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!

Smooth operator

So, no real pictures...sorry! The weather has been gorgeous these past few days so we're out and about for hours on end and I never remember the camera. I'll work on it for sure.

I just though I'd leave you with some Jacob-isms of late. He's picked-up on our 'common phrases that we didn't know we used a lot' and uses them with extreme ease...it's hilarious. For example, snack time goes something like this:
Me: "Jacob, would you like yogurt or cheese?"
Jacob: "How 'bout....pretzels?!"
Me: "That's not what i said."
Jacob: "How 'bout...cookie monster?" (all cookies are called cookie monsters. quite silly.)

Another example would be on our walk tonight, we heard a dog bark a few times which left Jacob a bit unsettled, so this conversation ensued:
Jacob: "Where's that dog go?"
Daniel: "I think he's at his home with his dinner."
Jacob: "yeah, dinner. Let's go check."
Now when Jacob is unsure about something it becomes "let's go check."

Jacob is also an avid rule-enforcer. This doesn't always equate to rule abider, rather he's an expert at noticing when another kid is hitting, pushing, yelling, etc. He goes up to them, says "no pushing (or other verb)" then tries to hold their hand and go play. It's quite funny to watch the other kid- they are generally confused until Jacob starts grinning and patting their back- then they're ready to play!

That's it for now so I'll end this in the words of the munchkin, "see you later!"

Easel fun

We love Ikea, especially on rainy days here in Berkeley- it's like a fun playground for parents and kids. And, as we've previously mentioned, there have been plenty of rainy days in 2010 so far. About a week or so ago, we visited the local Ikea for a desk organizer but instead found a great deal on Jacob's birthday present from daniel and myself! Though he still has 4 weeks to go until turning 2, we figured it'd be fun for all of us to break in the Easel now.

Though he's a bit shrimpy now for the big board, he'll be using it for years to come. He already knows that to reach those top spots he just needs to get his stool. Daniel and I have really loved drawing with him....and sometimes drawing even after he's walked away.

You think he likes it? We do!

February in photo form

I can't believe February has already come and gone. Quite a lot of memorable times were had, what with petting cows, riding a steam train, and tree-climbing in addition to a quick NC trip for great-grandma's memorial service.

At the church for G'ma's service, Jacob discovered the joys of preschool classrooms. Little did he know that I, and all his Chell aunt and uncles, played and learned in the same rooms as kids. (And Uncle Dana and Aunt Emily even found a play tunnel in the classroom now with which they played many years ago!)

These baby strollers, books, and play kitchen paired with the playful companionship of our dearest family friend Patty, allowed us all to be present and savor the beauty of grandma's service. Thanks a million Patty!

Though a quick trip, Jacob still talks about Chell family members as though they're in the other room....then giggles as he acknowledges that they're not here. Late night and early morning lounging pictures are what we've got with family as he was rarely still- usually dragging one 'sucker' adult to play somewhere or another.

And we got some beautiful Christmas pictures edited from Uncle Josh...this is by far the sweetest thing!

Life's pretty much back to 'normal'. We eat popcorn, read books, hold cute baby Rosie, get outside between downpours (though it's supposed to be the sunny season now....hmmm).

Happy March 2010. Time sure does fly by......

caught in the act

Just a few silly shots of our jacob monster from this week
This one occured at 6:30 one morning. Despite his expression, I in no way woke him up rather vice versa. But the hair cracked me up enough to snap a shot.

I had walked into the kitchen to put away the rest of lunch and when I returned Jacob informed me "I cut the 'cado mama'. Yes, yes you do Jacob. (plastic knife for fake vegetables...or real and ripe avocados.)

And this is what happens when Jacob isn't ready for bed and beelines for our bed when we turn our backs to get his pj's, put away the towel, etc. He proceeded to jump on the bed and collapse into giggles when asked why he was jumping on our bed naked.

This was a game Jacob created while with Daddy:


We sure do love this hilarious little munchkin...

'Round here

It's been one long kind of week...well, more like 10 days. Some of our fun moments: going to the Zoo (for the 19873473rd time), seeing the legendary SUNSHINE, and a monstrous Super Bowl party here with 25+ of friends thanks to Daniel and Eric.

(the closest we've gotten to the Lion at the zoo!)

With the fun came the moments of tremendous sadness as my grandmother's health rapidly deteriorated. After hanging tough at the hospital through the snowstorm in Raleigh, my grandma was transported from the hospital to a gorgeous hospice facility where she died several hours later with my mom lovingly by her side. My grandmother played many roles for my family, as happens when you live just a few miles from 4 of your grand kids! As our personal school lunch-maker, supplier of dress-up clothes, chauffeur to orthodontist appointments, sick-day companion, provider of nicknames, and other such unique and valued skills, we will certainly keep her in our hearts and memories forever. We are so grateful to have been loved by such a devoted and doting grandmother- and thrilled that Jacob got to hang-out with his great grandma (and vice versa)! The 3 of us head to Raleigh in a little over a week for her Memorial service.

We don't really have much in terms of photos and we'll work to remedy that soon! What we do have are Jacob as an unsatisfied artist (no idea what that face was about, but we were laughing!)

And Jacob in his Big boy Bed!! He's been sleeping like this for nights and naps since Sunday: the first night he did great until 5 am, last night he only woke once and then slept until 7:15 am (this is considered late. ugh.) Naps haven't been fun yet, but after the 45 minute task of getting him to stay IN the bed, he has slept for 2+ hrs each time (again, quite incredible). He absolutely loves taking us to his bed and talking about his big boy bed, his pillow, and how Curious George (his current BFF) was sleeping with him. We've got such a big boy!

Mi Casa es Pooh's Casa

Jacob loves Winnie the Pooh and expects that his stuffed animals get the same treatment that he gets. Often at meals he will make sure that ‘Tigger’, ‘Raddit’, ‘Eeyore’, ‘Pooh Bear’, and ‘Piggie’ get enough to eat. There was a concern the other day that Pooh Bear- Jacob’s favorite- wasn’t wearing socks, so Jacob saw to it that Pooh not only got to wear socks, but also that he got the best socks- Jacob’s Cardinals socks.

As I read that last sentence out loud, Jacob yelled from the other room, “Go Cardinals!”

His stuffed animals are the first ones out of the crib in the morning and all must be accounted for before Jacob goes to sleep at night. During the day, Jacob’s friends enjoy frequent diaper changes, snacks, water, trips to the potty, and playing with play-doh. I have a six minute video chronicling these things that I am still trying to find a way to post on the blog. These will have to do for now.

I know there are many of you out there who could use a blog post right about now. Here's a "Where's Jacob" picture for you amidst his favorites.

Jacob has lots of words and phrases.

His favorite phrases include:

Of course he still says, “Hey, all mine,” and “How do you do dat?”

When you offer him a snack, he says, “I like that.” When it comes to food, he also says, “More tookies, please” and “I want some ka-ka korn” (popcorn…)

When you suggest to him that it might be time to take a nap, he says, “I don’t like that.”

If you put on your jacket or shoes he says, “Where are you going Dada/Mama?”

When he gets bored, he runs, turns on the TV and says, “I want to see sharks, yay!”

He loves to sing and dance. He knows all the words to “You are my sunshine,” “Wheels on the Bus,” “Ring around the Rosie,” and sings along with dozens of others. Jacob is quickly picking up the alphabet song.

He loves to watch Simpsons, see anything with Sharks, anything with dinosaurs, anything made by Disney/Pixar, and Winnie the Pooh. As you can tell, we have to put limits on the amount of TV he watches. But it has been raining. And we live in a 550sqf box.

Here he is playing one of his favorite games, "Chop-chop timber"

Here he is showing off his basketball skills. Jacob can now identify a football, basketball, baseball, tennis ball, and soccer ball. But somehow they all end up in the basketball hoop as Jacob says, "Shoot the goal!"


Much love from the bay area,
D, A, and J.