Happy 29 Months Gabey!

I'm a few days early with this month's letter, Gabey, but I have the time, and I have all these cute (and not so cute) tidbits stored in my head. And if it must be said, based on my recent mental failures (buying concert tickets for the wrong day? Mailing out Christmas cards with no address on them?) this is quite a feat!

I read in one of my parenting magazines that the "Terrible Twos" and "Trying Threes" usually occur around a child's half birthday. The article explained that this is why children start exercising their tantruming rights around 18 months of age, perfecting them at 2.5 years. This totally makes sense to me. You've had some less than stellar moments, buddy. But you've also had a lot of really amazing moments and I think the biggest changes and developments in the last few weeks have to do with your expanding verbal abilities and your ability to reason/manipulate to a degree. With no further ado...the good, the bad and the ugly! (Okay there's no ugly, who am I kidding!!??)

Well, maybe you were less than pleased with how Mommy's mascara worked out for you...

I have to proceed the "bad" by saying that 95% of the time your mischief is simply curiosity (see above photo)--exploring your world (and my bathroom drawers) and trying new things. Mascara did not do for you quite what it does for me, but ohh...how freaking cute was it for me to step out of the shower and see you lounging on my bed with a mirror and a mustache, clearly displeased. Of course, then I saw the mascara all over the sheets...

You still, yes STILL have an obsession with TV, in particular monster truck shows. When its time to turn said TV off, you tend to flip out. By "flip out" I mean anything from throwing yourself on the floor, screaming "MONSTER TRUCK" at the top of your lungs, or crying as though your best friend just kicked you. Actually, now that I really think, anytime that anything fun ends we really need to verbally prepare you...you simply do not handle transistions of this nature well. And even with much prep (think: warnings at 5 min intervals that its time for a nap) you still sometimes just lose it.

You are getting a little better about hitting; its starting to sink it that hitting is NOT a good thing. So now we have moved on to biting...yes, biting. I am sure this is in part because you are getting your 2 year molars, and I've only seen you with your hands out of your mouth about 3 times in the past 2 weeks. There have been several instances that you "sort of" bit me...as in, I managed to get my flesh out of your mouth in time. However, the other night as I picked you up to go downstairs (obviously without a warning) you flipped out, screamed "NOOO" and clamped your little chompers down on my arm. OMFG did that hurt. I don't remember the words I said, but the "f" one was surely one, and it was enough to make Gabe come upstairs to see why you were in time out and why I was screaming like a lunatic (clearly haven't mastered the modeling behavior thing yet!!) I'm still sporting a nice bruise on my forearm.

You have kind of been mean to Mickey lately, which makes me really sad even though I know its probably just a phase and you are just exerting your dominance over him. Bless his little Lab heart, he puts up with a lot from you. The latest abuse was stomping on his head:( And you also yell at him if he walks over to a toy you are playing with...I know you don't understand that he isn't going to take your damn monster truck, but still. We are adamantly trying to turn this behavior around--you and I have been putting Mickey through his routine of tricks (which he hasn't done in years) and when he performs them you give him "cookies". Your favorite is "Paw". You always ask for Mickey when he's not around "Where MICKEY?? Where MICKEY?" so its something of a love/hate relationship. My poor dog.

I'm going to end the bad right now, even though I have a great example from a recent dinner out with Grammy and Daddy that includes you gnawing on the table, screaming, and attempting to throw a plate, but I'm going to refrain because it makes my head hurt to think about it. Suffice it to say that it was just another prime example of putting you in a situation when you were tired, hungry, overstimulated, and hopped up on sugar, and then expecting you to behave. In other words, utter fail.

The little sunshiny face that makes all the challenging moments worth it!

I have mostly been impressed with the sudden inclusion of words like "your" "mine" "this" "that" "there" etc in your vocabulary. No longer is it "Where Gabey's coat?" but rather "Where's MY coat?" When I say "Its Mommy's turn" you agree with "It's YOUR turn!" You know upstairs and downstairs, the other one, the green one, the big one, this one, that one. Sometimes you turn a word into the past tense: for example, this morning you told me "Mommy I farted!" So lovely. In all seriousness it boggles my mind that you (or any toddler for that matter) can just learn and adapt the idiosyncracies of the English language like nothing.

You are a little parrot right now, and this is both a wonderful thing (you can sing parts of "Yellow Submarine"!!) and a not-so-wonderful thing ("skanky ho" is now in your vocabulary.) I love that I can teach you songs and cute little sayings just by, well, saying them. You know "Jingle Bells", all about Santa, and that there will be presents under the tree. You quote Dora all the time. You can "read" many of your short books to us.

Another "new" thing is that you are a bit more insistent when you want something. You will take one of our hands and literally pull us to where you want us to be, usually on the floor where you are playing (you don't want us to actually play, just sit and watch YOU play!) You say "Come here Mommy. Sit down." Very cute, at least the first couple times a day you say it. You also like to suggest that we do or don't do something. We recently purchased an elliptical machine, and working out is part of the routine now. In the past, when bored, you might have just whined incomprehensibly, but now you say, "MOMMY! OFF 'CHINE" (off machine). Or, when I tell you TV time is over, you respond with "Bye Mommy. Go on 'chine. Downstairs. BYE!"

Your latest obsession is monster trucks, construction vehicles, and basically any form of transportation. You talk about monster trucks, diggers, cars, big trucks, mixers, bulldozers, boats, etc all. day. long. You play with your cars pretty much exclusively these days, and its so funny to see you line up the matchbox cars and then send the monster trucks over them, flipping them onto their back and yelling "CRASSSHHHH! Oh no!" You've got the "whooo whooo" sounds down for ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks and you love putting your Little People ("kids" you call them) into said vehicles and driving them around. I recently got you a little rug for your room that has a town and a road on it, and you love playing on it.

The next month will be a big one Gabey...you have Christmas playdates, Christmas parties at school, you will be reunited with your beloved Aunt CeeCee and experience your first Christmas in your own house. And of course the massive influx of toys that will be taking us over, I'm sure. It is my hope that I can instill some of the Christmas spirit I loved as a kid in you...the tree, baking cookies, anticipating Santa and getting to see family that you don't get to see as often. I know you won't remember this Christmas Gabey, but I will, and I can't wait to see your little face when you see all the presents Santa has brought. (And I'm sure there will be meltdowns as well!!!)

Merry Christmas little buddy.

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