Although the kids are definitely getting bigger, most of the advances are coming in the area of skills and language. Maddy appears to have leap frogged over Milo in that department, particularly in the area of language. Maddy's vocabulary seems to grow a bit everyday, and she occasionally links words together into 3+ word phrases. Her voice is still kind of hoarse and a bit Joplin-esque. She also loves to sing, so maybe we have star a on our hands.
What else can we say about the little girl? She's very, very friendly. She rarely passes by someone without waving and saying "HI!" She loves giving hugs and blowing kisses. She loves singing and music and books -- her current favorite is Is Your Mama a Llama? She loves to say "no" in a deep, gravelly voice to any statement that sounds like a question. Here's proof:
Milo has also made good progress over the last couple months. He's saying bunch of words and occasionally using two word phrases ("all done," "no more," "hi daddy," etc.). He's quite a bit more reserved and shy than Maddy, but he loves to laugh and often gets hysterical when being tickled or when watching the Wiggles. Milo is the consemate engineer - he loves to tinker with things. We have no doubt that by this time next year we wake up and find him taking apart the stereo or some other expensive pices of electronic gear, not unlike Dad did as a child. Milo likes to look at books too, but not as much as Maddy. His current favorite is Quiet Loud. Milo is more into swings than slides, and, though he does like to rough house, he's a little more cautious than sister at the moment.
Like pretty much every two-year-old, M&M both constantly like to test us. If you ask them to stop banging their spoon, they stop, look at you and then tap it lightly to see how far they can push it. Same thing with jumping on the couch or bed (their favorite indoor past time). If told to sit down, they will. But slowly they'll climb to their feet while keeping an eye on Mom and Dad to see what we'll do about it. Same with lifting their plates, banging cups, throwing toys, and playing with electrical cords. Testing is definitely the order of the day. On the flip side, they also really like to help out. Whenever they see us cleaning up, they like to pretend to vacuum, mop, and put things away. The problem with the latter is that many things around the house disappear and reappear in various drawers around the house -- car keys, toys, brushes, pretty much anything portable.
Finally, as some of you already know, we are moving houses this month. We'll still be living in Alameda, but our new place has a yard and a lot more space for the kids to run around, along with some nice amenities for Mom and Dad like a built in dishwasher, multiple bathrooms, and adequate closet space. We're sad to leave our lovely, historic Storybook style house, but are looking forward to a few of life's more modern amenities, too. The move has put our birthday celebrations on hold for a few weeks, but we're planning a party for the kids over 4th of July weekend at the new pad. Stay tuned.
2 comments:
Congratulations Milo and Maddy! You two may not realize how big of and inspiration you are, and have been, to us! Your story has helped us through many dark and difficult NICU moments! It is unbelievable you are two years old, running around, hiding keys and testing limits! Happy, happy birthday and a big hug from Loki (and his mama and daddy).
Hurray for all of you for getting through these first two years so remarkably well and after such a rough start. Two is a big milestone. They are really on the verge of being big kids, and how great that they are showing this by testing the boundaries of their own control (even though it is rather irritating, and I'm sorry to say it doesn't seem to let up by 4). Good luck with the move. Have fun with the birthday celebrations. I hope the coming birth year brings only great things your way.
Love,
Sarah
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