Grayson at 21 months

I feel like there is so much to say about how Grayson has changed this last month.

He is such a little boy now, full of energy and emotion and silliness.

His current favorite things include books and Elmo (still), swinging in our backyard, giving full body hugs and kisses, and testing the line between minding and getting disciplined.

It's been a rough month in terms of allergies, teething on his final two teeth and recovering from a sinus infection. The health issues have made him considerably fussy which seems more pronounced since that's not his usual nature.

The silver lining to all of this is that because of his expanded vocabulary, most of the time he can communicate what is wrong. That said, he does sometimes get his words confused, like the other night when we were eating dinner and he started bawling. He kept saying, "hot, hot" but the food wasn't hot. We later realized he was meaning hurt or ouch because it was hurting to chew his food since he has two bottom teeth trying to cut through.

He has also started putting together two-word sentences and sometimes asks "what?" as he points to something if he doesn't know the word.

The best part of this age is his genuine and uninhibited displays of affection. Grayson is not shy about giving out hugs and lately he's begun hugging us tightly with his little chubby arms around our neck. He will also hold my face in his hands when he wants a kiss. This is one phase I don't ever want to pass!

Another trait I've noticed more lately has more to do with Michael and I than with Grayson -- the ability to improvise. Grayson is interacting with us on a more intelligent level emotionally and verbally which means the old standby tricks don't always entertain him these days, as he isn't as easily distracted.

On the weekends, we're having to come up with new activities and more complex ways to stimulate Grayson both mentally and physically. Before, I knew he was building a vocabulary, but it was more about identifying things and pairing them with the right word. Now, he seems to be actually interacting with us and thinking things through in a more critical way. No wonder two-year-olds are so tricky to discipline!

Speaking of improv...here are two short videos of how we entertained Grayson while Michael and I got a little yard work done over the weekend. Who knew a bucket of water could be so much fun?!