2 years old!!

I guess every parent laments their child's maturation...maturation in the sense that they're no longer a baby, or toddler, or school age, or living at home. I suppose it's natural to experience this odd grieving process. And, so, Brian and I comment regularly that Dolly is growing up too fast, that he is losing his baby look, that he's too smart for his own good, that he looks nothing like he did a year ago, that his vocabularly is amazing.

Jacob had his 2-year checkup a week or so ago. He continues to grow, grow, grow, weighing over 30lbs and standing tall at 35 3/4 inches. Not only was the Dr. impressed with his growth, she was impressed, too, with his language ability. He would just jabber on to Brian and me throughout the exam and she'd say, "Wow! That's impressive!" His new thing now is to ask Brian and me if we remember things. The "things" that he usually asks us about are typically things that are are near and dear to his heart. Like.....tunnels. He LOVES tunnels. So, frequently, he'll ask, "Remember...tunnel?" Or, "Remember...bridge?" I love this line of questioning because you never really know what he's going to ask you about. So, yeah, we've got the new Dr. wrapped around our fingers.

We moved into our new house the weekend of Jacob's birthday (8/15/07), so we didn't get to have the proper celebration. All that changed on the evening of the 29th.

For his birthday, Grammy called in a few favors and was able to borrow for the party a Jupiter Jump!! Our backyard is the pride of the cul de sac as it is, for we have a pretty elaborate swing set. That being said, we frequently have the neighbor kids in our backyard living it up on the fancy dancy set. We knew that a Jupiter Jump would garner much interest, so we were proactive and invited all the neighbor kids over pre-party. Once that thing was inflated, it was party time! Jacob was tentative but seemed to enjoy his 5 or 6 bounces. The older kids enjoyed themselves. Jacob enjoyed his cupcakes and presents....it seems that everyone knows this kid pretty well....all the presents had wheels.

So, the 2nd birthday has come and gone. I foresee many exciting challenges ahead for the 3rd year: potty training, big-boy-bed, dressing self. It will be an interesting year, no doubt.

And, so, to my sweet 2-year-old son, I ask you, "Remember.......:...your first bath.......your first Halloween......your first trip to the beach......your first day of daycare......your first Christmas......your first Easter (and ear infection)......your first birthday...

...your first love......and your many crying fits...?"I do. I was right there for all of them. And I look forward to many more memories with you.