Noah at Two and a Half

When Noah was younger I blogged monthly about his development but when he turned two I switched to every 6 months. You can read all about Noah's two year entry here but today I'm here to write all about him now at two and a half years old. How is he two and a half already, seriously?! 

Character
Of course his character can't change too much over the months as his character is who he is but there are parts of his personality that become stronger and others parts which decrease. For example his temper has decreased tenfold and he no longer has tantrums. He never really had them often to begin with but he would often get frustrated when he wanted something he couldn't have and that would lead to a little melt down. 6 months on and he has a better level of understanding now so when he gets to the point of frustration I can simply explain it to him, he understands and he calms down, nipping it in the bud before it's even begun.

Other traits which have changed is his humour. He's funnier than ever and he'll literally do anything to make you laugh or smile. He always has a warped sense of humour, just like me. If you trip or fall over well prepare for a round of hysterics!

I've found he's a little more independent now and tries his best to do most things himself although he does still need Mummy's help with a lot of things. He's also very inquisitive, caring, gentle, thoughtful but also stubborn and has a short fuse too. If I had to name one trait that sums him up it would have to be cheeky. He's the cheekiest child I've ever known! 

Size

Noah is the same weight he was 6 months ago and weighs two stone exactly. He wears a size 5 shoe and is currently wearing a mix of 18-24m and 2-3yr clothes. He's a string bean and it's no wonder as he literally never sits still.

Health
On a whole he's been great but when we went to Forest Holidays a few months ago he came down with the flu. It was probably the worst cold he's had to date and it was so bad we contemplated coming home. Thankfully it only lasted a few days and then we were able to enjoy the rest of our break away. He's also had a few niggles with teething as his top molars and he's had a few bumps and bruises too being the clumsiest child I've ever known! 

Feeding
Noah is a bottomless pit! He has three meals a day and countless snacks. He still drinks 12oz of milk a day and drinks around 8oz of water too. His favourite foods are; cheese, tomato, bread, pasta, chicken, apple, pear, chocolate, tomato sauce, beans, broccoli, biscuits, raspberries, blueberries, crisps, sausage, omelette and so on! 

Sleep
Last week we switched Noah from his cot into a bed and the process has gone perfectly. He fell out the bed and was a little unsettled the first night but we put a bed guard on the next night and ever since we've had no issues. We thought he wouldn't ever sleep and would be messing about with his toys but he's been good as gold. He doesn't even get out of bed in the morning and waits for me to go in to get him. He will usually sleep 8pm-8:30am. He still likes to nap but I don't often put him down for one any more as I find he's harder to settle at night when he has one.

Speech

Noah doesn't speak in sentences yet but he does know a lot of words and can communicate quite well despite it. I'm just waiting for it all to click into place and for him to be able to have proper conversations with me, I can't wait for that!

Potty training

I recently blogged all about our potty training journey and you can read more about it here. We first introduced the potty when Noah had just turned two and he understood what to do with it but he would have accidents in his pants if he wasn't prompted so I knew he wasn't ready just yet. I waited another month or so, reintroduced the potty and we've not looked back! I can count the number of accidents he's had on one hand and I think that is all down to waiting until he was completely ready. He's completely dry in the day time but we haven't tackled bedtime just yet as he still drinks a lot of milk before bed. 

- Edit. A week later and Noah became dry at night time too, while on holiday in Majorca! A great way to remember it! 

Milestones and new tricks
Noah is now completely potty trained.
He's in a toddler bed instead of a cot and had no problem transitioning. 
He knows most his colours; red, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, pink, black.
Can almost count to 10 though not in the correct order!
Likes to re-enact his favourite parts in his favourite films (Rex using his head to open the the vent in Toy Story 3 / Pumba charging the Hyenas on the Lion King.) So cute to watch!
He can use my mobile phone and tablet better than I can! 
He seems to understand absolutely everything! 

Favourite things
PUDDLES! Chocolate, Spiderman, Elmo, the cats, animals, ice cream, raspberries, his new bed, cars and trains, story time, kiki, kinder eggs, surprise egg videos, the iPad, colours and numbers, toy figures, visiting family, his cousins, dancing, movie time, baking, going on an adventure, Blackpool, visiting farms, dip dip, roast dinners, playing in the garden, his best friend Elise, Mimo, Paw Patrol, being silly, learning new things, stickers, toy story, paddling pools, playgroup, SUPERHEROES, youtube videos, swings and the park. 

Noah - 2 Years Old

Noah turned 2 back in November and with the madness of his second birthday, Christmas and New Years I am only just getting round to writing his 2 year update, but here it is!

Character

Turning two has certainly given Noah more confidence and independence. He loves to do things for himself, in his own time and in his own way. He knows his own mind that's for sure. He isn't too bad when it comes to tantrums as of yet but when he does have one there are two different types. There are the frustration tantrums which usually arise when he doesn't understand why he can't have his own way. These usually result in him crying out of frustration. With those type of tantrums, I usually get down to his level and talk to him, tell him to calm down and he usually does. We wipe away the tears and 2 minutes later he's over it. The other type of tantrum is rage and thankfully these ones don't happen very often. With these tantrums I usually just ignore it, don't give him rise and again he's usually over it within a minute or two. Like I say he isn't bad at all when it comes to tantrums, he perhaps has 1 or 2 or week but when they do happen we have thankfully sussed out the way which helps him through it. Every child is different and once you've found something that works for you tantrums can be a lot less stressful for both you and your little one.

There isn't a day that goes by where he isn't performing and trying to make you laugh. He is always moving 100 miles an hour and never wants to sit still. He's into everything, especially things he shouldn't be in. He's very clumsy too and probably has an accident every day!

Anyway, apart from all that he is just the same as he's always been, funny, inquisitive, hyperactive, silly, caring, considerate and very polite.

Size

Noah now weighs 2 stone! 2 stone at 2 years! He's at the 70th percentile for his height and around 50th for his weight. He's tall and slender but is solid too. He wears a mixture of 18-24 months and 2-3 year clothes. Most 2-3 is still too big for him but a lot of the 18-24 is too small, so he's in the middle really. It just depends on what brand of clothing he's wearing. He wears a size 5 shoe but I really need to take him to have his feet measured again soon.

Health

Just before Christmas (a week before in fact) Noah had his worst illness to date, he contracted Hand, Foot, and Mouth. It all started when we were at the Christmas party at Playgroup. Noah was so out of sorts, he felt hot and he was crying a lot, he really wasn't himself. When we got home later that day he developed a really high temperature and I noticed a few spots on his bottom. He struggled to sleep that night and then in the morning I noticed lots of sores and ulcers in his mouth. He couldn't eat, drink, have his bottle, have his dummy, it hurt for him to speak. He just cried and cried and cried and it was heartbreaking to not be able to do anything. He would lead us into the kitchen by our hand and tell us he was hungry but there was literally nothing he could manage to eat. In two days he probably had 2 mini milk ice creams and that was it. By the third night, I resorted to using a syringe to get milk into him and thankfully he managed it. It felt great to be able to get something into his belly. Those 3 days were the hardest few days as a parent for both Nick and I. It's heartbreaking when your child is in pain and is grabbing your hand and putting it to their mouth for you to make it better but there is nothing you can do. Thankfully it only lasted those 3 days and once the ulcers had gone Noah certainly made up for the lost time when it came to eating, drinking and sleeping. I can't tell you how much of a relief it was to see the back end of that horrible illness.

Feeding

Noah is still fantastic when it comes to food. There's not much he won't try or eat and we hope that won't change. His favourite meals at the moment are chicken stir fry, roast dinner, spaghetti and meatballs, and tuna pasta bake. He still loves his fruit and veg too. He has 3 set meals a day, with a snack here and there. He also still has his milk, 12oz in the morning and 12oz at night.

Sleep

Sleep has been a bit hit and miss lately and we have put it down to the 2-year sleep regression. Every age-linked sleep regression he has had so I'm thinking this will be no different. He's like a teenager in a toddler's body, he wants to stay up late at night and then sleep in in the morning. Some nights can be a battle when we put him down as he just doesn't want to sleep or will just start playing up. We will get there. He still enjoys a 2-hour nap in the afternoon too which is great but he doesn't always have one because sometimes I have to keep him up if he's had a lazy morning due to a bad night. I hope we can get back on track soon.

Speech

Noah isn't speaking in sentences yet and he doesn't put many words together but he does know a lot of different words. He's not as ahead with speech as some toddlers his age but he's also ahead of others. The way I see it is they all catch up with one another eventually and they will all get it in their own time. Noah recently stopped calling us Mama and Dada and now calls us Mummy and Daddy instead. I find this really odd because no one referred to us as that, so I don't know where he picked it up from! I know that in the next few months the switch will flip and he will be chewing our ear off.  

Potty training

We have introduced the potty recently and when we are at home we tend to keep Noah bare-bottomed. I'm unsure if he is fully ready yet but he has no problem using the toilet or potty when prompted. We are going to keep at it but we aren't pushing anything, just taking it easy and in his own time.

Milestones and new tricks

Noah now knows a lot of new words.

He is learning to count (2,3,2,3) and knows a few shapes (star, circle, moon) we work on these every day but it's hard to teach a child who has the attention span of a gnat. 

We've started potty training.

He can now walk a lot longer without needing to be picked up or go in the pram. Last week he walked an entire mile! 

Favourite things

TOY STORY, Woody and Buzz, the outdoors, going for walks, jumping in puddles, dogs, cats, Milo and Hadley, Teddy and Baby, animals, stickers, cars, dancing, Peppa Pig, fruit, play dough, playgroup, spending time with his family, hide and seek, chase, the park, helping Mummy, snack time, kiki, jumping on the bed.