Henry is 2 1/2

When Henry was born, I went through some serious adjustments as far as parenting was concerned. Nursing, sleepless nights, and being home by 8 PM to put a child to bed were all a challenge for me. And, with Henry being my first child, I feel as though every stage is a series of adjustments, from walking and talking to pushing and tantrums. I am constantly asking other parents for advice, wondering what I'm doing wrong, questioning my parenting techniques, and learning what kind of mother I want to be. Henry is my little guinea pig child, and I'm sorry it has to be him, but he is surely a champ with my trial-and-error parenting and still loves me. Thanks for taking one for the team, Buddy!

Henry is now two and a half. I am enjoying this stage (most of the time). He is so much more trust-worthy than a few short months ago. He is typically obedient, following my commands to "hold Mommy's hand" instead of running at every opportunity. He stills loves to run, but he understands when it is and is not appropriate. Can I get a "Hallelujah!?!"

Henry is fun to play with, interacting with whomever is around and playing pretend with his toys, stuffed animals, and puppets. We are just staring to do role modeling with stuffed animals, teaching him to share and we'll get to other important behaviors. In our first attempt with role modeling, Henry was quick to share his toy car with the lion, but then walked over to Sister and took her toy (a common occurrence around here). We'll keep practicing that one. But playing with Henry is more fun than ever. I love watching him have two or more animals in his hands while he talks for the animals and I love listening to him play in his crib with his toys--sometimes for up to an hour--before falling asleep. We don't know what his toys are saying to each other, but I'm sure Henry does.

Running and playing chase are still Henry's favorite activities. He used to run circles around the couch, but now with a bigger area, Henry runs all around the house. Both he and Maggie love chasing each other (with Maggie being carried). The laughter between the two of them is adorable. Henry will play chase with anyone who will run from him, even the kids at the park who are running to get away and don't want to be chased. It's hard to differentiate between the two because all Henry sees is a kid running. And when somebody runs, Henry chases.

Being the busy boy he is, we try to get out of the house every morning to play with friends, go to the park or museum, or go shopping. Maggie is a trooper as she often misses a nap as we cater to Henry. This busy-body of Henry's does best outdoors with a lot of space, but even when we are indoors Henry manages to be active, whether he's using Mom or Dad's legs as a slide, spinning in circles, rough housing with Dad, pushing over Mom or Dad (picture a football drill with Henry driving his legs and pushing his parents sitting crossed-legged on the floor--pushing, driving his legs, pushing, driving his legs--until we fall over), jumping off the couch, jumping on our bed, and running around the house.

Henry is doing great playing with friends who are his size or bigger. He seems to know, however, when he is bigger than others and has been pushing a fair amount. He is constantly learning what acceptable behavior is and I am constantly learning how to teach him.

With all his activity, Henry is a great sleeper. He usually sleeps at least three hours in the afternoon and twelve hours at night. When he doesn't sleep well, we know it. Henry still sleeps in a crib and I am not in any hurry to move him to a big boy bed because I am not about to compromise his sleep (aka: Mom's break time). Besides, Maggie sleeps in her pack n' play just fine.

One of the greatest joys of parenting is watching your children learn new skills. There are countless times when Brendon and I smile at the things Henry does or says, especially when it is something new. Within the past six months, Henry has learned so many new words and phrases. My favorites right now are, "Mommy, a ow-wee...knee," "Mommy, cowd (cloud)...sa-sore (dinosaur)" (which I figured out was from "A Land Before Time" when Little Foot's Mom appears to him in the form of a cloud), "Ma-ggie!!!" "Soft...saow-wee" (I'm sorry), "Kiss better," "Mommy, a an-mal" (I want to go see the animals), and "A pider" (spider). Henry has also been learning fun skills, like hitting a baseball off a tee and climbing up ladders and rock walls at the park.

Our biggest battles as of late are tantrums, food, and the bathtub. Henry wants something, I'll get it, he doesn't want it, I'll put it away, and then come the tears and the whining and the body on the floor. I don't understand. Or there's the tantrums that accompanies any "no" from his parents. Henry is also a very picky eater. He loves peanut butter sandwiches (and eats one every single day for lunch), yogurt, cheese, milk, bottled peaches and pears, applesauce, bananas, and anything with a lot of fat or sugar (the two basic food groups, my grandpa used to say). Everything else is something he will eat occasionally (all other fruits and chicken) or not at all (beans and vegetables). And as for the tub, well, Henry's on a tub strike. It's a fight every time. I usually wait until he really needs a bath to battle bath time. Lately, Dad has been around and has been so helpful with coaxing our little toddler into the tub.

Right now Henry is fun, hard (but getting easier), busy, and happy. My favorite things about this stage are that kisses fix every owie, a hug fixes tears, and tickling brings laughter. Henry loves Skype calls with his grandparents, "sa-sore snacks," and when dad comes home. He is becoming quite the protector of Maggie, making sure others (besides himself) do not play with her toys or play with her, for that matter, and loves to give her hugs. Henry is still my little buddy and I love when I get to go somewhere with him, just the two of us. I remember what it was like with one child, how much I cherished him, how often I kissed him (every time I put him in his car seat), and how much more I need to appreciate him even though he isn't my only child.