Connor Update Part 2: Development

Oh, Connor.  You are such a gem.  I still remember talking about him in the hospital on his very first day out in the wide world and describing his personality to Sarah and Patrick.  And I still think it holds.  He's a mix between my brothers Will and Henry.  Easy going and stubborn like Will and charismatic and charming like Henry.

Eating a 'nana.

Connor is rather particular about different things; he likes to have doors closed and some things need to be just so, or he has to fix it.  Sometimes it's a mess that's been out for a while that when I clean it up, he messes it up again because he feels like that's how it supposed to be!

Poor Connor has been dealing with the lot of frustration, which comes with the territory of being 2.  He's trying to figure out his boundaries with objects and people, which usually leads him to getting really irritated, and hitting or throwing something, whether it's me, the wall, the toy he is playing with, etc.  It is also really frustrating for a mama to watch!  I'm already sick of calling him down and redirecting him, and I know this is going to be happening for the next two years at least.  I know that as Connor learns more words, he is going to be able to communicate better and get less frustrated.  I know if he could just express to me what he wants, then he wouldn't lash out.  And so much of it that might look on the outside like he's being mean or bad, is just him trying to express himself.  So often, I gather Connor into my arms when he is upset, after he's hit me, or thrown a toy, and he just lays his head down and sobs for a second.  I know he is trying to figure out his world and I'm doing my best to make that way smoother for him.  It does get harder when I'm tired or when I haven't had a break, like when Patrick was on his business trip last week.

Dada was taking a nap while Connor did and when Connor got up,
it was snuggling time.

Connor has recently started saying things in phrases.  Most of the time it's just two words phrases.  He has a hard time grasping 3 word phrases like "more please Dada."  When we prompt him, he'll drop one of more of the words we are trying to get him to say.  It's really interesting to prompt him over and over because you can see the wheels turning in his little head as he tries to figure out how to do what we're asking him.  A couple times in the past week has had conversations with me, which is fun, but also can be really frustrating for him.  Once we were on our bed and he was trying to tell me he wanted me to move and sit somewhere specific, but he couldn't come up with any words.  He just yelled "no!" and started crying.  So I asked him if he wanted me to sit somewhere else, and he said, "Else!"  So I moved around a couple places and asked him if that was where he wanted me, all while he was yelling and tearing up in extreme frustration.   When I finally got where he wanted me, which was after I tried to sit there a couple times, he was so happy.

Cheese!

Connor has definitely started paying more attention when we are driving.  When we pull into our neighborhood from the front entrance, he exclaims about the water and I know he knows we're almost home.  I'm also pretty sure he can recognize when we are going to Target, Publix, and Aldi.  He definitely likes being informed of the plan and destination.  He likes it when I tell him the order in which we are going to do things, "in just a minute we are going to go inside, wash our hands, and sit in our chair to eat lunch," and has started being able to follow simple two step instructions.  If he's really processing what I'm saying, I can usually get him to help me do things, which is going to be really helpful when Eamon comes.  He also does a lot of unsolicited things to help, like bringing me my water bottle.  He has an uncanny ability to bring it to me when I'm thirsty, which is really funny to me.  He also likes to throw away his diapers when we are done changing him and usually does it without asking.  I don't even know if I would have known to ask him to do it, if he hadn't picked one up and ran across the house to throw it away one time.  I think he especially likes to do things that have to do with him, like taking his sleep sack back to his bedroom after we take it off.

Connor in his "pirate ship."

Connor loves books and music.  He sings a lot of different songs and recites a bunch of different books.  One of the things we do together in the car is recite different books, especially "Pete the Cat" and "Where's Spot?"  He also makes music requests really frequently, and I do my best to sing to him, even though I can't remember all the words to some songs, like from the movie "Tangled."  If Connor is around several people and he makes a song request, he expects everyone to join in.  On the 4th of July we sang "Happy Birthday" to America several times.  Connor also has learned several of his letters and numbers.  He can recognize all the number 0-9 and most of the alphabet consistently.  He has two puzzles that have those numbers and the alphabet that he loves to play with and he probably does them at least once a day.  He also has a puzzle with colors that he likes, but he has known all his colors for several months.  The one that he still messes up occasionally is orange.  He likes to call it yellow a lot of the time.

One of the best things Connor has started doing is really showing affection.  While I miss him saying "aiya," hearing "I wub you!" is awesome.  He has just started saying it to us without solicitation and the emphasis that he gives it really makes me melt.  I mean, it's Connor, he says everything with emphasis and gusto, but when he yells "I wub you!" to someone over a voicemail or to me when I leave the room for Patrick to tuck him, it's really wonderful.