William’s 2nd Birthday (3/31/08)
You are definitely my little man and all boy. You have one of the brightest smiles I have ever seen. My heart melts every time I see that beautiful face all lit up. I am amazed at how much you have grown and learned this past year. It’s seems like yesterday you were just a newborn baby. Now that you are turning 2!! I look forward to another great year together!
One of the biggest changes we noticed this year has been your increasing ability to talk and communicate. You started just after your first birthday and your vocabulary has been slowly increasing ever since. Some of your early words included manu (your word for Nemo) danu, wawa, baba, bubble, mama, dada, dirt, backpack, Nana (your word for Briana), jes, and no. Early on, you would use a combination of gestures and words to express yourself. You became increasingly interested in getting on the couch and sitting like a big boy. You learned very early on that if you patted the seat of the couch we would help you climb in so you could sit down with the rest of us. At 15 months you added please, thank you and welcome to your vocabulary. Often times you say "welcome" and then expect us to say thank you again, not quite grasping the concept. A few months after that you started to tell us, “I love you” even though it came out more like, “ups you”. It was still very cute!! We often get comments from other people about your ability to speak. Not only that, the closer you get to the age of 2 you were able to sing the entire alphabet song and count to eleven. Advanced skills according to Dr. Lao and not asked of children until the age of four!!
It goes without saying that you seem to be growing up so fast. When I think of all the places we have already taken you, it amazes me. Of course you have been to the Zoo more than a dozen times. Each time we go you are becoming more and more interested in the animals. At this point you are still confined to the backpack for most of the trip but it actually gives you an excellent view of everything. We have also taken you to Disneyland several times. Your favorite ride in Small World but you would never know it because you are always singing the pirate song. Yo ho, yo ho a pirates life for me!! We had a chance to go to Goofy’s kitchen back in October and that was all you needed to form a long lasting attachment to the Goofy character. I hear from so many parents that they want to wait until their child is older to go to Disney so they will get more out of the trip but I can’t think of how you could love it more. We also had a chance to take you to Lego land back in August. Your absolute favorite part of that trip was the water area. We have even taken you to see your first movie on the big screen, Horton Hears a Who. For the most you did very well. You spent most of the time in daddy’s lap and waited until the end of the movie to ask to go home.
During the past year your love for certain television and movie characters has grown immensely. The very first show you fell in love with is Dora the Explorer. Swiper is by far your favorite character and when given the line, “swiper no swiping!” you always reply, “oh man!” Of course there was what you called manu and what the rest of the world knows as Nemo. As you got older, the little boy in you took over and became very interested in Cars and Toy Story. Your aunt Justin gave you Michael’s old Woody and Buzz Lightyear dolls and you must have them in your crib every night or you won’t go to sleep. Not to mention how many Lightning McQueen cars we now have around the house. Of course if it weren’t for big sister I think we would have been watching Toy Story and Cars just about every day!!!
Speaking of your big sister, you take so many cues from her that at times it’s almost absurd. I remember one time after lunch I was giving you both a cookie for dessert and Briana happened to still have her napkin so I placed her cookie on it. You took one look at that and started to yell for a “nakin”, “nakin like Briana”. Not realizing right away why you wanted it, I handed you the napkin and watched as you placed your cookie on it. Of course with Briana being your constant role model you stopped calling her Nana at about 18 months and have called her Briana ever since. (In my experience young children have a difficult time with the name Briana but you hear it everyday) In reality your persistence to imitate Briana has actually made my life 100% easier. I know that’s why you stay in your stroller so well during stroller strides and why you can sit for 30-45 minutes at a time during a meal. On occasion, it does break my heart when you get disappointed at the prospect of being separated from Briana. I was dropping you off at the church daycare one Sunday morning and you hesitated for a moment an asked me if Briana was coming. When I told you no, you began to cry. You apparently got over it quickly enough because I was never called back in. It just makes me realize what a close bond the two of you have been able to form since we are home together everyday.
I am truly enjoying this opportunity we have together. I am definitely getting to know such a sweet, loving, intelligent, and caring little boy. I look forward to each and every day we have to spend together. I am definitely looking forward to what you have in store for me next. I know I will always be impressed with the things you do and say. My love for you grows deeper with each new day and I know I will always look back at this time with the fondest of memories. Now on to 2 and hoping for few temper tantrums and continued good times!!
