Carver-- 2 1/2 Years

On June 21st, Carver officially turned 2 1/2. That means it is time for an update on this sweet and crazy boy of mine.

Carver has grown and changed in incredible ways these last 6 months. He has a very strong will, a unique personality, and a very fiery temper. He loves to be held and read to and cuddled with. He is slowly becoming more and more verbal but despite his lack of words he communicates very clearly and can understand everything we say to him-- though he often chooses to ignore us.

To be honest, this firstborn child of ours is a total mess. He is bursting with energy and is very opinionated. His favorite pastime, I am convinced, is trying to drive me crazy. And he is usually successful. But he is so cute in his obnoxiousness that it is hard to stay frustrated with him. He is a complete handful and challenges me in a dozen ways every single day. Rumor has it that I was a little difficult as a child also-- so I guess I deserve this.

We just can't keep him out of/off of Carson's baby gear...

I love it that Carver does not have a shy bone in his body. He jumps right in to any new situation. He is rarely intimidated by anything or anyone. He is incredibly secure. At the park or the museum or church he will run full-speed ahead and only occasionally look back to see if we are following him. He makes friends at the park, follows them around, and thinks they are absolutely hilarious.

He absolutely loves for us to read to him. I think he would sit and be read to all day. He has his favorite books and would listen to them dozens of times a day. He brings me a book, already opened to the first page and if I don't immediately take it he grabs my hand to force me to. When he wants a snack he pulls me out of my chair and drags me into the pantry in the kitchen. If he wants something in another room he will lead me in there to get what he wants. See, who needs words?

He has become a picky eater, which makes me very sad. It is a struggle to get him to eat anything healthy or substantial. If it isn't a snack food then he is not interested. I've had to become pretty firm about this which has led to a lot of really fun altercations.

There is nothing in the world Carver loves more than playing outside, especially if it involves water. We play with his water table and pool, and spend countless hours just playing with a water hose. Daniel has been taking him out to camp some evenings to take part in their evening activities and Carver adores this. His Daddy is his favorite person on earth right now.

Playing in a rain mud puddle.

Recently Carver has had a difficult time transitioning to having Carson in the house and no longer getting our undivided attention. He is acting out in extreme ways right now-- tantrums, kicking, hitting, crying, screaming, etc. It is incredibly frustrating, and even though I understand it and know why he is acting the way he is, it is still really hard to be patient. I just want my sweet boy back. We are having a hard time determining what method of discipline/behavior modification works with him. I don't want to have that crazy, terrible, uncontrollable child-- the thought horrifies me. So, what to do? I have no idea.

He has sweet moments too...

like sharing his pacifiers with his little brother.

One of the hardest things we are dealing with is Carver's sleep issues. Nap time and bed time have been such easy parts of our days for at least the last 18 months. Carver has always been incredibly easy to put down for his nap and at night. He would go right to sleep, usually not making any noise at all. Lately, however, it has been crazy. I'm not sure if it is an issue with transitioning to a twin bed, or an issue with moving, or acting out with all of the other changes in our lives right now (Carson), but for whatever reason Carver has been impossible to get to bed lately. He screams for at least an hour or two at night, and for awhile at nap time also. He gets out of bed, turns on his light, kicks his door... He almost always falls asleep out of his bed, then we have to decide whether to pick  him up or leave him there. Never an easy decision. He also wakes up exceptionally early these days-- usually before 6:00 a.m. He even wakes up during the night some these days also. This has been a really frustrating new development for us.

Some of his current favorite phrases and words:

* Counting-- 2-10; not sure why he leaves off one, but we are working on it.

* Letters-- He knows almost all letters of the alphabet, though he does not say them in order yet.

* "___________," where are you? (fill in the blank with Lea, Winston, or Daddy, usually)

* Here you go

* Here you go, thank you, welcome (said all together as one phrase)

* Thank you, welcome, mom

* He has started referring to Daniel's dad as Papi (instead of Papa); He calls my mom Gama.

* Wow, or wowee

He says a lot more than this, but these are the current favorites. He'll repeat almost any words we say to him. So, his speech is really starting to develop rapidly.

I can't believe that in six short months I'll be throwing Carver his 3rd birthday party. It seems impossible. I can't wait to see what the future holds for Carver as he starts preschool in August (2 mornings a week), and as he learns to be a big brother to Carson. The next months should be interesting.