tj is 2

my, oh my. tj is 2! and he couldn't be more excited about finally having a birthday. this little man has been planning his birthday & telling everyone he is 2 since october. and we are making every one of his baby dreams come true (mainly sweets from dawn to dusk & every imaginable car/bus/truck activity we can shove into one day). he even planned his birthday party (more on that later). what can i say about this little man? tj is one of a kind. he is the light of our family's life. he has so much personality squeezed into his little baby frame it's insane. i often look at him and am amazed with how one person so little can bring so much to my life. he is the sweetest man i know. he is my snuggler. he says the sweetest things like, "don't worry, mommy. i got you.", "i hold you, mommy" & "love you, brother". and it's true, mylo and cooper are his best friends. he is always very concerned with where his brothers are. and he is so quick to share with them & smoother them in hugs. especially, mylo. he is the best 1 (now 2) year old brother ever. he cares for mylo & thinks about him all the time. if mylo is every crying tj will sit with him just snuggling him until todd or i can get to mylo. and he patiently corrects mylo when mylo kicks or grabs him, he will say, "no kick, mylo" or "owie, mylo, be soft". tj has the most tender heart. (it bites him in the butt sometimes. i've never seen a 1 year old get his feelings hurt like tj does.) he is an absolute riot. he says & does silly things just to make us laugh. and we often do. he is extremely enthusiastic. when he gets excited (which happens over almost anything) he jumps & screams & giggles & claps his hands. it is the best. he snorts when he laughs. and it is awesome. he loves to be tickled, play patty-cake, & sing the monkey & crocodiles song. he loves to tease. if you ask him who he is he will name anyone & everyone he can think of besides himself. he is quite the pistol. he can throw tantrums like non-other & he is very good and letting you know how he feels. he tells me "i no like it" when i offer something he isn't interested in. he hates the wind and yells, "stop it, windy" whenever the trades pick up. he is obsessed with any and all vehicles with wheels. he carries around at least 2 cars every where we go. his favorite passtime is sitting on the sidewalk watching the vehicles pass & yelling, "vroom, vroom, car!" or "beep, beep, bus!" (he thinks he is speaking their language) and waving as they pass. he loves the beach, the pool, & wearing his life jacket. he has a major sweet tooth & fails to understand why ever meal can't consist of cookies & ice cream (a source of many tantrums). he has the handsomest little curly blonde head & a smile that melts any heart. tj we love & adore you more than words could possibly say. the past 2 years have truly been a delight.

it is mind boggling to think that 2 years ago i was awoken at 3:30am by some cramping i believed to be nothing more than braxton hicks. you know, since my due date wasn't for another 10 days. after enduring three slightly irritating hours of on & off sleep i finally decided to call my doctor. he assured me it was time to come to the hospital. i still wasn't conviced. so i took my time packing our bags & dropping cooper off at my sister's. on our drive to the hospital i started to feel some very intense contractions & it hit, this baby was really on his way. which was awesome since we were headed west on the 580 during morning traffic. i was more than a little scared of not getting to the hospital in time for an epidural, or worst, birthing a highway baby. we arrived at the hospital a little before 8:30. the nurse checked me & announced the baby would be here very soon & i was barely in time for an epidural. music to my ears. 30 minutes after they hooked me up it was time to push. unfortunatley, my epidural was a little too strong. after a sleepless night & a strong epidural all i wanted to do was sleep. i kept begging my doctor to just let me take a quick nap. he conviced me to push. 20 minutes later we heard the most intense scream & met our precious little boy. the doctor, nurses, todd, & i were all shocked to see his chubbiness. we figured with him arriving so early he would be less than 7 lbs & he debuted at 8 lbs 5 oz. we had debated for months what to name him but the second we looked at him todd & i both knew he was todd jr. he looked just like a little light todd. and since that very moment this little boy has brought an endless amount of love & enthusiasm to our family. we love you so much tj.