Raghav has become very engaged with his surroundings this month. He has finally started taking an interest in his toys, beyond trying to eat them. If you do the stacking for him, he unstacks. Which basically means he throws things about one at a time, with great nonchalance. When I try to teach him to put them back, he still thinks he's meant to throw them out.
He's started taking things out of the big box in which his toys are kept (albiet on his way to chewing the box).
Sense of humour
He's also started playing peek-a-boo in order to make us laugh. The first time he did it when we'd just given him a bath and were dressing him on the changing table. He was sleepy and therefore cranky, so I tried to distract him by lightly putting a towel on his face. And next thing I knew he was sweeping the towel off his face, again and again, and saying "aah!" every time he revealed his face. He would then stretch his little arms completely to cover his face again, and then throw the towel off with a jerk and an "aah!", like he'd seen us do all these months with him. It was like he'd been observing us all this while, and has finally decided to ingratiate us.
Soon enough, he realised we were laughing anyhow, and decided to just do a cursory job. He now mostly just does it lazily, sometimes not even waiting till his face is covered.
The other night I was putting him to sleep, patting him on his stomach and head, when he just took my hand and covered his eyes with it and started playing peek-a-boo!
He plays peek-a-boo almost anywhere and with anyone now. He always plays in the tram, sometimes even on his own when no one's paying attention.
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| I like it bare |
He's most cheerful when looking at other people in the tram, and always tries to catch someone's attention, whether or not they're looking at him. And if they are, he will go all out to charm them, smiling and trying to play peek-a-boo with them constantly till they give up and move on.
He laughs now when you make funny faces at him. He especially laughs when you wear sunglasses, because he probably thinks they've been put on to make him laugh. When he's being most difficult at the changing table (it's almost impossible to change him alone now, he's constantly trying to get up and climb onto things) if I make the coooo-chook-chook train noise, he looks really interested and even laughs. He also loves when you blow bubbles at him. He's learned now how to look up at the ceiling (as in, that there can be something above his head also) and is constantly looking up at the bubbles and trying to grab them. And then he winces when they burst too close to his face.
The Foodie
Raghav is a big foodie as of now. Although his appetite for his own food has sort of settled down, he's still very interested in what the other person is eating. The moment he hears the rustling of a chips packet, or a biscuit bag, he gingerly sits down from wherever he's standing and then comes to you enthusiastically, smiling and trying to act all cute. He'll then standing holding on to your knee and keep trying to woo you with his cuteness into giving him a bite. He'll literally try to climb on you and grab the bag from your hands, all the while calling out to you to give him something.
Fascinated
He especially loves watching other children now. When I take him to the park, that's his most favourite activity. I'd have him on the swing, but he'd be looking at the kids next to him on the see-saw.
I took him to Parc des Bastions the other day, and tried to put him on the ground next to the sand pit so that he would cruise holding a risen cemented platform if he wanted, but the ground was pebbled and dusty - he didn't like standing. So ,for the next half hour he just stood holding me, eating my t-shirt and looking around at the other kids playing.
When he goes to his playgroup, Fiona (the loud excited one who's his age, but still used to scare him at the beginning) flaps her hands and feet about when she sees him come in. They play together all day, and the other day when I went to pick him up she started crying when she saw him leave!
Don't "no" what you mean...
Raghav has started understanding what the word "no" means, but he doesn't necessarily obey it. There's a mesh of wires in the corridor, all kept in a basket, that Raghav tries to stand holding. Every time he leaves the room when you're still playing with him, he heads for the basket. It's the only thing I vehemently say "no" about for now.
His reaction to the "no" depends on his mood.
Sometimes he moves along as soon as he hears it.
Sometimes he moves away and then tries to get to it from another angle where he thinks you can't see him!
Sometimes he just smiles at you and goes for it anyway (he thinks it's all a big joke).
Sometimes when I jerk him away from it (just for impact, so that he gets the message) he lets out a short but sharp cry.
The other day I was working in the study room and he was playing there. I'd got all his toys there, so that he'd remain in that room. But he wanted to hang from the potted plant that was also kept in that room. I said "no" a few times, and he finally left it alone, giving me the impression that he wasn't interested in it any more. He played there in that room for a good hour or so (without once trying his hand at the plant again), before I decided to take him for a walk outside. I went to collect his things, when I distinctly heard chomping. I rushed to the study and caught him with mud from the plant all over his hands and mouth. He was chomping away noisily, and waiting to waiting to put some more in his mouth.
