Everyday it seems like JP's doing or learning something new. Here's some of the fun things he's doing now:
- Says Bye, Dog, Ju (juice), & Pretty (sorta). Signs 'eat' and 'more', often at the same time. Also will sign 'all done' but usually only if we have signed it first. He pretty much tries to mimic anything anyone does or says.
-Helps put on his clothes, he can put his arms through the holes with little or no help & will try to put his feet through the pants too
- Brings you a book to read to him. If you don't take it, he'll pull open your fingers & push the book into your hand. Snuggle Puppy is his favorite I think. One of the first few times I'd read this book to him, he laughed hysterically as I did the song part.
- Understands more words than we realize! For example, one day we were talking & said the word 'outside' in our conversation, JP jumped up & ran to the front door. Another time I was asking him if he wanted a few things (cuz it was funny that he said no to every question). When I asked if he wanted some oranges though (mandarin), he started signing 'eat' very adamantly. I ended up getting him some oranges!
- Knows a dog says Woof Woof. But ask him 'what does a ___ say (insert animal of choice) and the answer is also Woof Woof. If he hears a dog, sees a dog, thinks about a dog, he'll start saying 'oo oof'
- Will whisper if you whisper, sometimes. One night recently I was trying to get him to sleep & whispered something to him (about it being time to sleep probably) and he whispered back some gibberish. It was so sweet & now I can only get him to do it again when he's really calm.
- Climbs. Ok this is not really a fun one, but it can be funny for a minute or two. Mostly it's just tiring & frustrating. He climbs up the back of the couch, on the side tables, stands on anything he can get to, climbs on & over us in bed & will try to climb out of your arms onto anything nearby. Thank goodness we don't have stairs in our house!
- Dances & drums. See the attached video of him drumming. He will drum on anything and sometimes randomly start dancing. Of course he dances to music but sometimes I think he's got songs stuck in his head (Noggin is particularly bad with the catchy kid songs but I like that it has no commercials, plus Yo Gabba Gabba is still his all-time favorite).
Some typical toddler struggles we are having: hitting, head-butting, tantrums. This story is for you Grandma - If JP has a particularly bad tantrum, he'll start by stomping in place while he scrunches up his face. Then he runs straight for the nearest bed or couch & flings himself onto it to scream into the pillow or mattress. I don't have the slightest idea where he got that temper from. :)
