We are just going to go ahead and pretend that it hasn't been TWO MONTHS since I last posted on here.
Okay, so it's a little hard to do that. Let's just say that between my new job and having not used my camera (that I hate) to take a picture in months I have not had the time and/or motivation to post. That, and if I ever did try to take a picture it turns out like this (taken on my phone)
because Miles is HURRICANE MILES most of the time, moving in all directions at once.
He is, quite literally, a blur.
What I really want to do is do an update post filled with all of the wonderful and amazing things that make up who Miles is at two and a half. So that, my friends, is exactly what I am going to do!
Just remember that it has been two months since my last post so this one might be a doozy. Get comfortable. Here we go:
MILES GABRIEL: The Two and a Half Year Old
Miles is a force to be reckoned with. I say that in both the most positive and, well,
less positive ways imaginable.
Miles is spunky, determined, persistent, funny, sweet, stubborn, fast, strong, coordinated, handsome, smart, silly, crazy, energetic, curious, imaginative, cute, naughty, polite, tidy, fun, complex and loving.
And we literally couldn't love him more.
Photo by Catharine Bliss (Notice how even in this picture he is not sitting still? Yeah.....)
Some more details:
- He is rather tall (don't know his exact height), weighs 32 pounds, size 10 Wide shoes and is in 2T/3T pants and 3T/4T shirts.
- He is still one of the best snugglers on earth. One of his favorite things to do is lay on the couch with me (or Grant) and watch his favorite show, "Go, Diego Go!". He will say, "Lay down, mama" so he can curl up with me for a good snuggle. Kisses are only done on his terms. If we try to give him lots of kisses he will usually push us away. But if he thinks that one of us is hurt or sick he will plant a big one right on the mouth and then say, "All better now?" He can be so.darn.sweet.
- He is a sugar fiend. I have never seen anything like it in a child. If it's a cookie, brownie, cupcake, sucker, you-name-it he WANTS it. Our daycare provider says that she has never seen a kid with a sweet tooth like Miles has. He couldn't care less about actual food or eating breakfast, lunch or dinner ... but put a piece of cake in front of him and he will mow it down in 30 seconds flat, then ask for more. No BEG for more. CRY for more. It's one of our biggest struggles right now. We went cold turkey on fruit snacks and banned them from our house because it just got to be such a huge obsession for him--it's all he would ask for and would throw fit after fit if we said no. We try to keep sweets out of the house as much a possible but for God's sake....ugh.
- We can't really take him anywhere. Restaurants are out. Church is super, duper hard. But he loves to be outside. He loves to ride his bike. He loves to play any kind of sport, and frankly he is awesome at all of them: soccer, basketball, tennis, baseball. He rocks them all! His amazing balance coupled with his incredible hand-eye coordination make him honest-to-goodness
great at most any sport he tries to tackle. He and Grant are always out doing something or other, collecting bugs or working with tools in the garage. It's a good thing he has such an active daddy!! (Oh, and another thing he excels at? Using a computer mouse. I will get video of it some time and post it. I forget he is only 2 when he uses a computer!!!!)
- He is quite verbal and usually talks in complete sentences now. "Don't touch my cookie, mama." "I want to go to the mall." and so on :-) My favorite thing is when he gets on a roll when he is telling us a story, especially when telling us about his day at daycare (Sharon's): "I went pee in the potty at Sharon's house. I hit Ryan. I get time out. We play with toys. I take a nap. ...." He likes to confess when he has been naughty at daycare, which we appreciate! That way we can process it with him and talk about 'being nice to our friends'. That's a phrase we say a lot!
- Speaking of peeing on the potty...Miles is doing amazingly well at that. He is pretty much teaching himself. We have never tried to push it, we have never asked him if he would like to pee on the potty. He just started asking to do it himself many months back and will consistently do it if he isn't wearing his diaper at home. He has never had an accident. He also started going poop in the potty just recently. Again, we NEVER prompt him. He always just says, "I have to go pee" or "I have to go poop". So it seems that potty training is in full swing. Honestly, I wasn't quite ready for it but he seems to be. We will start being more intentional about it in the next few weeks.
- He loves counting, singing the alphabet and saying the days of the week in order. He will point out letters everywhere, even if it's not really a letter. The other day there was a hose lying on the ground on a sidewalk and he said "Look mama, M for Miles!" (It did look like a M--but I would have never seen it!) He is constantly seeing letters and numbers and pointing them out. My dad discovered how great he is at numbers by pulling out a deck of cards and asking Miles to identify the number on it as he flips the cards over--he gets them right almost all the time! They are little sponges at this age and he is absorbing absolutely everything that comes his way. Nothing gets past him and his little brain is like a steel trap. He is constantly amazing us.
- And then there is the other side of Miles. (He is a complex personality, what can I say!?!) Like any toddler, he is moody. He pushes our buttons. He is naughty. He can be a huge pain in the ass. He is
incredibly persistent. He will cry for hours over a cookie. He will throw his crayons just to piss us off. He will kick and scream over a diaper change. He is a horrible eater. He will not sit and eat a meal to save his life. He will not behave in public. But then he surprises us...like when we went to Sesame Street Live recently. He was perfect. So, I know he is capable of it! I always say, "He is two but he is trying not to be!" This will pass.
- Thank God he remains a good sleeper. He sleeps like a rock, usually. However, getting him to actually GO to sleep for bedtime or naptime has turned into an ordeal and a half. I can't even go into all of the details. It's the typical stalling routine that most kids do. But Holy Crap does it frustrate us. He is still in a crib and WILL REMAIN THERE for the time-being. No big kid bed for him until he's 10 :-)
- He was recently diagnosed with "mild persistent asthma". We are not too concerned but are going to do some treatments to help his little lungs out a bit. Lots of kids have this kind of thing, and many grow out of it. We are just rolling with it and taking the advice of our fantastic pediatrician.
- Right now we are really struggling with how to talk about his birthmother and adoption. I am especially struggling with it. He is just so very aware of his life and his place in it now. Every time I show him a picture of his birthmother I say her name and then say, "This is your birthmother." He will often get upset and say, "No, my mama!!" and hug me. Gulp. This makes me cry just typing about it. We are just trying to adjust to his level of knowledge and acceptance of these ideas, and will have to change our gameplan accordingly. We will move toward talking more specifically about what it means when we say birthmother, and what it means when we say adoption. I didn't think this would come up this fast, but it has. We are going to use books and photos and friends and family and any other resources we can to help him to understand what this all means. We are working on it. It's a lifelong process!
That is actually only just a fraction of what is going on in Miles' life right now but I think that's enough for now, don't you?? I didn't talk about his favorite books, songs, friends, etc.... for another post.
As much as the Terrible Twos can suck sometimes, I am really, really enjoying this age. He is so full of fun and life--there is NEVER a dull moment with our boy. I am loving it. The older he gets the more I am convinced that I am sooooo NOT a baby person :-) Don't get me wrong, I love me a snuggly newborn (like sweet Annika!) but I also love that we are out of that stage. On to bigger and better things, I say. For now we are enjoying the ride!!!
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