Stef is 2 years old!

an always active enthousiastic boy

Last week Stef turned 2 years old. He got to celebrate his birthday with his grandparents at home before he went on vacation, then with his other grandparents on vacation and yesterday a last time with us on vacation. I did not have my camera along, so I am recycling some recent pictures.

I thought he was so cute last year...but he's even more fun this year. Whereas last year he just learned how to walk and was wobbling around a bit uncertain and falling over every so many steps, he now races from one side to the other in the garden in a constant source of energy. He opens doors himself. And mostly, he got very verbal over the last months. One year ago he only knew some words which he did scream out loud "OPA" "BALL", ... His volume has not gone down at all, but his vocabulary has gotten wider. My nieces at the same age are far less talkative, but on the other hand more precise when they talk. Currently Stef repeats anything you say to him whether he can pronounce it our not. He can say all vowels but not yet all consonants so very often he sounds as if he has a hot potato in his mouth. And he comments all the time on what everybody is doing or what he sees.

The fact that he repeats everything is great fun as you can make him say whatever, which Jan greatly abused last weekend.

"Auntie Ellen is a bit silly"

"Yes Ellen silly"

"yes, I believe you auntie is very silly"

"ELLEN SILLY!!!!....Jan silly?"

"No no I am not silly at all"

"Jan not silly, auntie Ellen silly"

"Jan not outside...Jan no shoes...NO NO not outside, Jan shoes on, shoes on " (he's not allowed to go outside without his shoes on)...followed by some chuckling "hihi jan bare toes. daddy not bare toes. Ellen bare toes?? nooo Ellen no bare toes, Ellen shoes on"

Conversations like that start from the early morning when he starts up. Then we had the joy to wake up by the following

"Sssshttt Jan asleep...Stef not asleep anymore. Stef slept alot. Ellen awake?? nooo Ellen asleep. Sssst quiet" (while he keeps up the whispering for 3 words and than unconciously raises his voice). While his dad carries him downstares and tries to keep him quiet, he promises to be quiet followed by a lout "SEE YOU LATER" on the stairs. Greattt, I guess it was time to get up for us too :p. So when we got down and he could barely see our legs on the stairs, he already shouted "yes Ellen awake, Ellen no more sleeping. Look Ellen in pyama's. Stef also in pyama's".

Haha cute boy!

Obviously he is sometimes having difficulty coping with rules or the fact that he cannot get anything he wants. Since recently he then puts on his "angry" face with a sobbing lip and a frowned forehead after he runs of a bit. So far he usually cools off pretty quick so that's not too bad and I just think his face is so funny at that moment :p. When he was unwilling to clean up his toys before bedtime, he actually put his hands on top of his ears and we all could not help laughing. It looked funny. When the instructions got repeated, he tried to pretend even harder not to hear them and then covering an eye too. It wasn't very effective for him though. Oh well he'll learn. He behaved really well last weekend.