Toddling into 2011

I honestly can't believe how fast the time is flying by. The boys are now 19 months, putting them just past the starting time to be toddlers. Seriously, my newborn preemies are toddlers now. How? When?


So what have they been up to? Where are they developmentally?

Both have obviously mastered walking and even running. Corwyn has a wonderful gait, so cute to look at, more of a swagger than a walk. I'm trying to get a good video of it. Both love to 'dance'. Dancing varies between bouncing up and down and swiveling the body around. Adorable, totally adorable.

Fine motor skills are progressing as I'd expect them to. Both can feed themselves quite well (when they want to) with either a fork or a spoon. I haven't let them play with knives; they still throw cutlery, so I'm guessing I'll let them try knives when they are 30 or 40 (years). Nathan will pull up and down his own zippers (once started). Corwyn has no interest in this at all. Both like to put 'things in things' so we do activities like putting small pompoms in a container with a small opening or sticks into bottles etc. There is no real preference for handed-ness.

Nathan loves anything electronic and has an obsession with phones and cameras. I finally found a good 'play' phone. It lights up, has sounds when you push buttons, pre-recorded messages and rings once its closed. It also lets me record a message on it anytime I want. They think its neat to hear my voice and their names. Nathan wants to do everything himself but gets frustrated very easily when something doesn't work for him. Things get thrown when this happens and he doesn't want to try again for a while. He loves music and points to the CD player the minute he gets up. He does like TV and seems to become absorbed whenever its on. I try to limit TV time and like to only have it on when I can sit with him and 'talk' about what he's watching.

Corwyn loves books. He loves to sit on your lap and turn the pages. He doesn't want to be read to when their are lots of words, but if there are only a few words to each page, he'll sit through a story. He likes to look at the pictures and 'talk' about what he sees. He is understanding sequence a bit better now because he knows when he skips a page in a story and we have to go back. He only likes electronics as a means to take it away from Nathan to tease him. If Nathan has no interest in a gadget, he doesn't care. Corwyn doesn't really notice TV. He seems to like In the Night Garden, but even with that he'll lose interest before its over. He loves his trains and his Thomas books are a favorite. Interestingly, the Thomas TV shows will only hold his attention for a couple of minutes at a time. He is a very caring boy. If Nathan (or anyone else) is crying, he will bring over a toy and try to help.

Both love cuddles and hugs. They have no shyness around strangers and will wave at almost everyone and give hi-5s on request.

Both can talk a bit, but it's inconsistent. Sometimes they will say words very clearly and the next time, the same word comes out unintelligible. I think its a matter of concentration. Christmas was cute. If they saw a picture of Santa they would point and say 'Santa' and when you ask what does Santa say they'd go 'ho ho'. Once in a while, you'd get a third ho, but it was usually 2. They are wonderful at their animal sounds. The latest is the lion roar. Elephant is cute because it involves raising an arm by the face for the trunk at the same time.

I wake each day wondering what new thing they will say, do or discover. It's a wild adventure that I wouldn't trade for anything.