Skip the One, Missing the Seven

Joshua definitely counts now, but he never says "one." We usually start with one and he chimes in with the two, three...etc. However, he started counting himself today on the stairs and he started with "two!" He'll go the whole way through to eight (how many stairs we have to get to the first floor) except that he also doesn't say "seven." It's really adorable to listen to..."two, free, four, pi-ive, seeks...(pause)...EAT!"

I realized yesterday that he's saying more actual words, and we're not comprehending them yet because of his lack of enunciation. For example, as I was nursing Caleb, he pulled out a book of "Baby's First 100 Words" that we often look at together and sat at my feet with the pages open. He pointed to a smiley face and said "Fahz" then to the orange and said "ahhrrr" and then to the fish and said "feesh" and then to the flower and said "flawrr" and to the small puppy and said "foo-foo-foo" (or woof-woof backwards). He also will point to birds and say "brrt - teat - teat!" So, as he's gibbering away now, I think he's saying real words but needs practice on saying them correctly. On the other hand, his mispronunciations are so adorable that we'll miss them when they're gone. He also laughs when we laugh at a joke and is Mr. Repeat. He was watching a video on Farmyard Friends (he loves cows!) and says "apples, wheat, eggs, corn" after the video does, as well as the animals and their sounds. I do think he should be talking more, though. But, I'm sure it will come.

We're looking into preschools for him for this fall. There are a couple near our house that come recommended that have a two-day a week, two-hours each of those days for two-year-olds. They learn about shapes and colors and how to share, but mostly I think this will give him an opportunity to be around other children and get to play in a new environment. It will also give me time for work/school, hopefully so I can lavish my attention on him when he's not in school (and Caleb, too!).

These pictures are from a week ago or so now...I look exhausted. But, I love my boys!