Vinay’s progress in recent months has been startling!  Who knew a toddler could change so much in such a short time?

He is seventeen months now and is not only walking everywhere, he is running.  All the time.  He seems to disappear from any room in a split-second!  Please make sure the upstairs gate is locked at all times!

He has learnt how to crawl up stairs.  A little late, perhaps – but this is mostly because ‘people’ were too scared to let him loose on the uneven marble stairs at home.  He must continue to practice going up and down.

His understanding has continued to grow and he now understands more complicated instructions.  However, whether he chooses to follow them or not is an entirely different matter.

Making himself understood has become a little easier.  He is now able to say three words.  Mama, Papa and Yaya (nanny).  Hearing those words (whichever ones they are) would make anyone’s heart melt.  He also says ‘nyum nyum’ when he sees something he thinks is yummy.

He has learnt to say (in sign language) – please, thank you, more, chupa (pacifier), milk and water.  Oh – and he can also say ‘I love you’ in sign.  This is enough to bring a tear to anyone’s eye.

He enjoys counting objects and will often show you how many objects there are by showing a corresponding number of fingers.  Usually this is just one or five fingers, regardless of the number of objects.  But he tries and is proud of himself.  

He has discovered crayons and the joys of scribbling.  His fine motor control is still not very developed (obviously), so he can’t really scribble properly.  But he enjoys it – please remember to let him hold the crayons however he wants and do not try to correct his grip at this point.

He can finally show the difference between eyes and ears and now also knows where his cheeks and chin are.  

His love for animals has continued to grow; and he is also showing an interest in other things too.  He loves tankers, vans, trucks, trains and buses.  And often points and babbles something incoherent when he sees one of these modes of transport.  

He continues to love nursery rhymes.  He watches the same video over and over again.  His current (for the last few months) favourite is ‘The Wheels on the Bus’.  He first started showing that he wanted to watch this by twisting his whole body and arms back and forth.  He didn’t know how to do the ‘wheels’ motion.  He has become better at this.

His progress in playgroup is unbelievable.  He has no problems leaving mama and going off to play on his own.  His interests have expanded to include ride-on cars, playing in the kitchen, making tea, filling the shopping trolley and playing with the trains.

Although he has come far over the last few months, he needs to continue to work on something important.  We must all work on Vinay’s listening skills together.  He must remember that he cannot always get his own way with everything – he can scream and stamp his feet as much as he likes, but it doesn’t mean he’ll get what he wants.

Well done, Vinay!  You have had a wonderful few months and everybody loves you!