I realized I'd been too selfish with my blogging lately - there hasn't been an update on Ely in a while, and I know that's what most of my readers (what few they are) really want to hear about! Not only that, this blog is also like my expanded baby book; I know I may never have another child, so I'm trying my best to preserve all the memories with my boy as they happen. As for the stats, he hasn't been to the doctor since his 18-month check up almost 3 months ago (thank god!), so my best guess is that he's aroudn 27.5 pounds and probably 33 inches or so. He wears a 2T-4T shirt depending on the brand, 24 month pants, and size 6 shoes.
Ely continues to amaze me. I'm sure everything he does is completely normal and right on the average curve of development for a toddler his age, but nevertheless, he astounds me everyday with the things he learns and how he perceives the world. He talks so much now, so that I can actually have whole conversations with him. Granted, the conversations are simplistic and revolving around subjects he takes interest in, but it's a major step from blurting out single words in repetition! He tells me everything he did at daycare on the way home each night - who he played with, what they watched on tv, sometimes even what they ate for breakfast or lunch. He looks out the car windows and can tell me everything he sees and relates fairly complex concepts easily. He'll say "Clouds in sky - stars - dark", trying to tell me that the clouds are in the sky now, but when it's dark, the stars will come out. "Big tractor - green - corn - cows" to tell me that the big green tractor is getting corn, and that cows eat corn. Lots of two and three word sentences as well; every morning he tells me "Juice - trains on tv - couch - eat", letting me know that he wants his juice and to sit on the couch to watch Thomas the Train while he eats his Kix - in that order! His pronunciations have also gotten much better in the last two months or so, and some of the cute baby talk is disappearing. :(
He's also learning colors in the past few weeks. He easily recognizes orange, green, red, and sometimes white, and he's getting closer with blue and brown. I can even ask him "What color is [blank]?" when he's not looking at the object and he will remember 9 times out of 10. Numbers and letters are not coming as easy, however, I think mainly due to the fact that I can already tell he is a visual learner. He can look at pictures of almost 50 different animals and tell me their names and even what they say or what they eat, but he doesn't care about letters and numbers because they are not visually interesting. That being said, he can count "one two" and tell me when there's two of something. He also recognizes about 5 or 6 letters - B, W, Y, R, T, and sometimes A. I'm not rushing - I'd much rather talk about colors, animals, nature, concepts, etc. than letters and numbers!
He is also going through quite a Thomas the Train phase, one I've heard can last for several years according to some moms I work with who have older boys. He watches every morning for about 10 minutes while I prepare his breakfast, and every night before story time for another 20 minutes or so. He knows the main characters by name and we're thinking a train set may be in the realm of possibilities for Christmas. :) He also watches alot of TV at daycare, since they have it on for background noise most of the day. I can't say I'm thrilled about him watching TV, but that's why I try as much as possible to get him outside playing before and sometimes after dinner every night, and why we still read stories before bed. I've thought about looking into other daycare situations, but he does like it there alot and I'm happy with how they care for the kids most of the time. Hopefully next fall or perhaps the following spring he will be in pre-school anyway - but I have yet to research the best options.
I've decided not to push potty training at this time. I know it is recommended to start after 18 months, and he does have a potty and has gone on it twice, but I think the process will be quicker and easier if I wait until he's a little older and understands the concept better. He seems pretty quick to grasp things now, so if I wait another 3.5 months until he's 2 (is it that soon already?!?!), or even until this next summer, it will be that much easier for him to understand what's going on. Plus, he's never been one to care if his diaper is dirty or not - I always have to drag him away from whatever he's doing to change him!
We're enjoying fall and have made many trips to the apple orchard already to pet goats, pick apples, and sit on big tractors. We also visited a small zoo in Belvidere, took some walks at Severson Dells, and went to the Pioneer Festival. Greg is building a brick patio and outdoor brick oven fireplace, so we have been playing in the yard alot and jumping in the leaves while he works. Greg and I also got away for two nights while Ely stayed with grandparents; it was our first time being away from him overnight, and I'm happy to report that all of us did ok!
That's all for now - I can't believe I'll have a 2 year old in a few months!
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