Toby turned 2 years old on 3 October.
He started school the same day.
Starting school has been a breeze thanks to having big brother there by his side.
Everyday Jude walks Toby up to his classroom. No tears or clinging to Mom. They hug and kiss me and are off. It’s a wonderful feeling to leave happy kids.
Toby’s teacher, Miss Kitty, says that the first thing Toby does everyday is paint.
She sends us a weekly email with photos and info on what he’s been up to.
They go on field trips once a week, which she said Toby just loves.
They also bake bread or some kind of of snack almost everyday.
Toby tells me about all his friends. Miss Kitty said he is very chatty with them even though they are speaking different languages.
It seems like the right thing for Toby at the right time. I pick them up at Noon everyday and they are excited to share all the things they did.
Apart from school, Toby is all about his bike and scooter. He has mastered the scooter and now is really mastering the balance bike. He’s going down hills and getting quite fast. When we run errands, he insists on riding his bike while Jude and I walk.
At 2 years old Toby is an awesome sleeper. He doesn’t always get to bed on time as him and Jude are so chatty. He loves his cloud pillow from Ikea (which he calls his ‘sunshine’). He loves lots of blankets and things to cuddle with.
He is a fantastic eater. We haven’t had any mealtime battles with him yet. The only issue is that he won’t eat a green veggie when it is out in the open on its own. So I dice them up and add them to rice or pasta and they go down just fine. 
He loves to draw and paint. He will happily sit for an hour working on a picture.
He loves water – bath time and swimming. I took the boys swimming earlier this month and Toby was a total independent little fish. He has his little wings on and was happily floating around and dunking under without a worry.
Toby is really into his things. He likes to have hats on this head or sunglasses and keep them on. He carries his sunshine pillow around all morning and then slowly piles more things into his arms. He inevitably starts dropping things and then cries because he get it back into his grip. So I have started giving him a little bag to put his things in. I know its normal at this age. He is not interested in sharing with Jude and feels comforted by his possessions.
Toby can still throw great fits. He is so much better than before but he can still really make it rain. We get a lot of crocodile tears from him and it’s usually something Jude has done to upset him.
But Toby has matured a lot, even things like haircuts (which used to be unbearable) are no problem now.
Toby can be shy around people but he is outgoing when it comes to trying new things. He’s fearless on the playground. He loves climbing high and going down big slides.
Toby loves being helpful, and since school has started he has been refusing to let me help him do things for him, like put on or take off his shoes. It’s been awesome. He’s getting better and better at pulling his pants up after the potty.
At 2, Jude is still the center of Toby’s universe. He loves his brother so much. I hope this bond never changes between them. They are always looking out for one another. If I give Toby a snack he will immediately ask where Jude’s snack is. If Toby falls down Jude will cry out for him as he is so upset by Toby being in pain.
Toby’s actual birthday was a bit crazy this year as I was in hospital due to a burst ovarian cyst. Despite the drama, we still managed to celebrate his bday spread out over the week. 
Once I was recovered, I baked this. Toby is our little dinosaur. He loves to ‘roarrrrr’.
We invited best buddy Jessica over to celebrate with us and we all had a great time.
Happy Birthday, Toby! We love you!
Five years in Taiwan 