Monday, May 10, 2010

Major Milestones... an update

First, I want to apologize for not posting more often lately. We've been crazy-busy around here, so my blog has taken a slight backseat.

John Michael, officially 2 1/2 on the 14th, has been very busy and keeping up with him is nearly impossible.

He has had some developmental growth spurts and a language explosion that are very exciting. I've been keeping a running tab on his new words. We also felt that, with his new baby brother coming at the beginning of June, maybe we could get him in a toddler bed to avoid having two cribs.

Here's John Michael helping to put his IKEA toddler bed together yesterday.
This is a heavy tool and he got the bit into the metal hole a few times. He could actually turn on the smaller Black and Decker battery-op screwdriver (not shown) and make it turn.
So, we got the bed all set up... moved his crib for the baby into the girls' room, put on his fresh, new bedding and Voila! a happy toddler boy.
BUT!   It didn't last for more than a few minutes. His newfound freedom was waaaayyyy too much for him to handle. He also couldn't settle into bed last night, so guess where the little stinker slept? In the girls' room, in his crib.  I put him down for nap (already asleep from a trip to Target) in his toddler bed today... not sure how long that'll last...

So on to language...

I am so proud of this guy!  Over the past 6 weeks or so, he has been making a greater effort to say or repeat words back to us.  His speech therapist is working on getting two syllables of different sounds out of him, like "Daddy" rather than "Da-da".  Well, he has "Daddy" down pat. 

Here's a list of words he can say...

baby (bay beh + sign), Binky (bee beh),  ball, bell, bowl, in, out, on, off, up, down (dow), moon (moo), dog (daw), juice, blue (baloo), block (blah), bubble (sounds just like bubble), car (kah + sign), hi, (hiya), bye-bye (with waving), please (pees + sign), eat (et), open (ben or beh + sign), more (moh), signs "all done", no (says no-no or shakes head), nods head for yes, Daddy, Mama, Papa, water (wah wah), shoe (show + sign), cracker (cowdow + sign), love (uv + sign), ice, bed (beh), signs hot, stop, says "do" for go, and signs "want" and "milk".  For flower, he sniffs his nose and when he has to cough, he covers his mouth.  He says "shhh" with his finger to his mouth when the neighbor barks (which is often!)  He can say a close approximation to his siblings' names as well.  There are so many more things, but this is what I managed to write down in case I had a brain freeze (which I do!) 

He also has some cute expressions that he uses when he's playing.  Every time he gets a Duplo Lego to stick, he says "yay".  He also says "wow" when he hears us saying it.

At mealtime and at bedtime, we say family prayers.  He tries to make a sign of the cross and now folds his hands and bows his head.  At the "Amen", he will try to make a sign of the cross again.  He is the king of mimicking.  He will dance, spin, and march for Greta. 

Last week, I tossed a small lightweight rubber ball to him and told him to catch.  If I toss it carefully, he will catch the ball 6 out of 10 times.  Keep in mind, I'm only about 3 feet away at this point, but he's "catching on", so to speak...

Finally, he is beginning to match animal puzzle pieces and is getting his shapes into a shape sorter with more ease.  The easiest shapes are circle and star.  Square is next, followed by triangle, which often takes a couple tries.  For the puzzles, he actually looks at the animal on the puzzle pieces and matches the image on the board.  He then turns the piece so it will fit.

He is self-feeding with utensils most of the time and can drink (assisted) from an open cup.  He favors a straw and can even feed himself Cheerios with milk using a toddler spoon.  His diet is limited right now, because he's picky, but that doesn't stop us from trying new things.  If I call something "meat", he'll usually open his mouth to try it.  Funny boy...

Very exciting stuff right now.  Sometimes his new words are spontaneous, which is even more exciting!  It means he understands the concept of saying a word to get what he wants or to show me he sees something.  He's also quick to point and grunt, which can frustrate both of us at times, but I'll take what I can get for now.

Can you tell... I LOVE this boy!!!
 

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22 comments:

  1. WOW JM what a big boy you are,now you need to show Mommie how you sleep in your new bed :)

    What a cutie,glad you are back to blogging

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  2. Huge YeAh!! John Michael makes me smile...I was ear to ear through this whole post!! way to go...smiles

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  3. Way to go JM!! Keep up the good work:) LOVE your new "BIG BOY" bed!!

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  4. Yay!!! That's so encouraging! I just did a post on language (and my goofy fears), so I especially appreciated hearing about his accomplishments, today. Love the pics, too! What a doll!

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  5. Wow, JM, what a GREAT post! I loved hearing about all of the awesome things you are doing now! I most especially loved the picture at the end...you are a super cutie!!

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  6. I love the pics of him with his new bed. What a big boy he is becoming.

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  7. Holy Moly he is doing FABULOUS! LOVE it! Good luck with the new bed!

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  8. He's doing AWESOME!!! Can't wait to hear him talking!

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  9. Wow, he is doing fantastic! Great job with keeping track of his progress. I would be a proud mama too!

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  10. WOW! So much exxciting new stuff for JM! Way to go, Buddy!!

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  11. so wonderful. love his new bed

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  12. So amazing to see him doing so many exciting things!!! And you forgot the word "dude" :)

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  13. Love the update! And the photo of JM with a power tool... priceless!

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  14. Great update, Monica! The pictures of JM are always so adorable. I hope the toddler bed transition goes very smoothly before baby arrives :)

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  15. love the pics. he is such a big boy and doing amazing. i am so proud of him. i hope his transition to the big bed goes smoothly. i am dreading that myself in the coming months. we have found a bed at ikea as well. they have great toddler beds for the money and something they won't be using for long!

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  16. Your post about his words just kept going and going and I was beaming for you-WOW! Awesome job John Michael! And helping put up his new bed too. I have some shelving he could come and help with... :)

    Thank you for your comments on my blog - the brushing technique is a small rubber brush that you brush in downward strokes, starting with arms, body, legs, and then move to compressions. look under OT/Sensory Input Tactile Brush. I think it is working.

    And by the way, I disassembled Sam's crib three times and he finally started sleeping in it as a toddler bed last month. :)

    prayers for you as you near the end..

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  17. Wow, what an impressive vocab list!!! Way to go JM! I love the big boy bed as well...I hope last night went well and that the transition is a smooth one for you all!

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  18. Love all the pictures- what a star! I dreaded putting Luke into a bed, thinking it would be hard work, and he was just amazing, and never looked back. I still have the cot up though, just in case....
    Thanks for your comment on my blog about baby names- Luke is of course my favourite! I don't know if you have read one of my first ever posts, which was about how Luke got his name, but his brother named him- a long story :)

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  19. Wow! Those ARE major milestones. You must be so very proud. Love the pictures - he's as cute as ever. You have such a beautiful family, Monica.

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  20. wow JM is doing so well!! I loved reading this post. What a big boy he is in his bed, eh??

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  21. He is doing soooo well!! I love the language explosion! And way to go on transitioning him to a big boy bed. I haven't started that with Matthew yet. JM is so cute! I can never tire saying that. :-)

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  22. Thank you for finding me and I'm loved reading how well JM is doing! He is amazing and I can hope that Sweet Pea follows in his steps!

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