He's such an easy baby and always so sweet and loving. I've never seen another toddler who does exactly what you ask the first time that you ask it. He's never sick and sleeps like a champ! Not to mention, he's incredibly handsome and charming. Seriously, clone this kid and make billions. He's that awesome.
Here's what Drew's into these days:
- Trains, Trains, Trains. They go with us everywhere and he knows all 867 (well, sometimes it feels like there's that many) different Thomas trains by name.
- Art. He's extremely creative and loves to draw and color.
- Dancing. This kid was genetic predisposed on both his mother and father's side to shake it. And... let's just say that he makes us proud.
- Music. He loves to sing. I remember hearing an interview with Justin Timberlake's mother where she said that she knew that JT would be a star when he started harmonizing with the radio at two years old. Now, if Drew becomes the JT of 2028, I'll swear that I knew it when he was two. And If he doesn't, then I'll probably forget that he ever liked to sing as a toddler.
- Athletics. Drew has great hand-eye coordination for a child his age (definitely gets this from Brian!). He loves to throw and catch a ball and can already hit a pitched ball with a bat. I see a lot of evenings at the ballpark in my future.
- Cars. He builds ramps out of books and likes to let the cars "crash!" into each other. Two Hot Wheels could provide hours of entertainment for this kid.
- Carbs, Fruits, Vegetables. But no meat. We've tried every protein, multiple times, but if you ask him to eat a chicken finger, he grimaces like you've just asked him to eat elephant brains or something. His favorite foods include macaroni and cheese, pizza, pasta, green beans, lima beans (and pretty much any other vegetable. Except carrots. He hates carrots), jello, bananas, apples, oranges, peaches (well, any fruit), crackers and Popsicles. Popsicles are like crack in my house.
- "Blanket". Drew loves the blanket that he sleeps with at night. It's a soft, yellow blanket with satin trim adorning his name in blue stitching. He thinks it's kinda awesome.
- Television. His favorite television shows are Thomas the Train, Dinosaur Train, Dora the Explorer, Sesame Street and Micky Mouse Clubhouse, but he only pays attention during the songs. Other than that, he could really care less. It's all about the music for this boy.
- Animals. Name an animal and he'll give you the sound that it makes, no matter how obscure. Try him. You'll be impressed.
- Books. He loves having books read to him. We always have a stack of his favorites nearby.
- He wears a size 24 months clothes and a size 7 shoe.
- He sleeps from about 9 pm to 9 am each night and takes a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon.
- He's left-handed. The first lefty in either of our families.
- He's talking all the time. My favorite words are motorcycle ("sickle, sickle") and horse ("whorse"). I'm also a big fan of "Mama".
- He worries about Bailey. If Bailey isn't at home for some reason, he asks about her a million times. "Mama, where's Sissy?" "Sissy, bye-bye?" "Sissy, night-night?" He loves that big sister!
- In fact, he's very protective of his entire family. For example, if Bailey is using my phone, he'll say, "no Sissy, that's Mama's". It's cute how he is always looking out for everybody.
- Brian is his favorite. I would like to say that I'm a big enough person not to be jealous, but uh... I don't want to add lying to my list of negative qualities. But I've got a plan. And I'm not above bribery.
- The child hates milk.Won't drink it. No way. We've tried chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, soy, low-fat, high-fat, and it's "bleck!" every time. We are still giving him toddler formula in lieu of milk. Hello $20 a week.
- We visit Nana every Wednesday evening. She makes Drew a grilled cheese, gives him cake and lets him play with her matchbox car collection (probably over 200 cars). Drew thinks that Nana's house is like a little slice of Heaven.
- Before leaving the house, most people do a quick check for essentials. Wallet and phone? Got it. Okay, now I'm ready to go. For Drew, he always checks for a ball and a train. If we have those two items, we could travel to China.
- He's got freaky technology skills. He can pick up my iPhone and send a text message. Or reboot Brian's computer. He touches a piece of technology and stuff happens. It's kinda cool.
- He loves getting new shoes and wearing shoes. Sometimes we have trouble getting him to take his shoes off at bedtime.
- Bath Time = Fun Time. He loves to take a bath, which we call "nudie booty". I think I said "nudie booty" once when he was like 8 weeks old and it stuck. The poor kid is going to tell his fellow teammates in high school, "Hey guys, I'll catch up with you later. I need to take a quick nudie booty after the game". Yeah, sorry about that.
- He loves getting a hair cut. I think that most kids his age freak out with a stranger coming at them with a pair of scissors, but Drew understands the importance of a stylish do.
Drew filled a void that I never knew existed before I met him. He is such a joy to be around. I am so proud that God chose me to be his mother. And I can't wait to see what life has in store for this amazing little fellow!
Happy 2nd Birthday, Drew!
