Phases, Part 2

Evan is almost 2 years old. He is still teething, with about 12 or 14 teeth more or less in, including some early molars. We give him baby Tylenol or Motrin usually before bed to help him sleep through the teething. So much has happened in the past 6 months developmentally. he doesn't do the "Kicky" activity as much, but does occasionally and almost does it for me on special request. His use of language and growing vocabulary may be the most fascinating barometer of his growth. He also seems to be bigger every day, although his size almost seems to fluctuate like a little ball inflating and then losing a little air, inflating again and losing a little. Perhaps that is how people grow: 2 steps forward, 1 step back.

Of course he is using "No!" a lot, in response to our trying to control his behavior by using that word more often than we should. Yesterday, he stood in his high chair and stared at me, firmly asserting "Sit down! Sit down!" as his way of preparing for and removing my expected response to his standing. He has many words in his vocabulary now, the latest being "Nut butta". His mom will give him almond butter with banana. he also likes dried cranberries, well all berries of course, and grapes. "Gok gok" is still pretty well used for trucks and cars, though he asks for "Engines" if he wants to go to the fire station. "Meems" is for creams, which describes the frozen yogurt store his mom frequents (and me too unreluctantly). "Ming" is the swing in our backyard or the park. He calls out for helicopters and airplanes and trash trucks and street sweepers in words which are pretty close to the real thing. We read as much as we can and have continued to keep him off television until he is at least 2, advice we've read about in more than one place. Recently, a friend studying to be a Waldorf School teacher said they recommend keeping kids off television until 5th grade, when they are about 10, since TV kills the child's inner imagination and ability to create inner visions for stories and ideas. Makes sense, if you are letting an external box do all the visualizing for you. We may let him start to see some Sesame Street and Thomas The Tank Engine, but Pamela thinks in 15 minute intervals and then off. Our town's new public library opened May 16 and is a great resource for the little boy, a beautiful temple honoring books and a place to meet other kids with a fun sitting area with chairs designed like big stacked books.