Little learners

For all the frustrations that come with two-year-olds, this age also can be quite fun. Two-year-olds are exuberant — they feel frustration to the maximum (hence the tantrums), but they also radiate excitement about so many things. And they’re so proud as they master new tasks. It’s fun to watch them learn and grow.

John and I were commenting last night about how far the twins have come with their swimming. In just about one year, we have gone from Colin screaming through at least half the class (from the side of the pool, not in the water) to him putting his face in the water while swimming using the noodles. And Veronica is getting so comfortable that during our last class, there were several points where I was barely providing any support to her while she was swimming. She hasn’t quite gotten to the point of putting her head under water, but she is otherwise still quite the little fish. 

Colin has gotten quite far in his mastery of letter and number recognition. If he feels like focusing (the key in all things for Colin, who is simultaneously more laid back and more stubborn), he can correctly identify nearly all the letters and he rarely misses a number. Veronica struggles quite a bit with this, but she is spot-on with her colors (where Colin has problems). Both are regularly able to count three objects now, and do so at every opportunity.

Colin’s vocabulary has once again exploded, although he can still be hard to understand sometimes. I was listening to him last night after dinner and was blown away by how much he now says. And to think that in the fall we were worried he might be falling behind in speech. Ha! 

Veronica, of course, talks like a 10-year-old (okay, maybe just like a five-year-old). Her perception (and her hearing) is quite impressive. She always is listening to what is going on around her, and is able to make sense of it and bring back what she has heard correctly in a different context. 

The constant chorus of “no” and the tantrums about every little thing do get annoying (really annoying when it’s happening repeatedly times two), but when Veronica crawls into my lap before bed and tells me, “I love you so much, Mommy,” it all becomes worthwhile.