Dear Carolyn,
Today you are 23 months old, just one month away from your second birthday. I just realized today that I ought to get started on your birthday party plans, since I should send out invitations within the week!
In the past month you’ve started speaking in longer and longer sentences, and even stringing together two or three sentences at a time. You still refer to yourself in the third person most of the time, which I’m trying really hard not to blame on Elmo. And I’ve taught you the inelegant “yeah” as a response to everything instead of “yes”. I never realized that I said that so much until you started speaking just the way I do. Ah, well. At least it’s cute when you say it.
You’ve really started into the imaginative play thing. Not only do you pretend to be a mommy to your baby dolls and pretend to cook food in your kitchen – things you’ve been doing for a while – but you act things out with your little people and have your stuffed animals kiss and hug each other. You still like to build with legos, but you’re really into your kitchen and dolls right now. And I was trying so hard to avoid the girly stereotypes, buying you cars and balls and blocks. Sometimes I wonder if it might just be built into your brain to be a girly-girl, and whatever I do or don’t do won’t change that. (Not that there’s anything wrong with girly stuff, I just want to make sure you know that you can do or be whatever you want.)
You love to draw on your magna-doodle. You’ll scribble for a bit, say “Mommy, see that!” and tell me you drew an airplane, or a pumpkin, or a “2”. And if I squint and tilt my head just right, I can see what you’re seeing. I’m trying to remember to ask you to describe your picture, rather than saying “what’s that?” because I want to encourage your budding artistic ability. Just today, you started drawing circles too! Real, honest to goodness circles. It won’t be long until you have the fine motor control to knit…
Your last bottom tooth came in a couple of weeks ago, so you now have all but your two-year molars. You came with me to my dentist appointment last week and got to play with their bin of plastic bracelets and necklaces. After a bit you looked like Mr. T, you were covered with so much bling. Luckily, you were happy enough to help put everything away and just pick out one bracelet at the end.
Oh, and I tossed caution to the wind and gave you peanut butter this month. You absolutely love it, and now I feel guilty for having deprived you of it for so long. At this point the only thing we’re still holding off on (and will for probably another year) is shellfish. I also recently switched you to 2% milk from whole. It’s a little earlier than the pediatrician recommends, but you drink at most 6 oz. a day and I’m more comfortable giving you the BHT-free 2% vs. the non-BHT-free whole milk.
Sometimes I look at you and you’re acting so grown-up and independent I have to remind myself that you’re not even two yet. Other times…well, there’s no need for any reminders when you’re in the middle of a meltdown. You definitely want to have more control over your life than is necessarily good or safe at the moment. I don’t mind if you want to wear mismatched clothes or would prefer a PB&J sandwich to grilled cheese. The clash of wills comes when you refuse to hold my hand walking down the stairs or insist on a blue cup instead of the green cup you chose and I already poured your milk into. Those are the times I really try hard to remember that you’re not quite two and I’m the adult. Those are also the times when it’s a really good thing that you’re the cutest thing since mini-pumpkins. :)
Love, Mommy
