Talk, Talk, Talk
Jake has been pretty verbal from day one. He used to lay in his crib as a baby and jabber to himself for long periods of time before he would fall asleep and after he would wake up. Sometimes, Ryan and I joked that he enjoyed getting away from us, because he seemed so happy in there talking to himself. I guess I should have realized that we were going to have quite a talker on our hands when we finally started to understand what he was saying. Some of my favorite things Jake is saying these days are, "Mommy, I hold you," when he wants to be picked up, "Love you, Mommy," which I thought he would never say, "Ooooh nice," when he's done something he's very proud of or he thinks something is cool, "Look Mommy," which is followed by whatever he wants me to look at. The first day he said this, he actually said, "Look Mommy, I build tower," which amazed me, until he said it every few seconds, even if the tower never changed. Tonight, we were out shopping, and Ryan and I thought he was telling us knock, knock jokes. Once he learned how to knock on a door, this became an obsession, but tonight, he would say, "Knock, knock," wait for Ryan to say, "Who's there," and then make up someone, like Blues Clues, Sissy, Daddy...you get the idea. Anyway, it was very humorous. Sometimes I just don't know where he comes up with the things he says.
Obsessed with Ray Ray
I used to think that Jake's obsession with cooking was just a phase he was going through, but I'm starting to think maybe I was wrong. The funniest part about his obsession, is that neither Ryan or I really enjoy cooking. Granted, I do cook more now that we have Jake, so he sees me cooking, but I am definitely not an expert in the kitchen. Needless to say, the boy LOVES to pretend he's cooking. He also loves to eat, so there may be a connection there. I realized just how obsessed he is during one of the rainy weeks we had, when we were confined to the house. We also happened to be painting our basement/playroom that week, so there weren't a ton of options for entertainment. I was watching Food Network, and Rachel Ray happened to be on. Well, Ray Ray (Jake's nickname for Rachel) has been a favorite of Jake's for a while, although, he has only recently started imitating what she does. Giada and Paula Dean also became favorites during our week of confinement. Anyway, while the ladies were cooking, Jake would get out his pans and dishes, and pretend to cook the same things. I would hear him talking to himself as he added the ingredients, and it was all I could do not to crack up. I also tried to turn the channel at one point, and he got really upset. I'm just hoping he picks up enough pointers that he can start making our meals for us in the next couple of years. I've always wanted my own personal chef, and I think my wish might come true : )
Turning Two
We traveled down to West Plains to visit our family and celebrate Jake's birthday the weekend before his actual birthday. Jake definitely had more fun this year, but I think he was most excited about eating cake and ice cream. He's already figured out that cake is served at most parties, so he gets very excited when I tell him we're going to a party. He also enjoyed opening presents this year, but once he opened his microwave, it was as if nothing else existed. Once again, he LOVES to cook. Ryan and I got him a playhouse that goes outside, thinking he would love going down the slide, which he does, but he would prefer to have me bring out all of his dishes, silverware, pans and microwave and pretend to cook in the outdoors. Let me just say that I get very tired of lugging all of that stuff outside, and then back inside, but I know it fosters his imagination, so I do it. I swear, the things we do for our kiddos.
We also had a party on his actual birthday with some of our friends. I was a little worried that Jake might be selfish and not want the other kids to play with his toys, but he had a lot of fun. He does not usually like to share, so I was very surprised that he let everyone play with his things. He wasn't so excited about anyone touching his bubble mower, but other than that, he was pretty good.
Playing Outside
We've been trying to fix some drainage issues in our yard this summer, so Jake has had a great time playing in the mud, watering the grass, playing in the sprinklers and helping daddy mow. He even got to take a ride in the wheelbarrow, which was one of my favorite things to do on my grandparents' farm when I was little. We didn't go swimming very much this summer, but Jake did splash in his little pool a little, and enjoyed playing with his water table with friends.
Don't forget to check out all of our albums on the right. I've downloaded all of our new pictures into an album called Summer 09.
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