27 months

This little guy turned 27 months old today. Yes, I'm one of those weird mommies who knows how many months old her toddler is... with a little help from google, I also know he's a little over 117 weeks old or 821 days. :) He stands around 36 inches tall and weighs around 28 pounds. This little guy is my second favorite person on this earth and he's only second to his daddy. Nathan is passionate about life, learning, loving, and memorizing! He's incredibly demonstrative when it comes to his feelings and he's quite opinionated too. He'll tell you exactly what he'd like, what he did, what he wishes he did, or how he really needs something. He'll talk your ear off if you let him. He has an incredible vocabulary and speaks with ease. He still doesn't pronounce "th" "tr" "cr" or "sn" sound at the beginning of words but we still are amazed with how easy he is to understand, even if you don't know him.

Nathan loves to be with family and friends, but also thrives on alone or one on one time. He's a huge fan of balls, cars, books, small things he can hold dear, his hats, blankies, bear pillows, and anything snuggly soft. His current favorite shows on tv are UmiZoomi, Word World, and Wonder Pets. He's scared of most people in costume when you can tell they are supposed to be a person... like kids wearing silly hats or masks. He's fine with things like the Chic fil a cow. He memorizes anything he's heard more than once and generalizes what he learns to all kinds of settings.

He knows all of his letters and numbers and shapes and many of the letter sounds. He loves to spell different words he sees (reading the letters out) and is fantastic at spotting stop signs and reminding me to come to a complete stop. He's also quite good at reminding others of the rules... "izzy it is not kind to push our friends." "mommy you should chew and swallow your food before talking. it's not polite to talk with your mouth full." "we can yell outside and at the circus but not inside."
He'll eat almost anything, except for macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes, although he will try any food at least once. He loves raw veggies, fruits, hummus, pizza, chicken nuggets, and suckers. He is very sensitive to any candy or sugary food and is a "danger to himself and others" when he eats the slightest amount of chocolate. It sounds like a joke, but it's truthful. He gets to have one sucker or tiny shortbread cookie each day... right after his nap and that doesn't seem to ramp him up too much. He drinks water and skim milk almost exclusively. On rare occasions he gets a bit of lemonade or gatorade and even more rarely a sip of coffee (which he loves).

Nathan initiated potty training this past weekend and we're following his lead. He's doing remarkably well keeping underwear dry when prompted to go potty! He gets a jelly bean (when he remembers) when he actually goes on the potty.

We've started swim lessons again and this kiddo amazes me!!! He can jump (well belly flop) off the side, and while underwater, turn 180 degrees and start kicking back to the wall. Often he's able to reach the wall and pull up. He can hold his breath underwater for 10-15 seconds. He's able to hold his breath and go down to the bottom of the pool to get a diving ring as long as someone guides him down. He then pops back up to the surface. He can swim at least 25 feet if not more simply by holding onto a noodle. He has no fear of going under, jumping in, or leaping out of your arms. He has an excellent attention span in the water and listens so well to his teacher.

Nathan is a creature of habit. He thrives on routine and loves familiarity. While he's incredibly go with the flow, there are certain things he likes in order, especially in his room. He's become a fantastic cleaner upper and does it without prompting in his room and sometimes in the playroom. He MUST have his sound on, at least 2 blankies, a cup of water, 1-2 bear pillows, and 1-2 items in his hands in order to go to bed. He usually holds cars, balls, or plastic animals. He knows that we do some things in a certain order during the day and I'll hear him say things like, "when we get to naynay's house, we're not going to bed. we're going to eat lunch first. then we'll take a nap."

His favorite toys are puzzles, trains, marble "racers", automoblox, balls, and those tiny plastic animals. He also adores books and loves to be read to. He's especially into paperback books these days. His favorite color is brown, although yellow comes in a close second.

Nathan has a healthy fear of strangers and is easily overwhelmed in large groups of people. He warms up quickly when reassured and close to a trusted adult. With kids in person, he knows no strangers or difference of age, race, ability.

He's been attending preschool 2 days a week since October and really enjoys it. The transition out of my arms continues to be tough for him, but in the last 2 weeks we've been talking about Psalm 118:24, "This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it" and Philippians 4:4, "rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice." He knows both verses and songs to go with each. We talk often about being thankful for the day the Lord has given us and rejoicing in the fun things He's provided for us (you know, like preschool, loving teachers, great toys, music class, etc). This has been very comforting and effective with Nathan.

Nathan is one of the most strong-willed children I've ever met. Seriously. I'm learning as a parent to embrace this God given personality trait and parent him along side that, not in spite of it. It's often a challenge to think in the ways of a strong willed tot, but we're doing well and Nathan continues to be an absolute joy to be around. He's near perfect in public, except when he's not, and then he's really not! :) Hee Hee! Nathan loves to help and has been completing 4 chores a day (feeding Bailey, putting his laundry in the hamper, helping mommy with one thing and daddy with one thing). He loves the sense of responsibility and is very diligent with these chores.

Nathan drinks out of a big boy cup at most every meal and does remarkably well with a cup. :)

He loves to be hugged, snuggled, reassured, given clear boundaries and expectations, to build piles of couch cushions and jump in them, to help, to be a nakeeeee baby, to wear tall tower socks, to be wiped off with cloth wipes instead of disposable ones, to brush and floss his teeth, to swim, to rough house with daddy and mommy, to play with friends, to get in a hot tub, to eat with a fork or spoon, to not wear a bib, to have fun, to run and squeal and feel free.

Happy 27 month birthday my little man!