Oh how do I begin to describe this little boy. Energetic, affectionate, silly, easygoing, and adventurous—Andrew is ALL BOY. He loves cars & fire trucks & rocks & dinosaurs. Yet he loves to give out hugs & kisses and hates when his hands get dirty (unless he’s playing outside). He enjoys watching Princess movies, but only for the action in them! He loves to sing songs and dance and drum. He loves to be silly and get tickled. He loves to pretend to be a cowboy or a firefighter. He loves to “cut” and glue and paint (of course he’s not perfected any of these) and throws a fit when he has to put these things away. He loves to sit and listen to stories. His favorite shows are Dora or Diego, Mickey Mouse, and Sing-a-Long videos.
I believe at his age Leah could recognize the ABC’s and numbers. Andrew cannot, but then I haven’t been able to work with him as much. He does know his colors and shapes, and is beginning to spell his name. He can do simple puzzles, he can match colors and objects, and he can count to 15. I also think his vocabulary is much bigger than Leah’s was at his age. He knows a lot of words, and if he doesn’t know, he asks a lot of questions!
At this age, Andrew and Leah have a love/ hate relationship. Half of the time they play so well together. He loves to do anything she’s doing (and say everything she says), and depending on what type of mood she’s in, Leah will find a way to include him. Usually he plays the daddy, or the handsome prince, or the knight in shining armor or the cowboy. He’ll let her boss him around and do whatever she wants him to do if it means he gets to be included. The other half of the time they are screaming because the other is taking their toy (regardless of whether we have another one just like it) or sitting where they were sitting or doing something they were going to do.
As is probably typical of 2-year-olds, he has an intensity about everything he does: if he doesn’t want to do something, he DOESN’T WANT TO DO IT! If he is upset, he will let you know by kicking & screaming and whining. He can often be difficult to calm down but time out is often effective for him because he hates being out of favor with mommy or daddy—he wants to please, but many times he just doesn’t know how (or claims he doesn’t!). When his routine is out of order or something doesn’t go as it usually does, he will whine and cry until a better distraction comes along.
He has always been my worst sleeper. He was doing fine for awhile, never even protesting naptime or bedtime, sleeping all night. Lately, though, he’s been waking up at night—crying—several times, and won’t even tell us what’s wrong. (Perhaps too much sugar during the day?) And now he hates that he has to take a nap, especially since Leah doesn’t. I keep reminding myself that soon he’ll be a teenager and all this will be behind us!
I think he’s also had a rough time lately due to the arrival of his little sister. He’s caught in between being the baby and wanting his independence. Most of the time he makes it clear he is NOT A BABY, but he can get so frustrated when can’t do something on his own. Right now, he adores Abigail—he always wants to “see Baby Abigail” or kiss her or bring her toys. He and Leah fight over who can get closer to her. I’m sure his relationship with her will change as she grows and it will be interesting to see!
