Dear Daniel, (2 years + 1 month)

Hi there, Daniel! You just keep on growing and changing, and I can hardly keep up.

Now that you're over two years old, I'm inclined to write shorter (and perhaps less frequent) update letters, but we'll just have to see how it goes.

So what's new with you as I see it? Well...

You got your first black eye this month (see the photo to the left). It was a (painful) lesson in "don't pull things down off of high surfaces without being able to see what's up there." The incident involved an enticing piece of bubble wrap and a soapstone statue which came crashing down onto your face. It was rough there for a few moments, but after some cuddles and smooches, you didn't seem to notice the injury.

Speaking of smooches, you give some really great ones, kiddo. You say, "mooch," and you hold my head with your little hands and plant one on me. You insist that Papa give smooches to your bubba (pacifier), which is pretty funny.

My little backseat driver

You've figured out that when we're driving in the car, that means someone should probably be giving directions. If Danielle (the GPS) isn't dolling them out (and even sometimes when she is), you take it upon yourself to let us know where to go. You'll say, "Papa, turn right... I-5 South... left lane!" I enjoy this new level of participation from you during our travel times.

Another thing you do all the time (which I particularly enjoy) is saying "cheers." You want to cheers not only beverages at mealtimes, but pieces of food, forks, and even (once recently) bike helmets when we're going for a ride. I relish in these frequent celebrations of life that you initiate with us.

Your language development has continued at a rapid pace. Just this week you've begun to master pronouncing the "R" sound, and it seems that you're working on "L," too. You've started to figure out pronouns better, and you use "I" properly, as in: "I found this," "I sit there," and "I do it." You consistently use three word sentences, and lots of times you get up to five or six words in a sentence. I'm not surprised that you're so verbal—not only do you come by it naturally, you've always been very vocal.

You're always trying to figure out how things work.

You're making lots of progress with OT and your other therapies, but that's a subject for its own full post. I continue to be amazed by how flexible your brain is—you've made such huge strides in the past year, I can hardly wrap my own mind around it.

There's so much more to be said, but I'm having trouble finding the words, so I'll wrap up here. I look forward to the adventures that this month (this day; this minute!) will take us on together.

I adore you.

Love,
Momma