Photo of the Day 11 Jan 2009

Jared, age 21 months

Jared is such a sweet little guy, and everyday he becomes more of a little person and less of a baby. His vocabulary keeps expanding, and he is putting two words together occasionally, too. He gives wonderful hugs to people he loves. He likes to put on his own shoes and has opinions about what he wants to wear. He is learning color names, and has "orange" pretty much down, with more colors getting there. Amanda usually describes him as the brother who steals toys, but she is playing with him more and is just as likely to be upset at him for not being an obedient puppet as she is for him cutting in when she doesn't want to share something. Jared loves Amanda and Curtis very much. When Amanda was away at Uncle Mike's house, Jared called for her periodically, wondering where his favorite big sister went. The morning is not right until Jared gives Curtis a big hug (and gives Mommy a hug, too). Another one of Jared's favorite people is his Dad (or "Dada!"). Jared likes to play ring around the rosy and knows some of the words. He likes to sing, too, and will sing along during church as best he can without knowing the tune or the words. He just opens up his book to wherever and sings from his heart. Speaking of books, he loves them, too. He also likes to "duel" with sticks and is very good at yelling "On guard!" He is Amanda's fan at soccer, and he has been known to sit on the sidelines yelling "go, go, go!" in encouragement. We love our sweet little guy so very very much and are so grateful to have him in our family.

Jared at the park

I think he enjoyed it, don't you?

Jared, future scholar (or perhaps present scholar)

Here's Jared chilling in his new favorite chair (yes, that is the car seat we got for Curtis), kicking back and enjoying Gulliver's Travels (his own choice, mind you; he chose that one for himself and Chronicles of Narnia for Mom), all while wearing some of his favorite shoes in the world, crocs (or should I say "cocks").

Jared Speaks

Jared's vocabulary seems to be growing daily, and he's so fun to communicate with. He now says nice things like "hug," "kiss," and even "sorry" when necessary. He's such a sweet little boy, and so adorable. The recent pictures will have to wait, though, since he's managed to acquire a shiner from walking behind Amanda while she was swinging on the swing set in the back yard. It actually looks surprisingly good, almost like the black paint stripe you might see on a football player. Ironically, Amanda herself picked up a nasty bump today, but from something much less dramatic: slipping on a damp spot in the dining room. Hopefully they will both recover soon, and meanwhile we'll chat with Jared.

Jared, acrobat in training

Ever since Jared learned about tumbling, he's loved it. Now, he's decided to try it somewhere new . . . probably his idea to show off for the family visiting us this weekend for Curtis's baby blessing.

Newark Strawberry Festival

Jared loves to go places, so he was very happy to go to the Newark Strawberry Festival with the family. Above, he's looking around the picnic area for dogs to pet. Below, Dad got a cute picture of Jared while Mom & Curtis were finishing lunch.

Above, All American Jared. Below, Jared gets to hold a dog, thanks to a kind stranger.

Above, it's almost time to go home, and Jared has had just about enough of that stroller. So much harder to chase dogs when one is buckled....