Countdown to 2 has begun

Nine days until Jacob hits 2 years old. We've gotten the representative pinata for his day to re-enact last year (a big "2") and we've nearly finished the grocery and party 'shopping' (wahoo 99 cent store!). Additionally, Jacob is close to being able to hold up his 2 fingers when asked how old he is and he's asked us for birthday cake several times over the past few weeks; a sure sign that he'll be more interested in the cake this year over last year....

Closing in on 2, Jacob is becoming more hysterical by the day. He has become selectively more snugly where he hugs tightly and plants kisses all over your face and grins contentedly. He talks a mile a minute as he is an equal opportunity parrot and knows more words than we ever remember saying. He would have us read him books for hours if he got everything he wanted, and he can recite Dr Seuss' Hop and Pop all on his own.

He eats all the time. Seriously. All the time. We eat dinner- which he eats, too, though he is showing a bit more pickiness as he grows- then we go for a walk. When we arrive home, we hear, "Hungry-snack please. Jacob hungry. " And yet, this former chunk continues to loose his pants he's so svelte. Perhaps it's the running, jumping, skipping (more like wizard-of-oz skip on the yellow brick road), balancing on edges, organizing, and constant energy exertion.

(Organizing letters into a straight line...and the "Jacob" was there in the beginning, but he can verbally spell his name)

(Walking on the edge....as usual...big ol' cloth diaper bootie profile)

(Picking flowers for daddy on the evening walk)

Recently, we began the potty-training adventure. During this past week, Jacob has had numerous successes and actually asks to spend some time reading on his potty- usually accompanied by George.

We made it to the airport and back and to a small farm and back without accident (though, much to Jacob's delight, a flower or two on the farm had to drown). For the most past, he's wearing training pants (we call them big boy briefs), going free during naps, and wearing a diaper at night. He gets to pick a sticker to put on his door chart each time something happens in the potty and it seems to please him to no end!

At the airport, we rode the tram with daddy and (grand)Ma, whom we had just picked-up!

Jacob loved feeding the pigs, chickens, goats, and cows....but the goose nibbled his finger and he stopped feeding them.

Then we went to the zoo with Ma and snacked with the elephants. What fun!

The next few weeks will be crazy what with me completing and defending my thesis, Ma visiting (yay!), Daniel finding out about internship next year (FYI: we may be in Phoenix next year), and Jacob turning 2...so we'll do our best!