28 Months Old!

Originally posted on our homeschooling blog

We are indeed at 28 months old at Casa Haytko!

Playroom/Schoolroom:
We have an upstairs playroom. Bobby and Maya share a room now, and Maya's old bedroom is now a fully functioning playroom/schoolroom. And they LOVE it. The other day, we had a rare warm winter day and I had to ask them THREE times if they wanted to go to the playground, which is unheard of in our house! We moved the majority of their lower level playroom toys upstairs (because of it being colder in the basement and us rarely being in there, we are making it into a yoga studio for me to conduct classes at home for Mending Heart Bellies!) It also helped us to clear out some of the living room, making it more of a family area and less of a toy laden area. There are educational posters on the wall of the school/playroom, work/play stations for the kids, and everything is there level. There's no TV (although they do have musical instrument 'toys') and the majority of the tactile toys are wooden. LOVE THIS ROOM.

Skills:

• Both kids can count to 20. Bobby can count backwards from 10, and Maya from 20.
• Both kids can recite their ABCs and are starting to sound out words.
• Bobby's first "read" word was "Norwich", the university that Peter and I attended. We have a blanket, with the NORWICH spelled out. He recited the words, then said "N-O-R... nor... W-I-C-H... norwich." Which was amazing because we had just started the "ch" sound!
• Maya has sounded out the word "vegetable" and she is still quite the mimic. Her vocabulary is insane. And the retention of it...
• I personally think that Maya speaks clearer than Bobby, but part of that too may be that she is a chatty cathy and wants to be talking all-the-time. Bobby is more quiet, but when he wants to say something he can. He still has moments of extreme frustration and we have to just tell him to relax (and sometimes hold him, looking him in the eye, until he does).
• Bobby uses progressive verbs more than Maya does. She, however, has started using pronouns and has realized pluralization (i.e. one egg, two eggs)
• They love to help cook. Bobby is my go-getter. He wants to go to the pantry, fridge, etc, and get whatever we need for the meal. Maya is my preparer. She wants to be right in the action, making food and getting ready to serve it. That child LOVES to set the table. They both love to 'wash dishes' too. It's adorable. :)
• They are learning how to put on their socks, shoes, and coats. (see below)
• They are learning how to clean up after play. (see below)

Things we are working on:

• Potty training is still a big one. Maya will ask to go to the potty, although we usually get there late. Or, she will sit there with no action. She's peed in the toilet once. And we are/were thrilled! (So was she- she ran around telling Bobby and Peter that she "peed and wiped my vagina!" and she was so excited). Bobby, for the longest, hated the potty. Would have a freak out every time we tried to sit him on it. So we stopped. And let him direct it. He's now sat on it a few times with no freak outs, but he is in control and he decides when he does it. We ask, or if he takes us there, then we go. So far, no action. But it's a positive step. We're really hoping to continue doing 'child led' potty training, but I'm hoping they decide sooner, rather than later that they want to use the potty consistently!
• Getting Dressed (without help). The kids consistently help us pick out their clothes and get dressed, but we are now moving towards having them put on their socks (they are getting pretty good at this!), shoes (working on it!), and coat (hit or miss, but more hits as the winter moves on!) independently.
• We are now at the age where they are following directions better and are helping to clean up areas of play when they are done (although the school/playroom does NOT reflect that right now!). It's still a work in progress but I am trying to reiterate that when we are done with something, we need to put it away. Last night, Bobby helped by putting away the foam letters before he went to the recycled wood pulp blocks. I was SO proud. I didnt even ask him to do so, he just started! And Maya has been putting chalk and crayons back in the easel trays when finished. So, we are getting there, but we are just starting with this.

I found some interesting charts about developmental milestones at this age. This one is from Babycenter, for 25-30 months.

Child's Age	Mastered Skills (most kids can do)	Emerging Skills (half of kids can do)	Advanced Skills (a few kids can do)
25 and 26 months	Stacks six blocks Walks with smooth heel-to-toe motion	Uses pronouns (e.g., I, me, you) Washes and dries own hands	Speaks clearly most of the time Draws a vertical line
27 and 28 months	Jumps with both feet Opens doors	Understands descriptions (e.g., big, soft) Draws a vertical line	Starts to recognize ABCs Balances on one foot
29 and 30 months	Brushes teeth with help Washes and dries own hands Draws a vertical line	Draws a circle Balances on one foot	Puts on a T-shirt Names one color Names one friend

I am happy to report that our kids are doing well!! They both stack, walk, jump, open doors, brush teeth, wash and dry hands, and can draw lines (the most kids can do section). Maya is starting to use pronouns, but Bobby has not, and she also speaks more clearly than he does sometimes (this is from half of kids/few kids). They understand descriptions/verticle lines, and can draw circles. (from the middle section for 27-30mo). Balance on one foot? When we do yoga! ALL THE TIME!!! And they love love love love love going to the playground and climbing on the (terrifying) big kid jungle gym! They dont just recognize their ABCs- they know them and sing them!! They can put on shirts, name several colors, and can name each other (or repeat the names of others). Sadly, we dont really have a playgroup, etc, so their friends are mostly family/godsiblings. But this made me feel like "Whew! On par!"

We have their developmental assessment at the end of the month. I feel pretty awful about this actually. They should have had one in September and one in December (one at their 2 year and one at 2 years adjusted)... We were just so busy and had so much on our plate... But I made their appt this morning, so it is now on the calendar!

Things on the plate:

• Preschool (possibly). We were excited about the possibility of doing a few hours a week at the local Montessori preschool... But, we interviewed there this morning and, honestly, I didnt love it (another post coming!). So, we're going to look at a few other places... We'll see. I love educating at home; but I want them to have more socialization. We are lacking in that... Hence
• Playgroups. We've struggled to fit in at a playgroup. Most take place in the afternoon around here. We do lunch at 12/12:30, then nap around 12:30/1pm until 3pm or so. So, an afternoon playgroup just doesnt work. Our local parish does a weekly morning playgroup... But it's on Wednesdays- which doesnt work, because the kids visit their paternal grandparents. So... Friends suggested meetup.com, which I checked out, and we may be able to find something that works for us! I really want the kids to be able to make friends (and I'd love to get to know more local parents of toddlers, too).