Drew @ 2

So Drew’s 2nd birthday was pretty close to non-existent.  Grandma and Grandpa Fletcher came over the day before we left for Utah bearing gifts for Drew to open – a few summer clothes, a book, and a wooden shapes toy.  

His birthday may have been passed over, but this kid can never question the love that we have for him and I have plenty of pictures to show that.   He is such a joy in our family.  So easy going.  Happy and playful.  The perfect little caboose for our crazy train!

Drew loves, loves, LOVES baths and showers; especially when we give him some extra time to play.  

When we throw him in the shower he loves to spend his time squeeging the glass walls and insists on staying in after the shower has been turned off to finish the job (well, as high as his little hands can reach).

Drew loves being outside – rain or shine he’ll stay out as long as possible.  He enjoyed walking Katie to preschool twice a week.  Occasionally he’d try to sneak into preschool with his big sister.  My friend took these pictures of Drew one afternoon while we were waiting for Katie to finish school.

Good thing I’ve still got two years before I have to send this little guy off to preschool!

Drew is a good helper.  His favorite household chore to help with is unloading the dishwasher.

I can’t even count the number of times I’ve found him carrying a sharp knife in his hands (or mouth) though – we’ve seriously been so lucky he hasn’t hurt himself.

I wouldn’t say Drew is much of a snuggler.  He still likes to sit with us in the rocking chair before being put into bed, but he turns himself facing forward so he’s pretty much just sitting on your lap.  He does give great hugs though. 

Drew wants nothing to do with sitting in his high chair anymore.  He much prefers to stand on a regular kitchen chair or kneel on a barstool.  Of course he’s toppled off a couple+ times, but there’s really no stopping the inevitable process of these kids growing up.  Not much room to spare on a barstool, but his big brother is keeping him safe.

Lately Drew has been preferring to sit with someone.  He’ll climb onto the chair next to you and then climb over onto your lap.  Makes eating or accomplishing things much more difficult, but how can you say no to a cute lap buddy like this?

I recently cleaned up his infant seat and high chair to sell and the other day Drew locked himself in the chair and sat quietly looking at the removable placemat.

Drew is a fantastic little tag-a-long to all of his siblings’ events and activities.  Actually, with two capable babysitters in-house he probably stays home more than the other kids were ever able to, but when he does tag-a-long he happily makes the best of it.

Like many kids, Drew finds enjoyment in the simplest things.  Like stuffing wrapping paper down his shirt.

Even just eating a scone can turn into something silly.

The coat closet is always fun…

Daddy’s shoes…

 

Drew loves to dance and spin...

 

Drew does have a strong love of all things techie - he’d watch TV for hours if his mama wasn’t such a stickler about limited screen time.  He’s been found playing on our phones by quietly pushing a barstool over the counter.  He wants to hold the remote anytime the TV is on and often changes the channel or input on us.  I don’t have any kid games on my phone and just a few on my iPad – it’s a special treat when he gets to play for a few minutes, but I can’t leave him unattended cause he can get into all sorts of apps in a matter of seconds.

Just a few more pictures from the last couple months:

“Cheese!”

Drew speech is coming along.  He can make most sounds when he’s asked – he’s a smart kid, but the “words” he uses on his own are:  ma (that’s me!), ah-o, up, aba or ba (for Abigail), hi, off, ball, ah-ck (for chocolate milk), and no

I took some video a few weeks ago when I saw him create a tee by removing the basketball hoop and then proceed to carry everything into his bedroom.

Drew continues to be a fantastic sleeper – goes to bed easily, sleeps about 12 hours a night, takes a 2-4 hour nap every afternoon and will sleep in a play-n-pack pretty much anywhere.

He’s a decent eater too – he likes a variety of food, but on any given day you don’t know how much he’ll actually eat.  On occasion he’ll want nothing to do with dinner and he’ll be fine without anything.  We drink lots of green smoothies though so I know the kid gets plenty of healthy nutrients and veggies.

Drew isn’t very shy.  It might take him a minute to warm up to a new adult, but once he does he’ll be super playful.  He is also very comfortable going off on his own so we have to keep close tabs on him outside cause he’ll just wander off where he wants.

We seriously scored with this kid (as we did with all our kiddos).  I’m so grateful to be his Mom and to have his sweet personality in our home!