The Gosmas: 20 Months

In just 4 short months my ~~baby~~ toddler will be 2. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how fast the past 20 months have gone by. From the beginning everyone always said don't wish the time away. While I tried not to do that it's really easy to think about what he would be doing in 2, 4 or 6 months and inevitably you are dreaming of the day they run up to you and scream "mommy" and give you a giant hug - even when they are just a couple months old. Now, I love all of those moments but I miss the days of him cuddling up on me all day and sleeping in my arms. I'm just glad I have all 5,000+ photos and my blog book to look back on :)

Anyways, as I wipe away my tears, I want to write about what Jackson has been up to the past couple of months. We went trick or treating and I was surprised at how quickly he grasped the concept of knocking on the door and waving hi = getting candy in your bucket. Especially when he didn't even know what candy was! We celebrated his cousin Connor's 2nd birthday. We saw Santa on more than one occasion, went to the Chattahoochee nature center on a beautiful fall day. We managed to get Jackson to sit still for a few min for some adorable family photos by Full Measure Photography. Jackson discovered his love for bubbles and and we had some fun times with Will, Bryce and Jackson together again. We went to several birthday parties, Stone Mountain and then celebrated Christmas.

Jackson's vocabulary has been increasing but he also continues to talk in his own language too. He started saying uh-oh and says it whenever anything drops, falls or is out of place. One day he pulled the towel down in the bathroom and Jimmy said "oh no" and now Jackson loves to say "no no". From about 4 months on anytime I gave Jackson anything I would say thank you. Now when I hand him his milk or breakfast or something he says "dant doo". So sweet :) He's slept with his Curious George doll for months now and calls him by name but it sounds more like Dordge. He also says choo choo, car, bebe for bye bye. I'm having a hard time remembering all his other ones right now, but he is definitely trying to repeat and mimic more and more. I love his sweet little voice and his unique language. It's amazing how much he understands even though he can't communicate it all back to us.

He is still a good eater but definitely pickier these days. His current faves are oatmeal with raisins, eggs, cereal with milk, any kind of fruit, grilled cheese, pb&j, turkey, any kind of chicken, steak, hamburgers, baked beans, pizza, peas, rice, cold pasta salad (but won't eat man n cheese or other pasta anymore), yogurt, applesauce (especially when he feeds himself). We love to go eat at Rising Roll after we go to the gym. He totally knows our routine and runs to find daddy as soon as we walk in. He is all about feeding himself with his fork and spoon and prefers to sit in a regular chair vs his high chair. Most times I put him in his high chair for meals and we eat snacks at the counter in the barstools. He still loves his milk and drinks 2 cups a day.

Jackson loves to help me and takes it upon himself to throw his dirty (wet) diapers away (after I've wrapped them up), he puts his clothes in the laundry hamper and helps me sweep and mop the floors. Recently he is better about putting away his toys too.

His attention span is getting longer and longer as he plays. His favorite new toys to play with are his trains, Mr. Potato Head or grilling up burgers on his grill. He loves to play with all his cars too. His favorite books right now are "Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You", "I am a Train", "Roadwork", "The Going to Bed Book" and "I Love You Through and Through" (Those last 2 have been favorites since he was just a few months old).

We snuggle up on the sofa in the morning while he drinks his milk and I have my coffee and we watch Curious George. As soon as I go to turn the TV on he starts asking for "Dordge". Oh I forgot he is also our little barista now! He always watched us make our coffee and now he wants to do it for us. We also occasionally watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

I love spending my days with this sweet guy. Granted sometimes he's got the soon to be terrible two's tantrums but it's all worth it. We have lots of fun at play dates, music class, and especially just being lazy at home. I am one lucky mommy :)

Just so I can remember, years from now... he wears a size 5 shoe, 12-18 month clothing but some of them are starting to get too short. Size 3 or 4 diapers during the day and 4s at night.