The not-so-terrible twos.

Nolan turned 2 on January 22!  He was kind of sick, and we didn't do much to celebrate (I've realized that until they turn 3, when they actually understand that it's their birthday and what that means, the birthdays are really for the mamas).  I spent the day before and the day of reminiscing about his birth - "at this time 2 years ago...it was my due date but nothing was happening...at this time 2 years ago, I had my first "real" contraction...at this time 2 years ago, Nolan was born!"  He got some balloons, and some "cupcakes" which were really oatmeal muffins, and a few nice gifts. 

We had his check-up a few weeks ago and he weighs 24 lbs., 13 oz. and is 35 inches tall.  I think the PA called him "tall and slender."  He's perfectly healthy.  I had no questions about his development and reported that he's eating, sleeping, and doing well in general.  Hmmm...seems too easy. 

His speech began to explode starting about 2-3 months ago, and he seems to be much happier since he developed the ability to tell us what is going on.  He has a great vocabulary.  Some of the best examples I can think of are:  "Beck hit me."  "I dinnunt do it."  "Bless you, mommy." "One, two, three, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, eight, nine, ten, eleven."  Here is a translated list of some of his funnier words and phrases:

peen sannich = peanut butter and jelly sandwich

fippy = slippery

fimming = swimming

boppa's milk = grandpa's milk (which is soy milk - my dad's milk of choice)

zoomy zoomy = team umizoomi (one of the tv shows he and Beck like to watch)

mankie = blankie

He can also say the alphabet, but skips about every third or fourth letter and he likes to sing songs - 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed and twinkle twinkle little star are popular choices.  We switched preschools at the beginning of the month, and he's having some difficulty adjusting (he cries and clings to me when I drop him off).  I remember it took Beck about a month to adjust to his new school when we moved him at around Nolan's age, so I think it will get better, but it will probably take a while.  He has a tendency to disagree with me about everything and he says "no" a lot.  As we were walking into the doctor's office for his check-up, I said "It's such a beautiful day!  It's so nice and sunny!"  He responded "No, not nice day!"  Grump.  But, really, he's smart, funny, and a joy to be around these days (other than when he's sick).

So far, 2 has not been so terrible.  Beck and Nolan play together, entertain each other, and are both getting more and more independent each day. We are fortunate in so many ways and I think 2013 is going to be a good year. Definitely not terrible.