Growing Too Fast

Dear Little Friend,

You are growing way too fast. Dad and I were talking the other day about how you're a little boy now and not a baby at all. You go up and down the stairs without using the railing, you climb up on the couch by yourself and sit there looking at a book and sipping milk from a straw, and your vocabulary is expanding daily.

At 21 months you:

• Fold you arms when we say "Let's say prayers to Heavenly Father." When we are done you say "amen" really loudly with a big smile on your face.
• Love Elmo. This is a recent development, since Christmas. We gave you an Elmo backpack and Aunt Lindsey gave you an Elmo sticker book. I have since bought you Elmo utensils, which you love to eat with.
• Are learning your colors and numbers. You say blue for most colors but then ask what color they are. I tell you the colors and you repeat them. For purple, you say "apple." It's so cute. When we read Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, you point to the number on the page, I say it, you repeat it, and then I show you how to put that many fingers up.
• Are in daycare full time while mom and dad work. I am only working temporarily to repay my school loan but it is still difficult. I think it's hard on you, but you do seem to like the daycare. Half of the day is preschool, which is great for you. We look forward to weekends when we can spend all day with you. 
• You like playing "stair ball" with dad (where you stand at the top of the stairs and dad throws a ball up the stairs and you catch it and throw it back down to him).
• You recognize babies and say "baby" when you see them. Even when you see photos of yourself from not long ago, you say "baby." It's cute.
• You love to play "monster" with us. Dad or I will get on our hands and knees and snort and when we do, you drop to your hands and knees and start laughing as you crawl away from us. Even if we aren't on our hands and knees, all we have to do is snort and you will drop to yours and start crawling and laughing in anticipation.
• You call a truck "guk" and like to point them out as we drive.
• You love pointing out the color blue. You know it the best of the colors and seem to think some other colors are blue too. But you definitely know blue and can pick it out. (Blue truck is "goo guk" when you say it.)
• You love going to the park or playing in the backyard but you don't seem to love the bright sun here in Arizona. You are always saying "eyes" as though the sun is too bright for your eyes. 
• You love peanut butter. A lot. You call it dip and dip pretty much anything into it, but then just suck the peanut butter off and redip. 
• You LOVE trains and call them "choo choos." We have a train that goes by near our home a couple of times a day and you always stop what you're doing when you hear it and say "choo choo." 
• You say (or sign) thank you a lot, completely unprompted, when given something. 
• You're becoming familiar with timeout. You get frustrated sometimes and don't quite know how to express it.
• You love your Grandpa Schultz and Grandpa Roberts. You love all of your grandparents but you are especially drawn to Grandpa Schultz (maybe because he reminds you of daddy?). 

You keep us on our toes. You are full of energy and don't stop until you are sleeping. We don't get nearly as much sleep as we did before you came along but I can't imagine our lives without you. We are so grateful you are a part of our little family.