Carson is TWO!

I cannot believe my BABY is two already!

We started off his birthday with some snuggles... he loves to 'cheese' for selfies now!

We made some muffins.  His favorite.

And then we headed to the kids' favorite place... the Zoo!  

Carson was so excited to see the animals.  He loved the sharks and fish!

His birthday supper was spaghetti, of course.  He loved every last morsel.

His goofy teeth are his trademark :)

Carson also gave up his Nuks now that he's a big boy.  He was pretty hesitant, but he did okay.  It took him a couple weeks to get back to a calm and peaceful nighttime routine.  There were a lot of tears those first few nights, but also a lot of extra snuggles :)

Oh my little Stinker Butt.  Where has the time gone?  Time always flies, but I don't understand how you've gone from a baby to a little boy in the blink of an eye.  I love every single little stinkin thing about you.  Although I could do without your stomping and flailing tantrums that this age has brought on, I do love that you are becoming more independent.  You know what you want.  Now, if you could be reasonable and rational about it, we'd all get along so much better.  But a mom can only dream.

You have earned yourself a couple nicknames, including Bulldog (for your huge fat pouty lip), Stinker, Stinker Butt, Stinker Booty, and Bucko.  You are a goofball, and you love to joke around.  You've even been known to go straight from full-out tantrum to laughing from a simple tickle.  You love to run around naked, especially after bath time.  Something about being naked is so funny to you.  Your favorite games involve chasing daddy around the island, playing peek, and running away from anybody who will chase you.

You have a love for learning that is starting to blossom.  Your counting is super cute--you almost always skip the number 2, but you've got the other ones down pat!  Once you get to the teens, I love how you say "fo-teen, eighteen" over and over again.  You know most of your shapes, you are starting to get better with your colors, and you can sing your ABC's with just a little help.  You are just starting to 'read' books on your own by talking about the pictures and memorizing a few of the pages from your favorite books.  You like to finish sentences from familiar books.
 
You are so dang cute.  You are pretty shy in new situations, but once you warm up, you are the life of the party!  Your separation anxiety is lessening as you are getting better at taking Izzy and Cooper's lead.  You have the cutest smile and you give the best hugs and kisses.  Cooper and Izzy love playing with you.  They are teaching you everything they know!

You are a little parrot and your vocabulary is out of this world for being just 2!  You repeat anything and everything, which makes it so much fun for Cooper and Izzy to have you repeat words you shouldn't be saying!!  You are starting to speak in sentences, and it is not hard to understand what you want.  You'd think that would cut down on the tantrums... but not so much.

There are some little quirks about you I want to remember... you LOVE wearing any kind of PJ's with Mickey on them.  So much so that in the morning, I practically have to hide your Mickey things so you don't throw a fit to wear them to daycare.  When you wake up in the morning, we've learned that if you wake up on your own terms, we're all so much better off.  You don't like us waking you up!  You hate, and I mean HATE brushing your teeth.  Knock down, drag out fight.  I have tried to be patient, I've tried to make it a game, I've tried brushing mine at the same time, I've tried being stern, I've tried 'fun' toothbrushes.  I've. Tried. Everything.  You insist on certain hats and mittens, you get moody about what coat you're wearing, and you hate getting your diaper changed.  I hope that doesn't mean you'll be hard to potty train :(

My favorite time is bedtime with you.  I love reading stories with you, singing songs, and giggling with you.  I love that you like to snuggle and rock with me, give me kisses, and say 'Wuv you mommy.'  When I tuck you in, you like to keep your ducky 'safe' in your arms.  I love our special time together.  It's one of the few times that you aren't flexing your independent muscles, and you're just my sweet, sweet little boy.

Carson, I love you to the moon!  You light up our lives, and you bring fun energy to our family.  You're my favorite little two-year-old!

Love, Mom