19 months has been a fun one. This was the month when Ty took his first steps! It was such a proud moment, and one that we had been looking forward to for quite a while. Since, then, I've often been asked, "So, is Ty walking all over the place now?" Sorry to disappoint, but we are definitely not there yet! To put it in perspective, in a matter of 1 month, Ty learned to walk with his hands held, walk with a push toy, cruise along the couch, stand independently, and take those first independent steps...in ONE MONTH! That's a whole lot of "new" for a little guy! At this point, his record has been 4 consecutive independent steps - but they're good steps. They're not the "flying with my feet under me until I fall" steps; he can take one, maintain his balance, take another, maintain his balance, and another, and another, until he is done and decides to lunge or sit. Basically, he has all of the necessary skills, but none of the necessary confidence. But in reality, who can learn a life-changing new skill, master it, and feel confident to use it consistently in a matter of a month? Definitely not me! So in the meantime, Ty pulls to stand anywhere he can find (his new favorite, and my new least favorite is pulling up on the knobs of his dresser), and lets go often to practice taking some steps. It's a process...much like everything else he has learned to do...but I have total and complete confidence that he will get there in his own time!
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| Those fabulous first steps...in case you missed it! :) |
My other favorite change this month has been Ty's ability to absorb language - both spoken and signed - like a sponge. I can throw a word at him, and he can repeat it back to me using the sounds that he knows. It's truly amazing. The same is true for sign language. He now looks to my hand when I say a word, knowing that some hand gesture is associated with that word. More often than not, he will attempt to mimic the gesture too, which just blows me away. My absolute favorite has been the interest he has had in the alphabet. One of his musical toys has a button that plays the "ABC's", which I often sign along with. Recently, I've noticed Ty's hand bending and waving in the air along with the song, just like I do. He definitely does not associate a particular hand motion with a letter yet, but I just love watching him try! Ty is one curious little guy!
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| Signing "apple"...cutest sign ever...but when he calls it an "appa", now that's even cuter!! |
When we are not working on walking and talking (which I feel like we do often...unintentionally!), our days are just laid-back, and plain old fun. If I haven't said it before, I'll say it now - I LOVE being home with Ty every day! It was a decision I will not regret. I love being in tune with his schedule each day, I love noticing the new things he is doing, and I love being the one who he sees when he wakes up from his nap. He's already growing up so quickly...he'll be in preschool in a little over a year!...I can't imagine missing another minute of his "baby stage".
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| Five o'clock blackberry shadow...what else do you do with leftover blackberry juice?! |
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| Our little dancing fool |
His interests this month include: exploring nostrils, reading books (when has he not liked books?!), standing, opening his dresser drawers and pulling out clothes...while standing...and then pinching fingers, dancing, cars, animal pictures, and stacking blocks (or shapes, or whatever else he can find to build a tower with).
His dis-interests this month include: naps (that has not been a fun battle), oatmeal, diaper changes, less-frequent baths (due to his alligator-like winter skin), and medicine (for his ongoing ear infections). If these don't describe a typical almost-two-year-old, I don't know what does! He's such a blast to be around every day, though!
With that, I'll leave you with some pictures of our big boy!
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| Favorite toy of the month - new play hut! (Thanks, Eric and Evelyn!!!) |
And discovering the faces that can be made against mesh...
Happy 20 months, Ty Ty!!!!
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