Happy 23-month Birthday, Rowan!

Yesterday was Rowan's 23-month birthday. It's hard to believe that his 2nd birthday is only a month away. This past year has really flown by!

Poor Rowan had a rough day yesterday. Apparently he was running in the classroom, tripped, and collided with the bookcase. Ouch! He has a bruise across his cheekbone and a little mark above his eyebrow. And, he had a little cut on his favorite thumb (the left one). Jeremy and I felt so bad for him. It really is upsetting to see your child hurt or sick. I try not to think about all the accidents he is sure to have rough-housing and playing sports.

When he's not getting hurt, here are some of the things he's been doing this past month.

• Likes: Singing - His repertoire expands daily. Some of his favorites are "Baa Baa Black Sheep" and "Old MacDonald". "Happy Birthday" and "Jingle Bells" are in the top 5 as well. Just please don't sing "Itsy Bitsy Spider". He does not like that one lately. He's really into his Legos lately, too. It's fun to see him make airplanes, buses, and towers. I am amazed at the depth of his imagination. He has also taken more interest in coloring. He can do dots, make vertical lines, and he's getting much better at coloring in specific items. His hand control improves all the time. Pancakes (the mini ones in the freezer dept.) are his favorite breakfast-on-the-go. We usually heat up a few for him to munch on during the car ride to school.
• Dislikes: His top dislike right now is not being able to do what he wants when he wants. Isn't this a life-long struggle for a lot of people, though?
• Communication: He's still chatting up a storm! He really likes to repeat what you say, especially if it is something new for him. He can identify all of the alphabet, but sometimes gets tricked by T and I, or other similar looking letters. He likes pointing out letters he knows in signs in stores, labels, T-shirts, wherever.
• New Skills: Lately he's been practicing standing on one foot. He can last about 1.5 seconds and then has to put his leg down. It is fun to watch - you can tell he is proud of himself. Another skill he has been working on is sorting. He likes to sort by color mostly but he can also sort shapes. When we're cleaning up his toys he is excellent at putting them where they belong.

It's hard to imagine life before Rowan. He occupies so much of our attention and mental energy, I wonder what I used that brain power for in the before-time. Parenthood really is the toughest job you will ever love.

Happy Birthday to my sweet boy!