Our Happily Ever After: 22 Months

Samuel Jacob, you are 22 months old! I just can't believe how big you are getting. You are still as sweet and fun as ever though. You keep everyone laughing with your adorable personality.

You are talking all the time and saying new words and phrases every day. It's especially nice now that you can usually (unless you're really tired and whiny), use words to communicate what you're wanting. It cuts down on a lot of your frustration, and I love hearing your cute baby voice. Lately, I've heard, "My turn" come out of your mouth multiple times per day.

You have a new fascination with light switches. You always want to turn them on and off. You're too short to reach most of them in our house unless you climb on something (which you do often). You can easily reach the light switch by the stairs and turn it on and off all the time. You also always turn your lamp on at naptime and bedtime and turn it off when we get you out of your crib. We've recently put a humidifier in your room too, and you turn it on and off as well. You always say, "light on" or "light off" when you turn it off or on. You've started turning on the night lights around the house too.

We had a really fun Christmas with you. You certainly understood the concept of unwrapping gifts, and to see your face light up when you saw your new toys was magical. I'm pretty sure your Magna doodle has been your favorite present. At least you play with it more than any other gift you received. You yell "color" anytime you see it. You've been asking Matt and I to draw things for you lately, usually a house. You'll say, "Daddy, color house." We have to do it the same way each time with a house, cloud, sun, and each person in our family. Then you erase it, and ask us to draw it again.

I've noticed this month that you've been tagging behind Nathan more. You usually want to play whatever he is playing, and you two have been sitting next to each other on the couch when you're watching tv or reading books. It's led to a few more fights because you want to play with the same toy at the same time, but it's fun to see you two playing together more. He usually will give you a (short) wagon ride when you're playing outside and I've even seen him push you in your swing outside. It's kind of strange to think that when Nathan turned 22 months old, he was an only child, and for you, you have a big brother AND a little sister at that age. It's definitely a different experience for you growing up, and I hope you always treasure your relationships with your siblings. You've become more attentive to your sister too. You try and say her name. It usually comes out as "Ba-bet," but it's sweet. This morning, you and Nathan were playing on my bed, and ran to find Elisabeth and looked at me and said, "Ba-bet, bed" because you wanted me to put her on the bed so she could play with you all. You give her hugs, and the other day, I laid her on a blanket upstairs, and as soon as you saw me lay her down, you ran to her room and brought her a bucket of her toys. You are certainly a thoughtful big brother.

As much as you love Nathan, you eat up the alone time when he is away. I look forward to Wednesday nights when he is at Cubbies, because I always play upstairs with you for an hour or so before bedtime, and you adore that time. You just seem a little happier and louder and excited to be the big kid for awhile. You say, "Mommy, sit" if I ever get up and you think I'm leaving you. I also always look forward to Storytime with you on Wednesdays after we take Nathan to school. You get so excited about every song, and finger play and story. You are getting better about doing all the motions and you smile and laugh and usually dance around the whole time. Your joy is contagious. I'm pretty sure the librarian repeated a few of the finger plays today because she could see how much you were enjoying them.

You caught a cough/cold this month that you had a hard time getting over which eventually sent us to the doctor for an antibiotic, so we have an official weight for you this month. You weigh 28 1/2 pounds and are wearing 24 month and 2T clothes and a size 7 shoe. You have a special love for shoes, especially your Cars shoes. You take them off and put them back on several times a day. You also think it's fun to put Daddy's house shoes on him. You would wear jammies all day if you could (sometimes you do). You'll cry sometimes when I take your jammies off to get you dressed.

You've been telling me lately when you need a new diaper especially if you're dirty, but I don't think you're anywhere ready for potty training, and I know that I'm not ready for it :).

You have been sleeping so good lately! I don't know what changed, but it's probably been over two weeks since I've heard you in the middle of the night, and you've been sleeping in until 7:30 or 8:00 in the morning and taking a consistent 2-3 hour nap each day. I hope it keeps up!

You have a particular fondness for Papa Joe. You run right past Grammy into his arms anytime you see him. You two are certainly buddies.

You are singing along to familiar songs, and it's adorable to hear you say the one word per verse that you remember. I'll hear you from your car seat singing, and I just melt every time.

Your favorite toys are books, puzzles, and blocks. I can tell you have a logical mind and seem pretty sharp for your age. The nursery workers at church have been commenting lately that you are smart for your age. You know your colors and can recognize some letters too, and you have great comprehension and understanding in a lot of things. It's fun to see you figure things out by yourself.

You really like coloring and drawing. We got you a coloring book for Christmas and you color in it almost daily, and you'll stick with it for a long time too. You also color a lot with your left hand. You still switch off some and color with your right hand often too, but I'm thinking you could be a leftie like your mommy :)