Happy Birthday Little Isaac!

Dear Isaac,

     Today is 2/2, and you're 2!  How fun!  Please forgive me because I have to work all day then have a PCDHA meeting tonight (where we're offering 2 credits of continuing education instead of 1 b/c of your birthday, and don't worry, I have a picture or two of you in my powerpoint!) To make up for it, we're throwing you and your big brother, Dylan, a fun super hero party another day! 

     I love you so much.  Some of my favorite things about you are your silly faces and your sense of humor.  Sometimes Corrie or I ask you if you are stinky, and even if Noah isn't in the room, you smile and say with your head cocked to the side in a low voice, nooooooo, NOAH!  Then you crack up.  You love to dance.  Your dance moves consist of jumping around, usually with your feet tight together.  You move around the room while jumping and if you're in an extra silly mood, you make yourself turn and fall over and over every couple of hops.  You love books.  Your favorite books are the big Look and Find (Where's Waldo type) books that we got from the Szasz family.  They gave us about 6 Disney books and you're so good at them!  Some pages are really dificult with the caracters being not exactly like the examples and diferent sizes, but you find them more quickly than the rest of us some times.  Now you have some memorized, so your speed even more impressive.  You like to go to sleep with a book.  I remember my mom and dad letting us sleep with the book we just read if we were really good.  The punishment would be to not get to sleep with a book and we would be so sad. 

You like watching movies in the van, probably just because you know you can.  Your favorite DVDs and show on TV is Go! Diego Go!.  You shout aloud and do the actions as directed by the Diego characters.  I really should get you some more and some educational DVDs b/c of all the car pooling we do. 

You go to bed pretty easily.  I warn you that it's almost time so you can prepare yourself.  We brush/floss (you love to floss after my turn flossing your teeth), say a prayer, occassionally read scriptures (I do it without you and sometimes with just Dylan), read a book or two or more, get your water and blankets, and Daddy takes you to bed.  You like to "cover up, cover up" and although you start on your back or side so you can see us, you end up on your tummy.  You still use the little pillow I made in the pillow case from Chrissy, Lacey, Aunt Tina, and Uncle Afton when I was pregnant with Dylan.  You like a lullubys CD, and we usually kiss once again.  (I easily kiss you 1000x/day.  I counted 30 just going up the stairs with you, and that was after a bunch of neck and cheeky kisses.)  Sometimes I pretend I'm going to get in your crib with you and I lay my head next to yours with my leg up next to you and my arm over you (if the crib side is down), which just makes you laugh and giggle.  Sometimes I want to stay in there - if you're in a good silly mood. 

You can climb in and out of your crib, but you usually only do it when it's play time.  You have climbed out of your crib after resting (reading books to yourself) when I put you down for a nap premateurely.  I was okay with it because you were in the BEST mood, and after doing some bed jumping, you, Daddy, and I took a nap on my bed together.  I love to cuddle with you!  You don't nurse in the mornings any more (which was actually oddly and unexpectedly harder for me to give up than I'd like to devulge here), but you do come in when Daddy hears you (around 7am-ish) and will come "cover up, cover up" next to me until Daddy tells you he will go get you cereal or a banana or milk down stairs. 

You like to sing and are pretty good at some of our regulars.  The ABC song has been your favorite, not now when I ask what song you want to sing next, you do that same silly sideways look and laugh "NOah!" Then you start singing "No-ah, NO-AH, NO-AH, No-aaaaaah. no-ah no-ah, no-ah, no-ah. . ." to the tune of the ABC song. 

(2 weeks old, taken by my Aunt Robin)

You love marshmallows.  I'm going to say it's your favorite food.  Speaking of food, you love to play with your food.  This is new for me b/c Dylan would still love it if I spoon fed him each meal.  You use utensils fine, but then you finger paint and have little wars with army guys in your mashed potatoes.  It keeps baffling me that I will find your pasta in your water cup, and sauce smeared on your belly.  I usually only get mad if you start throwing or dropping the food.  I'm caught off guard that you find so many ways to be creative with the food. 

You will be a leader.  You take the initiative.  When we were picking up sticks and seed pods from the front yard, you started climbing the tree!  It's not that the tree is particularly dificult to climb, but you had the idea to climb it all by yourself, and were quite pleased with your accomplishment.  You asked me to help you get down, but by the time I picked up sticks along my path to you, you had gotten down by yourself.  Of course I wish you had been filling up your grocery bag with yard debris like Dylan and I were doing, but it's fun. 

You are into the "Rays Shorts" craze that Dylan finally grew out of - literally.  Remember Dylan wearing those short shorts?!  They're actually too small for Isaac really, but he loves them.  He wears them - or any gym shorts type shorts or pants under or instead of clothes and over his footy PJs.  He reminded Dylan about the fad, and it's huge at our house right now.  I pick my battles. 

You know how to irritate the heck out of people.  You want to wrestle calm little Noah who wants nothing to do with physical contact.  You throw a fit for any toy that is in Dylan's hand.  You get your way in church b/c you are loud and I don't want you to think that your ticket out is your vocal cords.  We're pretty good at redirecting you b/c it's not my first rodeo.  Last Sunday was the 2 hour family session of Stake Conference, and I packed enough activities, snacks, and books to keep you occupied.  You are stubborn, and it is dificult to not just give in, but Daddy and I are really good about supporting the other's decision even though you know to go try the other if you don't get a "yes" from the first parent you ask.  It's tough for you, but once you officially hit the "terrible twos," they should only last a year. 

You love to laugh, wrestle (with your shirt off), play outside, dig, swing, throw, piddle on the skate boards and trike, and play with others.  You're a cute smart little boy and I love you so much.  Happy Birthday!