23 MONTHS OLD!

Edison turned 23 months old on Friday. We didn't do too much in the way of celebration since everyday has really been a party for us lately! I'm talking sunshine, swimming pool, the zoo, Casa Bonita, sports, the park, bike rides, playing in the sink...

Since the sun is out, we've been lathering up the sunscreen and spending most of the day outdoors. Although it was a little rainy on Friday we still managed to clock in a lot of time in the sandbox and shoot some hoops on his little basketball hoop. Oh and we did go to Edison's favorite place to eat for a mommy-son dinner at Tocabe, where the whole staff adores him. Here's Edison eating fry bread nuggets, which the staff gives to him on the house each time we come in.

Edison is "all-boy" which has been a learning experience for me and as I mention each blog... he keeps me busy. I've learned that its okay to get dirt all over our clothes, that washable paint is okay to get on our wood chairs, not to be too-uptight when sand gets thrown out of the sandbox or that its no big deal if we get soaked with the hose. I feel I'm doing a good job at verbalizing to Edison rules while we explore new activities and I'm happy for him to try out anything as long as he's being "safe." Which typically when he's playing I'll just remind him to be safe and he listens and thinks about his next step.

Now at 23 months Jim and I checked out some books from the library about raising a toddler. As textbook geeks, we were very well-read about the infant years, but he's not a baby anymore and we (especially me) have been feeling like we just need to read up on what to expect and different philosophies/suggestions about how to talk to your child. Edison is going through the "terrible twos" now. Our toddler book says it they can start anywhere around 15 months and last until 4 years of age! He's a great kid almost all the time, but he acts out too. Its been okay, and I'm glad he's testing me now before baby #2 arrives so I can start learning now how to talk to him about his behavior.

His language skills continue to amaze me. I love that he says, "what's that sound" when he hears something off in the distance and "what's mans/ladys/dogs name." He's inquisitive, recognizes so many objects and can articulate what they are/do and he's learning a lot of songs that I sing to him.

Since he can say his ABCs and can count to 20, my next step is to get him to start recognizing letters and numbers. I need to make/buy some flashcards.

Also, I'm hoping that he'll get excited again about potty training. He started showing interest back in October, but I felt it was too early even though he was sitting on his potty and actually going in it, but now that we talk about it more and more, he tells me he's not ready for undies. This will be another milestone for us, and I know it won't happen overnight but if you could just send some good vibes our way so that he could be potty trained before his sister arrives in July, that would be great and really convenient (ha ha!).