James is 2 Years Old

How is it possible that my sweet little baby is two years old?  He grows and changes so much each day.  I love him more than ever and enjoy him so much.  Yes, discipline is part of our daily routine, but I see him growing and I know that what I'm doing today will pay off in the future (or at least I tell myself that to stay sane).  What's going on with my two year old?

- He has suddenly become the climber.  I was cooking his eggs the other morning and I turned around from the stove and he was standing on the bar stool!  Ahhhh!  He loves going to parks and playing on playground equipment - I guess that's where he gets his desire to climb?

- His favorite food is still eggs.  This was one of the first foods he ever ate and it still keeps him happy each morning.  For breakfast, he usually shares a few apple slices with peanut butter with me, he eats 2 eggs, a few pieces of cheese, some fruit, and a muffin.  The kid loves breakfast.  For lunch and dinner, he usually eats what we are eating.  Sometimes he doesn't like what we eat, so I try to give him another healthy option like veggies, fruit, and a sandwich.  

- He loves to go places.  He really enjoys going to church.  He goes to church obviously on Sundays, but I have MOPS twice a month and sometimes he goes for my Bible study too.  Other places we go during the week include the Science Center, the Children's Museum, or city parks.  He recognizes these places when we drive up and gets very excited about it.

- He naps each day from 1-4 (Thank you, Jesus!).  He's always ready for his nap.  He happily sits in his crib, lets me read one book to him, and then lays down for me to put his blanket over him.  The kid loves his sleep.

- He's becoming a great big brother.  He always wants to know where the baby is if he's not obviously in the room.  Yesterday, I asked James for a kiss.  He wouldn't give me a kiss until he gave his brother a hug and a kiss.  Luke was swinging in the swing yesterday and James put his favorite book (Red Truck) on top of Luke.  He loves to cover Luke with blankets.  I have to remind him to keep the blankets away from his face.  He is so sweet in so many ways.  But he's also still a crazy boy who doesn't realize that his brother is a newborn.  This morning, Luke was on the bean bag and James jumped on the bean bag beside him and their heads hit.  They were both crying.  And I have to be the guard if Luke is doing tummy time because James tries to jump on him and ride him like a horse.  It's so funny!  Thankfully, Luke is pretty tough and chill about his brother terrorizing him.

- James is talking so much more. He was only saying a handful of words 6 months ago, but so much has changed.  He can say a lot more now.  He still mostly just says words and only a few two word phrases.  It's interesting to see the words he decides to use.  The food words he uses on a regular basis are: cheese, chicken, bacon, eggs, orange, apple, honey, bread, and rice.  I'm sure there are others, but the point is - these are his favorite foods!  He doesn't ask for cucumber, broccoli, or peppers - he does eat those foods, but they are not his favorites.  It's very exciting to hear him develop his vocabulary.

- He LOVES to help us do anything and everything.  He helps us cook a lot.  Tonight we made breakfast for dinner and he helped make the pancakes.  He helps us clean, he helps do laundry, he helps Ray in the yard move leaves and sticks, he brings me diapers for Luke, he helps empty the dishwasher, basically, he does whatever we ask him to do and it's wonderful.  I love that aspect of this age. 

- He loves playing outside.  I'm really happy we have a fenced in backyard.  He enjoys chasing our cat out of the yard.  He loves to climb up his swing set and go down the slide.  He likes to play in his playhouse.  He loves to just run around.  He likes pushing his wheelbarrow.

- He has changed from sitting in a high chair to a booster seat.  I think he really likes the booster seat.  But his favorite way to eat is just standing in a chair pulled up to the bar. 

- He enjoys playing with other kids.  His closest friends are boys.  I think it's because James likes to play really rough and he's wild and likes to run around.  Sometimes girls are more shy or reserved and James is quite the opposite - he is wide open all the time.

- He can also play on his own very well.  He's starting to get into imaginative play which is so much fun to watch.  We bought him a kitchen for his birthday and it's great to see him pretend cooking and eating.  He shares his food with us too.  He gives Luke lots of pretend food. 

- He also has new love for trucks.  He loves looking at trucks when we are outside.  When he hears a truck pass our house, he wants to see it and always tells me "Truck!" - It's amazing how well he can hear. I don't even notice trucks passing, but he can always hear the garbage truck or other big trucks.

- He has started trying to count things.  He counts everything, but he can only go to 3.  It's funny though because he points to things and he's counting out loud, but it doesn't make sense after he gets to 3. 

- He tries to imitate everything we do.  When I was working out one time and doing squats, he stood beside me and started doing squats.  When we make funny faces, he tries to make them back at us.  He sees how we treat Luke and tries to do it too (rock him, tell him "shhh", or pat him to tell him it's ok). 

- He's very tough.  He falls a lot because he tries to run everywhere and he's still a little clumsy, but he almost never cries.  He gets right back up and keeps going.  If he cries, I know he's hurting.

This is him with his eyes locked on the leaf sucking truck today:

Hanging out in the front seat while I was nursing Luke.  He's easily entertained by all the buttons - especially the ones controlling the window.

He loves the Children's Museum - I can't get a picture of him being still there at all.

I love him so much!

And this is his face when you ask him to say "cheese!"  He loved helping me decorate more Christmas cookies.

The kid climbs.  He got on top of this bookshelf one day.  It was all too quiet in the playroom.  I moved the chair, so *for now* it's childproof.

 He loves his play kitchen!

 Climbing again! 

 Helping dad make popcorn.  We let him watch the Curious George Christmas movie and eat popcorn a few days before Christmas.  He loved it!

 He loves watching things bake in the oven... especially things he helps make. 

 James is so wonderful.  He is full of energy, curiosity, passion, and love.  We love everything about him.  Tonight when I was putting him to bed, I was getting ready to lay him down and he said "pray!" because I forgot to pray with him.  He is so sweet.  I love him so much and I hope that we raise him well.