My little monkey is actually a human!

I’m astounded at what a proper little person my boy is turning into. I know that sounds ridiculous, like what did I expect him to turn into, an orang-utan? But it’s just you get so used to them being these mute, helpless creatures, that you almost expect they are going to be 100% reliant on you forever, in an unquestioning way like an animal would be.

But H is definitely not unquestioning, nor is he all that helpless. He is strong enough to open drawers and lids that he shouldn’t be getting into, agile enough to climb onto beds and up and down stairs, crafty enough to open doors (and slam them shut as loudly as possible). He can now count to ten, completely on his own and unassisted. He can almost recite the alphabet, and will sing along if the song is playing.  He recognises many tunes without lyrics and will start singing. And he is making rudimentary sentences. They are usually things like: “Hamish do it” or “Mummy cuddle duck” or “no nappy change” but they are words strung together that communicate his meaning so I am impressed!

His favourite is “What dat?” which is the precursor to “Why?” I guess, and although it’s cute, it’s a little on the maddening side when he points to EVERYTHING and wants to know what it is. Perhaps this is mostly annoying because when I am frequently stumped for answers it makes me realise how little I know…

And he doesn’t miss a trick, so I can’t do anything in front of him that I wouldn’t want him trying out himself. (This means I am sneaking lots of snacks while hiding in the cupboard.) If I have a cup of coffee or tea, he does too – imaginary ones. He has little tea parties and picnics with his toys where he gives them all sips from tea cups and makes the slurpy noises. 

I am constantly impressed by his learning and marvel at all of these skills – it’s just not what I expected of him before he is even 2 years old! Especially considering I am not driven and ambitious about teaching him things. I am a warm, loving, attentive mother but I have always been fairly relaxed about his development. I am not in any rush for him to reach development milestones. He started crawling so early, then walking at just 10 months, so I knew he wasn't going to lag behind (and, if anything, those skills just made him more work than the slower, more sedentary babies!). There are no flashcards in our house and I do not drag him to dozens of “activities”. In fact I often feel quite guilty that I don’t take him to the gymbaroo, swimming lessons, dance classes etc that other kids attend. But clearly, he is doing OK without it.  He makes me feel like I’m doing a good job at parenting, even if there is no-one else to tell me I am.