A-B-C; uno dos tres

You are 2 years and four and a half months old. Today you heard someone counting 1-3 in Spanish, it must have been on TV. Mom says you then came to her and said "Cinco. Ocho." We are suitable impressed with your memory and association with the things you've heard. We like that you join in with things too, feeling confident in yourself.

We also heard you singing ABC's right along with the characters singing them. You have the tune down, and many of the letters.

We're proud, proud, proud.

Daddy

Woefully Behind

Mama and Da-ee have been very remiss in posting to this blog. We feel bad about it; somehow the busy-ness of life took over. We're awfully sorry.

Over the summer and into the autumn, you have exploded with vocabulary. Many new words and even some small sentences. In fact, today you came to me and said "Mama, I pooping. All done." But mostly, it's still single words, most of them with the first letter dropped off. For example, juice is "oooce."

You can count to 10 when walking up and down stairs.

You know these colors: red, blue, green, white, yellow, and pink. The first color you positively identified was "ye-yo."

You have even started to sing a little bit. You make up words to "Go-Go Hi" (Twinkle Twinkle Little Star) and know a few words to "Row Row Row Your Boat," as well "Old MacDonald" and "Apples and Bananas."

You are also well on your way to correctly doing the sign of the cross. It's so cute to see you dip your hand into the holy water font at church and try to sign yourself.

There's lots more to share! You are quickly developing into a little boy.

Baby Vocabulary

Here is a list of things you say as you approach your second birthday, and the things I think they mean:

Baba..........................bottle, milk, drink, binky
Wawa........................water, fish
Mama.......................mother
Mamai......................mother
Dada.........................father
Dadai........................father
Mummadidda.........both parents
Moi...........................more (said of substances and actions)
Yah...........................yes, I want this, give it to me
No!...........................no
Up............................up
Me...........................me (meaning you)
Gaga........................duck (from quack quack)
Ooh Ooh Ah Ah.....monkey
Puppy.....................dog
Miao.......................cat, kitty
Moo........................cow
Elmo.......................Elmo (favorite tv personality)
Chee.......................cheese
Nay.........................horse, pony (from neigh)
Ba...........................ball (with a slight "l" sound on the end)
Bow........................bowl (with a slight "l" sound on the end)
Eye.........................eye (used with every creature there is)
Sky.........................sky, ceiling
Pee pee..................private part
apple......................apple, any fruit

I am sure I am forgetting some words you say now, but perhaps Mom will post those. I look so forward to see you build on 30 or so foundational words, to explode into the hundreds of words some day. And I will always try to help you find your "voice", to help you learn how to say what you need to say, and help you make sense of the world.

Love, Dad

One small step for a baby...

On Easter 2009, dear boy, you took your first step up one concrete step outside the Redemptorist abbey in Oconomowoc. You decided to do it all by yourself, and you stepped confidently up without holding on to anything. You wanted my hand to come back down, but then you went back up by yourself about ten times.

This happened while we were waiting for a Marriage Encounter group greeting.

I was very proud of my son, and always will be.

Putting It Together

I still don't think Alan says all the words that an almost 2-year-old is supposed to say, at least according to all those books.

But interestingly enough, he seems to be ahead of the curve as concerns putting 2 words together to make a sentence.

I noticed it the first time a few weeks ago when he said "Moy cheeee." (More cheese.) I was astounded.

We've also caught him saying "Hi Puppeeee" or "Hi Dada" or "Hi Meeeeow."

This week, twice, I think(?) I head him say something like "Wah Dada" (I want Dada?)

Is this the beginning of something?

You CAN Be a Good Boy!

There are people who say disciplining your child at age under two is pointless, or even worse - that it's cruel and mean. I contend that those are people who either a.) have no kids, b.) have rotten, ill-behaved kids, or c.) have an axe to grind with their past.

We introduced the "naughty chair" here a few weeks ago. If Alan doesn't listen to us, shrieks real loud when we say "no" to something (akin to talking back), or refuses to give us something that is dangerous, then he has to sit in the naughty chair. Which he does NOT like. He cries copious tears and begs to "uppa," which means to get up and off the chair. He only gets to come off the chair if, when asked if he will be a good boy, he answers "Ya!"

This past week, I wondered if Alan had reasoning skills at such a young, tender age - 21 months. The answer is yes!

Today, he took something out of the bedroom that he wasn't supposed to have. I told him to give it back, but as to be expected, he ran off with it into another room. I told him two or three more times to give it back, which he ignored. Finally, I said to him "Alan, put it back in the bedroom or go to the naughty chair."

You know what he did?

He turned around, toddled back into the bedroom, and put the object right back where it belonged.

I praised him and kissed him and told him what a good boy he was. And then he was rewarded with four chocolate chips.

The anti-discipline crowd is wrong. Kids this little DO have thinking skills. They can decide to do good and please others. You just have to give them the chance and be consistent.

Meet Go-Go

Or it might be Gyo-Go? Either way, Alan can now "say" Glow Worm.