23 Months

The month of November was full of fun and a further expansion of the Word Explosion that was October. We said good bye to Ms. Jessica at Mother Goose on the Loose, saw our leaves change and fall, continued our lunch dates at the Chick, caught the animals at the zoo before it got too cold, celebrated Thanksgiving, got flu shots and dealt with ear infections and started the plans for a fun 2nd birthday (gasp) party.

On the 28th of next month, we will no longer be able to identify the boys in months. It still amazes me how fast this time has gone and I know how many people indicated that it would, but, it has gone by too fast. I still remember bringing them home and Michael indicating that he was going to work and I was in tears out of fear for having no idea what I was doing or whether or not I could walk up the steps without discomfort.

This year has been truly amazing and I am fully aware of how lucky that I am to stay home with the boys. Each day may not be easy but it is definitely rewarding at the end of the night and the joy is that we get to start anew the next day. I couldn't imagine not being home to experience everything with them.

Enough of the mushy...let's discuss what Jackson and Connor have been up too this month.

* more and more of a Word Explosion than last month

* working on colors and shapes, including identifying shapes in public, especially circles in the elevator or when used as light fixtures

* are properly identifying mama and daddy and not just theirs. on a trip to Chipotle, Jackson was pointing out all of the men and women that would enter or leave the restaurant. and, there were lots. besides saying hi, he would loudly scream Mama or Dada.

* are saying good-bye to things in the house, including our Moose from Bar Harbor, and identifying things that they see and know the names of. it may be one of the sweetest things when Jackson says "bye Moose" and Connor letting us know when he spots the "Ginch, a/k/a Grinch" or "Rex from Toy Story or most importantly the "Cat" on his bib.

* are engaging in some forms of territorial playing, doing a lot of pushing and having tantrums. there are several coveted puzzle pieces and or animals that will result in full on tantrums and Jackson has started to throw toys when he is told no or doesn't get his way. it results in an immediate time-out. they have started to use the stiff-arm as a means to keep the other away.

* are both obsessed with their safari animal puzzle. they still come running in to me to let me know what puzzle pieces they have and are said coveted puzzle pieces that result in some serious fights between them

* are helping read books. it is totally gratifying that the hours upon hours that we spent reading to the boys actually paid off and are helping boost their vocabulary. and, besides the validation of reading, it is amazing to listen to as they assist reading one of their books.


and, some Jacksonisms...

-- can be super sweet at times to the point of heart melting but still his ornery rambunctious self

-- wants to be a big helper at all times and will generally stop any bad behaviors or lack of listening when asked to be a helper. he gets no bigger a thrill than when we bring in groceries that need to be unloaded. he runs back and forth from our living room to our kitchen with whatever he can get his hands on and will not be o.k. with things until e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g has been emptied out of the bags.

-- has started to repeat a lot of the things that we are saying and can just be super silly with the things that he is saying. on one specific morning, Jackson climbed out of his crib and I brought him downstairs with me and at 3 a.m. was having a serious conversation. I could only catch bits and pieces but what was clear was "Oh, No" (in exaggerated tones and covering his mouth with a shocked expression) "No More Toys." One of our other favorites is when he says "Thank You Much." He will also often mumble "mama said please" during encouragement to eat.








and, some Connorisms...

-- he let's us know when he is "stuck," which is not always accurate since this includes when he is getting in his car seat

-- has started throwing things again and I often think that this is done so he can say "Oh, No" and "Uh Oh"

-- is very territorial about his books and continues to push Jackson out of the way if he gets too close to him or his books

-- appears to be "egging" Jackson on to start fights so that he can get yelled at :( and is putting himself into situations that he hopes will lead to sympathetic hugs and a no to Jackson but end in the exact opposite effect

-- has become more assertive although his walking is still unsteady at times and he prefers to be carried, if available

Bye Bye Zoo for 2011

It was another 50 degree day in late November and we invited the boys' Aunt Gina, a/k/a Nina to join us at the zoo. Despite the face that it was only 2 days after we had just been, the boys were just as excited. It turned out to be our last trip of the year and it was such a nice day to share with the boys' aunt as she hadn't been in many of years.

Checking out the polar bears in the Tundra Buggy. This is always an iffy one when I am by myself because there is an incline to get to the buggy and with other people coming in and out, either of the boys could go out the door so it was great to have the help.





A special treat for Connor and myself since getting to the penguins is difficult and you have to take them out of the stroller. Even with help, I often will skip it despite Connor's enthusiasm for "pengs" because I'm not sure he realizes what he is looking at since it is still so far away and they are small.



The necks never disappoint.



Bye Bye Ostriches and Zee Bees, we will see you next year and we may or may not be able to say Zebra!!!

Last Family Zoo Trip of 2011

When thinking back to the tears that occurred on our 1st trip, the boys have come such a long way. They were barely verbal other than mama and dada and I was basically using the trip as exercise.

Things have changed so much. It was almost 50 degrees with some sun in late November and we couldn't think of any other way to spend some time with the boys than at the zoo.

On this particular trip, the boys were very amused in the polar bear tundra.







Jackson never ceases to amaze me as he found a set of stairs that lead to an area above the cow's pen. Michael willingly followed and Connor and I eventually caught up with them and the owls. He is such a big boy as he was able to walk down these steps by himself without assistance.



All of the animals were getting excited about lunch, so I was actually able to catch some great videos (this is more for the boys as it is just from my iphone).



If you look closely, you can see Jackson and Michael wandering on the right hand side and at the end of the video, Michael will attest that he was under "primate attack" as the chimp crashed into the glass in front of Michael and Jackson. Michael was terrified and Jackson didn't even seem to notice.



The boys often struggle to see the elephants and it is hard to maneuver in and out of their area, but with Michael we gave it a shot.



Connor's necks... Michael wants to start a petition to officially change the giraffe's name to neck. Positive that Jackson and Connor would be the first to sign.



What a great way to spend a couple of hours with the boys as they soaked in their animals and showed their dad and I how much of a difference that a couple months can make and how valuable the membership could be.

Heppooh or hippo as most people would say

but, the best thing is that is not how Connor has decided to pronounce this mammal rather his pure excitement when he sees one.

About a month ago, I reintroduced a Baby Einstein video that the boys hadn't seen in awhile, Baby Noah. The opening scene is National Geographic in nature with all of the animal footage and the boys are so excited that they can barely handle themselves running around and identifying all of the animals. Their excitement has worn off but the love of the Heppooh has not.

Connor thinks that Abby Cadabby's friend Blog at her flying fairy school is a Heppooh. He and Jackson will actually fight over their puzzle pieces that have zoo animals on them and most of these fights result in tears on Connor's end in an attempt to secure his beloved heppooh.



(realizing that for those that do not speak Connor, will need some help deciphering what he is saying -- giraffe = neck, roar = lion, eb = zebra)

Help!!!

After taking several tumbles down the steps (sigh), we have encouraged Connor to ask for help when he wants to go down the steps. Initially, he was more motivated than Jackson to try this but a couple of falls have rocked his confidence. But, the result is oh.so.adorable. He yells HELP whenever he is in a situation that he requires assistance. It is encouraging that he will not go down with assistance but is super funny when you are in another room to watch him longingly look for assistance.





(note: it really wasn't fair to make him wait for me to get the camera for him to get Help to go down the stairs)

Out for hire - 2 toddlers that love to help unload groceries.

Michael always jokes with me that there are child labor laws. To make it clear, Jackson and Connor both LOVE to help unload the groceries and won't stop until everything is out of the bag. This started about a month ago and I'm loving the help. Sometimes, it is a little as one yogurt and other times if I haven't seen him awhile, I check and Jackson is trying to pick up a gallon of milk or juice.

I took this picture before we left for the grocery store. We were shopping for the Thanksgiving dinner necessities. The boys were awesome in the grocery store and did an A+ job in Chipotle with listening and eating. Connor actually asked for rice when I opened up my burrito bowl (sigh for cuteness).

With all of what had to be done, we were off-schedule and when we got home there was no parking near the house. Michael unloaded all of the groceries and the plan was for me to make milk cups for the boys and get them upstairs. Well, they were not having any of that. They needed to help unload the bags (of course). There were several items that I wanted to keep together in the bag and Jackson wanted nothing to do with that. Everything had to come out of the bags even if I just placed it on the kitchen counters.

Meeting baby Cassidy and playdate with Cayden

We finally were able to get on Cassidy's calendar (she is a cutie so we understand) and it was a great way to combine a playdate with her big sister for the boys. The boys had a lot of fun getting to see the new baby and play with Cayden's toys.



At a certain point, I was unable to locate Connor as he was behind a really large book that basically consumed him as he was thumbing through the pages.



Jackson was just moving from toy to toy and Cayden was often watching him in amazement.



A special thank you to Miss Cayden, our wonderful playdate host.

We live in a world of blue or so Connor thinks

EVERYTHING and I mean EVERYTHING is blue to Connor if you ask him what color it is. He knows that there are different colors and can pronounce most of them. And, he can do his stacker in proper order when given instructions on colors and knows all of the colors in his Toy Story and Friends book but if asked what color is something, your answer will most likely be blue. If, on the off chance, that it isn't blue -- you may get purple.

Time-Out Sympathy

Connor's behavior has required a lot of timeouts this past week and he does not fully understand the idea of a timeout and continuously gets up and walks to whomever placed him there smiling from ear to ear. Either he does get that he is in trouble and is using his sweetness to reduce the time-out time or he just doesn't get it.

After Connor pushed his 3rd vehicle of the week down the steps (ride-on firetruck), I sent him to time-out. I glanced over and saw Jackson walk up to him with his snack cup and feed him some of his pirate booty :). Sometimes, they show how much they truly love each other and this is usually during time-out.

More

Connor's vocabulary and want to repeat words is just astonishing to observe and listen to. His most recent thing is to repeatedly tell you items that he knows. He lets me know that there is a picture of a flower as we walk down the steps, identifies Max from the Grinch and Rex from Toy Story every time that he sees them, etc.

Connor's obsession with the Cat has been documented several times on the blog so we won't get into anything further other than that he has a Cat bib and he repeatedly points to his bib and says "Cat" "Cat" "Cat." He looks over to Jackson and points out that he has Sam from Green Eggs and Ham.

My favorite thing that he is saying is more. I may have had to lead him on this one but it's worth the listen just to hear it. It puts a smile on my face every.time.

Connor and being assertive

In recent weeks, Connor has shown some assertive behavior that has completely shocked me and a lot of the people around him. He is showing more and more defiance when asked to do things and his listening has left much to be desired. I know that this is part of being a toddler but we never expected our sweet Connor to get wrapped up in it. It is fun to watch him strut around doing things that he knows he is not supposed to be doing with a huge smile on his face; the reprimanding is not so much fun.

At Hoppin Tots today, Connor kept leaving the circle time to go back to the bridge and jump into the "icicles" that were set up in an area that required some significant for Connor maneuvering. Even his teacher was shocked by his behavior. He still is apprehensive about walking out of the bathroom as it changes from tile to marble to hardwood and WILL NOT walk off the landing without holding someone's hand (and actually waits for help) but it is nice to see some assertiveness on his behalf. He may just be tired of Jackson stealing his "thunder."



(note: he's sitting at a chair in front of the laptop that he haphazardly climbed onto and almost fell off and minutes later, he was standing on another. these are all things that we don't think about twice when Jackson attempts so I'm guessing he is trying to be like his "big" brother)

Get on your dog and ride!

Christine got the boys this dog last year for their birthday and when given the option to pick a toy from their stash in the back, the dog is getting picked more and more often. Connor is not the most agile so the balancing on the dog is very impressive.

You may want to think twice before inviting us in

We hand delivered an invite to a neighborhood friend for the boys' party and Jackson was in his typical not really listening and continuing to push boundaries mood. He was asked several times not to touch things and couldn't handle himself and ended up throwing a pumpkin down a set of stairs at the cat. The cat, which the mom had asked him not to touch, was repeatedly poked. The mom also had to pull the boys apart from a disagreement over a random toy.

Often times, he can be very sweet and loving and will sit and read books or play toys or watch something but today, he was not having it. So, when he climbed into the shopping cart and was stuck, instead of helping him out, I grabbed the camera.

He really is going to be that kid that you want around because he is such a go-getter or the one that you would think twice before inviting him into your house. It is very clear at any given moment, you never know which Jackson you are going to get!!! We love whichever one we get but are definitely working on boundaries and waiting and manners. Wish us luck!!!

New obsession - spices in the pantry

Connor recently discovered our spice cabinet that also holds some baking supplies. He is very calm and easy with things (code for not throwing) and really enjoys himself.

He almost immediately latched on to the vanilla and sprinkles and anything related to cupcakes (hint hint to us, I guess).



Jackson's approach is to stack the spices.



Connor checking out his handy-work.