Dear Toddler Jack: 22 Months

I feel like 22 months is as good of a time as any to stop calling you "Baby Jack". I tried coming up with new nicknames for you and have found that most of the time I call you "Jack Jack" (when you are trying to ignore me) and "JACK DAVID!" when you are in trouble. If someone asks you what your name is you will proudly point to yourself and say "JACK".

You picked this book out of our bookcase on two separate occasions. I did not even attempt to read it to you.... 

This past month has been the age of "NO" and "MINE". Your sweet little language skills have expanded by leaps and bounds, but those two words have really taken the forefront. You definitely let us know when you do not want something "NO NO NO NO NO NO NO" or sometimes a "Nope.", and you've started telling me what is yours "My Elmo". I hear you babbling to yourself sometimes when you're playing by yourself and it usually consists of "Hi Dada", "My Dada", and "Dadadadadaddaddadadada". To say that you are a fan of your dad would be an understatement. We were shopping one day and your dad was pushing the cart and when I swooped in to get you out of the way you pushed my hands off the handlebar and said "MY DADA", so I guess the battle lines have been officially drawn. Everyone told us that there would be a time when words would start tumbling out of your mouth and it truly is amazing to witness it. You have words for most of the things you want, which has cut down on the random whining by about 50%. My favorite conversations with you go something like this:

You: "ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE ICE"
Me: "Do you want some ice water?"
You: "Otay!" (said in a tone of "Well if you're offering!")

Mother's Day 2016 (I have got to learn to open my eyes in pictures....please learn from my mistakes)

You can identify most body parts, but your favorites right now are elbow (so easy to learn after you picked up Elmo's name) and knee. You'll come up to me and point each one out to me a few times each day, as if you were letting me know just in case I had forgotten. We have been working on colors with you, but for some reason if we ask you what color something is you just answer with "blue". You would assume that your love for Elmo would help you distinguish the color red, but so far it is a no go.

Lately you have been VERY concerned when you find out someone has an "owie" on their legs or arms. I still have a scar from your stroller from a few months ago (hazard of being a mom) and you come up to me and say something CLOSE to owie and then make a face like "I'M SO SORRY THIS IS HAPPENING TO YOU". It is very sweet and endearing most of the time, but there are days where your 80th condolence in a single day just doesn't feel quite as sincere as the first.

You are fully committed to the sport of baseball (especially with the College World Series playoffs going on right now), and have excitedly shouted out "BASEBALL BASEBALL" at the tvs in restaurants whenever a game is on. you have a coloring book that you like, but you will only allow coloring on the one page that has a baseball on it. If you don't end up on a t-ball team at the earliest opportunity I would be extremely surprised.

At 22 months of age you definitely have more energy than I can muster in an entire week. We have been trying to spend most mornings at the park running you ragged, but the Texas heat and gigantic mosquitos have been making that a little more difficult. You do enjoy the duck pond, although my fear of birds makes it difficult to stay for too long. You like playing with your cars, sandbox, and chasing Oliver around the house (less of a game for Oliver sometimes..). You're still pretty sweet when you want to be, although there are lots of glimpses of your wild toddler streak peeking through every once in awhile.