Jackson at Two

I am going to start this off by being honest and saying I had zero intentions of doing a chalkboard for Jackson at age two. I did them monthly up through twelve months, and then progressed to updates every few months, but had let the chalkboard go. However, one day recently as I was working on a three month board for Lincoln, Mike asked when I was doing one for Jackson. To which I probably gave him a blank stare. Another chalkboard? Huh? And wouldn't you know, the father of my children enjoys these little posts and was a little upset that I didn't have a birthday board planned for our Jackson. So, although it isn't right on his birthday, I decided I could manage a once-a-year chalkboard for my babies beyond the age of one. As long as they will agree to them, that is!

Here you see the evidence of why I have let the chalkboards go. Fingers crossed that by age 3 he is more willing to pose for a picture without demanding a piece of chalk!

Age: Two Years

Height: 38 inches. Per the old wives tale, this would put him at 6'4 full grown. Tall, dark, and handsome little guy that we have! He is wearing size 3T for shorts and pants and shirts, but we have moved onto buying 4T pajamas and shirts as we move forward. He wears a size 8 shoe, but I anticipate we will be moving onto a 9 sooner rather than later. He is in size 5 diapers, but we are working through our remaining stock and will then likely be wearing 6's, he is so long that the 5's are starting to seem a bit small!

Weight: a little under 33 pounds. This surprised me a bit, because he really has not gained much more than one or two pounds in the past six months, even though he grew two inches. He is definitely thinned out, he might just get the lankiness from his mama!
Milestones: He has finally added a few words to his vocabulary. He is definitely still pretty behind in terms of speech, but for MONTHS he would only say 'mama' and 'dada'. Now we also have bubble, tja-tja (tractor), hi, the letters 'o', 'm', and 't', 'yes', and a funny little grunt when you ask what the bear (or truck or Jackson) says. Despite his lack of speech, he is very perceptive and picks up on a lot. He can identify objects by color, can point out and identify just about any item in a book, and gets creative in getting what he wants (because we just can't break through the barrier to get him to use his words and ask). The other day, he was out in the living room while I was getting ready in our bathroom. All of the sudden he came walking in, with a diaper in one hand and the package of wipes in the other. He has no problems telling us he needs to freshen up! He is also really growing in his role as big brother, and it is so sweet to watch. He will grab his brother's blanket and cover him (unfortunately usually when his brother is already sleeping and content), or will try to give him his pacifier. He likes to hold him, but once he is done, be prepared because he will shove his brother right to the side and go about his playing! He still loves to give him extra slobbery kisses on the head, and whenever you ask him where Lincoln is, he will still smile like a fool and breathe like he is hyperventilating. So I guess that can go under speech too, right? 'Say Lincoln' gets the response of crazy fast breathing, so there's that.
In other huge news, he started daycare this month! We are only about two weeks in, and there have definitely been some rough mornings with tears, but they are basically always followed up with a text from his daycare provider showing a picture of a smiling, goofy boy. He also brought home his first cold from daycare (YAY). It is fun seeing him grow to know the other kids, and really start interacting more. Between daycare, mom going back to work, and moving into a new house, this little boy has really had a lot to deal with this month, but he has taken it all pretty darn well!
Sleep: We have definitely made progress in the sleep department in the past few months. He still wakes up, but he also sleeps through the night without us needing to go to his room at all a good chunk of the time. On the fourth night in our new house he had his first official time sleeping through the night, and woke up happy and chit-chatting over the monitor. So, while he doesn't let us sleep all night every night, he does at least give us about every other night-which I'll take!
He has also had a HUGE sleep milestone in that he is learning to put himself to sleep. Some nights, this means him getting up and out of bed, turning on the light, and playing in his room, but it is progress nonetheless. It is funny, because for two years we couldn't get him to lay down without one of us beside him, and now he loves to lay down, and once he thinks we aren't watching he shuts the door and turns the lights on! I am shocked to see the day where he is happy being alone in his room with the door shut. This has also given mom and dad a bit more freedom, because we are able to hang out upstairs in the loft and watch TV together for the first time in literally a year. So, huge successes overall in the sleep department just in the past few weeks!
Best Moments: There have been a lot of great moments with this little guy over the past few months. He lit up like a Christmas tree when he woke up from his nap and saw the kitchen decked out for his birthday party with Thomas the Train decorations everywhere! Hearing him say some new words has been amazing, and we do everything we can to praise and celebrate his accomplishments so that he knows how proud we are of him. Watching him love his little brother is one of the sweetest things I have experienced, even when it is often followed with him smacking Lincoln on the head with a car seconds later. Watching him eat his first s'more by the campfire on the Fourth of July was great. It was also great to watch him learn to love 4-wheeler rides this summer, go on walks with his grandparents, and enjoy being outside. Despite all of the crazy going on, our sweet boy has had what I would deem a pretty wonderful summer!
Worst Moments: He has developed a new habit of being very aware of when his diaper is dirty, and for whatever reason his reaction to this awareness is sticking his fingers in to assess the situation. Which has resulted in poop on little fingers and in the carpet on more than one occasion. I should at least be happy he hasn't wiped it on walls or all over his room (yet), but now the second we realize he has gone #2, we are all over it and changing his diaper immediately!
Health: Aside from an occasional runny nose, he really is a pretty healthy kid. We had our terrible bout with Influenza A this past winter (which was two full weeks of absolute misery for all) and since then he has had slight touches of a cold once or twice. He is growing great, is tall, thinning out, but right on track for everything besides his speech. We did decide to get him assessed again (which we did at 18 months) and will be doing so in the next few weeks, because if he would qualify for any extra help that will get him up to speed with his speech, we will take it. We want our sweet boy to have every opportunity to grow and thrive possible. Overall though, his health is pretty excellent.
Eating: He has gotten much better with eating. He is still picky, but dinner seems to be the meal where he is most willing to try new things. He absolutely loves pizza, which really comes as no surprise because after all, he is our child. He is all about hot dogs, and will eat them until you stop offering. He has also eaten stir fry, spaghetti, pasta alfredo, enchiladas, meatloaf, and a variety of other things. He also is throwing less of his meals on the floor now that we are in our own house and there is no known dog available to come pick up his mess ;-) He loves chips, and if he ever gains access to the pantry that is the first thing he will grab and demand be opened. He is wary of cold foods, which I find a bit strange. He will steal bites of our ice cream if we are eating it out of a bowl, but he is very skeptical of ice cream cones. And he pretty much wants nothing to do with freezy pops or popsicles. Seriously, what kid doesn't like popsicles!? I'm not sure if he just finds the cold shocking, or if maybe he has sensitive teeth.
Teeth: Sixteen teeth. At this point, I honestly don't even know when they are supposed to get more teeth, and how many more they are supposed to get before they hit kindergarten age and start losing them? We are enjoying the break from teething and all that goes with it!
Likes: Thomas the train, any train actually, tractors, trucks, cars, buses. Anything with wheels will provide him hours of entertainment! He also loves to cuddle, and still loves Wallykazam, as well as Thomas the Train and anything on the baby channel. He loves his brother (when he wants to). Loves his mama and dada. Recently he enjoys pushing his cozy coup all over the yard, and as a result it is often parked to the side of our house. He loves dogs, and will giggle hysterically when a puppy decides to play with him. He has grown to love books more than I ever imagined, and will read them for hours on end if you let him. He also loves to color, especially on mommy's chalkboard.
Dislikes: He is not a fan of daycare dropoff, but I am hoping we turn that corner quickly. Every day I have gotten reports that he is getting more and more outgoing and social, which makes me so happy. He HATES having dirty diapers, as is evidenced by him rubbing his poo in the carpet. He is afraid of the dining room light fixture in our new house, and refuses to sit anywhere near it. He also dislikes being told he has to go to bed. And staying in bed. He is not a fan of getting his fingernails clipped, so we have to strategically do it once he has fallen asleep.


Some days I cannot believe our little baby is already two years old, and some days I feel like he has been two forever. He is the sweetest little boy, and we just cannot get enough of him. He smiles nonstop, and it is contagious. He is hard to stay mad at, because he knows just how to melt your heart. We love you so much, Jackson, and can't wait to continue watching you grow!

Jackson at 21 months // Jackson at 18 months // Jackson at 15 months // Jackson at 12 months