How on earth is Rex already turning 2?!? I guess it fits that he’s finally lost his old moniker of “Baby Rex” already. It’s so sad how short lived that was! At two years old, Rex is now a fast paced fireball full of energy, fun and T-R-O-U-B-L-E!!!

Do you remember us calling him Turd Ferguson?  Well, we still do. He’s such a little turd sometimes! So let’s go ahead and get the trouble part out of the way first. Although he is a very sweet boy with a loving heart, there is nothing gentle about his touch. Again, he is best described as a bull in a china cabinet, a blender without a lid, or Lennie Small in Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. Sadly, it is Ty Baby who falls victim to the tiny but mighty hands of Toddzilla 2.0 (Landri used to be Toddzilla 1.0 and has been slowly transitioning out of that phase thank goodness!). Not an hour goes by where I do not catch Rex “playing” with Ty Baby in an inappropriate and unsafe manner. Rex enjoys riding Ty like a horse while Ty (who still cannot crawl) lies helpless on his stomach. If Ty is on his back, Rex will sit and bounce up and down on Ty’s stomach! Also, a normal part of Toddzilla 2.0’s routine – and it usually starts as “petting,” ultimately ends up with Rex whacking Ty on the head and/or face repeatedly. You see, it starts out innocently enough (the petting) which usually makes Ty giggle, and then in an effort to maintain the laughter, Rex gets super excited and strikes harder and harder until he is the only one still laughing. I’ve also seen Rex stomp on Ty’s back or stomach depending on how Ty is lying down. Same thing there – I think gentle toe tickles make Ty laugh at first, but actual stomps make Ty cry. Rex escalates nearly all “play” situations with poor Ty Baby quite quickly until half of the parties involved are screaming and in tears. Rex has also figured out how to do an actual FLIP into Ty’s crib for bedtime assaults.  Wait – who am I kidding.  Ty still sleeps in a pack and play not a real crib, ha!  But seriously though, I need to get Rex’s flip into it on video – it’s impressive but scary too because sometimes Ty’s body is what breaks Rex’s fall. Ty is literally never safe from an attack by Toddzilla. Rex also hangs on Ty’s stroller such that he’s flipped it over a few times – also terrifying. At least he hasn’t let Ty fly down a hill unassisted like Landri did to Rex as a baby (see story here). Another example of our little trouble maker was when Rex fell into the pool during Landri’s swim lesson (Rex was not taking lessons at the time). He was using a baby doll as a ball to shoot hoops with and it fell in the pool. He reached for it and fell in. My mom instinct immediately struck and instead of waiting to see if he remembered his floating skills from last year, I sprang into action and jumped in to rescue him – full clothes, shoes, socks, etc. Worst part is that he really didn’t even care. He wasn’t startled, scared, shocked, nothing. Just concerned about shooting that damn baby doll in the basket. Here’s him telling about it. And in case you’re wondering, his second sentence in the video is, “I picked a big pizza.”

Besides being a holy terror most of the time, Rex also has a few new bad habits. He has mastered the defiant “No!!!” that toddlers learn to scream repeatedly while not cooperating and also loves to silently and violently shake his head no as another way to show his displeasure with a situation (see video). He still tries to climb into the fireplace despite the awesome screen my father in law custom built for us. Rex also now removes clothing (the bottom half usually) as well as his diaper. And yes he takes off poopy diapers and proceeds to create terrible situations for me to clean. And it’s also not unusual for him to dig into a dirty diaper in an effort to remove it. PS. I HATE scrubbing poop out from under his fingernails.  This morning was an extra special treat.  Upon getting him this morning in their room (L&R are sharing a room) they both not only removed all of their clothes, but Rex stepped up his game by taking a dump directly on the carpet.  So. What is the moral of the story? This kid needs more than just 24/7 supervision. More like what I call 86,400/7 supervision (yes, that’s how many seconds there are in a day – he must be watched every second).

I know I haven’t painted the best picture of our sweet little Rex, but he isn’t always a crazy monster!  He is one of the most adorable small humans even when tearing up the place.  And he sure gives good hugs and kisses and is so cute when he uses his manners (which he is getting pretty good at)!  He also can be quite sweet and always wants to check on Ty-Ty and sometimes even gets concerned if Ty is crying.  He adores Landri and I would say that she just might be his best friend at the moment.  He copies almost everything she does and always talks about her.  And speaking of talking, Rex’s language is blowing up.  He says all kinds of stuff and can repeat anything and everything.  He’s been saying, “I am birthday boy,” all week. So dang cute!

Rex still loves shooting hoops and as mentioned earlier, doesn’t discriminate as to what object he uses as a ball if a ball is unavailable. He’s even trying to learn to dribble. He also enjoys T ball, place kicking the football, riding bikes (not real ones yet but things like tricycles), and playing with cars, trucks and tractors. He finally quit his job as President & CEO of B.A.L.L., or the Babies Against Literacy League, and now enjoys books and actually begs to read stories. The Little Blue Truck is his favorite.

There are a few things Rex still isn’t a big fan of besides being restrained. Haircuts and the leaf blower probably tie for first place. He looks so sharp after a fresh haircut too – I wish we could get them all the time but it’s not worth the tantrum he throws. Here’s a video of him after his last one. Adorable. And if you’re ever playing outside and are ready to go back inside, all you have to do is get the leaf blower and Rex will bolt into the house. Otherwise, it’s an atomic tantrum to get back inside. Maybe I need to threaten the leaf blower for not eating his veggies, haha!!

Scott Says…

M: Could you please describe Rex as a two year old in a couple sentences.
S: Wild untamed beast.
M: That’s one sentence fragment.
S: He’s all boy.
M: A few sentences.
S: Talks a lot.

M: What is the cutest thing about Rex?
S: I don’t know. A lot.
M: Like what?
S: Some of the things he says. What he looks like.

M: What’s most frustrating about Rex?
S: He’s a little bit destructive.

M: What is Rex’s best skill?
S: Probably talking and hooping.

M: What is Rex’s biggest development opportunity?
S: Um…I don’t know. Driving a car. Dressing himself.

M: What is his worst habit?
S: Probably throwing his sippy cup or food on the ground.

M: What do you look forward to the most in the next year with Rex?
S: Becoming more self-sufficient and having more self-awareness.