Typical(?) Boy

Well, in case anyone wondered, I have a boy... 

all boy... 

very boy.

We still occasionally find James in his crib fully clothed but with poopy on his hands or on the floor. We pin him into his sleeper pajamas. We tape his diaper. For the life of me I couldn't figure out what he was doing. And then one day I walked into his room just in the nick of time. James stood there with that "caught" look on his face as I turned on the light. He had managed to pull his arm inside his jammies and wedge his hand into his dirty diaper. Ugh!

Then today, while he finished his lunch, I left the table to clean up the kitchen. Next thing I know, this boy-of-few-words is trying to communicate something important. As I looked over and saw him pointing to his nose, I noticed that one side was a little bigger? than usual and a slight bit red. 

"Goodness gracious! Your raisins!"

Mmhh-hhmm.

(May I just ask, how do you NOT laugh when you realize that your 2-year-old has stuffed a raisin up his nose?)

So I ran upstairs, pulled out the tweezers and the alcohol, poured the alcohol over the tweezers and tumbled back downstairs. As long as I was just using my hands, James let me hold his head and push on his nose... but as soon as I tried to use the tweezers, he'd pull away.

Then I got a bright idea. James is always asking to talk to Bea. Perfect. I picked up the phone, dialed her number and said, "Your nephew has lodged a raisin up his nose. Can you distract him while I pull it out?"

In fewer than 8 seconds, that piece of dried fruit was out and in its final resting place.

Praise God for sisters who have been through this with their own daring sons! (Thanks, Bea!)

Repeating

Thursday, as our friend Britt was leaving the house for work, she said, "Bye" to me. Suddenly, a little hand waved and a little voice piped up, clear as a bell, "Bye." Brittany and I exchanged surprised glances. Multiple times during the day when he had the opportunity, our little man of few words would offer, "Bye" in the perfect moment.

On Friday, James started repeating complete words after me. He said whole sentences at four different times during that day. The most memorable was when he wanted to go outside while I was making dinner. He was hanging on me, fussing, and pointing out to the tot lot by our house. I told him to go ask Daddy.  He ran into the other room, so I followed him and said, "James, say, 'Daddy' (Diddy), may (may) I (I) please (peas) go (goh) to (to) the (duh) park (pahk)."

Ben looked at me with surprise and delight in his eyes. "Can you write that down?!"

I can't remember how much James repeated over the weekend, but on Monday, he was very congested, so we were hanging out at home, and a bit bored. I decided to put a couple videos on my mom, sister's and our Facebook sites with James repeating multiple sentences - one word at a time. You can tell he was getting tired by the time we recorded my mom's.

Today, he has asked by name for his friend Dorothy (Dohti) without prompting. And I told him that I was going to make eggs for my breakfast. When I brought my plate to the table about 10 minutes later (after doing some other things in the meantime), he pointed at it and said, "Ahggs." We've never discussed eggs before now! And then he surprised me with one more. While we were eating my eggs (yes, he helped me with them), he became aware of a scratch on his ring finger. He pointed to it, and said, "boo-boo."

Such is the excitement at our house these days.

2 Year Stats

We saw our pediatrician for James' 2-yr well child visit this morning... except we learned that he has infections in both ears - so I guess not exactly a well child! Since James is not complaining, the doc said not to treat at this point. But he did write a script in case James gets miserable.

Meanwhile, here are the boy's stats:
Weight - 28 lbs (50th %)
Height - 35 3/4 inches (75-90th %)
Head - 50 cm (75-90th %)

Doc also thinks James may have environmental allergies and possibly exercise-induced asthma. Bummer! It runs in both families, so not surprising. But not fun if that's the case.

All around, though, a healthy, strong, happy little guy!

Quirky Things About Me

I just discovered that I've been tagged to list six quirky things about myself... So here goes.

#1 - I am a morning person - for most of my life (even in elementary school), I've gotten up between 5 and 5:30 a.m. Since having James, though, I admit that some days I go back to bed for a bit after getting Ben's day started.

#2 - Our microwave became the victim of a power surge this summer, and it took me days to even miss the clock on it. So we decided just not to replace it. Interestingly, I still don't miss it at all.

#3 - I have a crock of rye sourdough starter on my counter at all times. James helps me grind the rye, pour the flour into the crock and add water then stir it all up. While he holds the spoon, I turn the bowl and sing, "And round and round and round and round and round and round we go... and James is helping Mommy make... a big pot of sour dough."

#4 - Every day, I count James' toys as I put them away to make sure all the pieces are there. If not, I hunt them down so we don't end up with incomplete puzzles, etc. (would that be considered quirky or neurotic?!)

#5 - I always take my rings off at night (my fingers swell), but I rarely remove my necklace or earrings.

#6 - My internal temperature seems much cooler than most... in general, when I'm finally comfortable, most other people are hot. 

Re-reading this, I notice (not for the first time mind you) that I'm kinda lame! But it was fun. Thanks, Jen!

So now I tag Britt Mc, Jess A, Alycia I, Kelly P, Charisa F, and Kelly Mc to list 6 things that are quirky about yourself and then tag five more people. Have fun!

Random Notes

At the end of September, my parents graciously came down just so my mom could give James a much-needed haircut. James didn't mind the haircut. He got Papa's undivided attention!

Our sweet boy has a very particular way he wants to be put to bed at night: one bear in each arm, a fire truck in one hand, a horse in the other (along with a cloth diaper).

Sweet dreams, little man...

James' 2nd Birthday

For James second birthday, we decided on a small family party... of 20! Of course my sister's family accounts for seven of those twenty. We had a wonderful time.

James' birthday fell on Columbus Day - a federal holiday - so Ben was home all day. What a treat! My parents spent Sunday night with us, and James was delighted to wake up in the morning and find them here. And then when James awakened from his nap he discovered his cousins, Bea and Uncle Kurt in various locations of our home. Sweet!

My sister's family plus my dad, Ben and James went for a walk along a creek near our home. Mom stayed behind to help me clean up and get ready for everyone else to arrive. Our 9-yr-old friend Eliza (my weekly mother's helper) arrived first, she sweetly pitched in, helping us set the tables. Uncle John (aka the Cat in the Hat) arrived next.

Grammy P and Aunt Elizabeth arrived. James brought Grammy over to see the growing display of presents.

The happy birthday boy with Ben's mom (while Britt & my sis share a laugh in the background).

James was so hungry before everyone had arrived and he was asking for broccoli... how can a mom deny her child's request for vegetables?

James seemed duly impressed by his cake. But when it came to blowing out the candles, he got scared!

Mommy & Daddy blew out the candles... crisis averted!

This mommy is not an artist - by ANY stretch. But I asked God to give me the hands of an artist to create a cake that would bless our boy. I think God answered my prayers.

Finally it was time for presents... the cousins seemed as excited as the birthday boy!

trucks...

trucks...

trucks...

trains!

And then we relaxed...

Happy Birthday, James! We are so grateful to God for blessing us with your life. You bring us so much joy. We love your sweetness and persistence. We love your cautious nature that still eagerly tries new things. We love your busy-ness. We love how your heart seems soft toward our training and toward the things of God. We are so eager for you to love and trust the Savior. We pray every day for God to grant you His gracious gift of salvation. We look forward to all the joys ahead. We love you very much. --Mommy & Daddy