Jamison at 2

 

My little lovey bugs - I can't believe you're already two!!  It truly seems like just yesterday I was on my way to the hospital to have you.  I still remember that ride distinctly and trying to walk across the parking garage in between contractions.  You are the sweetest little boy ever, and I love watching you grow and explore.  You have such enthusiasm that only a 2 year old little boy can have and you do this adorable little giggle/laugh every time you get excited about something - like getting a yogurt.  You are such an affectionate little dude and you love to snuggle, which I can't get enough of.  Your words are expanding daily and you figured out a few months ago how to motion for us to come with you so you stick your pudgy little fingers in the air and touch your finger tips to your palm while saying "c'mere" or "mere mommy".

We just got done going through a little bit of a separation anxiety stage with you.  You would SCREAM when we put you to bed and we couldn't figure out why you were so upset.  It lasted about 4-5 days and you got over it.  But it was heartbreaking to hear you so upset.  We would go comfort you, but as soon as we'd leave you'd freak out again.  For the first time ever, you started to cry pulling in to the church parking lot because you didn't want to go to child care.  And normally you LOVE child care and have a great time, but all of a sudden you decided you didn't want to go.  You were fussing and saying "turn around" when we pulled in, but by the time you got there, you walked in by yourself, thank God.  I'm not sure I could handle your big brown eyes pleading with me to not leave you there.  All of the child care ladies love you, which I can't really blame them.

You are such a polite little man.  You say please and "tan-too mommy" all the time, and your newest word is "welcome".  The other day we were at Wendy's and you held the door open for a business guy that was leaving and he said "thank you" to you and you said "welcome" to him.  He turned around and did a double take and kind of laughed and smiled at you.  You definitely surprised him.  While we were camping you were saying your normal please and thank you and welcome and the camp worker overheard you and he said you're the politest little boy he's ever heard.  You love to be helpful and you will open the door from the garage and hold it open for me so I can carry Josie and stuff in.  If I try to vacuum, you love to hang on to the vacuum with me, which slows me down a ton, but I don't want to discourage you.

You seriously are the cutest little monker I've ever seen.  Between your big, brown eyes, you smooch-able cheeks and your curly hair, I just can't get enough of you.  I wish I could freeze you in time to right now.  I love that you can communicate enough so we usually can figure out what you're trying to say, but you still have so much innocence and enthusiasm about everything.  You still love your paci, which I think is messing up your front teeth and giving you a pretty big over bite.  We try to limit it to naptime, bedtime and car rides if you need it, but since you easily open doors now, you go into your room and get them out of your bed when you want them.  You get one bottle at bedtime still, and you ask for it in the car, but we don't give you one then.  I was so nervous you were going to climb/fall out of your crib, so we lowered your mattress all the way to the floor so you can't get out of it.  We've had issues with you sleeping in your bunk in the trailer so we've given you 1/3 of a pill of melatonin to help you settle down and jimmy rigged the net we have on it to keep you in it since you easily just move it aside and get out of bed.

We turned your car seat around about a week before you turned 2.  I thought it would help you to be able to see the TV screen, but I’m not sure it did and now I wish I had left you rear facing longer.  Sometimes you are great in the car and sometimes you are really not great in the car.  We also lowered your crib mattress all the way to the floor because I was worried you were going to climb out of it.  We gave you a pillow and blanket for a week but you were using the pillow as a spring board, so we took it out since you weren’t using it anyway.  You still like to be covered with your blanket though.

You LOVE playing in water – water table, sprinklers, bubbles, puddles.  You love it.  But you aren’t a big fan of being “in” water right now.  Maybe it was because it was cold and you didn’t like that.  You like watching Sesame Street and Moana and you now love to give kisses and say night night and I love you.  You absolutely love Josie and love to pet her head and talk to her.  She loves watching everything you do and I love seeing you two interact.  You have always been very gentle with her and love to help me with her any time you can.  You love to fight like crazy with Ben.  You guys fight over Josie ALL the time.  It’s a little exhausting.  No one makes you scream more than Ben does, and you are starting to hold your own with him and push back a little.  You love Abbie and will do almost anything she tells you too and she is a big help with you also.

When I took you to your 2 year appt you were 36” and a month later you were 37.5”.  You are growing like a weed.  You’re in size 3t clothes, size 6 diapers and size 8 shoes.  You weigh around 32lbs.  Sometimes you eat like a horse and other times you eat like a bird.  You give THE cutest little sideways glances sometimes when you’re being silly and you stick your tongue about between your front teeth if you’re extra happy.  You are hard to take photos of lately because you’re always on the go and never want to stop and smile.

We love you so much, little man.  You keep us so busy, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.  You’ll always be our little monker (aka lovey bugs).

 

Jamison at 22 months

 

My littlest monker, you are QUITE the handful these days.  You have a very bi-polar personality at this stage and you’re either laughing or screaming, almost non-stop.  Obviously, I prefer the laughing as your laugh is infectious and your screaming is exhausting.  I’m hoping once we give you more words to use, you’ll scream less and laugh more.

You had a tummy bug earlier, probably from licking the ground outside.  You see the dogs doing it, so you do it too and you have zero qualms about sticking your entire face in the dog’s water bowl.  Gross.  But you are happiest when you are outside and you pretty much incessantly bring me your shoes to put on so you can go out back.  I’m feeling a little bit better about not watching you super closely (as in not take my eyes off of you) when you’re out back, but I still don’t have all day, every day to spend outside with you, so that poses a bit of a problem.  Either I listen to you scream and whine and cry because you want to go outside while I try to get things done inside, or I go outside with you and get absolutely nothing done.  Quite the conundrum for sure.  Your screaming/crying/whining gets old, so usually we end up outside.  I’m excited for when we’ll have a much bigger yard for you to toodle around it.  We get invitations to the park all the time, but taking you to the park by myself terrifies me since you have no fear at all of heights and I can’t run around and chase you, while making sure no one takes Josie and keeping my eye on Ben who likes to wander off too.  So we basically need a completely child-proofed park in our back yard so we can go out while Josie naps and Ben is fenced in.  Someday.

You want me to play with you a lot and you grab my hand and lead me to whatever you want to do.  Super cute but hard when I need to get things done.  Sometimes you get really frustrated when we’re playing and I have to get Josie because she’s crying.  Or when I’m holding Josie and you want to be held.  It’s REALLY tough having 2 under 2.  But you are really good with Josie and you never take your frustrations out on her, thank God.  You head-butted her once on accident this month and she cried and you cried because you felt terrible.  You’re a pretty caring little guy.

 

Your eating is hit or miss right now.  Sometimes you eat really great and other times it’s a huge struggle to even get you in to your high chair.  I never know if I need to worry about your lack of eating occasionally or if it’s just typical toddler stuff.  You are definitely getting more picky and we’re working with you on not throwing your food all over the kitchen when you’ve had enough to eat.  I don’t even know why I bother to clean my kitchen floors as they are usually covered in crap the dogs drag in and food you’ve managed to throw everywhere.  Keep this house even halfway clean is a full time job for sure.

Your sleeping is still fairly good although the days of you taking your marathon 4 hour naps are over.  Usually after about 2 hours you’re up and ready to get up.  You typically go to bed fairly well, although a few times a month, at least, you need us in the middle of the night for something.  Many times you are grabbing your right hand kind of funny and crying/whining while doing it and we think it’s because you sleep with your arms underneath you and your hand or arm is going to sleep and you don’t like that feeling.  You only do it when you’re sleeping so that’s the only thing I can think of.  We usually just rub it or shake it a little bit and put you back in bed and you lay down and go back to sleep.  I’m hoping that’s all it is, but I don’t know why you’d just have issues when you’re sleeping and not when you’re using your arms and hands.  I’m going to mention it to your doctor at your next appointment.

 

Your vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds right now.  I’ve been trying to get you to say things more instead of just giving you what I know you want and you will try to repeat almost anything I say to you, which is super fun.  I think you are going to be talking much more in the next few months.  You’re starting to put 2 words together now – shoes on, more please, etc- and we’re working a lot on please and thank you.  You like to try to sign please and thank you until I tell you to say it and then you usually will.  You still LOVE your paci, which could be a problem.  You will cry and whine for your paci, especially when you see Josie’s all over the place.  You can open doors now so that’s extra fun (not) and you will go into your room and grab paci’s out of your bed.  You also love your bottles of milk.  If I try to put anything else into your bottle you flip out and you are always asking for a bottle of milk.  We have it down to 2 a day, one in the morning while you watch a show and I pump and one right before bed.  I used to give you bottles every time we’d drive down the mountain so now if we get on the highway and you don’t have a bottle, you’re screaming for one.  It’s amazing how accustomed you get to routine.  You like to watch Sesame Street and Thomas the Train and Blaze.  I try to keep it on PBS stuff for you.

 

You are my little love bug and you wear me to a frazzle more days than not, but I couldn’t imagine you not being here, keeping me on my toes at all time.  Your big grins and great snuggles are the absolute best!