Spencer is now 2!

I will try to use nap time on Spencer's 2nd birthday to give an update about my thoughts on this little guy.  Spence continues to be tons of fun as he starts his second year.  He is talking and running and climbing and even sharing on occasion these days. It's fun to watch him learn new things and even get excited about learning now.  Here are some recent highlights (so I don't forget by the time his birthday comes around next year).

One of my favorite things is that he learned how to tell a joke a few months ago, and it's still going strong. It involves telling us that something is pizza, then smiling and saying "That's not pizza!"  He cracks up every time, so it must be funny. It's also accurate in life since he talked about eating pizza for months straight recently - it was a hardcore eating preference for awhile.  He is also talking with authority already. He can say a lot of colors now, but mostly gets them wrong still despite his certainty in the delivery (with maybe the exception of green, which is right about 75% of the time). He can also count, reliably up to 3, but then he can start over randomly and get 7-10 correct too. He likes to sing songs, still requesting Jingle Bells but chiming in for ABCs and Itsy Bitsy Spider.  Mostly though, he uses conversation to tell us to "Come on, let's go play" or go outside, or ride bikes, or something of that nature (he is Chris' son after all).  He also still loves books, especially ones about trains and trucks. And if you're willing to draw markers or do Playdough, he's your go-to.  Finally, he has realized that stuffed animals and dolls can act like people, and he is into the stage of pretending to feed them, tuck them into bed, and hug/kiss them - which is the clear way to melt his mama's heart with a simple developmental phase. In short, Spencer is a lover of life, and we are lucky to have him in our family!

Here are the pictures and videos of his recent shenanigans, ending with the photos from his birthday party (yes, it featured pizza eating) over the weekend:



 

Here are some pictures lately, including a trip to Tahoe, requisite park time, and some fire truck touching.

 And then, here is the actual birthday celebration!