Now You Are Two

The first year of your life was pretty full on.  We didn’t have the time to reflect and enjoy as much as we should have as you were ill, really ill and we didn’t know why.  You were such a happy baby, so full of smiles and laughter. Your development was delayed, as was our joy; dampened by the uncertainty of your illness.  You had surgery to remove a benign tumour at eleven months, swiftly recovered and we could all enjoy life again.  By the time you were one you were back on track, finally on your feet, literally…you started to cruise and walked at 14 months!

Over the past year you have grown and developed so quickly, it has been a joy to watch you.  Your little personality has blossomed and your cheeky sense of humour has developed in bucketfulls!
Now you are two you love to laugh and have a quirky slapstick sense of humour.  You think it’s hilarious when you hit Daddy and he makes a funny noise, when you headbutt or point or poke! You never tire of peekaboo, playing horsey and getting up to mischief with your brother. When you are enjoying yourself we all know because you give us the greatest crinkle smile!

Now you are two you can jump really high, with both feet off the floor, off steps and crazily enough off bunk bed ladders onto the soft duvet below.  You don’t really have an in-built fear mechanism (unlike your much more cautious older brother), you throw yourself at life head first.

Now you are two your sense of independence has massively taken over.  To most tasks, the response is…’No, Mayhem do it!’…putting on your sun hat, sandals, pouring milk, eating, taking off your nappy, brushing your teeth (let’s not mention that nightmare task!)…the list is endless.  If you don’t get your own way you let us know how very annoyed you are about it.  The myth that tantrums start at two it just that! You began ‘asserting’ yourself way before the ‘terrible twos’.

Now you are two you love to help Mummy and Daddy, from making tea and coffee and doing the washing up, to picking and chopping figs each morning.  You are your own independent self though and keep us guessing each day.  You can either help Daddy and put the figs carefully in the punnet, wear the punnet on your head and don’t help at all, or throw the figs on the floor, laugh about it, then kiss Daddy to say sorry!  Chopping with a sharp knife is most definitely your favourite though.  Shame it’s such a safety hazard!

Now you are two you prefer to be naked.  It can be difficult to get you to wear clothes to go out, but eventually you give in.  When we are at home there is no chance, so you are mainly naked, apart from your hat, or two, or three, which you enjoy wearing, only as you can put it on yourself.  You especially loath to wear your sandals or shoes when you are inside.  It doesn’t matter where inside of course, as soon as we sit down in a cafe your sandals come off, even in the supermarket you try to rid yourself of those darn feet protectors.  At home in our Casita, sandals are out of the question, even walking over the sharp stones or gardening, you prefer to be without them.  Luckily, you quite enjoy turning on the hosepipe and hosing down your own feet at the end of the day!

Now you are two you take yourself to the toilet.  You walk up the stairs, climb onto the toilet and go by yourself (an advantage of being naked of course).  You often call for Mummy or Daddy to let us know you have been the toilet or to ask for a wipe, which, of course, you want to do by yourself.

Now you are two you can speak in full sentences. Some words you like to say your own way; binoculars (favourite toy)  are binock-nocks, a nappy is a nap-nap. Inexplicably you have always called your brother Chaos Daddy. Whereas Daddy is Dada… go figure?!! You also understand everything we say, even though you choose to do the exact opposite of some things we ask, ‘don’t throw hard things’, ‘don’t bite your brother’, ‘milk and water are for drinking, not for pouring on the floor or throwing across the room’!

Now you are two you can last longer and longer without having to be in mummy’s arms. No more one-handed chopping to make dinner, the almost impossible task of pegging out washing whilst holding you and going to the toilet without being able to put you down.  You are still a total velcro-kid and love to be carried and see what’s happening but now you also let Daddy carry you (which Mummy is ecstatic about)!  In fact when we go out you now insist on it, ‘Dada do it’!

Now you are two your loving, caring nature is more and more apparent.  You often smother us all in kisses and love to go from Mummy to Daddy to Chaos offering your kisses and back again and repeat.

Now you are two you are no longer a baby but a rambunctious toddler and the daily whirlwind that entails.  Our amazing, gorgeous, clever little pudding.  So full of life and so deserving of it.  We are so very privelleged to have you in our lives…Happy 2nd Birthday Mayhem!