23 months - week 1 - Ever changing toddler

Well, I guess my complaining about Jacob's sleep issues did the trick. This week he was almost back to normal with his sleeping habits. He went to sleep without much fuss and slept until 6:30-6:45 all but one day this week. Who knows? Kids will keep you on your toes, that is for sure.

Ever since Jacob was a baby, he's been a big eater and would eat just about anything. Over the last couple of months, he's gotten more particular, but still continued to eat a lot. The past couple of weeks, he's actually started eating less and less. He still eats more than many toddlers, but I have noticed a difference. He turns his nose up at more food (surprisingly, basic things more so than 'different' foods) and is eating smaller portions. He's still a solid kid and not skinny, so I'm not worried, it is just another change around here. We are continuing to get ready for baby-8 days! Go here for the rest of this week's pictures.

Surprised and Amazed

I have to take a moment to brag on my little guy. He's been doing GREAT with his letters lately - in fact, he only stumbles on 3 letters, and only some of the time. We continue to work on them in the bath, while reading books, and with the Magna-Doodle. So, imagine my surprise, when I was about to change his diaper, and started to count for him to come to me. I said "1..." and he proceeded with "2...3..." Nothing new - he's done that for awhile. I repeated "2...3" to try to get him to come lay down for me. He then continued with "4...5...6...7...8...9...10" I was shocked. We have worked on identifying the numbers by sight (which he is doing great on by the way), but we haven't spent much time on counting (except to count 3 busses, jeeps etc) . He's been spending a lot of time with his cousins - so maybe he learned it from there. However he learned it - I'm impressed!

22 months - week 4 - Sleep Trouble

Another week gone - I can't believe it. Time seems to be flying by. We've been trying to stay busy, without wearing me out too much. Baby Haeberle is doing that all on his own. Sometimes that is not so easy with a very active toddler.

Napping in the new bed went well last week. We have a little resistence when going down for the nap (which, if you can believe it, we rarely had in the 12-15 months), but it isn't too bad. 2-3 hour naps are the norm everyday, which have been great for me. I find myself quite exhausted by naptime and am ready to take a nap myself.

Nighttime on the other hand, has been very rough lately. Jacob is fighting bedtime and sleeping at night in general. He's even using stall tactics liking asking for a drink, another book, a hug, etc. We often have to deal with tears and hours of whining before he falls asleep. Then, many nights, he is up crying, whining, or just making noise. And he's still sleeping in the crib at night! Of course, he's ready to get up at 5:30am (which has been going on for 6 weeks now). I don't know how he's not exhausted. We are trying to figure out if it is something we are or aren't doing, a 2-yr-old phase, the change to a new room and bed, or the pending baby that is causing the problem. Whatever it is, I'm ready for it to end! I think he may be getting his 2 yr old molars too, so that could also be contributing to the situation. Go here for the rest of this week's pictures.

2 more weeks til baby! I can hardly believe it!

22 months - week 3 - Water week

The heat is still intense around here, so pool time, water play, and even playing in the rain were on tap this week. Jacob continues to get better in the pool everytime we go. I'm so amazed at his progress and lack of fear. Of course, that can be a bad thing, but so far, it has helped him learn a lot. Jacob also seems to have gotten taller and his feet bigger in the last couple of weeks. I know he feels heavier too, but that may just be me in my state. He'll have a 2yr checkup in a month, so I'm curious to see his stats. His talking has taken off even more as well. He speaks in sentences often, can have a "conversation" with you, knows a lot of new words and people's names. It is amazing. He's also quite the parrot - but I guess that is how they learn new words. The move to the big boy bed, hasn't been going so great this past week. I think the problem is that we've moved most of his toys into the room, so once we leave him in his bed, he just climbs out and proceeds to play. We'll keep working on it. His new room is a bit closer to being done too. It is a good thing too, because baby Haeberle will be here in just 3 weeks! Go here for the rest of this week's pictures.

22 months - week 2 - "Boring" week

After a busy week last week, this one was very low key in comparison. With swim team in the morning hours, lunch and nap during the midday, and chores and errands in the afternoon, we didn't have much time (or energy) to do much this week. It has been especially hot the past 2 weeks, so our outside play has been limited, and I think this might be contributing to Jacob's difficult nature lately. He is testing the limits whenever he can with everyone, Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, etc. From what I hear from friends, others are experiencing similar behavior with their toddlers, so just another phase to work through. I only wish I wasn't having to deal with it being 8 months pregnant! On the upside, Jacob is loving the pool, and he is getting braver everytime we go, trying new things and going underwater voluntarily. He isn't swimming yet, but he is well on his way.

Daddy did get Jacob's big boy bed finished this week, so Jacob curiously investigated that once it was done. He also took a solid 2 hour nap in his big boy bed yesterday, so I was happy about that. The sleeping pictures this week are just to show that despte earlier pictures of Jacob squished in one corner of his crib, he is not quite to the point of outgrowing his crib. When he chooses to sleep lengthwise, he has plenty of room....he just likes the cozy corner most of the time. Go here for the rest of this week's pictures.