Observations at 2 1/3 Years...

A few months ago we noticed that Brennan was stringing together four and five words into a sentence. He did it so effortlessly that I don't really know when it started. It is pretty funny to me that a year ago I was worried about how little he spoke. I couldn't get him to repeat me when I said things, and his speech was rather limited. I couldn't understand it because we read to him so much and speak to him non-stop. Now, I have to be very careful what I say around him! Last night he saw Jim cleaning the fish tank and told him, "Good work." He must have thought it was a big job because then he said, "Oh my goodness!" He was perfectly clear and caught Jim and me off guard.

We went to Brennan's two year doctor's appointment this past week (quite late, thanks to our transitional lives around his actual birthday). When the doctor first came in, Brennan was reading a Sesame Street book in a chair in the corner. I thought he would freak out when he saw the doctor, but he just kept right on talking. He was naming all of the characters and telling us about them, rapid-fire. The doctor said, "Well, I don't think his speech is going to be a problem!" Just moments before the doctor came in, the nurse had asked if he is saying fifty words yet. I laughed at her... Fifty words? I think he said fifty words in the one minute the doctor was observing him! I couldn't begin to count all of the words in his vocabulary at this stage.

In the last few months Brennan has shot up really tall. When we were traveling a few weeks ago, several people thought he was three years old. His pants have all gotten too short, and he is able to reach more now. However, I was still a little surprised to discover that he was 37 1/2 inches! He's over three feet tall! He is in the 90 - 95th percentile for height, which was never the case before. The doctor said that at this age they start getting on the track that they will follow throughout childhood, so he may always be a tall kid!

Brennan has started to enjoy singing more. He sometimes just breaks out with a song that he hasn't heard in days, singing it quite well. He really likes to sing, "The Wheels on the Bus," as well as "Bob the Builder," (of which he only knows a few words since we don't really watch that show), and the ABC song. He asks for music more often, attempts to sing along with songs he doesn't know, and he is doing a better job with pitch. Last night he started singing, "Spoon, spoon, spoon..." to the tune of Jingle Bells, which is something Elmo always does at the end of Elmo's World (using whatever object or topic he explored that day). He just looked down at his spoon and decided to sing a song about it! He also made me cry the other night when we were out running errands and he sang along with the lyrics, "Hallelujah! Praise the one risen son of God!" He sang it so well and with such heart, and it was such a beautiful moment. My friend Angelia told me I would cry the first time he sang "Jesus Loves Me." I believe her and understand better now.

Last night was our very first ever movie night as a family. We watched the first hour of "Cars" and ate strawberry shortcake. After about an hour Brennan got antsy and needed to go to bed, but we may finish it tonight. It was so much fun to watch a movie together that we all could enjoy.