My aunt and I were texting yesterday and she asked how Jacob was doing. As I thought through and began to type, it became quite the update! With just about 3 or so weeks until we are a family of four with a newborn, I want to type up this update so I remember all that was Jacob in this season of his amazing life!
Jacob is an awesome, intense, intelligent little boy who keeps us laughing! He is, as he has been since birth, an independent thinker and I love getting to know and understand how he thinks and sees the world. We work diligently in teaching him God's truth, how to be gentle while still a strong, wild at heart boy. When he is frustrated, he lets us know and we work on gentle words, gentle hands, gentle mouth (he has recently tried biting and we are NOT going to let that go far!). I have an idea how to work on teaching this - that will let me use my laminator! Yes! But he has such a sweetness and loves to give kisses and rub noses and often just throws his arms around my neck for a "snuggle"!
He is getting more social and I love when we have a chance for him to be around other kiddos and play. He recently got to play with 2 little girls who both have a "high speed" energy like he does and he had a blast! We even got to go to a dinner party where the kiddos had their own table and playtime and was really great!
Jacob has ONE speed and that is FAST! He runs or gallops everywhere! The galloping just started recently and it is SO adorable!
Jacob adores his Daddy and still loves his Mama! He has an intense little personality when he wants something. He and I just started a new MOPS group (our 3rd) and love it! The MOPPETS (children's program) is amazing and has great curriculum to teach the kids about God and I love it!
At MOPS - Mamas enjoying our kick-off speaker, Elizabeth Tamlyn!
After our first MOPS at our church - we had a big day of playing and I needed 10 more minutes to finish dinner, so I found a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on youtube and he loved it! He started chewing on his fingers so we think MAYBE he is working on molars. But late Monday night, he was all congested and we've been fighting congestion, runny nose and cough the past few days that we are addressing with homeopathic approaches and a chiropractor visit. A few of my Mama friends through a Facebook group I'm in for DFW "Crunchy" Moms said their kiddos have been fighting the same thing, so maybe something in the air.
He is ALL about his colors and animals and trucks and trains and balls! He LOVES footballs (which he calls "kick ball" because he watched part of a game with his Daddy and saw the players kicking the ball off and was in awe! He also loves his soccer ball (which he calls "sock ball"). We moved all his balls outside into a big bin and he asks daily to play outside with his balls - and that usually means getting Daddy to sit on the porch and Jacob throws either his blue football or brown football to Daddy. Josh is an incredible playmate with his son and I just love watching them together!
Daddy and Jacob playing outside!
In his happy place! just like his Daddy - holding his favorite footballs outside!
Jacob's language continues to explode! Today (Wednesday 9/12/12), he said "sister"!! I've been working on preparing him, as much as you can with a 22 month old, for the baby sister soon to join our home and family reality. When we were talking about the baby in Mama's belly at lunch, I told him she is his "sister" and asked if he could say that. He looked at me with this look of trying that he gets when doing something new and wanting to be successful and said, "Sti..ter!" and I said, "YES! Sister!" and he smiled SO big! I see the little man in him that wants to do well all the time! He said it a few more times and I continued to praise each time! He still picks up signs and we sometimes turn off our voices and just signs. Any time I sign a song for him, he loves it! And attempts to copy my signs, which I love! When he is in a new situation or feeling shy he will turn off his voice and only sign to me, which Josh and I think is amazing. He loves his Kylee (our dog) and calls her, "Ky-ee".
He is awesome at identifying animals and making their animal sounds. My favorite it when he says, "pig... oink oink!" He also has all his colors except sometimes pink - he calls it purple. He is also fascinated by airplanes. We live near an airport so we hear them often and see them on occasion and he says, "airplane!" really clearly! He loves for things to go "round round!", like fans, himself sitting in the box (see box below), etc.
Here are my boys having playtime on September 11. Josh took a day off for a family day and it was SO great! We got this great, big box when I ordered some stuff for baby Ruth and it has been awesome for play time!
He loves BOZ still and Curious George that we use when he is having a breathing treatment and once in a while just for fun. We also have a Praise Baby video that we love and is great for identifying people, shapes, colors, and plants.
He also loves books! His bookworm Mama loves to see how much he enjoys reading! His favorites right now are anything that has lots of animals, especially one he has where you push buttons and it plays animal sounds. He also loves "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?" by Eric Carle, "Goodnight Gorilla" by Peggy Rathman, "Let's Dance Little Pookie" by Sandra Boynton, "Mickey's Book of Trucks", "Bear Loves Opposites" by Kiki Thorpe, and "Dizzy Days" from Dr. Seuss. We keep most of these by his bed and read 2 before each sleep time. Often, when he wakes up in the morning, Josh and I get a good 45 minutes or so of extra sleep because Jacob will play and read in his room and we can listen to him identifying what he sees in the books - so awesome!
It's hard to believe he is now 22 months old! In less than 2 months, we will have a 2 year old! He will be such an awesome big brother. I pray for him and his sister and their relationship... that, when Josh and I are gone from this world, they will have an intense friendship and bond that keeps them united as family. I pray for God's wisdom to teach Jacob about brotherhood and Ruth about sisterhood - that they will love each other, play well together, and look out for each other as they journey through this life. And that Josh and I will lean on our Heavenly Father and HIS plan for families, family time, and continuing to create a home that is a haven for each other and our children.
I've got Jacob's birthday pretty much planned and will send out invitations to a few friends and family in the next couple of weeks, so that is all in place before BB2 makes her appearance.
We have been trying to grab our video camera more often to capture the precious words and moments with our son. We know so much will slip from memory if we don't record it, hence our blog and trying to keep up with videos. Here's one we took recently:
It is with deep emotion I think about the past 2 years. It seems like just yesterday we welcomed Jacob and now we are so blessed to have another baby soon to enter our home and already deep within our hearts and Jacob is so very much a boy, no longer a baby!
Jacob Parish Bruffey
11.5.2010
Moments after birth
Jacob Parish Bruffey
9.8.2012
Playing outside with Daddy
I love you, Jacob Parish Bruffey! I love our times reading, snuggling, playing, and learning together! God teaches me so much about myself through you and being your Mama! You are always my firstborn and the child that made me a Mama! mmmmmmmmmmWAH!
So sweet, Elizabeth! I teared up reading this. I can relate so much to how overwhelming it is to see a tiny, helpless creature become more independent each day!
ReplyDeletethat is SO well said! It is overwhelming when I sit and think about how far we've/he's come in just 22 months!
DeleteI love this update on Jacob!! What a sweet little boy! I wish I could have met him this summer in TExas. I know he will be an awesome big brother to his "sti..ter" :)
ReplyDeleteaw thanks!! I so wish you could have met him - I so worry about sleep for him since it took us forever and grappled with him missing his nap, but I regret him not getting to meet you! And I love seeing his language evolve - I can't wait to see how Emma's grows! I do think Jacob may have a bit of a lisp (his Dad did - and they have identical mouth shapes and slight upper lip ties)... so we may be dealing with that soon.
Delete