Sweet November: Jace Update

Jace turned two and a half this weekend. Let's be honest, "2" is a bit of an emotional roller coaster. I once read that nothing can compare to the emotional exhaustion of raising a two year old... I'd have to say some days I would 100% agree. On other days, I would argue that it's the most fun I've ever had as a parent. See? Total emotional roller coaster.

Jace is so fun at this age because he's energetic, imaginative, and loves to tell me all about the thoughts in his head. There is nothing more entertaining than a two year olds imagination! He not only speaks complete sentances, but complete paragraphs... and complete stories. He's the most talkative when we're one on one, driving in the car where he's not distracted by something else. He loves to talk. Constantly. I love it. His little toddler voice telling me all sorts of things, with so much enthusiasm... nothing can compare to that.

On the "harder" days, Jace's energy turns into defiance so bad that he can't be reasoned with or calmed down at all... it goes past what "normal" toddler bad behavior would qualify as. It's usually certain environmental factors that trigger it. He acts out the most when we're with other kids, he gets overstimulated and hyper easily and will act out by shrieking, or pushing other kids around and just completely ignoring me as if I don't exist, which makes discipline pretty much impossible. Alot of times its hard to explain why he's hitting or pushing kids, because he's not doing it viciously... he's doing it with a little devilish smile on his face, thinking that it's a fun thing and that he's going to get a fun reaction. We've been struggling with this issue for a long time though, and really the only thing that stops it is removing him from that environment and giving him something else to focus his energy on. It can be very frustrating though... because the last thing you want to see as a parent is your kid acting out of control.

What raising a 2 year old has taught me is not to give myself too much credit for the good, and not to take too much credit for the bad. As much as I want to think of myself as "mother of the year" on the good days or when Jace has just picked up a new skill, then I would have to also accept the "worst mother EVER" award on the really bad ones. As important as good parenting is, our kids will be the kids they were designed to be... whether that's quiet and intellectual or spirited and energetic or calm and loving or whatever. Rather than change him or stifle his energy I believe it's my job to teach him how to channel that energy into positive things and make the right decisions as he grows up. My hope for Jace as he grows is that he learns that all that energy and vibrant personality are great traits to have, but he still needs to be respectful and learn when and where certain behavior is appropriate.

At two and a half Jace...

- Loves the tv show Dora the Explorer.
- Knows all of his colors and shapes and words.
- Repeats everything... and I mean everything. He has a knack for picking out the things you wouldn't want repeated. :-/
- Comes up with dirty boy-like phrases that I absolutely know he didn't hear from me... some of them are quite comical though. He will often stop in public, pick at his bottom and say "Oh... hold on I have a wedgie stuck in my butt Mom!" for everyone to hear. He also loves to announce when he toots. Though I have an idea where he learned that one... cough, daddy, cough.
- Loves swimming, splashing in puddles, and blowing bubbles.
- Loves coloring, and drawing circles.
- Can sing the ABCs on his own, and can identify about half of the letters when shown to him. Couting, on the other hand, he struggles with.
- Knows his left and right.
- Is super, super affectionate. <3
- Is no longer a picky eater (yay!!) and will try and eat whatever we're eating.
- Has a crazy memory. He reminds me of things I said I needed from the store, or about something I was supposed to do that day. Who needs a list when you have a two year old?! ;)
- Is sleeping better than he was a couple of months ago, and now will go down most nights without a fight.
- Loves to sing "I'm the grumpy old troll who lives under the bridge" whenever he's cranky. If you don't know what that's from, you haven't been watching enough Dora :)
- Has started to stretch the truth and use imagination to pass the blame. He often blames things lately on either "the baby goldfish in my tummy" or the new baby or one of his friends.
- He loves to tattle. Tate said "Jesus Christ!" the other day after hanging up the phone in his office. Jace immediately ran over to me and said "Daddy said Jesus Christ!". I'm not sure how he knew it was bad, but I guess he knew daddy shouldn't say it!
- Has been potty trained for 6 months now, and despite a little regression after we moved into this house in January, he's been doing great. He hasn't had an accident in a few months, except for the occasional bed wetting.
- Is starting to become more aware of "scary" things.
- Listens much better to Daddy than to Mommy.
- Goes to a kids gym for a once a week class, and also for open gym throughout the week. It's a great way for him to let off some steam!
- Loves his "besties".
- Has a silly habit of saying "Someone said something" whenever he hears something that peaks his curiosity.
- Loves the movie Madagascar.
- Still calls his drinks his "cup of sue-key", something he said long ago when trying to tell us he's thirsty. I guess we like holding on to that piece of babyhood because we don't ask him to correct his pronounciation.
- Is mildly allergic to mosquito bites, and will get swollen lumps the day after getting bitten at the site of the bite.
- Is totally aware of length of time that passes now, which makes Tate being gone for work so much harder than it used to be. "I miss my dadddddy..." is a common phrase around here now, and it always breaks my heart. For some reason saying "my daddy" rather than "daddy" makes it seem more sad.
- Is a little rascal, but so so sweet. I can't imagine having a better little boy to call my son. :)

And here are a million random pictures I've taken on my iphone within the last two months, in a totally messed up order, sorry it's the best I could do. I'm so behind with updates lately...

Practising his "indoor voice"

"Chillin" at gymnastics

Actually EATING. It's a miracle! Thank goodness the picky
eating phase is over with!

Making homemade fruit popsicles

Helping mommy do some gardening...

Apparently I really liked taking pictures of him eating
recently. Cauliflower, baked potatoes and chicken may
not seem like a big deal to those who haven't had a picky
eater in the past ;)