A Very Merry Half-Birthday

There was a half-birthday in our house this past Friday.

Hard to believe Max is two and a half years old!

We celebrated by going to see the miniature trains at NorthPark on Friday.

Then a mini cupcake and a little present after dinner.

It is absolutely crazy to think about all the changes

that have taken place in the past six months.

You became a big brother, had open heart surgery, AND were potty trained!

This post could be pages long describing what you're up to these days,

but I will try to keep it to the highlights. :)

Clothing you these days is a challenge.

Between your strong opinions and your growing body,

there isn't much you can/ will wear.

Usually you are wearing 2T or 3T (mostly 3T) clothes and size 8 shoes.

You are also wearing big boy underwear now! 

You sleep from about 8-8:30pm until 6:30-7:00am in your toddler bed.

Some nights it's more peaceful than others,

but between all the disruption your hospital stay caused and then potty training,

you have done really well.

Eating has always been your strong suit.

You eat a good variety of foods, but still turn up your nose -

in typical two year-old fashion. :)

Some surprising things you eat these days include

salad (spinach or romaine lettuce, usually), sugar snap peas, tomato soup,

eggs (for the longest time you wouldn't touch them) and pomegranate arils.

We always ask that you take one bite of everything on your plate,

and you are usually pretty good about that!

Hats have become a recent fascination.

You must be wearing your navy baseball cap at all times!

Good thing it is multi-purpose: you call it your "singing man hat"

or your "guitar man hat" or your "golf hat" or your "work hat"...

or pretty much whatever you are pretending to be at that moment. :)

You also LOVE to sing.

Grand Old Flag, Jingle Bells, and the Thomas theme song are current faves.

If you want Mommy or Daddy (or even baby Miles) to sing along while you play your guitar,

you will go get them a hat and microphone. 

It is so sweet to hear you singing at the top of your lungs! (Usually.)

Thomas trains and Hot Wheels cars are the primary toys you play with right now.

I have contemplated just putting all the other toys and puzzles and games away

because trains and cars are all you want to play with!

You also love to color, especially with Mommy's pens (aka Sharpies. Yikes!).

Black and red are your colors of choice - and you usually like to scribble

on the faces of characters in your coloring books. Weird.

Helping is one of your favorite things to do.
You love to help Daddy with projects around the house
or in the yard, and you are pretty good at helping with laundry.
You usually take your own plate and cup to the sink after a meal,
and often want to set the table.
(It is funny what you think that means sometimes!)
You especially like to help Mommy cook,
mostly because that means you have a good chance of getting a snack. :)

You are getting better about being gentle with your baby brother.

Now that he is slightly more mobile (scooting himself towards your toys),

you are starting to realize the realities of this sharing business. :)

But many times you will share your toys without me even asking!

You can't wait for Miles to get bigger so he can play with you.

Since we needed to limit your activity after your heart surgery,

you've been watching more TV than before.

Movies are your new favorite - even over Thomas!

You love to watch Finding Nemo 

(I think we had it on loop while you were in the hospital),

Monsters Inc, A Bug's Life, and Cars.

We also got some games for the iPad to help keep you occupied,

and you've gotten pretty good at Letter School. :)

It is pretty amazing how quickly you caught onto this technology!

It amazes us how smart you are.

You are constantly telling us about the things you learn,

and sometimes we wonder where you pick this stuff up. :)

You can say the alphabet and recognize all the letters,

sometimes spell your name,

and count to about 15 reliably.

Your vocabulary is crazy and you just love to talk,

and will even strike up conversations with strangers!

You definitely have your moments, though.

We have our share of toy-throwing, leg-thrashing,

girly-screaming fits around our house too.

There are times of disobedience and outright defiance, stubbornness even.

(You had that coming atcha from both sides of the gene pool.)

But when your Daddy and I think about 

all the craziness you've endured these past few months,

we are amazed how quickly you've bounced back
to the sweet boy we know and love.

God has taught us so much about His faithfulness through you.

  

 

 "Maxwell" means great spring,

and we think that name fits you so well -

you overflow with words, laughter, energy, and joy.
You are one of our greatest blessings, Maxwell James!