what you used to be like

Jonah. Jojo bear. You're two right now. You will be three on July 4th. Our Independence Day baby.

You are our youngest, for now. 

You still suck your thumb. And even though your blue blanket has been put away for months now, you've taken up a plush Spider-man blanket as a replacement. 

But you only use it for bedtime now, instead of all the time. Your daddy says he doesn't mind you sucking your thumb because he did it as a little boy. I am the one who slaps that thumb away, just like Moomie taught me to do. You hate me for it. But I do admit, you look incredibly cute when you do it. 

You'll thank me later. I promise. 

You are the funniest two year old on earth. I am biased of course. But the way your little devil eyes light up when I caught you doing something you're not supposed to be doing is such a hard thing to discipline. Why are you so darn cute? It makes the Mom-job hard on me, son. 

Oh, and the things you say. I keep a notebook by our computer to write down all the silly & inappropriate things you boys say. Here are just a few you have said this year:

That last one, you said to your Awana leader. Needless to say, I was a bit embarrassed but she loved it and was still cracking up about it when it was time to come pick you up. 

You are scared to jump off of things, but love to hop around like a bunny. It takes you a little while to warm up. You love the water, whether it's in the bathtub, the pool or even the sink, you would stay there forever if you could. 

Our little fish. I don't know how many times I have had to tell you to not drink the bathtub water. 

You are such a little shadow. Ever since your older brother started drawing his monos you decided it was time for you to draw too. And you create the most amazing monsters!! Just the other day you drew a Mr. Potato head with a rainbow. It was nothing but a masterpiece. I am keeping it forever.

Little dude, you are not afraid to get dirty. You have that Witty gene that doesn't care if your fingers are messy. You are such a frickin' ball of dirt and sticky, it drives me nuts. There is no keeping you clean, son. 

This picture below is such an appropriate example of what I am talking about.

Jonah: face painted in a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle way, smeared all over face. Plus blue icing from a cupcake with a stuffed face. I didn't even want to look at your dirty fingers to see how bad it was.

Andrew: No face paint and a grimace on his face because he had icing on his fingers. 

This picture just about sums it up.

You know it's bad when even your daddy cleans your face off because it bothers him. Jonah, son, you are gross. And you don't care. You love it. You are happy. And that's all that matters to us. 

You would think that in the picture below you would be so pumped that you would say something like, "Yes!" but no, you said, "You want a knuckle sandwich?" And this has been you, we dare not confront you anymore because we have black eyes from where you have punched us. You are a mean little dude. So fierce. And so strong, you've been known to show off your strong muscles to strangers. Dude, you are a block. And who can resists your big buns in the tightest little Hanes. I love when your undies eat your chunkiness right out of your sides!

You turn everything into a competition. 

You love to race and don't dare lose because your whole world crashes. Your shoulders slump. You turn around in defeat. And you give the saddest little face that is near to tears. How do we teach you to do your best and not be discouraged by defeat? To get up, try again and try harder?

Oh, Jonah baby. I love your independence. I love that you speak up for what you want to do and for what you want. You are easily satisfied and you ask for so little.

I love the way you laugh and you make us laugh. You are so goofy and silly. The word pancake cracks you up. The way you can't say your "S" makes it hard to sometimes understand you, but it doesn't stop my heart from melting. I am completely in love with you. ALL of you. 

Right now, you love:

Smores PopTarts

Pancakes {it's what you ask for every meal}

Spider-Man blanket

Thomas the Train

Chance & Bryce {cousins}

Mickey Mouse

Going outside

Dirt & water

Getting regular clothes to wear as your pajamas

and our cat, Rue. Because Prim is mean {your words}