

Jude,
The pitter-patter of your feet on our wood floors as you run through our house has become one of my new favorite sounds. You are always on a mission, usually it's to find me. To say that you are attached to me right now would be a massive understatement. You are for sure in a Mommy stage. The most common view I have of you is your face looking up at me as your arms are wrapped around my legs and you're yelling "Momma, Mommy, MOMMA!" I can't make dinner, go to the bathroom, put on shoes or sit to read without you wanting to be right with me. When I finally pick you up you begin to crawl up me and squeeze your cheek into my neck or into my face. It's like you can't get close enough to me. I'm sure one day you'll want nothing to do with me and I'll miss this stage but goodness right now I need a break every once and while.

You are slowly starting to say some words here and there. Besides Mommy and Daddy you run around saying Elmo. Zane was never really into Sesame Street until recently. As he sits and watches it you will watch it too and have a new obsession with Elmo. Your grandparents loaded you up with Elmo gear for Christmas and you are in heaven. As I was picking out your pajamas the other night you walked into the closet, grabbed the Elmo pjs and put them in my hand saying "Elmo! Elmo! Elmo!" You walk around with a little plastic Elmo and have a Bert or an Ernie in the other hand. You just started saying Ernie too.


I love to see that you might have Mommy's love for reading in your future. You will sit with a book, turn the pages and then start all over again studying each page. I love when I peek into your room and see you sitting on the floor with all the books you've pulled out of the shelf surrounding you. You usually have one in your lap and are flipping through it pointing and babbling to the book. If your brother or I are sitting on the couch reading you'll go grab one of your books and try to climb up with us.


Your favorite location when you are doing anything is to be directly in someone's lap. You'll go grab a toy, walk up to us, turn around and then inch your butt around to plunk right down in our lap. You don't really need us to play with you and the item you brought, you just would prefer to play while sitting on our lap.



There is something about you that just screams mischief. The lazy susan has become your latest "I don't hear you saying the word no" item that frustrates us. It has a couple of bottles that are used for olive oil and soy sauce in which you like to grab and get everywhere. Those are probably two of the hardest things to clean up! Your hands are lightening fast and grab things before we can even get to you. You have yanked coffee mugs out of friend's hands, pulled plates down and thrown things into the trash so fast that everyone looks around trying to figure out how that just happened while we were right there. Just this week you started the "uh oh" game. You walk up to me and say "uh oh" and start walking towards something wanting me to follow you. So far I've followed you to the trashcan to find multiple toys inside of it and also into the bathroom to find toys in the toilet. I have never understood the whole child-proof-everything idea until you! I get it now!


This past weekend as we ate some pancakes I realized six pancakes into it that you were still eating! Six pancakes?! Zane had two and was done. I had three. You ended up having six and half pancakes, plus some fruit. Seriously I have no clue how you are so tiny. People still seem shocked when I tell them your age and then I explain that you do eat, in fact you eat more than the rest of us most of the time. It's amazing! Your food tastes change daily and you have gotten really bad at throwing food off your tray when you don't like it or are done. You have not been happy with us removing you from your chair when you throw things. In the past couple of months you had your first cookie, frozen yogurt and ice cream. With frozen yogurt and ice cream you get some in your mouth, realize how cold it is and make the funniest face. Everyone ends up laughing but you still go for more.

One of my favorite times of day with you is in the mornings. I walk in your room to see you standing up in your crib, usually crying because you want out. Once you see one of us your face lights up. You crawl up to my shoulders when I grab you out and rest your head on my shoulder with yourself tucked into me as close as possible. You normally don't stay that way for long before you start pointing for the kitchen because you want to eat. But in just those few short moments I can feel how much you rely on me, on Daddy and on our family. It scares me that I hope we're raising both you and your brother well. And it reassures me that you most think something of us and we're doing okay by that little moment in the morning.
In the midst of all your craziness you truly are a joy. The way you run through the house with a smile on your face squealing in laughter can brighten up the worst of days. Don't stop living life to its fullest Judey but please do stop throwing things in the trash!
Love,
Mommy & Daddy