Isabella turns 22 months old today.
She's developed a staggering grasp of the obvious, and will now exclaim, "I'm running now!" or "I'm hiding now!" or "I'm singing now!" as she's (you've guessed it) running, hiding, or singing.
She can pick out, name, and draw a pretty decent circle when asked, and trust me when I tell you that this "Stick-Figures-Are-A-Serious-Challenge" girl isn't exactly holding a Drawing and Painting class every morning. She also can identify and name a triangle, but oddly enough, not a square, which seems both easier to pick out and easier to say.
From observing her crayoning over the last few months, and having watched her feed herself for quite awhile now, it seems that Isabella is definitely a leftie. I know this can't be officially determined until around age three, but it's obvious she prefers using her left hand to her right. I'm not left-handed and neither is the hubs, so I'm really curious how this will impact her learning to write, cut with a scissors, etc.
Current Likes: Playdoh, swimming, doing the NYT Sunday crossword puzzle
Current Dislikes: Peas, diaper changes (bring on the potty)
Her vocabulary continues to grow at lightening speed, and I've stopped even trying to keep track of the number of words she says now. She basically speaks in complete sentences the majority of the time, and more than likely has a larger vocabulary than my decaffeinated self does most mornings.
Favorite new phrases of the month include "I'm busy," which she whips out with annoying frequency when I ask her to do something for me, and "Mommy, watch THIS!" as she attempts feats of varying degrees of difficulty.
Favorite new phrases of the month include "I'm busy," which she whips out with annoying frequency when I ask her to do something for me, and "Mommy, watch THIS!" as she attempts feats of varying degrees of difficulty.
She's developed a staggering grasp of the obvious, and will now exclaim, "I'm running now!" or "I'm hiding now!" or "I'm singing now!" as she's (you've guessed it) running, hiding, or singing.
She can pick out, name, and draw a pretty decent circle when asked, and trust me when I tell you that this "Stick-Figures-Are-A-Serious-Challenge" girl isn't exactly holding a Drawing and Painting class every morning. She also can identify and name a triangle, but oddly enough, not a square, which seems both easier to pick out and easier to say.
From observing her crayoning over the last few months, and having watched her feed herself for quite awhile now, it seems that Isabella is definitely a leftie. I know this can't be officially determined until around age three, but it's obvious she prefers using her left hand to her right. I'm not left-handed and neither is the hubs, so I'm really curious how this will impact her learning to write, cut with a scissors, etc.
Speaking of the hubs, he is bound and determined to start grooming the next Michelle Wie, and was pleased that my mom brought her a plastic golf club set during one of her visits. As a result, Isabella can now identify and name a putter, driver, and an iron, which delights her dad to no end.
This next new development is one that's causing me serious angst. She's having sleep issues. Big time. For the past two weeks, she has, without fail, started crying hysterically the second I put her in her crib for the night. Since she was born, I'm rocked her for progressively shorter lengths of time, and since she turned about 1 or so, I've read to her, rocked her for 10 minutes, and placed her in the crib awake to put herself to sleep. This has worked great, until recently. She begins to cry and generally stops after about 5 minutes or so. I'm praying this is a phase.
This next new development is one that's causing me serious angst. She's having sleep issues. Big time. For the past two weeks, she has, without fail, started crying hysterically the second I put her in her crib for the night. Since she was born, I'm rocked her for progressively shorter lengths of time, and since she turned about 1 or so, I've read to her, rocked her for 10 minutes, and placed her in the crib awake to put herself to sleep. This has worked great, until recently. She begins to cry and generally stops after about 5 minutes or so. I'm praying this is a phase.
The next sleep issue is a napping one. She's never been a good napper, and her naps have averaged about 1 hour, 15 minutes to 1.5 hours on a good day since she was an infant. Again, for the past two weeks, they've been disastrously short: 1 hour one day, 45 minutes the next, and on Friday, she didn't nap at all. Bad for Isabella. Even worse for her mother, who desperately needs even at least single hour to herself in the middle of our 12+ hour days alone together. I refuse to believe she's giving up her nap at not even 2 years old. She and I are going to have a sit-down until she realizes this ain't happening.
We're starting to get her used to the idea of sharing her reign. She now knows there are two babies in mommy's tummy. Of course, I could tell her I have 14 guinea pigs in my stomach, and that would have the same meaning to her, but, as with the way we're appraoching everything to do with the twins, we're taking things very slowly.
Current Likes: Playdoh, swimming, doing the NYT Sunday crossword puzzle
Current Dislikes: Peas, diaper changes (bring on the potty)
I like how you always have one photo of her in these month assessments where she is looking at you in a stern and/or disapproving way. Ha!
I have nothing to suggest re: the sleep issues beyond having a look on Moxie. She's saved my sanity a few times when P's sleep has been messed up.
Yeah . . . well . . . aheam. You know I have no advice to offer concerning sleep issues since Bridget is the living embodiment of sleep issues. Wouldn't it be grand if kids just came with an off switch for nap and bedtimes?
I'm with msprufrock - I love those "serious" pictures!
Those pictures are great! It's so fun to watch kids learn and grow. My husband would be thrilled if Little Elvis became the next Tiger Woods, but I've decided that he should set his sights on becoming the son-in-law of Mr. Woods. His daughter is cute and I like Nike.
Yeah, I didn't place much stock in the 3 year-old cut-off for "official" hand preference---we could tell our 6 year-old was a lefty pretty early on....I can tell you that she started writing later (and more reluctantly) than her right-handed sister. She doesn't do that upside-down hand thing a lot of lefties do, so I think it took her longer because she couldn't see what she was writing. Scissors took a little longer, too.
Even now, when she's learning something new with her hands--like using a knife when she "helps" me in the kitchen, for example--she'll have trouble b/c she mimics me and I'm right-handed. When I remind her to switch over she's like, "Oh, yeah! This is much easier." :)
On the sleeping--she could be ready for a bed now. My older kid took awhile to leave her crib, but the 6 year-old? It was right around Isabella's age when she made her disapproval over the crib very clear. Just a thought....
(I love those stern photos, too.)
Oh my goodness. This just blows me away, all of the things she can do and say. It's actually humbling.
My instincts, like yours, say to wait out the sleep/nap issues. I shall cross my fingers and toes taht I'm right, and that things get better soon. Great letter/great memory. You are so smart to do these. She is so precious.
She can look so SERIOUS!! :) Good luck on the bedtimes stuff. Hope it passes. It usually does, for my kids.
I make Lorelei spend at least 2 hours in her crib for a nap... I told her she can play, drink her sippy, read, sleep I don't care... but she is in there for at least 2 hours... and most of the time she is up after an hour and half... and plays the last bit... and she is happy... it has also helped that her cd player is on all the time and a fan... ahhh white noise lol...
Love the photos of her... and hey look on your PBS station for a show called Word World... she will love it... it is really helping lore with her vocab!
That kid of yours cracks me up. her facial expressions are so funny.
Interesting that she might be a leftie. We thought for a while that T would be one (though she's leaning more right now) and we kind of liked that idea since she was (middle) named after my paternal grandma who was one.
We do pretty well with night sleeping here (knock on wood), but naps are such a joke around her so ... yea .. good luck with that. I'm amazed you can wrangle her on your own for 12 hours a day (let alone wthout a nap!!!) while working as well. That seriously impresses me.
I JUST realized that Isabella is the same age as my little Eenie! Isn't this a great age? I find that things get so much easier when they can actually use words to communicate. She is such a little doll. I love her expressions!
I love the juxtaposition between her utter joy and her serious expression. What a great kid! I can't believe how much she's grown.
I could have written this post! My son has just turned 2....and 2 months ago I was wailing to anyone who would listen that he was tryna give up his afternoon nap.
It was just a week or so of troubled bedtimes and all was well again. Hang in there, I dont let him sleep longer that 90mins. I wake him at 8am and put him down at 1930. Much to his horror sometimes.....!
It is hard to believe how fast she is growing. She will be two so soon!
Sleep issues must be going around; Lila has them too. She's been behaving like a crazy person at night, and her napping has been sporadic. I'm going to avoid even thinking about a toddler bed until she's past it.