Roddie Report: 2 year stats

Time sure flies, it seems like just a few days ago that I was hauling my huge “Belly Ball” down to the lake for a swim while we anxiously awaited Roddie’s arrival!  It was a hot summer, much like this one, and swimming was pretty much the only place I was comfortable in the last few months!  In any case, we made it through that summer and nearly 2 more already!  Roddie’s weighed in at 27 lbs and 37 inches – tall and skinny, just like his mama… LOL I mean sister.  Here’s what else he is up to
-        His vocabulary is growing in leaps and bounds and he’s doing really well with stringing multiple words together.  He is still very hard to understand, as pronunciation is still a challenge.  My favorite thing that he says is “Here you go Mommy”, which comes out more like “ergomommeee” so cute!
-        He looks to be a baseball fan… he does great with the mini T-ball set in the backyard (and will play it for quite a long time!), and emulates what he sees others doing while playing ball.   He knows the difference between baseballs, basketballs,  footballs etc.
-        He can just about use the scooter on his own and keeps getting closer with the tricycle and bike.  Clearly having an older sister and older kids around is affecting this as he clearly is very anxious to be able to keep up with them!
-        He loves swimming, being under water and even playing in the waves.  This kid is not intimidated in any way by the water.  I’ve been trying to get him to wear water wings, as I am certain he’ll take off once he has some independence!  He literally will dive out of my arms to go “swimming” and has no problem walking out into the water at the lake on his own – up to his chin!  He also had a blast playing in the waves at the ocean recently – Nanny will have a blast when we see her soon!
-        Puzzles, puzzles, puzzles… this kid loves puzzles!  He’s mastered the beginner type, with the knobs and 6-9 items per puzzle and is almost capable of doing regular 12 piece puzzles on his own.
-        Like his sister, he loves books.  While he sits through Fancy Nancy and Purpleicious, his current favorite is “Good Night, Good Night Construction Site”.  He knows all the tractors and can easily identify the toy version of the same.  He can easily pay attention through 2 or 3 books that are targeted more at Norah’s age than his.
-        He loves his Mommy.  And his Daddy.  He goes through phases when only one of us will do. It changes with sufficient frequency that no one gets offended J  I have also been granted many snuggles recently, which is a big change from when he was younger.  I must say I love this age, quiet snuggle times and starting to learn to talk.
-        That said, he definitely identifies with Matt – he likes nothing more than to have the same shirt or shoes or whatever.
-        He’s very good with helping out around the house, he’s big on laundry – pressing the buttons on the washer, emptying the dryer, putting clothes away (in roughly the right location) and emptying the dishwasher, and he brings his plate over to the sink when he’s done.
-        He’s fiercely independent – most things must be accomplished “On my own!!!” including getting in and out of the car, opening and closing the back door, putting his clothes on (yup, he can dress himself with no help!)