Today Oliver had his 21 months check up. He has managed to not catch a cold in the last three months. Not only that, he has put on 4 lbs, grew 1.5 inches, and his head grew 1 cm...which seems small compared to the amount of knowledge he has gained.
According to the doctor, it is normal for a two year old to know about 50 words and put 2 words together to form a "sentence". He may prefer one hand over the other, and become more adept to using a cup or fork.
Well, I am so proud to share with you that Oliver understands a few hundred words in both English and Chinese. He counts to 10 and is getting more familiar with the alphabet, both sound and letter recognition. He can put together 4 word sentences like "I see mommy car" and sometimes mix both languages to get his point across.
He hasn't shown a preference of one hand over the other, and seems comfortable using both to draw and throw the ball. Now he can draw circles and tells me he is drawing a circle. Or "string" when he is drawing a line. He can throw a ball pretty straight, and is great at hitting it with a bat, or a drum stick, or any other kinds of stick that he can find.
He uses forks and spoons, and knows how to wipe his mouth. And sometimes drinks right out of a water bottle using just one hand holding it!
These days he still loves watering the plants. He is more careful holding the watering can to keep it from spilling. And knows to walk in an exaggerated slow walk to be careful. He likes playing basketball, but also enjoys reading. I can pause before the end of a sentence, and he either has memorized the sound or knows it from looking at the picture. If we are out, he looks for and points out all the trucks and buses on the road with a color description. He recognizes the Santa Monica lines of Big Blue Bus. He also notices that there are "many cars, lots."
We also are working on being polite and he says please, thank you, and excuse me when he needs our attention or need us to move out of his way. We are learning to label our feelings, so sometimes a cry means sad, other times frustration or disappointment. He showed his sense of empathy when a boy took a ball from him and the ball rolled away. I explained it's because he also wanted to play with the ball. Oliver not only didn't get upset, he went and got another ball for the other boy.
Oliver is a great helper around the house. He wipes any spills on the floor, throws away his own dirty diapers, sweeps and vacuums, and helps me wash the car. He is the most hard working baby I know. The other day he was in the back yard washing rocks.
Needless to say I think he is amazing. He is a wonderful loving happy baby with a great sense of humor. I think if this was a personal ad, ABC would sign him up to be the next Bachelor, and girls would line up around the corner to meet him.
I love that kid!!!!
