1.75 Years

Gus and Gibson are quickly approaching two years old. The other day, I tried to make a list of specific milestones and when they reached them, because I know I'll forget all the details eventually. Unfortunately, I already have forgotten when they started rolling over...maybe around 5 months? I can't find any photographic evidence, either. But luckily I do have pictures/videos of other important moments like first solid food. Oatmeal cereal...those were the days!

So, what are they up to at 21 months?

Physical skills: lots of climbing, running, and being busy little bees. Yesterday, Gus semi-ran down a hill without face planting, which was a first. Yay! They love climbing up and going down slides at the park. They've almost figured out how to jump in place, or at least bend their knees jumpishly.

Fine motor skills: definitely getting better at building with blocks. Recently I saw Gibson stack two little cubes of kiwi on his high chair tray. That seemed pretty good.

Finding things: since we have so much baby paraphernalia everywhere, it seems we are constantly looking for items, like snack cups, the other identical toy that brother has, missing socks, etc. They are both getting pretty good at retrieving lost items. I find this helpful because, really, if they misplaced their sock, shouldn't they be the one to find it anyway?

Playing together: I've really seen progress on this front in the last month. In general, they play together fairly well! They love to chase each other around the house, giggle about everything, and generally enjoy life together. Yes, they still fight, but it's not their default mode of interaction lately. Hip hip, hooray!

Watching TV: when they were sick a couple weeks ago, we watched a lot of TV. I try to point them to non-screen activities when they aren't sick. But I have noticed that they actually pay attention to TV now and will engage with whatever is on the screen, like talking to Daniel Tiger, pointing out interesting animals, or clapping along with music. It's cute, but at the same time makes me realize I want to be selective in what they are viewing, since they seem to understand it more now.

Language: Gibson is obsessed with saying "no." It's his answer to nearly every question. He'll be happily munching on food, and I'll say, "Oh, Gibson, do you like your snack? Is that yummy?" He shakes his head and says "no." Oh, personal autonomy :) I nod my head and say, "Yes! Oh, it's so tasty!"

Imagination: they love to pretend to cook food in their toy kitchen, then feed it to DF and me. They'll come running out from the playroom with their hands cupped. This means there is some imaginary food there that we must sample with enthusiasm. Then they giggle, run back, get more, and feed us again. This can continue for at least 10 minutes before they get bored and move on to a new activity.

Ewww: in the last couple of weeks, they've decided it is hilarious to drink their bath water. I tell them it's gross, but they just laugh and keep doing it. All our bath toys resemble cups, so that's not helping. I hope it's not going to hurt them too much to ingest a little soap.