24 Months Of Sweetness....

...well sweetness mixed with some other stuff ;) As of today, I am 'mama' to a TWO YEAR OLD! Carter has officially left his baby years and is now a toddler.  A kid.  A person. (Well, that may be taking it a little far, but he's just a little human now, no longer my baby! if that makes any sense...)

He's certainly experienced a lot in his 24 months of life.  Let's just look at all the places he's lived: Fort Worth, TX (14.5 months), Tallahassee, FL (2 months), Richmond, VA (2 months), Tallahassee, FL (1 month), and Goianesia, Goias (4.5 months).  And with a few more moves to come, he's going to have quite the resume by the time he's 3!

I'm so happy God picked me to be this little guy's mommy.  He is such a blessing each and every day, and there are few things I treasure more than his sweet smile.  Are things always easy? No.  Is he always happy? No.  Do I ever seem to stop chasing him around? No.  Would I trade any of this for anything? No.  Each stage has been so so different, but we have learned so much through each and grown together as a family.  And now, it's hard to imagine what in the world we did before our Carter bug (well, besides staying out past 8 and watching movies other than Veggie Tales and Finding Nemo...).

From his silly dances to his contagious laughs to his goofy faces to his love of dinosaurs, he is such a light.  I love curling up in a bed and reading him book after book.  I love chasing a bouncy ball around the house.  I love making different animal noises.  I love playing in the bathtub.  I love every day.  And I love him.

I'm so sad that he's sick today on his big day :( He's been running a fever and just seems to feel so bad - break my heart!  Hopefully with some extra rest and snuggles he'll be back to feeling good soon and can enjoy his birthday.  Maybe we'll do presents tomorrow...

Last year, I filled out a 'survey' when Carter turned one (check it out here).  I thought it would be fun to see how things have changed:

How old are you? 

2

What makes you happy?
dinosaurs, balls, watching movies, eating a snack, playing in the park or on the terrace, reading books, seeing mommy and daddy when they pick you up from school, taking a bath, animals. 

When do you laugh?
when we tickle you, when you wrestle with daddy, when we make faces at you, when we squeeze your thighs and blow raspberries on your tummy, when we laugh, when we pretend to get hurt, when you 'fall' into daddy's arms.

What is something Mommy always says to you? 

'Hey my handsome!'

What is something Daddy always says to you? 

'Can you give me a kiss?'

What is your favorite thing to eat? 

yogurt, cookies, raisins, peas, bola de fuba

What is your favorite thing to do? 

watch movies

What are you really good at? 

'reading' books

What is your favorite song?
Fishers of Men

Who is your best friend?
Mommy

What do you and Mommy do together? 

eat meals, read books, bounce balls, watch movies

What do you and Daddy do together? 

wrestle, read books, play cars, watch movies

Where is your favorite place to go? 

outside! you love to walk wherever we go and run around in the park or on our terrace

What is your favorite book? 

Nursery Rhymes, The Day Of The Dinosaur, The Going To Bed Book, and anything with animals

And finally, some recent pictures of our little dude: