Daniel At Two

Written by Gerard on Tuesday 4 September 2007

There are points in the parenting cycle I love and those I don't. Most men I speak to seem to agree that the baby stage is hard to deal with - the crying, the tantrums and the dirty nappies. And that's just their wives.

Seriously though, the first couple of years are the hardest as far as I'm concerned. Daniel had his second birthday last week. A milestone by any standard, but it seems to be marked by how quickly he's progressing lately.

His speech is improving. And as he learns to communicate better, gone is the frustrated toddler of only a few months ago. We're catching him repeating words all the time - from our conversations, from the kids and of course from the television. At the same time, his comprehension is improving too - you can ask him to carry out some simple tasks (like putting his dirty clothes in the wash basket) and he'll do them. With a smile on his face.

He's enjoying some horseplay. At this stage, he's really loving wrestling and toy fighting and riding around the living room on my back. I think this is the first time we've really got into this type of play with Daniel, and he really loves it.

He's sitting on the toilet. We let him dander around the living room with his nappy off the other day, and put him on the toilet (with one of those toddler seats). He wasn't too fussed until we started clapping him, then a great big grin spread across his face and suddenly he liked it. He even managed to go once, and so we've let him wear a pair of pants around the house for limited periods of time.

He's sitting at the dinner table. Lisa's friend Noreen passed down a dining room table at the weekend, and now Daniel has taken up residence at the head of the table instead of his high chair. He looks very comfortable there too, as he plasters himself in potatoes and then scavenges food from everybody else's plate.

So, all in all this is a great stage for Dan. Becoming more independent and enjoying his newfound freedoms.