Thomas at 18-21 months
January 2008
Since our return home from England, Thomas seems to have developed a new self-confidence, and his dexterity has also improved significantly. Puzzles which challenged him a few weeks ago have become easy, and he seems to be able to master new ones quickly as well. He is currently 80 cm (around 31.5 inches) tall and weighs about 12.5 kilos (around 27.5 lb).
He now says "mama" and "dada", usually in context; sometimes he will run to find pictures of us to cross-reference! He also says "nej" (no) all the time, mostly just for fun; he can make lots of animal sounds and point to various body parts when asked; he brings us our shoes and boots when he wants to go out, although he hates getting into his own snowsuit; he has recently discovered the joys of putting coins in his penguin-bank (regardless of currency). He wants to do things himself, whether turning lights on and off, taking out the trash, sweeping the floor, climbing up on chairs, or putting on his socks - some attempts are more successful than others!
February 2008
Thanks to the wonders of the Internet, YouTube and Amazon, Thomas has had the opportunity to experience some of his dad's favourite childhood TV shows, especially Ivor the Engine and Camberwick Green. He loves to try to operate the DVD player, trying to get the DVDs out of the cases and change them himself. His favourite character after Ivor is probably Windy Miller, whom he imitates carefully, pretending to put his hanky in his back pocket and nodding when you ask "Have you got enough wind in your sails?"
We got through most of January in good health, but in February Thomas picked up a nasty virus which made him feverish and wheezy. Some anti-asthma medicine eventually helped relax his bronchial tubes, and after a few days it was back to ordinary cold status. Nevertheless he was kept home from the nursery for almost a week, during which time he had some little outings to the nearby shopping centre, where he tried out a wiggler-size rocking horse. He took his friend Peter Rabbit for a tour around the building, including a stop as his current favourite place: the laundry room with it's red wheeled laundry carts, perfect size for a Wiggler to ride and spin around in.
Thomas is doing really well with lots of his developmental toys, especially wooden puzzles, shape sorters and balls. He loves to put coins in his Pondus the Penguin piggy bank, and to tackle his giant teddy bear - but he's quite generous with sharing his beloved blanket afterwards. He's also taken to vacuuming, sweeping and tidying up - as long as it still seems like the same game that made the mess in the first place. At dinner time he's getting better and better at feeding himself, but the yoghurt somehow still seems to follow a path of it's own!
Another outing to the zoo was enjoyed by all; Thomas gets more and more out of it, the more mobile he is. As much as he loves to see the animals, the opportunities for climbing, tumbling, going up and down stairs, and general running around are almost as exciting.
March 2008
Thomas has still been suffering from colds and teething through the end of February / start of March; one evening he really seemed to be trying hard to whistle, altough he was probably feeling his incoming choppers coming through. He has discovered Bagpuss the cat and loves to compare his cuddly toy to the DVD cover or the big one on the TV screen! He attracted lots of attention while trying out a toy airplane at one of the local toy stores.
His favourite word is still "up" but he is also getting proficient at "hot!" "heavy!" "mess!" and "help!"; we're especially glad that he has learnt to ask for help rather than squealing when challenged by a puzzle piece or some other activity. We have started involving him more in food preparation, which is a good influence on all of us; he never really liked munching on mushrooms and peppers before he discovered pizza preparation, but now there's no stopping him. Unfortunately the floor gets at least as much food as he does...
Easter in UK
We spent Easter in Leicester again, with the first stop a visit to Granddad at work. Thomas was already a big fan of trucks before, but he was most impressed with his opportunity to get up close and personal with some big lorries! He got reacquainted with lots of flights of stairs, and with Domino the cat - and developed a deeper relationship with the washing machine at his grandmother's house.
Besides exploring old haunts including the local playground, Thomas also found a new pleasure in riding in the car; nothing seemed to give greater pleasure than the news that it was time to drive somewhere! Once the novelty had worn off, it was also a great sleep inducer.
Updated 5.3.08