23 Months Old

It's hard to believe that Norah will be 2 a month from today. The time has gone so quickly (just as everyone warned me it would). Norah is definitely acting and learning like a girl who's nearly two. We have lots of drama when things don't go her way....she can turn the tears on like a light switch. And that is often accompanied by her head falling forward or her body collapsing onto the floor....(actually pretty funny but we try not to let her know that). Norah's language development is on a tear. She tries to repeat most things that she hears. In addition, she probably has over 100 words that she can use (pretty much) correctly. She calls anything larger than an SUV, "a bus." She eats with a "fok" or a "spoon." She can id the sun, stars, the moon, a mouse and a cow when we look at books. She is also getting really good at body parts. She can't say them all, but she can show you where the following are: head, hair, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, teeth, arms, fingers, elbows, back, legs, knees, toes and bum when asked. My favorites are the phrases she is using...."Dora, Dora, Dora" or "more George" when she'd like to watch Dora the Explorer or Curious George. When she'd like you to follow her somewhere she says "Come ere (here)," as in "come ere, mommy." Last week she told Tom, "right back, daddy" as she headed to the other side of the playground. Norah is growing tired of the "gated community" we call our living room. Often when she'd like to go to another part of the house, she will tug on your hand and say "a walk?" Norah continues to be great with the baby. Last Sunday, she called him by name for the first time. Since he was born she had been calling and referring to him as "baby." Out of nowhere last week she said "Finn." Now I hear "where Finn?" or "nuh-night Finn." Last night he was sitting on my lap and she told him "mov-f (move) Finn!"

Besides talking, Norah continues to learn other skills. She is no longer using a sippy cup at school. I rarely brave a cup without a lid at home, but she can use one when in the right mood. She is really good with a fork and spoon. She enjoys doing puzzles, identifying shapes and she's starting to pretend. She is eager to ride her tricycle but her legs are still a bit short. Norah is also participating in dressing and undressing her self. She can put her arms into shirts and coats with little help and she can pull up her pants. We have learned the hard way that she can un-snap, un-zip and remove her pjs, then un-snap her onsie and remove her diaper. As I type this, her feet-ie pj's are on backwards for this reason....she is learning a lot, but so are we. Sometimes we even manage to stay a step ahead of her!