coming up for air

My sister Kim, also lovingly known as the blogging nazi, has called requesting updates on Micah.  She has emailed.  She has texted.  There may even be some hate mail from her in my mailbox, but I wouldn't know - because I usually don't take the time to check that either!

News and pictures are way past due, though.  Micah is alive and well and into so......so......so.......many different things.

Daycare
Over the summer, he had his adenoids taken out and another set of tubes put in his ears.  The ENT thought this would maybe help with him not getting sick so often.  She also suggested that we try to find a smaller daycare, one with fewer kids and ultimately, fewer sets of germs.  Finding someone to take care of the most precious thing in your life is never an easy job, but we set out to do it.  (For the THIRD time.)  We struck gold when we found the Hudsons!  They live not far from us and have become near and dear to our hearts in the short time we've been with them.  They all have real names, but instead of changing them for the sake of privacy, Micah has changed them because.....well......he's 2.  Jessica, AKA "Cecca", has two little cuties named Hunter - or "Huh-teh" - and Henry.  Henry has a variety of names - the French version, "On-ree", and then "Hen-wee" or "Hen-yee", just to name a few.  Graden is the daddy, and Micah butchers his name so badly right now I won't even try to resurrect it.  Hunter is a kindergartner this year and is home in the mornings and afternoons, but Henry is there all day.  He is Micah's new "favorite" thing in life.  They are like two little peas in a pod, and oh so adorable together.  He is also in love with his other daycare friends - "Rye-yee", "P" (Paige), "Yanna" (Leona), "Kakee", and "Hara" (Zahara).  Micah spends every moment he is NOT at daycare talking about "Cecca" and "hen-wee" and the rest of his friends.  I couldn't have dreamed of finding a more perfect spot for him and I am so thankful for the Hudsons and the important role they play in Micah's life.  I see a lifelong friendship ahead of us! 

Birthday
He celebrated his 2nd birthday back on September 22nd and we threw him a small party on the 25th, with just a few family members and close friends.  Grandma from Iowa was able to join us, as was Great-Grandma, cousin Brayden, godfamily Chad and Michelle and Alyssa and Kenzie, and Nana and Papa from here in Omaha.  While we wish we could've had Grandma and Grandpa from California, we know they were thinking of him and celebrating in spirit.  It was a beautiful fall day, full of family and fun times together.  He opened up new puzzles and books, clothes, a beautiful handmade blanket and pillowcase for his new toddler pillow, a "mimmy" (Mickey) chair, a play kitchen, Iowa gear, Mr. Potato Head, a magna doodle, a little people car wash, new mini Sesame Street books, and "choo-choo" bathtub squirters, and a few savings bonds.  (Grandmas, his college fund says THANK YOU!)  He was a spoiled little boy!  Ice cream cake and a sugar coma rounded off his special day, and we were thankful for a quiet celebration far from the hospital walls that we saw last year on his first birthday.

Growth
He is a growing boy!  At his 2-year-checkup, he weighed in at 25 pounds, 4 oz and was 34 inches tall.  He is still small percentile-wise, but he sure feels heavier each time I picked him up.  His large and small motor development was right on track.  I had concerns at his 18-month checkup about his speech, specifically how many words he did or did not have.  But the pediatrician seemed happy with his speech development and we decided against a speech evaluation.  Since then, he has been back to the doctor once and now weighs in at 27 lbs, 4 ounces.  2 pounds in a month - what a porker!  He is a typical two-year-old eater.  We offer him what we are having for dinner and some nights he eats it, some nights he doesn't.  He loves "noo-noos" (noodles), "jeddo" (yogurt, applesauce, and jello), "joo" (juice), and "cay" (cake).  I know, once again, parent of the year.   Those are the foods he ASKS for, but not necessarily what he gets.  He and his daddy are going to start getting a daily dose of veggies when I start using my new secret weapons in my recipes!  They won't know what hit them.  Suckers......

I have tons of stories of things Micah has done and said in the past two months, and I regret not posting more often to capture those.  Not a day goes by that I don't thank God for loaning him to us to be part of our family.  We are still as smitten as the day he was born.  Here's to two wonderful years and many, many more! 

These are the words we listen to every night before bed, and they are very near and dear to my heart, because they describe perfectly how I feel about Micah and Dan:

Seems to me that God above,
Created you for me to love.
He picked you out from all the rest
Because He knew I'd love you best. 

(PS - yes, Kim, there are pictures coming.  I'll put those in a separate post.)