25 Months (2 Years and 1 Month Old)

 

Gus is 25 Months Old Today!

Notice anything different in this picture? I know... no Picky Sticky. It's sad, but the last one was for 24 months and now we're left without them.

Gus is an incredible little boy. I know that most parents think that their kid is the most awesome, but he really is. I honestly, LOVE spending time with him. He's delightful and makes me laugh and smile. In a word, he really is a GIFT.

At his two year appointment, he had the annual hemoglobin check and they had to take blood from his finger (not pleasant). Thankfully I had the train app, and he was really focused on watching the videos of trains (the app is incredible). At that appointment, I told his doctor (Dr. Bear) that we were a little concerned about his speech and language, just because he's not talking all the time and isn't understandable. She said, that his ages and stages screener came back normal, but if we had any questions at all, she always recommended a speech and hearing evaluation just to rule out anything serious.

She gave us the info and we made the appointments for him. After his appointment, I went to Wal-Mart and while I was driving home, there was a voice message from Dr. Bear about Gus's blood work. She said to call her and she'd tell me about it. When I called, I was told that his white blood cell count was low and they needed him to come back in three weeks to check it again. She said not to worry about it, and it could be anything that caused it to be low (stress, illness, a misread/mistake in the lab). More seriously, it could be anemia, or even leukemia.

As much as I tried not to worry about it, I was still worried. We went to MI and IN on our vacation and then when we got back, we had our appointment for it to be drawn again. Thankfully, this time, it came back 100% normal!! Praise the Lord!

While on vacation, we learned that the speech eval and the hearing eval would NOT be treated as in-office, and until our $1,000 deductible was met, we'd have to pay out of pocket (speech was between $800 and $1200 and the hearing would be $500-$800). I decided that I'm not THAT worried yet, so I cancelled the appointments. If he's not any more verbal by November, we'll see what comes from that.

Just in the last few days, I've noticed more and more language bursts. Gus is definitely saying more and has started to repeat a lot of what it said to him. He can count to two (I read that it's good if they can count to the number that's the same as their age) and he's VERY smart. He figures things out, and is a problem-solver. I think he's just got other things to do than talk.  :-)

Here's what the Great Beginnings website says about Gus at 25 months:

How I Grow

• I often have to look at my feet to keep from stepping on things that are in my way.
• I like to do things in the same way each day.
• I like to walk by myself; I don't like being carried or pushed in a stroller.
• I can walk backwards for about 10 feet.

How I Talk

• I like to learn words that describe things like high, big, wet, hard.
• I can understand sentences, but I can't say long sentences yet.
• I like books; I can point to pictures and name them.
• I usually give information in two- or three- word sentences like "all dirty "go to store," "that mine."
• I can sing parts of songs or all of very short songs. 

 What I Have Learned

• I can draw a pretty good circle.
• I understand why some things happen, like turning on a switch makes the light come on.
• I'm getting better at remembering and keeping my attention on things.

How I Get Along with Others

• I'm good at getting your attention.
• I don't usually share toys or play well with other children my own age.
• I may hit other children not because don't like them, but because I just don't know what else to do.
• I stare at other people and like being looked at.
• I may call other children "baby," men "daddy," and women "mommy."
• If you ask me to do something simple, I can usually do it.

What I Can Do for Myself

• I can use a spoon and a fork pretty well.
• I still spill some.
• Sometimes, I can ask to go to the toilet.
• I like to wash my hands, but not my face. 

Play I Enjoy

• I like to talk to myself when I play.
• I like to wheel toys like kiddie cars. Be sure I ride these safely.
• I like to play in the bathtub and often don't want to leave it.
• I like stories you tell me about myself and my things.

This is so funny to me. Gus most definitely likes the stroller and he likes to push it to help me. He's VERY helpful and considerate. Gus loves other kids and enjoys playing with them. He's GREAT at sharing and doesn't mind sharing with others. He often gets upset when someone won't share with him (I can't blame him).

He doesn't call others by any names (back to the speech concerns). He has called me mama, but doesn't on a regular basis. He also doesn't call other kids by their names. 

Gus is GREAT with the fork and spoon and can drink from a regular cup. He also can go up stairs without holding anything (no railing at all). He can go down stairs in the same manner... he's very coordinated and has a lot of balance.

He loves the water and loves to take a bath. He also likes to wash his face and brush his teeth. He likes to turn on/off lights and his iPod.

If I ask Gus to help with something, 99% of the time he'll drop what he's doing to help. He's started helping me give Ned food and water, he helps me empty the dishwasher, and he likes to help pick up garbage and put things in the trash. He's not the best at helping with his toys, but he DOES help, he just gets sidetracked.

I don't think Gus is ready for potty training yet. He can't verbalize that he has to go yet, and until he can do that, we're not rushing anything. I'm in no rush to get him potty trained and I'm okay with it taking as long as he needs. I'm aware of the signs to look for, for readiness, and when I see them, we'll start. Until then, we'll stick to diapers.

Gus is also still in his crib. He has a room with a bed (a cool dinosaur bed), but he's not ready yet. He knows how to unzip his tent, but he hasn't climbed out, so until that happens, we'll keep him in the crib. 

Gus's favorite things to play with are:

• His iPad (it has educational apps and some train apps that he LOVES)
• His cars and trains and Duplo/Mega Bloks
• His Alfie robot
• Reading his books (right now, "A Blessing From Above" is his favorite and the Five Little Monkeys)
• His farm toys and John Deere tractor set

We have a lot to be thankful for, but most of all, we're thankful for the sweetest little boy in the whole wide world!!