Entering Toddlerhood with Twins at 14 Months Old
Everything is changing. They are starting to walk, babble with greater intention, and expereince every emotion with more intensity. Toddlerhood is among us with our twins at 14 months old! As new skills develop every day, it is clear that having an environment that supports that development is so helpful in the process. Let’s look at the newest advancements as our twins entered toddlerhood!
Physical Development
Physical changes are gradual but when you see new skills and positioning that they weren’t doing a few days ago, it is very exciting! I remember when the boys were learning to sit up and crawl it was lots of smaller motions that were getting established first. Then one day, all those little movements connected to form a bigger motion. Every baby is so different and we can support them wherever they are in their development with an environment that allows for freedom of movement and exploration.
At the beginning of their 14th month, they were not walking independently. They would walk along the perimeter of a room, supporting themselves with the wall. There has been lots of movement from different pieces of furniture as well. I would observe them standing unassisted holding a toy and playing with it. They started to squat down from a standing position without holding onto anything. Their ability to climb up onto things improved and by the end of the month they were taking multiple steps from one object to another.
Routines
Young children have a strong sense of order. They thrive on routines and things happening the same way day after day. I have seen the benefits of some of our daily routines that the boys have very much internalized and are now helping direct in some ways. We have a bedtime basket. It has the book we read before bed, toothbrushes, toothpaste, some Holy Water, and Blessed oil. The basket sits on top of their dresser. My son will point to it when it is time to get it down and hold the basket up as if he is trying to put it away when we are done. In this routine, they love to put the objects back into the basket when they are done using them.
Another task they love to help with is cleaning up spills. They drink from an open cup and sometimes, well many times, they have spills. We always keep a towel close by and offer it to them. They “pat, pat, pat” it up dry. We try to respond to these instances without drama and just respond to them as a problem we can solve. They are very willing and eager to share in the process.
The dressing process has continued to evolve. There is a strong interest in socks and putting them on their feet. They will lift their foot and sort of press the sock into their foot. I will slowly help them to put their sock on. The slow modeling of these more challenging dressing tasks is important for them to absorb the process of getting dressed.
Communication
It has been such a fun transition to have two small people who understand what you are saying a lot of the time. We have been using simple baby sign language like “more“, “all done“, “water“, “eat” “milk“, and “please“. We have been consistently signing each day since around 6 months old. One day this month, they started using the signs as well! They so clearly signed for “MORE” at mealtime. It was a reminder to me that the things we do every day may not have an immediate payoff, but it is impacting them. They are absorbing everything around them!
It seems that a few words are also being said. My all-time favorite is when one of my boys says, “Yea“. When I ask, “Do you want a snack?” I receive the most articulate and sweet “Yea.” Mama and Dada have been others they say at times. One day I made some crackers for the boys and now they will say “Cra-ka”. You can see the amount of accomplishment they feel when they communicate something and you know what they mean. They seem to be gaining a strong sense of the call-and-response nature of conversations.
This month I have observed that they will obey simple commands such as, “When you are finished with your water, please hand me the cup.” Then they will place their cup in our hands. They can also work with us to clean up toys. At this time I’m not emphasizing that we are “cleaning up”, it looks more like handing them an object or pointing to an object and asking them to put it in the basket or on the shelf. Sometimes they are interested in helping other times they aren’t and that is okay at this stage.
Sleep and Breastfeeding
This month was a challenging transition month going from two to one nap a day. It was inconsistent from day to day. Some days they would take one nap and then others it would still be two. That later nap would get later and later making it challenging because it would affect bedtime. Once they made that transition to one nap, I saw their one nap lengthen in duration naturally, which was exciting. Somedays it was 2 or 3 hours! They are still sleeping on their floor bed and love to look out the window before they fall asleep.
This month I have slowly been dropping some of the nursing sessions in the day. By the end of their 14th month, we are nursing one time a day in the morning when they wake up. I plan to keep this nursing session for a few more months until we get back from a big trip. After that, I plan to wean completely before I go away on a ladies’ weekend later this spring. I have loved our breastfeeding journey but I also have enjoyed not having it be part of so many aspects of our day. I savor our morning time together while I sip my coffee and rock with my boys. It is one of the calmest moments of the day.
Practical Activities in the Day
There has been lots of activities that have been being refined and enjoyed from 14 to 15 months. Here are some of our favorites.
Egg Transfering
We have a basket that we transfer eggs out of the carton and into. The boys helped with this transfer. A few eggs were broken a little, but they loved to help with the process.
Knobbed Puzzles
Puzzles have been more of an interest this month. Rather than just mouthing the puzzle pieces, they are interested in trying to get the pieces back into their frame. I like the wooden puzzles with chunky knobs.
Ring Stacker
Our ring stacker has been on the shelf all month! This is a toy that they have gotten increasingly more proficient at. I love the natural repetition that is built into this toy and the concentration and dexterity that it requires. A variation of a ring stacker is a Spin-A-Gain which is a larger version of a ring stacker. The rings spin down the dowel, making it a very intriguing toy.
Washing Windows
The boys have enjoyed wiping windows. I’ll spray their spray bottle of water and they will wipe it clean. Practical life activities are becoming more and more doable and fun for the boys.
