Living the Country Life: May Notables

This little boy also gets more and more fun every day. It's crazy how much he picks up in a day and how well he remembers things. Most of the words that come out of his mouth are hilarious. He stayed home with me a few more days in May and we had a lot of fun. Here's what he's been up to.

OBSESSED with being outside. He loves doing anything out there & it is a struggle to get him to come in for supper or bed. It is great that he's watching minimal amounts of TV & getting lots of fresh air.
He is pretty good at the ABC's & recognizes letters with pretty good accuracy. He likes to sing while he's playing or when he's up in his room. Sometimes he will be counting or singing baa baa black sheep and it will morph into the abc's.
It seems he finally figured out the counting and gets it right most of the time. After 12 he says words but I'm not sure they qualify as real numbers.
Last weekend he got scared by a thunderstorm. It was a really loud clap of thunder & he jumped and his eyes about popped out of his head. I felt so bad for the poor little guy (and Isabel & Ava -- I think they were all scared by the thunder & then also of each other's screaming). As soon as he settled down there was another big bang that scared him again. The following night we had to put him to bed during a storm but he did fine.
He picks up on everything in the car & talks the entire ride pointing out everything. Last time we were in Spring Valley he remembered the wind towers from last time & kept talking about them. I finally figured out what he was saying & couldn't believe he remembered them.
Like most 2 year olds, he can do a complete 180 in an instant but most of the time he's really good. The rest of the time he is a hot & whiny mess flopping himself all over the floor.
He's starting to express himself more verbally. He has told me a few times, "I'm sad." This is usually when he was to go to daycare. He has started pouting more when we get there but as soon as he sees his friends he's fine. He's doing well there except he doesn't like to wait his turn. He gets mad if they can't do what he wants, when he wants (watch Cars) so he will get mad & cry. He even will tell Cheri whatever is on is scary. A little manipulative maybe?
Most mornings he wakes up and plays in his room for awhile and then will either call for us or make his way down the stairs. Once he gets down he always asks for Levi.
"Deffi" = Levi
I'm hopeful we finally have a solid bedtime routine in place again. It never was too bad but it's nice that he goes right along with it after a few nights of having to put him back in bed numerous times. We have about 5 books we have to read and then he goes right down. He goes down around 8pm and will get up anytime between 6-6:30 usually.
He hates brushing his teeth. Bribing with The Cat in the Hat or Caillou has helped.
Nap time is also much better at home. We go through the same routine as we do at night. The only difference is that many times he will play & run around for awhile before falling asleep. As long as he stays in his room, I don't really care. He almost always makes it to the bed before passing out. I think the key to this is getting him up there a little earlier than we had been.
Whenever Levi sneezes he says, "Bless you, baby."
# of times he told us he was/is pooping: approx 35.
# of times he went on the potty: 0, so I would say lots of interest/awareness of the potty but not GOING in the potty.
I think the longest word he knows & says really clearly is "watermelon". Although he likes to say "thingamajigger" from the cat in the hat but I'm not sure that counts.
He definitely talks in flow sentences/paragraphs & still will usually agree & repeat anything you ask him (regardless of the truth). We understand most of what he says.
He is very good with thank you & you're welcome but please is a little more difficult sometimes. We had a big stand off over goldfish & please last weekend & it's improved.
This month he also started refusing to sit in the high chair even though he's been sitting up at the table for a long time with no tray. He won't sit on any type of booster so for now he's using the big chairs & I spend a majority of meal time telling him to sit down & eat. It's a little messier but he's doing a good job.
He also started wanting to use a regular cup at meal times. Still takes the sippy cup to bed at night with water though. The regular cup is another thing that he picked up at daycare because the big kids were using them.
His hat must always be on backwards. He likes to pick out his own clothes and is good at putting on his shorts by himself. He prefers pants/shorts with pockets & it's pretty hard to convince him that he doesn't have to wear socks all of the time now that it is warm out. We were going through his clothes the other day and when I pulled out a camo shirt & asked if it fit him he said, "No, that's Jackson's shirt." So I guess he won't be wearing that shirt any time soon.