Friday, April 25, 2008

A few of my favorite things, #3

This is my spice rack! After 5 1/2 years of struggling to keep 1/2 empty bottles of God-only-knows-what from falling over and getting lost, I invested in the BEST invention in kitchen organization. Magnetic spice jars! They are aligned on the side of my fridge, with easy access to everything. And I can see what all of them are! And a whole shelf in my cupboard is free! I love it. :)

Thursday, April 17, 2008

2 years (well, close enough)

My dearest Jackson,

You are a two-year-old! How did that happen? Two years ago I was getting used to the joy of being a mother and had a tiny (well, that's all relative) little boy in my life. Your arrival at 1:36 am on March 19, 2006 made me a mom. And that's a job I have adored from the first moment.

Your first year of life was exciting because of all of the "firsts" involved. The second year was exciting because you started to become this little person. I mean, you were always technically a "person," but you really just started growing up. You started saying things and interacting more and developing your own opinion about life. That's a fun one!

It's only been 6 months since the last update, and there wasn't a LOT of activity to report on. It is winter in Minnesota, after all. We did get to celebrate your second Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. On Halloween, we went to A Night in the Light at church and you dressed as a pumpkin! You really wanted to be a duck, but they didn't have your size. :) Your friend Eli was a puppy. You were both so cute! Thanksgiving was pretty low-key, but we learned how much you love mashed potatoes. Yum! Christmas with a 21-month-old was awesome! So much more exciting than the year before. You were much more into everything and loved opening gifts. You got lots of fun stuff from so many generous people.

January brought a BIG change for our family--I got a job! It's wonderful and I absolutely love it. But it meant putting you in daycare. Luckily we found someone that we really like and you really like being there. You have lots of friends and I think the interaction is really great for you. And you still have your Gigi two days a week, so it's a nice balance between social interaction and getting all of the attention. ;)

Your recent fascinations: guitars (Uncle John got you a mini acoustic for Christmas), monkeys (you love EVERYTHING Curious George!), trucks (especially books about trucks), fish sticks, M&Ms, going on the big boy potty (and getting an M&M for doing so!), and squirrels. Although, that's the funniest sounding word coming out of your mouth. "Queous" or something. But you know all about how they live outside and like to go on the roof. Oh, you are too funny!

We love you so much, Jack! And I think you love us too. :) Just last night, I slammed my finger in the door when I was leaving your room. When I went back in (because you weren't going to sleep very easily), you scurried to a standing position, grabbed my hand, and kissed the CORRECT finger! You just blessed my heart. You are so sensitive and loving, and I never want that to change! You are just the best kid ever. Here's to tackling the Terrific Twos with grace and gusto!

Love you darling,
Mom

Sunday, April 13, 2008

A Few of My Favorite Things #2

Mess-free fun.

Jackson turned two almost a month ago, and two of his gifts are just rocking our world around here. Number one:Aquadoodle! This isn't the exact one that Jack has, but this thing is amazing. It's a mat that you put on the floor or a table, and a pen that you fill with water. When water touches the mat, it makes marks and you can draw pictures without worrying about spilling paint or getting marker on the wall or crayon on the piano (yeah, been there). The only downside (according to Jack anyway) is that the images fade to fast (as soon as the water dries). He gets frustrated. I think it's a good thing because it makes room for more pictures. Anyway, on to

number two:
Crayola color wonder! It's the same concept as the aquadoodle--the special paint, markers, and crayons can only color on the special color wonder paper and coloring book. Jackson thinks they are just awesome! We had a lot of fun with the paint today, and our art is now displayed on our sliding deck door. :)

Ah, lazy Sunday afternoons!