Subtitle: Welcome my friends to the terrible twos.
I asked him if he would pose for a photo, he replied "ummmm no!"
Well, Graham is here. Terrible and just short of two. He just stinks and is flat out exhausting and if it wasn't for his cute little face, I am afraid he would have one way tickets to Florida with a t-shirt that says "Good Luck Chumps."
Here are some videos of him still being sweet.
Video. Not to be missed.
Another video. Seriously sweet.
We took him camping this weekend and he was the perfect combination of stubborn and clumsy. Or as I call it, suicide watch. I actually didn't even have any fun I was so busy trying to keep him from abusing me, his dad, his brother, himself... the only person in our family who he is kind and sweet to is Selma. Oh and he insists on only momma right now. So fun! Not. I know it is a phase. I know that in a matter of about six months, he will stop acting like a little a-hole.
Naked backyard running. Just don't spray him with the hose. Seriously.
For example, the other day while trying to pack for the camping trip, he quietly exhausted a entire box of kleenex behind my back. I mean, it is kind of my fault because I know better than him being quiet these days. I think I was just taking a sweet reprieve from being bossed around all day. While I was cleaning up kleenex, I hear my toilet flush. Not good. He had out the plunger and some ear plugs - and was covered in blue toilet water. Oh good god. I wash his hands, tell him to GET while I clean up the mess and he is gone, to take out all of the cereal from the pantry and throw a crying fit when I come down and remove the giant container of cous-cous from his hands. He was having such a blast violently shaking it. He hits me, he bites, he punches, he swears in baby language, and he is generally a terror. I still manage to rekindle my love affair with him nightly by holding him after he falls asleep and kissing his head.
Okay, pretty cute and pretty sweet.
The only time he slept on our camping trip - in the car. Ed and I were STOKED. Not so much.
Speaking of his head - guess who got his first haircut. Just one month short of his 2nd birthday, he got his very first haircut. He was okay with it at first, then when it lasted longer than 2 minutes, he was out of there. Nona had to chase him down with the clippers and corner him in the beauty shop to trim around his ears.
Before the haircut.
After the haircut - and PISSED about not getting to go in and out of the dog door.
During the haircut. Bye bye curls. Don't worry, they will be back.
Don't get me wrong, I love the heck out of that baby, but I may have to take away his "Sweetest Baby Alive" title for the time being. Perhaps his new title should be "Pushing My Parents Buttons For A Living Baby" or "Hey MOM Check This Out Baby."
I had just made him stop playing in the gas cap of the truck. Can you see the look of sheer disgust in his eyes. Just who DO I think I am?
Fishing buddy.
Jr. and his beloved uncle/cousin/friend Phil. My cousin Phil.
Ed got him a new big boy fishing pole. Look out trout.
Thanks for taking a nice photo with me buddy.
Protecting our property from bears.
If this photo had a sound track it would sound something like a fart/gun/squish.
Jr. teaching Graham to pee on the fence.
Cute one moment.
Incredibly pissed off the next.
As for his brother, I am fondly recalling his terrible two year, he was quite terrible that one. I love his 4 year-old ness though. Today he asked me if it was Sunday or Wednesday. I said it was Sunday. He told me that we should do this every Sunday. I asked him what he was talking about and he said, "snuggling in my bed with your hand over me taking a nap." I was like - yeah, buddy we should. I constantly ask him if he is my best friend and he obliges me kindly by saying yes. Tonight he told me we would be friends forever and that when I am an old lady he will let me come to his house and pet his kitties. He sang a song tonight for about 20 minutes about Star Wars. I love him so. My one complaint - and it is VERY minor - is the endless questions. Oh dear. Pretending not to hear or saying I don't know is not going to cut it either.
As far as being brothers are concerned, they fight like crazy, they love each other like crazy and they are starting to play together so well. My heart still swells and aches over seeing them pretend together - even if it is to shoot bears. Oh well.
Just as the scab on his nose and lip healed up and fell off, Ed Jr. took a serious digger and hit his head on his toy airplane.
Oh dear god all I heard from the other side of the door was a huge smack/bang/kapow and when I finally got the door open his dad was holding him up and he wouldn't uncover his eye with his hand. My heart officially stopped. I mean it. I thought for one brief second that we would have a baby with a glass eye. Luckily as we calmed him down the eye was just fine, but the forehead had a bruise with a lump on it and in the middle of the lump was a pretty severe gouge. Not enough of one to bleed, but damn near.
Ed was so upset he threw the airplane in the garbage can and I felt like I was going to pass out for about a half hour after the whole event. The two of us had better get some thicker skin if we are going to survive this kid. Nothing in the universe can prepare you for the sight of your first born screaming and holding his hand up to his eye. Nothing.
He is none the worse for ware. He was done crying in about 2 minutes and has moved on to sustain other injuries. He did cry and insist that I dig the airplane out of the garbage. He kept telling me "Mommy get airplane from garbage!" "Daddy put airplane in garbage. Daddy soooo upset!"
After all it really wasn't the airplane's fault. It is nobody's fault.
With that, we had a pretty arduous weekend of house hunting *again*. This time I think it is actually going to happen. Now whether it happens before little baby hot house cucumber is born remains to be seen.
Jr. kept busy playing with Faith and Uncle Bean and inventing airplanes, sailboats, ladders and big fish with his blocks. It is ridiculously cute how amazing his imagination is.
Jr. got out *iceboarding* despite our many attempts to explain. . . His daddy is still pretty good at iceboarding.
So far, we took a digger down the back stairs and seriously banged up our nose and upper lip. Scared the living daylights out of his mom and daddy. We immediately checked to see if all of the teeth were loose, none were.
"Oh god, we are going to have one of *those* kids aren't we?" - Ed
"Um yeah, we already do." - Auto
Finished our fence AKA baby keeper inner. Thanks to Uncle Bean, it looks fabulous! Jr. had a wonderful week having his uncle around every morning and afternoon. He LOVES his Uncle Bean.
Nanny and Treyson came over to celebrate Easter with us. We were supposed to go to GF but this sinus infection I have keeps coming back and I was too ill to travel. They brought Easter to us. Jr. fared quite well in the Easter egg hunt. He loved the M&Ms.
We had a second easter egg hunt tonight at papa and nona's house. With zero competition he made short work of the finding, even scored one golden egg.
I think we have landed on a name. Rutabaga. Rutabaga Coleman, has quite the ring to it - don't you think? Or maybe it is too femenine? Now for a middle name. . . Jr. is partial to Walker.
I realize that posting a video every time I post a blog is setting the bar quite high, but this video is too good not to share. I call it Ed Jr. Hardhat Diaper Marching Song.
I don't know why, but one day Jr. decided to name baby brother Baby Walker.
Not the name we would choose. All that comes to mind is Walker Texas Ranger, and I know Chuck Norris jokes are funny, but his terrible TV show is too much stigma to attach to a baby.
Tonight I was laying on the floor while he played in his room and the baby started to kick, so I put his hand on my belly and the baby kicked for him. He did not care for this. He did, however lift up his shirt, place my hand on his belly and make me feel his baby kick.
Jr. is in a whole new phase of life, bossy but cute, stubborn but fun, super chatty and I WILL FREAK OUT IN YOUR FACE IF YOU DARE TRY TO DRAG OR TRICK ME INTO COMING INSIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YOU THINK CRYING FOR 30 MINUTES STRAIGHT IS TOO MUCH, WELL JUST TRY ME!!!!!!!!!! I AM A RACE CAR IN THE RED PEOPLE!!!!!! I AM HERE TO MAKE YOU REGRET THE DAY YOU WERE BORN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS IS A BIG FING DEAL!!!!!!!!!!! (sorry FIL, couldn't help myself.)
Nothing works. Not candy, not sheer exhaustion, not the cold, nor wind, nor rain will make that little man come in the house. No, Grandma, not even Elmo can bring him inside.
Please don't misunderstand, on the whole he is such a fun amazing little man. So wicked smart, but the terrible twos are here - at least that is what I think is here. God help us if these aren't the terrible twos. Along with the terrible twos is the terrific twos. The little guy who stood for an hour at the kitchen sink tonight and washed dishes. The little guy who helped me rake out my flower gardens with his golf club. That perfect little man who kept throwing his football into his basketball hoop and yelling "JUNIOR TOUCHDOWN!"
The countdown to #2 birthday is on! He is getting a swingset and a front fence from his parents. Maybe a Jr. sized gardening set. Maybe even his own fishing setup. If you are wondering he wears size 3T. Maye a visit from his Nanny and auntie Liesel would be a nice birthday present. . .
Here I am at 24 weeks. I am a little nervous about how big my belly is at 24 weeks, I still have 3 and a half months to go, or 16 weeks. How big can this thing get without tearing my skin and falling off of my body. I think I was this big around 30 weeks with Jr. Maybe Baby Walker is a GIANT! And no, there is only one in there, we saw it. I don't know if anyone is checking but little baby ear of corn/$5 footlong is cooking right along. I like to think about him in there sleeping peacefully while I go about my day and then waiting until I am in the middle of a meeting to Blammo! jump right on my bladder. Sweet little baby.
Oh and P.S. THANK YOU MIL and FIL for the wonderful early Easter present. Jr. loves "Baby Brother" and he makes a perfect pair with "Baby Sister". Although Baby Brother has yet to be invited into Cribby, he is starting to go a lot of places in the house and occasionally has to sit in the booster seat. We also LOVED the books, very cool. Thank you!
