Dear Jack,

Today you are two years old. TWO YEARS OLD! What an exciting day for all of us. You walked around saying "My birfday's coming on Fri-DAY!" It didn't matter to you that today is actually Friday, you were excited either way. You know that you are having a "parr-y" and you look forward to your cake! cake! CAKE! I have been running around crazy trying to get things ready for the big bash we have planned for tomorrow. Even though rain is in the forecast, we'll have a lot of fun. Lots of people are coming to share the day with you.

When I've asked you how old you are today, you hold up both your pointer fingers! You haven't quite gotten the hang of the "peace sign," but you've got a whole year of being two ahead of you. We had a small family party tonight and you very much enjoyed a slice of cake and were completely enamored with the gift Daddy and I got you. It's a wooden parking deck/airport thing I thrifted (complete with an elevator and ramps!) and we decked it out with some Matchbox cars, planes, and helicopters. You really wouldn't look away from it for half an hour. You didn't smile the entire time! You can be SO serious, my son.



This month you've been cracking me up daily. You love to make statements about the world around you, like, "This book is my fervitt, fervitt, fervitt!" Yes, you have many favorite books, and your enthusiasm is wonderful. You love to announce when I've finished my meal or had my last sip, "Mommy eat it all! Mommy drink it all!" I put on an old skirt that's kind of full and you proclaimed "Mommy's a Pwinciss!" After singing a song, or reading a book, you often tell me "Good job, Mommy!" I love how you are cataloging your life and sharing your discoveries with me. Your






weird streak is emerging, too. You like to spin in circles to get "bizzy," all the while telling yourself "Get careful, Jack!" You fall in a heap and giggle, or run into a wall and cry. You're not deterred! You like to pull your hands inside your pajama sleeves and ask me "Where my hand, Mommy?" You do the same thing with your feet under a blanket. I walked into the kitchen, where you laid on the floor with your big dump truck next to your face, shouting "Don't get my cheek!!" I love your imagination!

We went to the beach for a few days and you were a little uncertain about the ocean. You ended up playing some in the shallows but for the most part you kept your distance. You'd walk to the shore and point to the waves, declaring "Stop! Stay, Ocean! No coming here Ocean! Stop, Ocean!" I'd say there is no better time to learn that the ocean doesn't take orders and learn to respect it.


When we were walking downtown the other day, I started coughing. You sweetly asked, "You're okay, Mommy? You okay?" You asked your dad the other night at dinner "You yike it Daddy, you yike it?" There is so very much about you that makes me smile this month. You continue to push your limits and can really get upset at times, but this month has been a lot of fun for me, and I love to watch you making new discoveries and learning that being silly makes people smile. I hope you can keep a balance of the serious concentration you can devote to a new experience and the joy of being a goofball.


I keep notes in my calendar of the things you say and do, and this month was so full of these memories that I could go on and on. I won't. I think I've painted a picture of you this month, you at two, that will give us both a glimpse of Jackaroni when we look back some day.

In many ways, I feel like you've been here so much longer than two years, as if my life before you were born is compressed and compartmentalized, and these 24 months you've been in my life represent a new book, not just a new chapter. We went to vacation Bible school last week, and part of the adult devotion was an exercise where we wrote a list of what we loved. Later we wrote a perfunctory list of what we had done that day, then looked at the two lists together to see if what we love is showing up in what we do. I felt incredibly rich, looking at my list. In taking you to the library and the playground, in cooking you lunch and even changing your diapers, my work is my love and my love is my work. I know this is unfortunately rare in life, and I plan to continue savoring this season. I thanked your dad for making this possible for me. Being your mom has changed me. There is no other way to say it. But I am grateful for every minute I have with you and I love you beyond my ability to express.

At two, you are:

Strong (stwong)
Beautiful (bee-full)
Funny
Sweet
Stubborn
Kind
Energetic
Intense
Lovely
Talkative

I'm so glad you are mine, Jack Ballard. Happy Birthday, sweet boy.

Mama