23 Months

This is the last time I will be posting Colton's updates in terms of "months", because in the next thirty days he will turn two and then I will simply say that he's two years old. As I'll do whenever anybody asks me how old he is. The exact month, and when he was fresh out of the womb, weeks, have always been vitally important to me when speaking about my son. They have been my benchmarks to measure his developmental progress against. Now the pediatrician won't even require seeing him for another whole half of a year. I suspect I will learn to use "halfs" with as much endearment during the next several years of Colton's life.

So as we count down to the big "2", here are some of the things my little monkey has learned and experienced this past month. He's up to 18 words now!! If I tried to put them all together in a sentence, it wouldn't make much sense but at least his vocabulary is growing. Last night at dinnertime, Gregg asked him to say "more please" before another helping of spaghetti, and I did a double take when Colton actually said it! He can now identify five different body parts, and we're working on some more.

Colton now has almost all of his teeth, except for the second year molars. The upper right cuspid came in this past month, and the lower ones just made their way through the gums as well. And my "baby" has given up his binky. For good. After he lost one and chewed holes through two others, we just decided to stop giving it to him one night three weeks ago. The first few nights were a little rough, but overall he's been completely fine without it. It seems I underestimated my kid!

He enjoys being my little helper, and I use that term very loosely. He'll hand me stuff out of the top rack in the dishwasher to put away, often faster than I can get them dried. When I move laundry around, Colton will place the wet clothes one at a time into the dryer and then close the door, sometimes before they're all loaded! He also puts his dirty clothes in the hamper, and once in a while he's put his socks (which he likes to take off after his nap) into the washing machine. It is so cute to find one little pair of socks in there when I go to start the laundry in the morning.

Because it's been so stinkin' hot, he's had lots of opportunities to play in the water and he LOVES it! Whether it's running through the sprinkler, playing at a water table, or splashing & kicking in the pool, Colton can't get enough. It is so much fun to see him enjoy the water in that pure, unadulterated way.

I'm excited (and a little terrified) to have my little boy turn 2. As his second birthday approaches, I'll be taking a look back at this past year and all the milestones he achieved. Can't wait to see what his third year brings!