Here’s the last known picture of me as an only child!  This was taken when I woke up around 7:30 a.m. the morning of September 25 (Mommy and Daddy had left for the hospital an hour or so earlier).  The look on my face clearly shows that I have no idea how much my world is about to change.

I have had SOME sort of an inkling that something’s up, and I’ve been extra needy this past month, demanding to be carried everywhere (“uppie!”).  Other than that I’ve been a happy little guy, content to kick a ball around the living room for hours at a time.  I have a made-up word that I use to describe any big or impressive kick … I call it a “blato.”

On the emotional front, I’m now able to mimic happy and sad faces when Mommy asks me what they look like, and I’ve been reading “Don’t Cry, Big Bird,” at night, so I’m getting fairly astute at pointing out what it looks like when someone is sad or crying.  When I want to make Mommy happy I’ll come over to her and pat her back, saying “you’re my best friend.”

Current likes: my Avengers pajamas, dumping all of my toys into one big pile (I call this “making a family”)

Current dislikes: walking anywhere when I could be carried, picking up my toys

No idea what’s about to hit him …

Papa and YiaYia are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this year, and they took all the kids and grandkids on a trip to the Bahamas to celebrate!  Of course I couldn’t make the trip without getting sick, so I wound up visiting a clinic for an ear infection and croupy cough.  But I didn’t let that keep me down too much.  I LOVED the aquarium, and can’t stop talking about all the fish I saw there … stingrays, grouper fish, even a scuba man.

At two years three months, I’m undergoing some big developmental changes.  My language skills can’t always keep up with my brain, so I’ll stutter from time to time (“you, you, you saw that, Mama?”)  I’ve also developed a noise sensitivity, and when I’m feeling overwhelmed or tired, I cover my ears with my hands.  One noise I don’t mind, however, is thunder (I call it “under”).  The summer thunderstorms have been rolling through Upstate New York, and there were plenty of them in the Bahamas, too!  I usually laugh with Mommy at the thunder storms, and declare them “not scary.”

In my sweetest moments I’ll run over to the people I love and bring them one of my toys, saying, “something special for you, Dada?”  I like receiving special things too, and one of my favorites is decaf coffee!

Current likes: building pillow forts

Current dislikes: anything excessively noisy

At just over two years old we have officially entered the land of “why?”  I ask this question after almost every sentence I hear, and my curiosity never seems satisfied by the response I get.  My other favorite phrase is “did you see that, Mama/Dada?”  I ask this constantly, especially if I’m jumping off of something or performing some other antics that I’d like to have witnessed.

I’m getting into imaginative play, and I especially like to pretend with food.  My favorite place in the world to go is Adams Fairacre Farms, so if you ask me where I’m going in my plastic car, I’ll always tell you “to Adams!”  If my cousin Max will give me a lift in his green Jeep, then that’s all the better!  Sometimes I’ll grab Mommy’s diaper bag and announce that I’m running over to the grocery store, too.  And don’t get me started on Mommy’s credit cards.  I love playing with those so that I can pretend to “pay money” for my imaginary groceries.

I’ve definitely noticed that Mommy is pregnant.  If you ask me what’s in her belly I’ll usually tell you “stretch marks!” but then I’ll also tell you there’s a baby girl in there.  The best part about my Mommy being pregnant is definitely the fact that her coworker gave her a pink glow worm for the baby (I’ve stolen it for myself).  I love my “lerms” to death, and I soothe myself to sleep at night by playing both of them simultaneously.

Current likes: Adams and the “Glow Lerms”

Current dislikes: When Mommy won’t empty her wallet so that I can have the blue credit card I like

But nothing a little nap can’t solve!

It’s tough work being two/pregnant!

Mommy went to Boston for the first two weeks of June to participate in the Harvard MDP Program, which means Daddy and I were on our own – living the lives of bachelors!  Naturally this means we went out for burgers and animal crackers.  We did meet up with her in Syracuse over the weekend, though.  We went to the Rosamond Gifford Zoo together (I really liked watching the penguins) and Sno Top (I really liked getting soft serve!)

I’m getting to be a pretty big kid now, and at two years one month old, I’m very conversant.  When I want to agree with something, I parrot what I hear my Mommy say (“mmhmm, yeah”).  But I don’t only talk about things I like – I’m the first to let you know when you’ve done something I disagree with, too!  One thing I’ve been talking to everyone about is the fact that I don’t always want to take my afternoon nap, and when people try to make me take one, I rebel by saying “no, no, no, no.  You go!  Go away … o’er dere!”  Just to make sure my displeasure has been noted.

Current likes: Getting my own ice cream cone all to myself.

Current dislikes: “mokito bikes” (mosquito bites) … a hazard of summer.

All of my grandparents, plus Aunt DeDe and Uncle Charlie, rented a house on Seneca Lake.  It was super fun!  I didn’t get to taste any wine, but I did take my first canoe ride, and got to wear my sunglasses (or my “cool dudes,” as I call them).

Just about a week after I turned two – and as Mommy was getting ready for her trip to Boston – she found a huge tick inside my left ear!  I was a total trooper about the situation, and was very calm as they removed it at pediatric urgent care.  Mommy blamed my shaggy hair for allowing the tick to crawl in, which means I had to go get a haircut the very next day.  This was my third haircut, but my first without tears!  Here’s the before and after of my new ‘do.  Now I’m telling everyone who’ll listen, “I had a tick in my ear!”

I turned 23 months old on April 22, 2015 … I can almost see two years old from here!

I am really loving the warmer weather, and I can be heard asking “outside?”  almost constantly.  My favorite outdoor activities include going to the playground and sliding down the big slide, blowing bubbles, and collecting rocks (especially “stripey ones”).

As for indoor pastimes, I love playing with the bucket of animals Mimi got me for Easter.  I like to line them up, put the “mommies” and “daddies” together, and make them kiss each other as friends.  I also love playing with stickers, by which I mean sticking them everywhere … my nose, the stove, the carpet, you name it!

I’m still very communicative, speaking in 4-6 word sentences most of the time now.  I understand how to communicate my emotions, such as “sad,” “scary,” and “funny,” and I’ll share my feelings when asked.  I also recently discovered how to whisper, and I really like to tell Mommy and Daddy “secrets.”

Current likes: chatting!

Current dislikes: not being answered when I am chatting (I just repeat my earlier sentiment more loudly until I get satisfaction).

I turned twenty two months old on March 22, 2015.  Thanks to a recent visit to the doctor – courtesy of yet another ear infection – Mommy and Daddy know that I weigh about 27.1 pounds.    Since the weather still isn’t nice enough here for me to play outdoors with any regularity, I’ve been entertaining myself with indoor sports.  This usually includes racing around the house and demanding to be tickled (I don’t seem to understand yet that tickling is torture, so as soon as the tickler stops attacking me I turn around and say “more!”).  I’ve also figured out how to “jump,” although I put in quite a bit of effort and never manage to get more than about an inch off the floor.  Usually my jumping ends with me in a pile on the floor laughing maniacally and proclaiming “Jack fall down!”

My collection of three word sentences has dramatically expanded over the past month, and I have a lot more verbs that I use correctly in conversation.  I offer comments like, “I see it,” Dada build it,” and “I need more.” My favorite phrase has got to be “Happy Birthday” at the moment, and I enjoy wishing people Happy Birthday (and singing the birthday song) regardless of whether they’re actually celebrating anything.

Perhaps the cutest thing I’ve been doing recently is asking to snuggle.  I’ve never been an especially cuddly baby or toddler, so Mommy and Daddy are liking this current phase.  Most mornings my first action when Mommy wakes me up to get ready for school is to grab my blankie and ask “Dada snuggle?”  This cuteness is coinciding with a rather clingy phase, however, and I’m capable of epic meltdowns at daycare drop-off or anytime I believe I’m being left.

Here are a few photos of me from our recent trip to Washington, D.C.  The weather is warmer there, so I got to do some fun outdoor activities like playing at the park and visiting the National Zoo.  I was quite taken by all the animals, and I’ve been telling anyone who will listen all about the lion, tiger, “bob kit-cat,” alligator, zebra, elephant, panda, and monkey I saw.

Current likes:  Everybody being together all the time

Current dislikes:  Solitude, personal space

If you ask my parents to describe me as a 21-month-old, they will probably say “busy!”  I’m into everything these days, to the point where it’s become hard to capture any pictures of me.  If there are pictures, they’re usually a blur, because I’m a man on the move.  I’ve recently figured out how to climb/scramble up onto the furniture independently, which means I’ve discovered new and exciting ways to injure myself.  (That’s the other reason why pictures of me are few and far between … as a clumsy and rambunctious toddler, it’s rare that I make it home from daycare without a new stain, scratch, bump, or bruise!)

In my calmer moments, I really enjoy identifying letters of the alphabet.  Whether it’s my foam bath toys, the mat of my playroom, or a menu at a restaurant, I love picking out the letters I know and shouting them out.  My favorites include B, E, I, J, M, O, R, S, T, and Y, but I can pick out almost the entire alphabet correctly the majority of the time I’m asked.  My vocabulary has also exploded to easily over 100 words, to the point where Mommy and Daddy don’t keep track of my new words anymore, since I’m adding them at such a fast pace.  I’m also starting to communicate in three word sentences, such as “more juice, please,” “I see it,” and “thank you, Dada!”  I’m pretty good with the pleases, thank yous, and excuse mes, especially if I think my politeness may earn me an extra animal cracker or two.

I’m also starting to engage in imaginative play, and I like to spend time in my kitchen, cooking plastic fish soup.  This mostly entails a lot of vigorous stirring and tasting.  When I am satisfied with the quality of my dish, I cover the whole thing with a potholder, present it to Mommy and Daddy for them to eat, and then add a bunch of wooden alphabet blocks to the leftovers, and hide everything in the pantry or microwave of my kitchen.

My other favorite pastime is demanding to see people’s belly buttons (or “bah-bunts”), poking them, and then bursting into fits of maniacal laughter.  It’s a very sophisticated game that I’ve developed.

Current likes: Washing hands!  While this seems like every germ-fearing parent’s dream come true, it’s actually tricky, because I like to wash my hands SO much that the skin on them has become dry and is starting to crack.  Mommy and Daddy have to limit my time spent at the sink, and to apply lotion liberally!

Current dislikes: Boundaries and consequences.  Yes, I’m at that early-onset two year old phase, where I love nothing more than to push the boundaries and see if I can escape discipline.  If you tell me not to throw my block, I’m totally going to throw my block, Mommy.  And I’ll look right at you as I’m doing it.