Easter and updates

fruit snacks are yummy!

short piano break with Daddy:

bubbles!

chocolate bunny time:

Blogger has been “slower than molasses in January” for the last four nights so I’m attempting to type my blog into MS Works (we don’t have Word!) and copy and paste. If you’re reading this, it worked…

Jakey had a very busy and fun Easter weekend: He helped me dye Easter eggs on Friday! He loved dropping the eggs into the dye, but hated waiting for them to finish the coloring process. And let me tell you, patience is a very hard lesson to teach an active 19-month-old. Thank goodness he is easily distracted!

On Saturday, we had lunch at a local outdoor mall where they were having an Easter egg hunt. The lines were way too long to register for it so we decided not to participate this year, but we did score Jakey some adorable bunny ears. He wore them almost all day on Easter and didn’t want to take them off! So cute. After Jake’s nap on Saturday we headed to a 2nd birthday party for my friend Erica’s daughter Zoe. The party had an adorable lady bug theme and Jakey loved looking at all the lady bug decorations, especially the balloons! He had a great time playing with all of Zoe’s toys (many of them pink and purple!) and he loved playing in her outdoor playhouse (I see one of those in our future!) Jake went in the bounce house for about 4 seconds and then decided that it wasn’t for him.

On Easter morning, we showed Jakey the basket that the Easter Bunny had left him, and he loved everything about it - even the basket itself! He had fun playing with his new stuffed monkey, eating the fruit snack treats (mommy made him brush his teeth after those bad boys!) and checking out his new bubbles/bubble wands. My mom bought him a bunny straw cup a while ago so we decided to use it on Easter - Jakey loved it and drank his water from it all day long. When we went on our morning walk he brought his bunny cup and his new monkey along for the ride.

We decided against going to church this year because Jake cannot sit still for very long, and the last time we were at church it was kind of a nightmare. So after our walk we played inside until it was time to go over to my parents house for our annual Easter brunch/egg hunt. We had a yummy brunch and Jake sampled some of everything (eggs, fruit, toast, turkey bacon, baked French toast with maple syrup - he loved that last one and kept saying “toast” when he wanted more!) After brunch, Jakey went on an egg hunt in my parents backyard. It was really cute to see how excited Jakey became when he came across each egg. We all took turns helping him find all of the eggs, and he loved placing each one in his basket! He was not as interested in opening the eggs to check out the contents, so I helped with that part. He kept looking for eggs the rest of the time we were at my parents house though! For dinner we had a non-traditional Easter BBQ. The best part was watching Jake eat his other Easter treat - his first chocolate bunny! He only ate the ears off though before he had his fill and handed it back to me. He must not have gotten the chocoholic gene from me! Or maybe he’s just not used to so much sugar at one time!?

So what’s new in Jakeyland? He has been quite the learning machine lately. He now uses about 50 or so words in the correct context and is learning to say at least one new word a day. He amazes me daily with what he knows. He picked up a blue crayon last night and said “blue” (sounded more like “boo”) and pointed to the number 5 today on his diaper and said “five”! He can now find and say the numbers “five” and “eight” and “two.”

Jake loves to give high fives and once he starts, he must high five everyone within a 10 foot radius. He also loves to give “knuckles” too! Such a little punk. I love it! He is such a typical boy and loves to play in the dirt, bring me rocks and sticks, and chase lizards around the backyard! He has no fear of climbing (up, that is). Getting down is a different story. For some reason he still needs/wants help to get down once he climbs up on things. He still makes me carry him down the stairs! I think he may be traumatized from turning around on a big spiral slide a few weeks ago. He turned while sliding down and it scared him to be going down the slide on his stomach. Ever since then he has been much more cautious about getting down from high places. I guess he is afraid of falling down…but he has no problem climbing up in the first place! Silly boy.

Jake also loves to eat. Well, actually, he loves to eat what he loves to eat. He has a huge appetite for the things he likes. His standard faves are mac ‘n’ cheese (the homemade or restaurant style kind, not the neon orange kind from a box that I still love so much), raisins (which we are trying to cut down on because the dentist said they are bad for his teeth), olives (“ah-yivs”), grapes (cut into quarters to prevent a choking hazard), cheese (only cheddar!), beans (black, pinto, refried, etc.), Cheerios, crackers (of every and any kind), and soup (this is a great way to get him to eat more veggies!) His favorite soups are chicken noodle, broccoli cheddar, lentil, and minestrone. Oh, and abondigas soup when we go out for Mexican food! He especially loves feeding himself a bowl of cereal or soup. He is very proud of himself when he uses his utensils correctly! Jakey is usually predictable with what he likes to eat, but occasionally will surprise us with his choices. Last week he ate several bites of my Cajun salmon (I’m SO happy that he takes after me and likes spicy food!) and he also loved the pesto pizza that Joe ordered every Friday night during Lent. And Jake couldn’t get enough of the bratwurst that Joe barbequed on Easter!

We are so lucky to have a good eater and a good sleeper! Well…part luck, part sleep training. Jake continues to sleep about 11 hours at night, and takes one nap a day that usually lasts for 1 hour and 15 min. He does not fuss at all at nap time or bed time, and he always falls asleep on his own and usually wakes up in a good mood. He will talk and play in his crib until we go get him. Don’t worry, he definitely provides us with other challenges by being a very active, stubborn child and a selective listener! But all in all he is a very good little boy who we love to pieces. Can you tell?