Happy Birthday, JAM

Happy Birthday, little JAM man!

We don't have anything as cool planned for your second birthday as we did for your first, but on this day, no matter the year, we remember the wonderful gift that is you and the provisions that carried you through.

Your first year was the year of survival. You had many surgeries and brushes with death.
Your second year was a year of discovery in the midst of medical mysteries.
Those mysteries have now been solved.
Let's have your third year be a year of thriving. A year of normal toddler-hood.

You seem to agree. Let's be normal. You started today with a normal terrible-two temper-tantrum.

I'll take the temper-tantrums as a good thing. This is a new phenomenon for you, my normally laid-back child, but you've discovered you have a will, and that you can't figure out how to bend the world to this will of yours. I don't blame you for being frustrated. You have preferences, and while your mouth still won't say "no, mother, I'm teething now, so I'd really prefer the bottle to the sippy cup. And could I have water instead of formula to start off with, please?" your brain knows that this is what you want.  We're going to figure this thing out, babe. This year will be remarkable.

Thanks for sticking around.

Sweet. Presents.

That was it mom? Just a shirt?
(This one is 12-18 mos and way too big for him. I'm thinking
of putting last year's green shirt on him again for pictures later today.)

JAMmin! Drumming is one of his favorite things to do.

Yep, I'm TWO!