Jack

I really can't believe that "Baby" Jack is already 19 months old!  He's practically TWO for goodness sake!  I had the crazy realization how quickly time passes with your kids when Michael turned six in November...and in less than 10 years he will be DRIVING!  Well, Jack might as well be 19 months going on 5 with as quickly as the last year has gone by...

He seems to have jumped head-first into wanting to be an independent toddler.  Gone are the days of my sweet, snuggly baby!  He's still sweet and snuggly, but hardly a baby any more.  At the beginning of December, Jack dismissed his high chair as an acceptable means for dining.  Any time I put him in his high chair and served him food, he would immediately dump in on the floor.  Or throw it at me.  Or feed it to the dog.  But never put a single bite in his mouth.  This lasted about a week before I began {attempting} to reprimand him by taking the food away and removing him from his chair.  He quickly discovered that if he lingered by the big table long enough, one of his siblings would get up and leave their partially eaten food on the table, rather than clearing their dishes.  He'd scamper up into their chair, park himself ON THE TABLE and eat their left overs!  Using a fork none the less.  Any attempts to use a fork in his high chair were futile.  But apparently sitting on the table gave him the power to eat like a civilized adult.

So I began feeding him at the table, but we didn't have a booster seat yet, so he usually stood on a chair and ate with us.  I purchased a booster seat for Christmas and he was ecstatic!  His new favorite game is raiding the pantry, climbing into his seat, and dumping whatever he scavenged onto the table.

With this new found independence, he has also entered the Terrible Two's a bit earlier than expected!  He has reached to point where the most desirable object in the house is whatever is just out of his reach.  He stands on his tippy toes, reaches, grunts, attempts to grow taller by the second, then throws himself on the floor in a fit of frustration.  What am I usually doing durning this fit?  Standing by laughing and taking pictures.  Sweet Jack throwing a fit is one of the cutest things I've ever seen a kid do.  It's almost like he has to muster every ounce of rottenness in his being to pitch a fit.  I'm not sure if it is the wisdom that comes with having a third child or the insanity that allows me to stand by and laugh.

Jack is still the most snuggly baby.  Every time I pick him up, he nuzzles his head down on my shoulder and wraps his arms around me.  It makes my heart melt.  He also asks for kisses by pressing his forehead to my lips.  Whenever I go to pick him up from a child care (at the gym or at church) he runs across the room in a full sprint with a huge smile on his face and leaps into my arms.  People constantly say, "Well, there's no doubting who he belongs to!"  Jack's also the only one of the three that will sleep in my bed.  He doesn't do it very often, but when he isn't feeling well the only place he wants to sleep is next to me.

Other favorites at 19 months include any and all cereal, his lawn mower, the red and yellow little tykes buggy, jumping on the trampoline, trying to eat dog food, playing with Michael's very tiny Legos, being dressed up by Savannah (ok, not sure if he really loves this, but she sure does!), sunglasses and hats, and squeezing the hand on his bear to hear Stephen's voice.  Oh, and milk.  We should probably invest in our own dairy cow with as much milk as these boys drink!

I sure do love this little guy.  I can't wait for Stephen to see how much he has grown since August and I know he is going to be so thrilled to have his dada back!