When S turned 2 1/2 years old he started to change remarkably. Something clicked and he went through a bit of a personality change. Up until that age, he was painfully shy and often clingy. It would often take him a long time to adjust to a new situation or new people. Now he's much more outgoing and adventurous.
And someone turned on the verbal tap and has left it on. S is a chatterbox. He is constantly talking with us or whoever he's with and when he's playing on his own. He picks up vocabulary quickly and uses them in context. He's shocked us often with new words or when he uses parts of speech that you don't usually hear 3 year olds use ("otherwise", "actually"). And lately he's picked up phrases that are quite entertaining: "Mommy, I don't feel like talking right now. I'm tired.", "It seems like he [new stuffed animal chick] needs a bath.", "This is the best chocolate cookie I ever had!!"
We love 3! Fewer tantrums. More independence. More conversations. More humour. S is fine company now. Before it was more about taking care of him but now there's more companionship. Mind you, there is a lot of caregiving that still takes place but everything seems so much more manageable now.
We actually feel like we have a bit more control over our lives again. And that those 2 a.m. feeds and 8 diaper changes/day are finally worth it!