Rose at 21-22 Months

My little Rose is getting so big so fast. I think she's grown a lot in the past few months. I don't know if that has increased her size on the growth chart, but her 24 month clothing is getting too small and she is fitting better in the 2T clothes. Pants are still a big long, but her body is definitely looking more toddler-like than baby-like.

Rose at 21 Months

Beautiful smiles

Rose at 21 Months and Zoe at 2 Months

Though Rose does have her tantrums and we really struggle with getting in the car seat and putting on a diaper and pants at times, I love this age. She repeats everything you say. Her development is wonderful to see. She now strings sentences together to tell you what she wants, she knows pretty much all the words to "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star," she can count to 10 (but often omits 2, 5 and sometimes 9), she can sing most of her ABC's, she knows many of the words to other favorite songs like "Ba Ba Black Sheep," "Skinny Marinky Dinky Dink," "Itsy Bitsy Spider," and a few others.

Rose counting at 21.5 Months

Over the past month, I've also noticed her ability to play independently. It's been really helpful when I have things to do or need to attend to Zoe. As long as I'm in the room, or close by, she can often play by herself for up to 30 minutes. She loves taking care of her babies, putting them to bed or taking them for a walk around the house with her stroller. She also loves sitting with a pile of books around her, looking through and reading some. When we go to museums or play areas, she gravitates to the trucks and cars more than the dolls, but at home she loves her babies and books. She also loves to chase, or be chased, around the house. Playing tag is one of our favorite activities before bed. We have also gotten into the routine of reading "Goodnight Moon" each night before bed. We often read a second or third book. The other staples are "The Giving Tree," "Brown Bear, Brown Bear", and "Sam I Am" (Rose's title for Green Eggs and Ham). 

In addition to books, Rose also loves electronics. We skype often with family and Rose knows which button to press to get to the Skype app. If she finds one of our phones unattended, she brings it to us. We've given her one of our old smartphones connected to wi-fi to play with. It's her device to watch her "Aula de Portugues" (or "Portuguese Class"), which are kid's music videos in Portuguese. She loves "Avo Cantigas" and his songs, but frequently needs "help" getting the app back when she presses a button on the phone.

Rose loves electronics - here at the library

Rose will be out of school for half of November and all of December due to travel and family visiting. She has not forgotten any of her friends as she often asks me to sing "rock-a-bock-tick-tock" (or Rock a Bye Baby) replacing "baby" with the different kids at school. Rock-a-Bye-Baby is now our nighttime song after reading. Since she's been out of school, we've tried getting her some socialization by going to several museums and the park as much as we can. Unfortunately, she's still more strongly connected to her family than to other kids.

Enjoying one of our many fall farm visits

We continue to have success with Rose eating. She loves meals, and beef entrees still tend to be her favorites (meatballs, shepherd's pie, etc), though she also loves soup and fish. She often asks for cheerios, crackers, cheese, or raisins, which we limit to occasional snacks or after she's had most of her meal. This week she's been asking for hummus and actually ate a fair amount of it for snack today. We also continue to only offer water or kefir milk. We have given her regular milk, but she doesn't really like it now that she is so used to the kefir.

Rose also feeds herself just about every meal. She's coordinated enough to use both the spoon and the fork (it appears she is right-handed) and only resorts to using her fingers if she is very hungry and doesn't have the patience to use a fork, or if her attempts at using the fork have been unsuccessful. We still have to cut up some food for her, and she's good at telling us if something is too big, or if a spoon-ful is "too much."  Most foods are fine, except for watery soups, which end up all over the table, floor, and Rose. Her top canine teeth have finally come in, so now we are waiting on the bottom canines and the two-year molars. When her teeth bother her, she is a very cranky child.

Sometimes feeding yourself is messy

We continue to cloth diaper Rose and haven't made any progress in potty-training for the past few months. The novelty and excitement of using the potty has worn off, but Rose does go every morning and when we remind her (pee only). She now lets us know she needs a diaper change when she's very wet or when she has pooped. She likes to help put her diaper in the washing bin, and to help dispose of her poop in the toilet. I hope that school will assist with potty training when she goes back in January, or when she moves up to the 2 year old class in February-March.

I love Miss Rose's personality. She's such a joyful child and makes my life more fun. She has her occasional meltdowns, which primarily take place when she's tired or when her teeth hurt. But overall she is a great child. She's a great helper most of the time and sure does love her music (to sing and to dance). When we go somewhere new or where there are older children, she is very shy until she warms up. If she is participating in a group activity, she is very good at waiting her turn and following directions. She is also very good at sharing and I have a difficult time seeing her surprised and somewhat hurt when others don't share in return. I've also noticed her act bored with programs that she goes to often (like storytime), but she is paying attention in her own distracted way. 

Rose dancing at 22 Months - the girl has some moves!

Thankfully, Rose has remained healthy through these late fall months. She was a bit snotty early in November when she was in school, but since she's been out, she seems to be cleared up. I worry about her going back to school during prime sick season and hope she doesn't bring anything back to us (mainly Zoe), but I'm sure it is inevitable.

Stay tuned for updates on our winter activities and a 3 month update on Zoe. I'm catching up!!