Desmond is 23 Months Old!

So big!

And happy! Most of the time, anyway. Being almost 2 still has its inherent challenges.

Teeth: Still 16. No sign of those last 4 molars yet.

Height: Tall. Judging from the way he fits into the clothes we've pulled out for winter, he's considerably taller than Dexter was at 23m. He's also the tallest in his class (and the oldest, so maybe that's not so surprising).

Weight: If anything, he's lost a few ounces this month, thanks to what we hope is just a standard toddler-esque finicky appetite. (see below)

Sleep: Much better than last month, maybe because that last canine is mostly through now. He has now realized, though, that he is able to climb out of the crib. Mostly, he only does this in the morning when it really is time to get up. On two occasions (so far), he has gotten out because he didn't want to nap. The most recent time, I put him back in his crib, and he just stayed there, upset, until he fell asleep. Please, if there is a god, let her keep the boy in his crib longer. A lot longer.

Food: Still hit or miss. He eats a good variety of food, just not too much of it, and not on our timetable. He will wander the house while the rest of us eat dinner, and be fine for the rest of the night. The next morning, though, the first thing we hear when he wakes up is"Behfist?" in his cute little squeaky voice. Waffles are still a favorite. He will pull them out of the freezer himself and eat them cold. (We do offer to toast them, but he apparently prefers them cold.) French fries ("Foo Fize") are also a big draw. We try to limit these and/or do baked ones at home so his arteries aren't completely clogged before kindergarten. But if he hasn't eaten much in a few meals, Foo Fize are a good bet to get him to the table.

Words: Desmond is dazzling us with his exploding vocabulary. He throws around 3-word sentences like there's no tomorow, often with very clear subjects, verbs, and objects. ("Alligator... bite... yooooouu" or "Not nice, Dehter!" or "Mow waffuh peese?")  "No!" is still very common, now often accompanied by a sincere stomp of his right foot. Interestingly, he isn't much on saying, "yes," even when the answer is yes. He'll just repeat what you say in a little high-pitched squeak and smile. ("Do you want more milk?" "Mouh meelgh?")

Books: Books are falling out of favor slightly, in that he isn't much interested in reading them during the day, and now he's so tired at night that he jumps at the chance to go to bed even if we've only done one book. Also? He likes to sleep with some books. Doesn't even really look at them, but he just wants them in the crib with him. If there are no books, he might climb out of the bed, get one, put it in the crib, then ask you to put him back in his crib (since he can climb out, but not back in). Fascinating.

TV: Yep. Still loves TV. "Watch... panda?" "Watch... fish?" "Watch... Yo Yo Gabba?" <-- that last one should be "Yo Gabba Gabba." Fun.  We'll just throw his love for iPhone games and videos on the computer in here, too. ("Mommy phoam?" "Daddy... phoam?") And yes, these things usually need to be fought over with his big brother.

Colors: Refuses to learn pink vs. purple and has regressed on white. (Black things are now "white.") Red and green are getting better, though.  We've tried to do some sorting by color, but he won't even sit still long enough for a demonstration. Stubborn.

Bikes: He still LOVES his tricycle! He and Dexter take turns on the big wheel and tricycle. Desmond still refuses to pedal with his feet. Apparently this is developmentally appropriate, but it's still frustrating because I really think he could do it if he would just listen to us for 10 seconds while we show him how. There was a lot of outdoor biking this month, and the basement is perfect for it on bad-weather days. I hope that continues to be a worthwhile activity as we go into winter.

Other Likes & Dislikes: Making messes, mostly. If he sees a neat pile of something, he can't resist scattering it about with whatever force necessary. He likes playing with the wooden trains and train tracks. So much so that he and Dexter sometimes get their own mini-loops, since taking turns is excruciating for both of them. He also loves driving cars around on the furniture and flying airplanes around the room. Very cute. :)

Jumping on Dexter's bed before bath and running around in his hooded towel after bath are both also seriously fun. He has a favorite bath towel - an alligator taking a shower. (Apparently it's actually a crocodile. We aren't going to correct him.) It's pretty sad when it's dirty, because flashing it will get him to cooperatively get out of the tub every time. And when you DO show it to him, his little face lights right up.

Another long-favorite? The penguin bath toy from this set. He's loved it for a loooooong time, but the toys are starting to get icky. It's going to be sad when we have to say goodbye to penguin.

Dislikes? Nothing specific. Hates everything when he chooses to (bath, diaper, dinner, trains, tv, shoes, whatever) and loves them when he chooses to (again, bath, diaper, dinner, trains, tv, shoes.)  Sometimes we actually work up a sweat wrestling a diaper onto the kid because he's trying so hard to get away. Other times, he says, "New diapuh?" in that squeaky little smiley voice and lies perfectly still while we do the change.  It's the same for bath, food, various toys, getting dressed, everything. Part of being (almost. ALMOST!) 2, I guess.