Daniel Age 2!

My big boy is 2!!!!! Happiest of birthdays to my current youngest child. He has added so much to our family and is all boy! He loves cars and action figures and building. He loves to run and jump and get dirty. He hits his head a lot, but he always bounces right back and is ready to play after a quick kiss from Mumma. Before we had him I didn't understand what my friends of multiples meant when they said you don't split your love but your love grows. Now I totally understand because I love this little boy so much. I am so thankful for him and his little personality. He is a wonderful little brother who loves his big brother so much and he is going to be a wonderful big brother in a couple months. He loves babies and is gentle towards them. I am so thankful for the little man he is becoming and pray he continues to grow and develop into s healthy and happy person.

Daniel (1/13-4/12)

Daniel seems to behave well when I'm not around for babysitters, at church, at PWOC, and for Matt. He isn't whiny and plays well with other kids. But when I am home he is little mister fussy buns! He wants to nurse all the time now that I am trying to wean him. He goes in spurts of understanding he can only nurse before nap or bed and crying for an hour or longer. He is definitely worse behaved when I am around like most toddlers! 

Daniel is getting used to sleeping in bed with me. I want to break him of this, but I am so exhausted that it works out so much easier than fighting him back into his crib in the middle of the night. Once he is 100% weaned (hopefully before his 2nd birthday) I want to try to put him and Jackson in the same room. We'll see if that helps him. I might put the toddler rail on his bed or even get him a twin bed too. 

He wants to try everything we're eating. He eats a good variety but often wants to eat out of our bowls/plates or to sit on my lap while he eats. When he's really hungry he'll sit in his chair and feed himself well though. He does really well with spoons and forks on his own, he just is finicky. 

Sings along with so many songs now! He rarely says the right words, but he sings his own words to the tune. He sings with the music in the car, with me, or with the iPad. I love when he sings the clean up song when we clean up toys. 

During the January 2016 snowstorm, Daniel loved the snow! He would pat it to see if it was hard or soft and roll around and lie down in it. He giggled over hitting snow off the bags of leaves we have in the backyard. He tried icicles and loved them!

In the car I can see Daniel's hands in the air as he sings along with the music. He puts them up for "hooray" in happy and you know it and for "up and down" for wheels on the bus. 

Climbed up on my lap for nap nap and asked to nurse by signing please (he rubs his hands together consistently for please, so not correct but it works for him) and turned the iPad to lullabies. 

2/6 went to Will and Oliver Chitticks bday party at Kids N Play. Daniel was fearless in the jungle gym! He was climbing all over before I could stop him. I ended up going up into the jungle gym to make sure he didn't get stuck and Jackson didn't bite any other kids. Daniel would look for Jackson or I when he didn't know where we were, but he wouldn't get overly scared or cry. 

Such a good little eater. He eats pretty much everything I put in front of him and will at least try anything. There isn't much he doesn't like and he loves using a fork, even for bread! 

2/9 can count to 5. Constantly counts to 3 and then goes hooray! 

2/26 signs so many songs! Of course, Finger Family, but also Jesus Loves me, deep and wide, happy and you know it, head shoulders knees and toes, wheels on the bus, twinkle twinkle, abcs, and many more! He keeps surprising me with new songs he knows. 

Has such a cheesy little grin! He gives it to Matt and I often, but when he gives it strangers I just melt!

Loves sugar! Constantly asks for chocolate or suckers and freaks out when I won't give it to him. Thankfully, he is a good little eater so I can usually find something else to satisfy him. 

Can count at least to five that I've noticed. He picks up on so much that I don't really work with him on. He is a very smart boy and seems to be right on track developmentally and socially. 

Hates getting strapped into the car. Fights it and straightens his back. 

2/28 moved into big boy bed and sharing a room with Jackson! I will sleep in bed with him for the first little bit as he transitions. Hopefully he will begin sleeping through the night so I don't have to worry about him waking up Jackson. Night one went super well! The usual number of wake ups, but he just nursed back to sleep. He fell sleep just fine even though Jackson was talking.

Says "eh shoo" for thank you all on his own when he receives something or gets help. Adorable! 

Learning to listen and obey. He loves to climb on the entertainment center and I tell him to get down and he usually does! I make sure to praise him when he obeys so he keeps it up! 

Moves the Lego table or the kitchen chairs to the kitchen counters when he wants something on them or something in the cupboards. He is our climber so we always have to watch him!

Thanks to YouTube kids Daniel has learned his shapes! He loves various shapes song. He can say circle, square, triangle, rectangle, and star. 

Late March- not sure if this is just entering into terrible twos or molars or if he's feeling icky, but Daniel has such extremes he goes through! He throws little tantrums all day and sometimes is inconsolable. I hope it is just a phase and he is back to being my happy boy once again! In between fits he is smiley and silly and adorable. 

Has adjusted so well to his big boy bed! He still nurses to sleep and I don't know when that will stop, but I can leave once he's asleep and he'll sleep on his own. He still wakes at least once every night, sometimes many more times, and either sits up whimpering in bed or will open the bedroom door and stand there whimpering until I come get him. He looks so cute standing in the doorway! I don't know if he is afraid to come find me in the dark or is confused or knows he's supposed to stay in bed so he doesn't leave the room. 

4/1 we ordered pizza and when the delivery man gave it to me Daniel said "eh shew. Bu bye!" (Thank you, bye bye) 

4/4 Matt took away the iPad at bedtime and Daniel very clearly said "no! That's mine!" He has been listening to his brother, who says exactly that! 

Has consistently been saying "mama" when he addresses me. I just love it and I'm pretty sure he knows that adding "mama" to any request is almost guaranteed to be filled! 

Such a great talker! Says lots of words and lots of phrases. Some of them I can think of are red, circle, some letters like I and O and H, get down, sit down, more cereal, mama please, play doh, cars, star, triangle, rectangle, shark, fish, applesauce, thank you, bless you, welcome. There are so many more but I can't think of them all. He sings so many songs correctly like ABCs, twinkle twinkle, wheels on the bus, and she'll be coming around the mountain. He is much more communicative than Jackson at this age.