19 Months

The vocabulary is really coming along. I'm sure Jon will say that this development coincided with the month I had laryngitis ("The poor boy finally got a chance to get a word in.") but I'm sure it was only coincidence. If anything, I think it had something to do with being with the older toddlers.

I also need to remind myself that the little guy now understands everything. And I mean everything! We are starting to spell out words these days when we don't want him to understand the conversation. For example, the word of the week seems to be "cracker" so if you ask him what he wants for breakfast, he will say cracker. For lunch? Cracker. For a snack? Cracker. So whenever we need to leave the house, I ask Jon if he packed any c-r-a-c-k-e-r-s in case the little guy asks for one. Otherwise, he will want that cracker right then and there. Luckily, "cracker" comes in many forms. I've managed to convince him that cheerios and shreddies are crackers so at least I'm able to substitute healthier options especially for breakfast.

Also, another clue to the comprehension: I will be doing something like wiping up the floor and, to distract him so I can continue with my task, will ask him to do something completely unrelated like look out the window to see if he can find the cats. The next thing I know, he's off to the window to look for cats. He understands. So, when he doesn't do what I ask him to do, it's not because he doesn't understand or can't hear, he just does not want to do it.

Speaking of not wanting to do things: lately, there's been a lot of procrastination. In the morning, he procrastinates when we're trying to get him out of his pajamas and ready for daycare. First, he has to say good morning to all his bears. Then he has to sit in this rocker. Then he wants to read his books. Then he wants to look at pictures on the computer. Then he wants to pet the kitties. Then he wants to dance in front of and look at himself in the mirror. It goes on and on until I finally have to lift the wriggling, resisting thing to change his diaper and into his day clothes.

And the wriggling and the struggling! Oy! He's been doing the Gandhi for us -- this passive resistance tactic -- when we try to lift him. He just goes limp. One minute I think I got a good grip of the guy under his arms but as soon as I try to lift, the arms just go straight up, he turns into liquid form, drips out of my grip and settles on the floor.

I used to think that he's been procrastinating in the morning because he hated his new class. In fact, he loves his new toddler group! The report from his dad is that while he cries when they are leaving the house to go to daycare, by the time I am out of sight, he has settled down. He is getting used to the new routine, new toys, new friends that he barely gives dad a goodbye wave when he gets dropped off.

I think these signs just mean that he is starting to realize that there are things within his control. "If I act this way, I can influence outcomes." Must be that asserting independence thing.

Update for this 19-month old:
- as at last doctor's visit: 25 pounds and 30 inches (now being plotted on the growth chart uncorrected)
- wearing two-year old shirts, but pants still on the small side (size 18 months). Will those legs ever lengthen?
- tooth number 14 is still trying to erupt
- survived two back-to-back colds without an ear infection!!
- new expressions: all done, night night, Oh no
- so many new words but a few favourites: stickers, snail, bug, car, cracker, juice
- used up all 80 pieces of his blocks to build a tower almost as tall as he is
- can follow two-part directions: "please pick up the magnet and stick it on the fridge"
- now answers questions other than the yes/no kind
- has memorised his sign language book (I actually thought he could read!)
- now filling in words when we read stories
- does a lot of play-acting (would feed his bears or give them drinks or pat them to sleep)
- getting really active. Now climbing the couch, walking along the back of the couch, hurling himself on the pillows, and doing it over and over and over again.
- got his first pair of rain boots
- likes splashing on puddles.

Cold snap

It's not fun when the entire family is sick. This is now week two of back-to-back colds. We were almost recovered from the first one, but then Jon flew to Ottawa for a quick business trip and voila, three days later, we were all sick again.

It's so difficult for babies to be sick because unless they have a fever or an infection, you can't give them anything. The cold congestion is worst at nightime for him. We've elevated one end of his bed, turned on the humidifier, and I've even nursed him while he's sitting up instead of lying down so he can breathe a little better. But, it only helps so much. One night, he coughed so much -- every ten minutes -- that I'm sure he got no sleep at all (like me). The only thing worse than hearing his cough was the silence after each one. Is he okay? Did he choke? Is he still breathing? I had to keep checking.

Needless to say, the transition to the toddler room is not going very well. He missed almost a week of daycare and now he's resisting the morning drop-off again. We're starting from square one. Again.

Speaking of adjusting to the new normal...Maybe I'm a slow learner, but I thought Dex's teething pains, ear infection and colds were the exception to the norm, but now it is beginning to dawn on me: this IS normal. Instead of viewing the health hiccups as things to prevent or overcome, I should just accept that this is going to happen and focus on stuff that we can do despite the colds and the pains. I guess I need to understand that my job is to make my baby boy as healthy and safe as possible so that he can do things for himself: build his immune system, stay healthy, and learn to be a well-adjusted, happy, caring person.

First day in the toddler room

His dad reported another teary hand-off at the daycare this morning. It's Dexter's first official day in the toddler room and, as the teachers warned us, our little boy is now showing some resistance to the new routine. Lots of clinging, lots of tears and a constant cry for "Mama."

It does not help that he is a little under the weather. With another set of friends comes another set of viruses. He came down with a cold last weekend, which he then promptly passed on to his parents. We all woke up this morning hacking away.

Not too long ago, when he first started going to daycare, he cried a lot during the drop-off, too. He did that for about two weeks, then it got better and better. It got to the point where he would walk into the room himself and fling himself to the many puzzles and toys on the floor and when instructed to say bye-bye to Daddy, would barely look up to wave as if to say: "You're still here? Bye. See you later already."

I'm sure Dex will get used to the new routine soon. Half of the kids in his new class were with him in the infant room, so I'm sure he will adjust as well as the other kids did. In the meantime, I'm just hoping that the cold stays off his chest and off his ears. I don't want to see him go through another bout of ear infection.

The shiner

A friend sends me pictures of her sons regularly -- class pictures, the official family studio photos for Christmas, snapshots of the suntanned boys at the cottage. I look forward to these photos and respond with the usual "they're getting so big" or "they're looking more and more like you."

After a series of these photos, I noticed a recurring pattern and finally had to ask "what's that on your little guy's face?"

I believe her answer went something like this: "He's a boy. Don't you know? Two days before a class picture, any formal sitting for a photo, or a special family gathering where pictures are required like Christmas or birthdays, boys will fall off their bikes or the couch or playground equipment and will be sporting a scar, a bruise, or a blackeye. The more special the occasion for the picture, the more dramatic the disfigurement."

Well, Dex has his first class photo at daycare on Friday, and today, on the way home from the park, he ran past me and decided to tackle the cement ramp himself. One minute, he was laughing in glee in anticipation of me chasing him. The next minute, he's on the ground crying because he took that corner a little too quickly. He's fine. He just tripped over his own feet and fell. Nice bruise over the right eye, though, to be captured for posterity in his first class photo two days from now.

Expert noodle slurper

It was a drizzly, grey day in Toronto so instead of going to the park and having brunch at the Beach like we have been doing the past few weekends, we went for a drive and ended up in Chinatown. We sat down for lunch at a Vietnamese noodle shop and this is where Dex acquired another sweet skill.

It was his first encounter of the egg noodle kind! He loved it but he struggled to push the uncooperative noodles into his mouth. He wanted to eat lots of it, but as he tried to shove them into his mouth, they would stick to his hands or his cheeks and/or slip off before he can close his mouth on them, a frustrating experience indeed.

I then showed him how to best eat noodles: stick one end in and slurp. I had to demo it a couple of times, but once he got the hang of it, the feeding went a little more smoothly. He loved it. You should have seen the look on his face when he first succeeded with this new technique. We'll have to try this with spaghetti next time. Ahhh, life is so exciting for a one and a half year old!

Wild things

Dex has a picture book that explains the concept of opposites: young puppy, old tortoise; hard brick wall, soft pillow; wet ocean, dry sand; cold popsicle, hot coffee; small mouse, big elephant; etc.

And then, it occurred to me: Dex would have absolutely no idea that a mouse is small and an elephant is big, having never encountered them before. For all he knows, all animals are the size of dogs and cats, the more familiar sights of his everyday world. So, an outing to the zoo was suggested by his dad. I resisted for the longest time. I happen to believe that wild animals are best viewed in their natural habitat, but since a trip to Africa, Antarctica, and South East Asia is not in the immediate plans, I conceded on one condition: as soon as I see sad-looking animals, we are so out of there! (No strolls past the primates then....)

It was a beautiful, 30 degrees plus day for our trek to the zoo. We did not get there till mid-afternoon so we were worried we were not going to see any animals, but it turned out to be a particularly lively day. Four elephants were basking in the sun, a tiger was lounging on a tree, a lion was passed out on the grass, his tail flicking flies off his body, a baby zebra was prancing about and circling his mom, and a giraffe was hovering right in front of us when it spotted what must have been a tasty-looking leaf, so he bent down and stuck out his enormous purple-grey tongue to eat it. We also saw warthogs and lots of birds and some fruit bats. Overall, a very good day for animal viewing despite the heat.

Dex was not too, too excited about the animals. He was more interested in the golf carts being driven by zoo staff (he's into motor vehicles and construction equipment these days). I think a few more visits to the zoo and he might appreciate it a little bit more. Next time, we might stop by the aquarium and pet the sting ray!

So far, so good

Dex spent an hour in the toddler room yesterday and his teachers told me that he did quite well. He was in one part of the playground with his new friends and his infant friends were in a separate area but he can see them through the fence. No signs of distress there. The teachers said that this is the normal reaction. The trouble starts when they start spending more and more time with the new friends and they realize that "this is the new normal."

I spoke to one of the toddler teachers to find out more about what to expect in the new class. In addition to more playground time, the kids are encouraged to be more independent so they will self-feed, put on their hat, jacket and boots before going outside, and start toilet-training. At the same time, the children will be encouraged to follow directions: line up before going to and from the playground, sit still for storytime, take turns playing with toys, etc. Essentially, she said, the kids are being prepared for pre-school. The infant class is for 18 to 30 months, after that, they move on to the pre-school class.

My kid's in the system. I've already fed him to the machine.

Transition Time

Yet another milestone in my little boy's life -- Today, he is transitioning from the infant room to the toddler room at daycare. The transition process takes about two weeks, with Dex spending a little bit of time each day with his new friends in the toddler room. I am hoping the transition goes well. At least, he'll know a few of the kids in the new room since Aiden and Owen were both in the infant class with him before they moved over.

In the toddler class, he will spend more time working on the gross motor skills (longer time in the playground), napping in a cot rather than a crib, eating at the table rather than propped up in a high chair, drinking from a cup rather than a sippy cup, and starting toilet training. Must speak more to the new teachers to find out how else the curriculum changes.

I'll have to see how the transition goes. Usually, there's a bit of crying as the kids get used to the routine. The worst time for them is when they see the infants go to the playground (the playground schedule is different and the infants go right by the toddler room). That's when the transitioning kid usually presses his/her face to the glass and cries, unsure why they are not out there with their friends and teachers.