Sweetness and Wildness... He's TWO years old!

Well, it happened and I don’t even know how it happened.  Time.  Time goes by too quickly.  I can remember like yesterday being pregnant with John Brantley and realizing my body weight rounded to 200 pounds and not 100 pounds anymore.  I remember thinking I’d never see my ankle bones again, would never wear regular clothes, and wouldn't be able to breathe normally ever again.  The summer of 2012 was hot, and I was miserable.  Ohhhh but I would do it all over again for my precious Bitty.

Yep, it happened.  He turned TWO years old!  There were moments in the last 730+ days that I certainly thought one of us might die.  He’s my “hard” child.  The challenging, pushing the limits, and difficult one.  But I wouldn't have him any other way!

Between the two of my boys I have rocked and rocked many a miles in my chair.  I am surprised the cushion hasn't taken a permanent mold to my bottom.  Yes, I still rock John Brantley to sleep at nap and bed time, and I’m not ashamed of it.  I remind people all the time that you get to spend so much of your life being an adult, that when you’re a child you should enjoy it.  If John Brantley enjoys being rocked, then by George I’ll rock him.  Sweet Ford would still let me rock him too!!!

Birth	One Year	Two Years
Weight: 8 lbs. 12 oz. 62nd percentile	Weight: 19 lbs. 8 oz. 5th percentile	Weight: 23 lbs. 3 oz. 5th percentile
Height: 19 ¾ inches 52nd percentile	Height: 29 ½ inches 50th percentile	Height: 33 inches  10th-25th percentile

From birth to one year he gained 11.6 pounds.  From one year to two years he gained 3.5 pounds!  At two years of age Ford was weighing in at 27.6 pounds.  Click here for Ford's two year blog post.

Some things I want to remember about John Brantley at this age:

Weight:  23.3 pounds
Height:  33 inches
Shoe size: anywhere from a 5-7
Clothes size: 12 mo- 2T
Diaper size: Luvs 3
Naps: one a day around 1:00-2:30
Bedtime: Anywhere from 7:00-8:00

Likes: playing outside, Trey’s truck, riding 4-wheelers or tractors, animals, the pool, bath time, candy, the John Deere tractor DVD, Ford, Delta, his grandparents, to be rocked, fruit snacks, juice,

 Dislikes: BRUSHING HIS TEETH!!!!!!  This one takes the cake.  You want to royally tick the child off???.... brush his teeth.  If he screams and cries it’s easier to brush them because he opens his mouth.

It wasn't until about a month or two ago that the child even really started talking.  People had raised their concerns about his lack of verbal communication, but I wasn't worried.  Now he doesn't speak in sentences, but he communicates.  He says single words.  Here’s some of his list: momma, dada, bubba (Ford), Gan (Gran), Boom (BoomPa), Pops, Puuuuh (Puddin), De-ta (Delta), Bo (Puddin and Pop’s dog), Bobba, Ken (my brother), Dack (nephew Jack), Car-kine (Caroline.. our neighbor and my niece)… That would include the people he talks about.

Other words: pooooool, dink (drink), wa-wa (water), mick (milk), poon (spoon), wock (rock), tac-ter (tractor) bam-bam (bandaid), ouuuuside (outside), cah (car), tuck (truck), no no, suck (sucker), he has a word for couch but I can’t even begin to figure it out, deep (jeep), wide (ride), chuch (church), and chit chit (chapstick), cut cut (talking about cutting with a tractor)... etc

Bitty is VERY strong willed.  He is a lover and a fighter.  He is so sweet with Ford and they play and play.  If John Brantley gets something he grabs two so he can share with Ford.  He is also a fighter.  He’s going to get you before you get him.  We still have biting issues, pinching issues, and aggressive tendencies.  He gets really excited sometimes and it’s almost like he isn't sure of how to express his emotions.  The wooden spoon seems to keep him on track!!!

He’s not a good eater.  I often worry and feel guilty at how he eats.  I know milk is so important, but he doesn't drink enough.  Some days he has a hearty appetite and other days he nibbles like a bird.  He is a big meat fan, but he’s not so much into fruits and vegetables.

 John Brantley has a silly personality.  He just seems to do funny things to make us laugh all the time.  It comes naturally to him.  Ford tries harder to be funny than Bitty does.

God sure knew what he was doing when he gave us John Brantley.  We love you little man!!!!