedtime sequence and you were brushing your teeth while your dad
and I were with you in the bathroom. Your daddy leaned over and gave me a
hug and patted me on the back. After observing me, you then reached up
to me, gave me a hug and your little hand deliberately tapped me on the
back. Just like daddy.
Love,
Mommy
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