Little boy kisses

Jason has sorta come into his own lately. And by that I mean, he found, read and studied the classic definition on the terrible twos, did some editing to Wikipedia to add his own flair and has made our life...eh...interesting (for lack of a non four letter word I want to post for all to see). Some examples. Wanting food from someone else's plate even though the exact same food is on his, putting up his hand and flicking it with tude to say "go" or even saying "away!" or "enough", saying "no no night night" while emphatically shaking his head. Now this is so out of character since his usual routine is to come get you when he is tired and demand to go in his crib. He is also having huge tantrums where he wants to go to his crib.

Today was a typical no thanks day for Mommy. We went and spent the day with family at Uncle Mikey's and he wanted everyone else but me. He had his normal melt down at dinner, tried to put his feet on the table and didn't want to go bye bye. "No no bye bye" as he kicked and screamed. When we got home I got him dressed for bed while he kicked me and screamed some more, read the kids a book while he wriggled to no end to get away. Then, I went to put him down and he clocked me and refused to say sorry. "No no sorry". Jeff then took him to bed where he screamed for me for 10 minutes.

After I went and said good night to E, I returned to JT to hold him and calm him down. I laid on the bed in his room with him, kissed his little forehead, his nose, and his teary salty eyes while we snuggled and I rubbed his hair. And he started to talk and I prepared for the worst. But all he said was "more kisses." Phew, not sure how much more my ego could have taken today. I sit here now still holding on to his smell and the taste of his tears and hoping it gets me through breakfast tomorrow when he throws something at me or starts screaming again since Ethan got one drop of syrup more than he perceives he should have. Mostly he just makes me eat with my left hand while he sits on my lap and holds on for dear life. I love these days.

To crib or not to crib

So Jason turns 2 years old in 16 days and he is still in his crib. He loves it. When he gets tired he says "ni night" and grabs our hand and heads for the stairs. Once in his room he picks his books or walks to the crib to be lifted in, depending on how tired he is. We put his music on, his turtle constellation light and head out. So easy it is luring me into having another. Some nights we will cuddle on the spare bed in there and lay together. Others, we read "mo book" but always he is happy and sleeps well. There are the times he doesn't want to go to bed but he only says "No no ni night" a few times before he gives in.

Now the morning is less than ideal but it is not due to Jason. He would sleep 12 hours without balking but Ethan is an early riser and he doesn't like to be alone. After 3 years of us telling him to PLEASE stay in his room and not wake us, he has changed his focus to Jason. He goes in, complete with supplies, climbs in the crib with Jason and proceeds to play with the toys while we hear them giggle and screech on the monitor. There is nothing cuter. However, I am still not sleeping in and Jason is getting woken early and I am worried Ethan is opening the child gate and teaching JT to climb out of the crib. He hasn't started yet but you know it is just a matter of time after watching his "bro bro" climb in and out at will.

Anyway, I am planning to move him to a bed but for some reason it feels like I am sending him to college or something. It just reminds me that he is not my baby any more. I want to go back and remember the smell, the toes, the little hand in mine. Now, it is a rare occasion when Jason says "Hand!" and demands I put mine in his.

School pics came out pretty bad this year so I took the kids for haircuts and for Sears portraits last weekend. Here are a few zillion of my favorites!

Easter bunny cometh

Easter Saturday was spent playing inside and outside, enjoying our family and stuffing baskets once little kiddies dropped off to sleep. I love our weekends on the farm having big breakfast, playing outside and just relaxing. We have so much fun together and it is like the outdoors is their TV. Below are some fun shots of the kids being silly and one with Ethan "reading" to Jason on our bed. He takes such incredible care of his brother and Jason wants to do everything Ethan does.











On Easter Sunday, we started the day with our own little egg hunt here at home, feeding animals and getting all dressed up for church. We then went to Brad and Trish's for another hunt with Aaron before we all headed over to Uncle Mikey's for a wonderful dinner and some soccer in the yard. The grandparents were there as well and Aunt Marie had a great time playing doctor with Jason. He was so cute!

Pre-Easter festivities

Maw Maw and Paw Paw came up the week before Easter and we had a great time. We cooked out with some great steaks they brought and enjoyed some time with Aunt Susan and the boys.

Thanks to Joyce, the boys did a craft and created a homemade bunny mask on a stick. They had such fun and Jason was so serious when he was gluing his cotton and eyes. We really enjoyed having everyone.


The next day, we went to my parent's place for some egg hunting fun in prep for the Easter Bunny.


Here is Jason's first experience with truly finding (and eating) what comes in the eggs.


After we ran Grandpa and Mommy ragged, we took a break on the steps to count our loot and have a snack.


First he opens the egg and eats the one small item inside. Now this is Jason so that is not near enough to satisfy his snackish tendencies (like father like son, you know).


Our next step is to see if there is more in there somewhere he missed. Nope, still nothing. Closer inspection, nope...nada.

Then he listens as he shakes it, in the event that his eyes were none functioning. Nope, STILL nothing!

Finally, we hold them up REALLY close since he is sure there is something in here he just has not been able to uncover.

Verbosity

Sigh. My little baby is growing up. We are out of daycare this week and I am so loving spending all the time with him. The last day I picked him up from school, he saw me and ran to the picture on the wall and said, "Da?" with his hands held open and in question. He loves to run down the hall to go pick up Ethan from his room too.



We even have some teeth now...finally. Still only the two on bottom and the two half in on top (with a really cute gap) but his molars have broken through. How do I know this? So glad you asked. The teeth marks in my pointer finger for starters. Also, we had our 18 month pediatrician appt where he saw they were just beneath the gum lines. Of course the doc isn't sure what happened to his other front teeth but was very thrilled with all of his physical milestones. He can run and kick a ball, even tried to jump and plays a mean hide and seek. We were still 95% for weight and head size and our height was holding at 75%. Wearing 2T for the last few months. It amazes me how much he just looks like a toddler now.

Jason now has this totally expansive vocabulary...well not quite but we are getting there. We are saying some really cute things and our expressions are priceless but we are still limited to a few major groups. He shrugs his shoulders and lifts his hands palms up when he wants to know why or doesn't know something. He also waves bye and blows kisses, and raises his hands when you ask who loves Da Da or who is stinky. Always important.

Attitudes:
No
Stop (complete with hand gesture)
Mine (totally required given who his older brother is)
Up

Items of interest:
Car (his non food addiction)
Ball (noticed on every Pamper)
Duck
Bath (see above item)

Food imperatives:
Cracker (universal symbol for anything to eat)
More (in both sign and spoken languages due to the sheer importance of this one)

Pleasantries
Da Da (said DA DA really loudly)
Hello (pronounced Hull-o)
Bye Bye
Uh oh
Please (only when prompted and bribed by withholding item he wants)

And of course no post is complete without some pictures of him playing in the living room and with Daddy (who spun him around and made him dizzy). Love the jammies!

Holiday get together

We had some folks over from work today who have small children all in the age range from 1 - 4 years old. We had some munchies, played outside on the playground and visited the horses, did crafts, and had a small gift exchange. It was the kind of party where even the hosts could relax with some wine and some good company. To be honest, I didn't hear from my kids for most of the day. They had a wonderful time and loved playing with their friends and showing everyone around. The part that amazed me was that nobody cried, got hurt, fought over anything, made a mess etc. Talk about some diligent, amazing friends and parents. We all really enjoyed the day and will even do it again.

Here are some pics from the event:

Doing crafts...we made bracelets that jingle and decorated trees and ornaments (thanks to Shannon!!).



Stephanie and Adelaide with our tree in the background.



Getting the kids to all sit for present exchange....ha!



Getting closer!



Jason, always the patient one.




Ramin and Nicholas finishing up their craft:



Playing outside with our friends:



Getting some snacks with Nicole and Tracey (who looks beautiful pregnant!)



Daimar and Sophia with Trina:

The Santa Train

Near our home there is a great little railroad and museum that does a lot of great things for the local community and kids. It runs the first weekend of the month and we can hear the whistle from our house. The kids love it and Ethan calls it Choo Choo Willy thanks to Uncle Mikey.

One of those activities is a decorated train at Christmas where Santa comes through the cars and hands out candy canes and takes pics while we travel along an old track through the woods. Jeff has taken Ethan every year and this was the first year Jason and I could go too. Last year Jason was too little.

Now, most of the train is an open air train and it was 40 degrees today so it was cold but we had a blast...no pun intended. Of course, Jason refuses to wear hats or gloves but we bundled them up the best we could and set out looking like the Michelin men. What was extra nice was that Jason actually liked Santa this time. He cried and didn't want to go near the mall Santa last week but this one handed out food, so all was right in Claus land for him.

After the train, we took the boys out to lunch and then we were off to go shopping and prepare for our party tomorrow. All in all, a really great day with my boys.

Visit with Hayes

Jason had a great time tonight playing with someone else his size and age. My friend Barbara and her son were visiting the area and stopped by for dinner (although Hayes threw more than he ate since he is at that stage). I have never seen Jason throw food but then again, he wouldn't waste the precious commodity. Have you seen the size of him? There is nothing edible that gets past him.

The kids all played very well together and although chasing three of them tired all of us adults outs, it was so nice to get the boys together. It was also nice to see that someone else has their hands full. Sorry, Barbara. :-)

Jason plays really well with kids at school or on play dates but has a nice little temper with his bro lately. He hits...and not just once but like 6 - 10 in rapid fire mode. I am just grateful Ethan doesn't strike back and Jason understands "do nice" and will adjust his actions accordingly. Given his size, it could be a lot worse. Sumo wrestling is not out of the picture.

Pumpkin patch

Today we took the boys to pick out our Halloween pumpkins. We sorta make a deal out of the holiday and even put up some pumpkin lights and floating ghosts. With Christmas so magical for the boys and Ethan so incredibly fascinated by all the lights and decorations, I wanted to get Jason in the swing. There is this great little lot on the way to work that sells strawberries in the spring and pumpkins in the fall....all on the honor system. Tonight when we went, the owner was there and gave the boys a cool white pumkin they can draw on with markers. Killer idea. Involves no knives although Ethan assures us that he can carve his pumpkin all by himself with his own knife. Ya right. Next thing you know, they'll be driving.