Talk, talk, talk

Charlie very much looks up to his big brother and follows and copies him in so many funny ways. For instance, Charlie - who is the messiest eater on the planet - refuses (and I mean refuses) to wear a bib at meal times in spite of us buying an almost hazmat-type-bib which we hoped would cut down on the washing by a factor of 10. He will, though, wear one when he sees Raf put one on! Poor Raf willingly faces the indignity of wearing a bib in order to encourage his brother.

Charlie is also a little daredevil and recently started to fling himself off from high places (beds, steps, shopping trolleys, etc) and trusts that you will catch him, no matter that you're holding a trillion things, have the dogs, and are only paying half attention. The good thing is that when Charlie has an accident, he gets over it incredibly quickly. Blood can be gushing out of his leg or head and after a brief cry he will stop, and often laugh, especially if you ask, 'Charlie, did you bang your head again?'/ He's such a funny boy.

I really wanted to blog about how much his language has exploded this past couple of months. Raf was such a late bloomer in this regard, and I don't think he was properly talking until he was aged 3, or more. Charlie is very different, and while understanding him often relies on context, this is getting less and less so. He's putting many words together, understands so, so much (which I keep forgetting!!), and is very good at communicating his needs. For such similar boys, this has so far been the most significant difference between raising them. 

Hearing the boys have little conversations is very sweet, and often funny. Raf shows remarkable patience, but I often hear him saying things such as, 'just one more time, Charles' as he puts together a train for Charlie, mimicking, I think, things I've said to Raf as I put together the same toy for the hundredth time. Invariably, just as I do, Raf consents to putting the train together another time. Raf is also the only person who seems to call Charlie 'Charles'. They're such funny, lovely boys.