Monthday update only one day late! Pretty good after 25 of these and 2 kids. If it helps, I also forgot about Cinco de Mayo so we’re having Mexican food tonight instead. Yeah, I just compared the day I gave birth to a baby to a day for eating guacamole. YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW I FEEL ABOUT GUACAMOLE.

My dear sweet weird little boy, you get sweeter and weirder every day. Your favorite food is Honey Bunches of Oats (with Almonds!) but you refuse to eat either granola or almonds on their own. You love it when I sing but get mad when I dance. Your favorite tv show is The Price is Right and you shout for “pry eh rye!!” every time I turn it on. You absolutely love to sleep (maybe you feel bad about not sleeping through the night for the first 15 months of your life) and made the transition to a big boy bed with almost no trouble at all. We even took the side rail off your bed so I can climb in with you in the morning and cuddle until we both wake up a little more. You are obsessed with your little sister’s toys and seats and stuff and love sitting in her Bumbo chair, even though it sticks on your butt and you end up yelling for help to get free. Your favorite loud game is playing hockey with your foam stick and running in circles screaming. Your favorite quiet game is pointing at mommy’s freckles. You love to read books but REALLY love technology – out of a somewhat limited vocabulary, one of your most understandable words is “IPAD!!”

You’re actually getting better at listening and haven’t fought with me at all this week when I said it was time to leave the park and come home for lunch. We are both working hard on using our indoor voices, even when we are mad, and we both appreciate the effort. You’ve peed in the potty four times this week, although you still wake up very wet so I don’t think you’re quite ready to full-out potty train. It’s amazing to see your memory getting better too – you tell me every day that I got a booboo on my toe and that you got one too (sorry about that, I didn’t realize those sandals were giving you a blister until we got home) and that booboo’s hurt. You also saw a picture of your Grandpa (Bamba) today on my Year of Little Evan Calendar and started asking for him. When I asked if you loved your Bamba you said “Essss!!”

If we walk with your friends, you want to hold their hands (forcibly, if necessary) which is just beyond adorable. You are also totally fearless. TOTALLY. You climbed to the top of the big kid playscape and threw yourself down the tunnel slide without being able to see the bottom or waiting for me to tell you it was OK. It almost gave Mama a heart attack but she loves how brave you are…and that you still want hugs when you fall down.

I feel more and more lucky to be your mommy every single day. I love you more than a million words can say Little Evan.

Joy

Playgrounds make him so happy. And tired. We got a 4 hour nap out of 45 minutes at this one.

Sliding! I slide! I slide!

Look Ma, no feet! I'm so little!

Whut? This is totally normal.

Always my baby, even though he looks like a big boy

25 Month Milestones (from BabyCenter as usual)

Mastered Skills (most kids can do)
• Stacks six blocks – EFF YOU AND YOUR BLOCKS BABYCENTER. We put all the blocks upstairs because I was tired of tripping on them, so he hasn’t actually had any blocks to stack in a few months.
• Walks with smooth heel-to-toe motion – He walks like a normal person. He runs like a crazy person. It’s fantastic.

Emerging Skills (half of kids can do)
• Uses pronouns (e.g., I, me, you) – He has started saying “I” as in “I fell down!” or “I slide!” or “I roll!” but I haven’t heard me or you. He did finally start saying “Eban!” if you ask who he is though.
• Washes and dries own hands – OMG THE BEST THING EVER. He also brushes his own teeth and puts on his own deodorant, mascara, headbands and jewelry. Someone is a good mimic.

Advanced Skills (a few kids can do)
• Speaks clearly most of the time – AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. No. We have a speech evaluation on the 23rd, although he gets better and better every day so I suspect the therapist won’t find him eligible for the Birth to Three program.
• Draws a vertical line – He doesn’t really like drawing, unless it’s on the walls. But some of the lines are pretty straight.

I’m also please to see that the “Starts to recognize ABC’s” and “Names one color” milestones are both a few months away and listed as advanced skills. Sometimes I feel like I’ve already failed him as mother because so many kids a few months younger seem to be naming colors and numbers and letters already. I don’t need my kid to be a genius – I just want him to be NORMAL. Except for jumping. My kid is a damn jumping PRODIGY.

I didn’t miss Little Evan’s monthday on Saturday, I was just too busy enjoying spending time with him this weekend to bother to sit down and write an update. He’s turning into a little person more and more every single day and it’s an amazing transition to watch. Just this week he found two of my vintage doll house people – the father and the little boy – and he’s been carrying them around making up pretend stories and adventures. They rode on cars and rode on the dog and sat in chairs and ate stuff and talked to each other. I named the father Joe and after Joe told Little Evan to be nice to his mommy Little Evan gave me a kiss. I think maybe next time Joe is going to tell him to pick up his toys, eat his vegetables, and take more naps.

Although really, naps aren’t our problem. Anytime between 11:30 am and 1:30 pm that he starts looking tired he’s more than happy to head upstairs for some shut-eye. A sippy cup of milk and a blankie are his only requests, although if I let him take a book to bed he’ll “read” it before he zonks out. Bedtimes are almost the same, but Daddy does bath and pj’s first. It’s nice to have at least one consistently easy toddler thing – and for it to be such a BIG thing – especially on days when everything else feels like a battle.

Speaking of battles, we’re currently in the middle of one involving food and how it is prepared/served. It all changes daily, which is beyond frustrating. The whole apple he loved yesterday gets thrown across the room today or the yogurt he was eating from the container 30 seconds ago is suddenly not good enough unless it’s in a BOWL. I have to let him choose his own utensils or nothing gets eaten at all. If I put the plate on the desk and he wanted to eat at the counter the meal is ruined. I try to be accommodating because I know he’s just trying to control one of the few things he can in his great big world but food isn’t optional. He HAS to eat. The worst part is I doubt “picky eating” is a phase that ends anytime soon.

Little Evan’s favorite things this month include the dog, the cats, his vintage wooden desk, his alphabet flashcards, sitting on the couch with mama or daddy, coloring with chalk, reaching things he’s not supposed to touch, and getting anyone who comes into the house to pick him up. His least favorite things include leaving anywhere he’s having fun, being told “no”, and sitting in the shopping cart. All those least favorites makes taking him on errands all sorts of challenging, so my evenings and weekends are now busy with those sorts of things.

I’m excited about Little Evan’s upcoming birthday but of course sad that his days of being 1 are numbered. 2 is going to be a whole new adventure!!

23 Month Milestones (from BabyCenter as usual)

Mastered Skills (most kids can do)
• Names simple picture in a book – Yes! He’s very good at this now, especially the books with animals. Maybe exclusively books with animals. I’m not actually sure we own any books that don’t contain animals.
• Uses 50 to 70 words – I never did get around to making a list of words but I would say we’re up to about 60 or 70 on a regular basis. Plus he’ll repeat almost anything and picks up new words on a daily basis.

Emerging Skills (half of kids can do)
• Opens doors – Yes, including our back door which is going to be a problem.
• Sings simple tunes – If by “simple tunes” you mean “the theme song to How I Met Your Mother or Battlestar Galactica”, then yes. In case you think I’m a horrible mother, he can also sing “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes”. And several Ke$ha songs. Maybe I am a horrible mother.
• Takes more of an interest in playing with other kids – He has ALWAYS liked playing with other kids. He’s very good at sharing too, which always makes me a proud mama.

Advanced Skills (a few kids can do)
• Talks about self (likes, dislikes) – No. I’m not sure he even knows what he likes or dislikes. It changes on a minute by minute basis.
• Asks “why?” – Not yet. Can I add “thank god”?