Here and now: 2 years and 2 months
Housekeeping note: Although I will no longer be writing monthly updates, I will continue to write update posts every now and then. And so, with that here's my current letter to Lucy.
Dear Lucy,
You are a full-fledged two year-old! Yessiree bob, you are right on track, being two...and all that entails- the good, the bad, and the not-so-pretty.
You want to do everything "by myself" now, including getting in and out of your stroller and car seat. We love your independent spirit, but we often need to call out extra reserves of patience, as you like to take. your. time. Sometimes we have resort to tactics you are not especially fond of like counting to 5, and when that doesn't work, physically moving you ourselves. Other times, if we give you a choice of two things, you will usually pick one and follow through with it. The best times are when you decide to do whatever task it is on your own, and in a timely manner.
On the "cute" end of the spectrum, you sing even more now. And besides the kiddie favorites, you also like to sing along to some songs on the radio in the car, most consistently Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People. You also sit and read books on your own now, too. You read aloud, and your accuracy is impressive! Another thing we noticed you just started doing lately is a lot more pretend play. You pretend to make and serve us food, and this morning you also played with your baby doll- hugging her and pretending to feed her. I can't wait to get you a little play kitchen. I know you'll really love it!
Your new obsession- I mean, favorite television show is easily Yo Gabba Gabba. Man, do you love this show! First thing in the morning, it's "Yo Gabba Gabba, please!" And after an episode is over it's, "More Yo Gabba Gabba, please" or "Yo Gabba Gabba again." It took a while, but it's grown on me. It really is a cute show, but when we only had one season on Netflix streaming, it was starting to wear thin. Not to you, but to me. ;) Thankfully, another season has just become available. Hooray!
The biggest new development is that you are taking one nap a day now. You were taking two naps past two years old, which is apparently unheard of. I quite liked it, so no complaints here! We (mostly I) decided to switch up your nap schedule for a couple of reasons: 1) You often missed a nap during the two weeks when Daddy was on vacation and didn't seem to be any worse for the wear, so 2) I figured you would be fine with only one nap, we just needed to consolidate your morning and afternoon into one mid-day nap. The bonus to all of this is that, since every other friend your age takes one mid-day nap also, we would have more opportunities for playdates with friends, as well as classes and other activities. Besides art on Mondays and Gymboree on Wednesdays, we started a music class a few weeks ago and are starting a new art class this week. So many fun things!
This has been (and continues to be) a work in progress, as I experiment with nap times (and, as a result, durations) to find the right fit, but I *think* it's finally starting to settle in after about a month. The transition has been not entirely a smooth one, but like I said, I *think* it's coming together. At least I'm hoping this is the case- that your body clock is adjusting to the new schedule. At first, you were only napping for an hour. Which, in case you weren't aware, is simply unacceptable. Going from two 1.5-2 hour naps to one 1 hour nap is not okay. So I started to play around with the times I would put you down. It was all over the map for a while, but I feel in the past week or so it's been more consistent. The time that seems to work the best is when I put you down around 1:30 and you will sleep sometimes until 4:30 (which is the desired result), sometimes a half and hour or an hour less. Going to sleep any earlier was not working for a longer nap. Anyway, I'm hoping this will become the norm for a while.
So now your (ideal) schedule is as follows:
7:30-7:45: wake up
8:00: breakfast
- morning activity/class or running errands with Mommy
12:00-1:00: lunch
1:30 - 4:00-4:30 (ideally): nap
- afternoon activity/class or play time at the park or playground
6:30-7:00: dinner
7:30 bath
8:00 bedtime
You are still super duper friendly and outgoing, although you can now also be prone to mood swings- happy and laughing one minute, pouting or (fake) crying, or having a full-blown meltdown the next. You still share toys well, but sometimes you also have the "mine!" syndrome. You also sometimes try to tell Daddy or I, "No! Stay" while holding out your arm and hand. (Note: It would help you a great deal to quickly learn that this is not at all ok. Hopefully you get this soon.) You understand what needs to be done, but sometimes you only want to do things you want to do, when you want to do them. Unfortunately, you can't make all the decisions.
It can be tough to navigate, the you-know-what-twos. For you, I'm sure, and also for us. While we celebrate you becoming more and more of your own person with your own thoughts, ideas, plans, and desires, I cannot tell a lie- it can also be a little frustrating. We want to nurture your spirit, but also need to set and boundaries and be consistent with discipline. Being new to this stuff, it's tricky- I'll admit it. Patience is a virtue, and one I think we must always be mindful of having and cultivating even more of. One thing is certain- I absolutely love everything about you, even when we're having you-know-what-two rough spots. I am grateful that I get to work through every day with you, as blissful or as difficult as it may be. I couldn't be happier that I am able learn and grow with you.
You are my best, most special girl in the world and I love you!
Dear Lucy,
You are a full-fledged two year-old! Yessiree bob, you are right on track, being two...and all that entails- the good, the bad, and the not-so-pretty.
You want to do everything "by myself" now, including getting in and out of your stroller and car seat. We love your independent spirit, but we often need to call out extra reserves of patience, as you like to take. your. time. Sometimes we have resort to tactics you are not especially fond of like counting to 5, and when that doesn't work, physically moving you ourselves. Other times, if we give you a choice of two things, you will usually pick one and follow through with it. The best times are when you decide to do whatever task it is on your own, and in a timely manner.
On the "cute" end of the spectrum, you sing even more now. And besides the kiddie favorites, you also like to sing along to some songs on the radio in the car, most consistently Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People. You also sit and read books on your own now, too. You read aloud, and your accuracy is impressive! Another thing we noticed you just started doing lately is a lot more pretend play. You pretend to make and serve us food, and this morning you also played with your baby doll- hugging her and pretending to feed her. I can't wait to get you a little play kitchen. I know you'll really love it!
Your new obsession- I mean, favorite television show is easily Yo Gabba Gabba. Man, do you love this show! First thing in the morning, it's "Yo Gabba Gabba, please!" And after an episode is over it's, "More Yo Gabba Gabba, please" or "Yo Gabba Gabba again." It took a while, but it's grown on me. It really is a cute show, but when we only had one season on Netflix streaming, it was starting to wear thin. Not to you, but to me. ;) Thankfully, another season has just become available. Hooray!
The biggest new development is that you are taking one nap a day now. You were taking two naps past two years old, which is apparently unheard of. I quite liked it, so no complaints here! We (mostly I) decided to switch up your nap schedule for a couple of reasons: 1) You often missed a nap during the two weeks when Daddy was on vacation and didn't seem to be any worse for the wear, so 2) I figured you would be fine with only one nap, we just needed to consolidate your morning and afternoon into one mid-day nap. The bonus to all of this is that, since every other friend your age takes one mid-day nap also, we would have more opportunities for playdates with friends, as well as classes and other activities. Besides art on Mondays and Gymboree on Wednesdays, we started a music class a few weeks ago and are starting a new art class this week. So many fun things!
This has been (and continues to be) a work in progress, as I experiment with nap times (and, as a result, durations) to find the right fit, but I *think* it's finally starting to settle in after about a month. The transition has been not entirely a smooth one, but like I said, I *think* it's coming together. At least I'm hoping this is the case- that your body clock is adjusting to the new schedule. At first, you were only napping for an hour. Which, in case you weren't aware, is simply unacceptable. Going from two 1.5-2 hour naps to one 1 hour nap is not okay. So I started to play around with the times I would put you down. It was all over the map for a while, but I feel in the past week or so it's been more consistent. The time that seems to work the best is when I put you down around 1:30 and you will sleep sometimes until 4:30 (which is the desired result), sometimes a half and hour or an hour less. Going to sleep any earlier was not working for a longer nap. Anyway, I'm hoping this will become the norm for a while.
So now your (ideal) schedule is as follows:
7:30-7:45: wake up
8:00: breakfast
- morning activity/class or running errands with Mommy
12:00-1:00: lunch
1:30 - 4:00-4:30 (ideally): nap
- afternoon activity/class or play time at the park or playground
6:30-7:00: dinner
7:30 bath
8:00 bedtime
You are still super duper friendly and outgoing, although you can now also be prone to mood swings- happy and laughing one minute, pouting or (fake) crying, or having a full-blown meltdown the next. You still share toys well, but sometimes you also have the "mine!" syndrome. You also sometimes try to tell Daddy or I, "No! Stay" while holding out your arm and hand. (Note: It would help you a great deal to quickly learn that this is not at all ok. Hopefully you get this soon.) You understand what needs to be done, but sometimes you only want to do things you want to do, when you want to do them. Unfortunately, you can't make all the decisions.
It can be tough to navigate, the you-know-what-twos. For you, I'm sure, and also for us. While we celebrate you becoming more and more of your own person with your own thoughts, ideas, plans, and desires, I cannot tell a lie- it can also be a little frustrating. We want to nurture your spirit, but also need to set and boundaries and be consistent with discipline. Being new to this stuff, it's tricky- I'll admit it. Patience is a virtue, and one I think we must always be mindful of having and cultivating even more of. One thing is certain- I absolutely love everything about you, even when we're having you-know-what-two rough spots. I am grateful that I get to work through every day with you, as blissful or as difficult as it may be. I couldn't be happier that I am able learn and grow with you.
You are my best, most special girl in the world and I love you!
Comments
Kisses and hugs!
Lucy, watching you grow during these last 2 years has been such a joyful and so happy time. Of course we look forward to the coming years. The best
is yet to come Mom and Dad! Ha!
Watching and hearing about you during these last 2 years also brought back many memories of Mom and Aunty Ash during their fist years. We love you all!