Wednesday: done

Today was a fine day.  We put up Joshua's swing and did some swinging, went to swimming lessons, took naps, etc.  It was a pretty normal day with nothing all that significant to note.

Tuesday: bikes, swimming lessons, sadness, oh my

It's Tuesday, so we started out the day with our bike ride to water the flowers.  We had a new thing happen...Isaac didn't have any silly stops.  A silly stop is, "my knees need a break" or "my arms need a break" on the quarter mile ride that we take.  Now if I could get him to go just a tad bit faster we'd be all set.  I have the gears almost all the way down on my bike and still have a bit of a problem going too fast.  I have always wondered why gear 1 was so easy and when I would ever want to use it; now I have at least one reason.

Isaac started swimming lessons.  He doesn't like to get his face wet, and it's a bit of a problem.  I was also hoping that Joshua and I would be able to take a walk during the time, but that was discouraged.  Joshua did an excellent job entertaining himself and saying "water, water, water, ISAAC, water, water" over and over again, but I'm not sure how long that'll last.  We might take a little walk tomorrow anyway.

Joshua got to sit facing forwards for the first time today.  He seemed a bit unsure at first, but I liked it. :)

Joshua proceeded to have a hard afternoon/evening when at home.  When we were away from home he was fine, but I haven't seen him so sad for quite a while.  Ahh, the lovely twos.

Monday: belated 24 months

Joshua turned 24 months several days ago.

He was not as excited as normal to have his picture taken.

Playing: Joshua does a good job playing.  He likes to do what Isaac does, but can play by himself too.  Buzz and the phone he got for his birthday were his almost constant companions inside today.  He likes to play with water, but isn't a fan of wearing wet clothes.  He still likes to read, although I haven't gotten quite as many requests the last little bit for books.  He also enjoys robots.  (Side story: we were watching Voltron tonight and Voltron was fighting "mean robot."  Well, Joshua was rooting for the robot to win because it was a robot and when he fell over he said, "oh no!")

Family: Dad is back to being the favorite parent, but I think Isaac might be the favorite person.  He's been quite excited to see all the grandparents too.

Talking: he now has lots of words.  (Ben was reading an animal book with him and he could identify most of the animals, including ones like caterpillar.)  He isn't that easy to understand though.  A few short sentences are coming through.

Eating: we're still in about the same place as last month...breads are good, yogurt, applesauce, strawberries, banana, cheese, and crunchy beans are sometimes ok.  I make lunches somewhat to order, so those have the highest chance of being finished.  For dinner he gets whatever everyone is having, so those don't get finished very often.

Attitude: it's been a bit better lately.  He still gets mad about stuff regularly, but most days it isn't too much.  He hasn't been throwing things quite as much either.  It all might change tomorrow.

Sunday: Joshua's birthday party

Today was Joshua's birthday party!  He was grumpier than usual for most of the day, but the appearance of Buzz and family helped him get in a better mood.  Phew.

Due to a busy week last week we went with pizza for dinner as it is super easy.  We added strawberries and crunchy beans as those are two healthy(ish) things he'll sometimes eat.

He was having a hard time posing for pictures.  

Then I said, "Where's Isaac?  He can usually make you laugh."  And Joshua immediately put his hands in the "where" position and started looking for, and walking to, Isaac.

He opened Buzz first, which was probably a mistake.  He loves Buzz and wouldn't open any more presents until it was in his hands.  We didn't make it through all the presents, but the car seat and swing wouldn't have any immediate fun so they were postponed.

Donuts for dessert!  Both boys love donuts as much as I do, and it made for an easy dessert.

Saturday: away

Today Ben and I spent most of the day away.  We started by going to the company picnic at Michigan's Adventure.  We rode a few rides and had lunch.  Then we came back to Holland and watched the new Star Trek movie.  (It was good, but rather spin-y.  I could have done with less "cool" camera work.)  They just redid all the theaters and now there are basically recliners in all the theaters.  It was awesome and so comfortable.

We had dinner and then came home to put the kids to bed.  It kind of felt like cheating, only being with them for about an hour this evening, but it was nice too.

Friday: VBS and old friends

Today was the last day of VBS.  It went well.  Our class says the Bible verse in a circle, one person saying each word, and I time it.  We started out the week at 1:15 and got it down to 25 seconds today!  Today was the first day that it finally felt as though we mostly knew it...it was a hard one this year.  "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go and I will bring you back to this land.  I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised."  Gen 28:15.  There are a lot of clauses in it.  The best part of the day was at the end when one of the moms told me that her son ended up in the perfect group because of me.  (And really, because of my helper too.)  We were rather low-key and not in their faces.  We were there and made sure everyone was in the right spot but both of us seemed rather introverted and didn't force much talking.  (That doesn't mean we didn't talk to the kids, but not as much as some teachers do.)  Apparently that was just what her son needed and wouldn't have come back if we had been different.  It was very nice to hear.

This afternoon we met up with Amy and Brian.  The kids played on the playground and we had dinner and took a walk.  It was sad that it was such a short time, but the kids were all near the end of being happy.  And we had a wonderful time while we were together.

Thursday: VBS and 2nd birthday!

"Happy Birthday, Joshua!" I said this morning.  "You're two now!"
"No, no!  Stop!"  he replied.
"I kind of feel the same way about it." I responded

Then we went to VBS.  Twas another fine day.  Isaac and Joshua made the picture roll.

I remained somewhat elusive.  I was in this group shot...I'm sure... (if not, at least it reminds me of how big this even really is.)

I am in this one...the second head down from the top left.  My helper and the boys of the group are also in it.  (edit...you can also see Isaac's shoulder in the bottom right.)

And I'm sneaking in behind my helper for this one

Later in the day Ben said, "Happy Birthday Joshua!"  He again responded with a "No!"  We gave him some ice cream to celebrate anyway.