May Again!

May is still a favorite month in our family. First, we have May 10, our Family Day. We marked two years as a family of three this year. To mark the occasion, we had a picnic in a park. Drew enjoyed playing in the sand with his construction equipment. It's hard to believe it's been two years, but it's also hard to remember life before this precious boy. Then, we had Mother's Day, marked with our second Mother's Day Train Ride in Versailles. Drew is normally a happy boy, but the smile he had upon boarding the train was a sight to behold. You can see in the pictures that these were not camera smiles--they were train smiles! On May 31, we are due to have our baby girl join us. Drew has named her Minnie (since he is Mickey, I am sometimes referred to as Daisy and David as Donald), so we have taken to talking a lot about Baby Minnie coming to join us. Drew plans to kiss her, hug her, hold her, and get her milk. I think that is a summation of what he knows about baby needs, which is pretty good! Just because I know that in the busyness of life, I will forget so many things I want to remember... 1. Running in his buddy Jackson's sprinkler (or sprinky-ler). It was his first sprinkler experience, and being a cautious guy, he wanted a little help, so he said to Jackson's dad, "Hold my hand, Congleton!" (Congleton is their last name and somewhere along the way, he started calling him that. It cracks me up every time. 2. Today I told him, "You have no idea..." and he countered with, "I have yes idea!" Clever boy! 3. When either of us leaves the house, he shouts out, "Don't forget me a hug! Don't forget me a kiss!" 4. Drew has this need to know who is driving which vehicle at all times. If I am going to work, he will ask, "Are you taking the van?" When I get back, he will invariably ask, "Did you took the van?" 5. All his toy vehicles have to talk to each other now. Mostly they talk about going to Martinique. (Long story!) 6. Drew looooves the extra attention that family house guests bring. We love seeing him so excited and enjoying them all so much. 7. I love his announcement to his friend Jack, "Bye, Jack! I'm going on a 'benture!" (Adventure.) 8. Every night before bed, he has instituted a "good night parade" ritual, which I can only hope lasts for years. The pictures show our train ride, his love fest with his cousin, aunt, and Busia, and his inauguration of his sandbox. :)

Two Year Anniversary of The Call!

Today, Feb. 4, 2012, marks two years since we got The Call that we had a sweet baby boy waiting for us in Korea. It was the most exciting day of our lives up to that point!
Today we marked the occasion with Drew's first bowling outing, and a new toy--a giant semi-truck. At 2 1/2, Drew is a man who loves vehicles of all kinds.
I doubt we have too many folks reading the blog since we haven't updated in months, so I am mostly compiling the list below for us. We know that time goes so fast, and the phases and phrases of today are all too soon over forever.f we record them here, it will feel like we can hold onto this special time a little longer.
Phrases, preferences, and memorable moments from age two:
1. Greeting his Busia, aunts and cousin at the door for his birthday in his Cookie Monster robe, grinning from ear to ear saying, "Come in house!"
2. Daily love fest with his stuffed cats: Joe Joe, Mommy Kitty, Tiny Kitty, and Gray Kitty.
3. Love/obsession with his special blanket. Quote: "My blanket makes me, makes me...happy!"
4. Singing his two favorite songs with gusto for months now: I've Been Working on the Railroad, and The Wheels on the Bus.
5. Love of all vehicles, especially buses, trains, construction machines, and semi trucks.
6. The smiling face in the window when either of us comes home. All crinkled up and happy.
7. Concern for and need to kiss all booboos.
8. One of the very few words he mispronounces is Popsicle--pos-ka-poe. I love this variation. Along the same lines...When wanting to be held, he says, "Mama/Daddy, hold you!" I don't look forward to that ending.
9. His ability to sing his favorite songs, and then substitute different words as the occasion arises. Example: For awhile, he loved to sing, "It's a small world after all..." And, while playing with Play Doh broccoli used the same melody to sing, "It's a brocco-li-li-li!"
10. Upon seeing a star, asked, "Should I sing my song? No, I'm too shy."
11. No matter the situation, if he sees one of us in any sort of need, he pipes up, "I will help you!"
12. Me: Juju, you make me happy. Drew: I make you smile.
13. Early morning musings: Busia is happy. Is James coming in his splendid red coat? The sun is waking up by Mr. Keith's house.
14. When we have to search for something, he sings, "_________ where aaaaaaare you?"
15. Seeing his mama wear earrings on Christmas eve: "Mama, you're a lady (wady)."
16. Some months ago, when he spotted something special, he would point at it with his index finger right by his eye. These phases go too fast.
17. Lately, he's been asking each of us regularly, "Are you happy." We always respond, "Yes, because I have..." and he fills in "Drew!" The other day, I explained that Drew made me happy. I asked him what made him happy and he looked deep in my eyes and said, "Buses. Buses make me happy."
18. "Mama, can you sing Silent Night? Can you sing Jesus?"
19. His conviction that our new baby is in his tummy.
20. Last week Drew inquired, "Mommy, can I sit on the big couch and think about things?"