Not-so-terrible TWO

It is hard to believe that two years have come and gone with Max. In the blink of an eye, he was a wee baby all swaddled up and carried around and now a little boy running around and talking.

Talking seems to be Max's specialty at the moment. He can repeat about any and everything that you say. That makes us a little more careful nowadays about what we do say, because Max can now actually understand those words too! We find ourselves spelling "i-P-a-d" or "W-a-l-k" because this kid is ON it once you say it. He wants to "draw!" or "play birds!" (Angry Birds...we didn't show him, he found that himself, thank you) on the iPad. And don't mention going outside unless you are ready because this guy is grabbing his "Dapatos" (Zapatos - spanish for shoes) and sunglasses and he is ready to "Walk! Walk! Pleeeaaassseeeee!!!"

Max is still a pretty good eater too. No change in his favorites (we swear he's part Mexican and we call him our little Max-ican) which are black beans, rice, and avocado any way you serve it (but guacamole is the BEST). His favorite restaurant is Chipotle, or any taqueria in the vicinity. He loves fruit, especially watermelon. Although he gets a variety each morning for breakfast, his preference is oatmeal with a little yogurt, honey, and raisins thrown in. He even has an "OATMEAL! OATMEAL!" chant & dance he does some mornings after getting dressed to give us a signal as to what he wants for breakfast. Veggies can be a challenge sometime (unless it's corn or peas) so we serve those up from the mash-ups or happy-tot packs so he can get some dark greens in his meals.

Max is an independent and outgoing kid. He is insistent on doing things on his own right now, such as putting on his socks, combing his hair, and putting his own dishes away. He tends not to shy away from strangers, but can sometimes be hesitant when alot of people are around and he just woke up. He tests us constantly with what he can do or not, and yes, he whines and throws tantrums. However, he gets over them quickly enough once we are firm or ignore him.

 Max LOVES Tank. Like a brotherly love. Then sometimes he takes his frustration out on him. Tank is such a sweet boy about it though. Max has to say goodnight to everyone before going to bed: Night Mama, Night Daddy, Night fan, Night Pee Pee(yes, the toilet), Night Tankie. The sweetest part is he gives all of us a kiss goodnight including Tank. And if you forget Tank, he's going to make you go back. It is all very sweet but...I also think this kid has his stall tactics :)

Max's imagination has been running wild lately too. He doesn't even realize how much he entertains us on a daily basis or cracks us up with his mimicking. He loves to "talk on the phone". He will "read books" in his crib and sometimes to Tank, even if Tank isn't really listening. When he is reading he will point out and say the words he does know on that page, like "Hey! Chicken!" or "Cow Moo" and babble the rest of it. He takes laps around the house and likes to watch his shadow on the wall in the hallway when he does. He likes to put things away after he takes them out of a package or box. He is drawing constantly and will point to it and tell us what he drew (which is good, because we can't quite make out what he is drawing yet!) like "M!", "duck", "giraffe", "Agua" (yep...more spanish). He loves to dance and jump, and give you high fives. Lastly, his most favorite game as of late is going on our bed and pretending to go "night night" or jumping and doing trust falls by himself.

Max is such a fun little guy right now and we are soaking up every moment. Terrible twos? Maybe some days, but the good is really outweighing the "terrible" :)