Ian Says the Darnedest Things

From the very beginning, I have been SO excited every time Ian has hit a major milestone, and the great thing is I have been just as excited every time Eli hit those same milestones. It seems as though most of the physical milestones are a thing of the past.

Rolling over? Check!

Sitting up? Check!

Walking? Check!

Climbing every piece of furniture in the house? Check!

So, now Cole and I are enjoying all of the cognitive, verbal, and social developments the boys are going through. Eli has a fantastic vocabulary. Not to brag, okay to brag a little, our pediatrician was VERY impressed with Eli's 15-20 word vocabulary at his 15 month well-baby check up. Not only could I recognize the words, but so could the doctor. At 15 months most babies have a vocabulary of 5 words. She was also very impressed with his ability to follow simples commands such as, "Pick up the book, and bring the book to mommy." He is also learning how to tease me by pretending to be asleep and then "waking up" and scaring me. He could do this for hours, unfortunately I can only play this game for several minutes. My favorite Eli game is when he walks over and asks for "More kickles" (tickles). I can't believe how well he can communicate and how he is clearly maturing in his social interactions as well. I think he might be smart enough to skip kindergarten and go straight to MIT. I wonder if MIT has a minimum age for admission? Hmmm.......I should probably check on that.

Anyway, Ian was always very ahead of the game when it came to vocabulary as well, and nothing has changed. It seems as though his language skills advance in spurts. Over the course of a week or two we will go from point A to G, but then it will take three months to go from G to H. I know this is normal, but it makes the rapid advances in his development seem that much more incredible. Here lately he has been hilarious. He says things that are so off the wall, that I just laugh at him, and he LOVES to make me laugh. Which brings me to the heart and soul of this entry.

On Wednesdays Cole takes an extended lunch hour (thank you Caterpillar for flexible office hour policies and PhD's who never adjusted to the normal 9-5 work day) so he can watch the boys while I go study the fabulous world of Organic Chemistry for two hours. Last Wednesday was kind of brisk so Cole was taking the boys to The Orpheum Children's Museum in Champaign. I love the hands-on activities The Orpheum has to offer, so much so that we are MEMBERS of the museum. The Orpheum is mainly indoors, but there is a courtyard, too, that just opened for the spring/summer season. Now the boys had the best of both worlds, they could play outside and duck in to warm up every now and then.

I also love The Orpheum because it gives the boys a chance to socialize with LOTS of different kids. Eli usually wants to be right in the middle of the chaos, and preferably the cause of said chaos, but Ian usually hangs back and kind of does things on his own. Every time we go, I talk to Ian about trying to make a new friend while we are there. He rarely ever acknowledges my pep talks with little more than a half-hearted "Yeah" or "Okay", so I was very surprised when he brought it up first during the drive to the museum.

From the backseat of the car, I heard Ian say, "Ian make a new friend at Children's Museum." I was so impressed I more or else squealed with excitement. He had been listening during all of those talks! Now it was my turn to keep the conversation going and possibly ask a question that would make him think a little bit before answering. I responded, "Oooohhh. That sounds like a great idea, Ian!!! Are you going to make friends with a boy or a girl?" I had done all of the important things child development experts encourage Superparents to do.

1. Reacted with enthusiasm

2. Praised him for following a suggestion I had made in the past

3. Furthered the conversation

4. Asked an open-ended question

5. Waited patiently for a one word answer

Only, I did not get a one word answer. I got a well thought out answer with stipulations. I was NOT prepared for the response he gave. I don't even know where he came up with an answer like this. Just to refresh your memory, I had asked if he would make friends with a boy or girl. He answered, "A girl. A girl who likes my haircut!"

WHAT?????? My two year old is already trying to impress the ladies? What is going on? I was caught so off guard I was temporarily speechless, which is really saying something for me. I glanced back at him in the mirror, and there he sat looking like he had just said, "The sky is blue." I started laughing, which in turn made him laugh. I laughed quite a bit, and lovingly informed him that he is a mess, which is exactly how I want him to be.

I am so impressed by how his brain works. This was clearly something he had to think of on his own. Cole and I don't talk like this except for every six weeks when I walk in covered with hair and Cole happily compliments me on the same haircut I have had for the past nine years. Other than beauty shop day, there is NO haircut talk at our house. I'm surrounded by males! It's not something they discuss.

I'm not sure when Ian quit being a baby and became a little boy, but the transition is definitely in full swing. His social and language skills are developing SO fast it's overwhelming. He has opinions, ideas, a very long and thorough memory, and an INCREDIBLE imagination. Cole and I try to do everything we can to help the boys' development stay on, if not ahead of, the curve. We read a TON of books to both boys each and every day. We make Ian speak in complete sentences before we respond to his requests. By that I mean, we coach him to say, "Mommy, can I have more milk, please?" rather than shoving a sippy cup in our faces and demanding "More!". Ian also has his basic preschool math workbooks in which he completes his "actibities", and he also has a collection of flash cards. He's still young for the workbooks and flash cards so some days are a success and other days are.......well, definitely not a success. Plus, we did baby sign language which is proven to give your children a HUGE head start in their communication skills, and as an added benefit it eliminates many tense moments between an angry baby and frustrated parent.

I would love to be able to take full credit for the maturing minds of my little baby geniuses. I mean, I grew them in my body, right? Well, I can't. I can show them every flash card, workbook, building block on Earth, but I can't make the boys "get it." Ultimately, I know that we were given two inherently bright children, and I am thankful for such a great blessing every single day. When it comes to my boys, I think my dad says it best: "Dani, you guys hit genetic gold."