Ryan 2.5

I cannot believe that my baby is 2 1/2!! The same week that he started preschool he also turned 2 1/2. I have to say that while I might have over-estimated what he would or should be doing at a year old, that he has by far exceeded any thought I ever had for what a 2 and a half year old would do or be capable of doing. Ryan is such a smart little boy. He learns things so quickly and it seems like every single day he has something new that he is learning, saying or doing.

Ryan loves to read. In order to do so he must be sitting in your lap. He doesn't like having to share your lap with his brother (although he is great at sharing pretty much everything else) and he doesn't like to read with Owen because Owen doesn't sit still and Owen tries to turn the pages and skip to the end. His favorite books for the moment are Green Eggs and Ham, If you Give a Cat a Cupcake and a disney pixar book. He is starting to enjoy longer books more and more so I need to get a few more for our collection.

Ryan is a wonderful big brother. He asks about Owen all the time. He likes to check on Owen when he is taking his naps and he likes to help get Owen up and out of the bed. Ryan is very patient and doesn't get upset when he has to share toys with Owen. He doesn't mind if Owen accidentally pulls his hair or pinches him. He likes to share food with Owen and he likes to get Owen a pacifier if it falls on the floor. The other day Ryan even gave Owen his beloved Glow-worm. It is so sweet to watch the two of them interact. Oddly enough, Ryan is just now starting to want to hold Owen. Owen is almost as big as Ryan is though so it makes me a bit uneasy. Ryan will stand behind Owen and try to lift him off the ground in a bear hug style. Yikes!

Ryan has become quite a picky eater. I used to think he was a great eater -- but he is only a great eater if his plate is full of exactly what he wants to eat. He is not a fan of meat unless it is a chicken nugget, egg, hotdog or piece of turkey lunchmeat. He does not like combined food like casserole, but he will eat rice, chicken and peas separately. He loves muffins and pastries and it breaks my heart that he cannot have most of these items that he sees at the store (due to the peanut allergy). If you ask him what he wants to eat he will tell you a waffle, fries, or chocolate. His new thing is to tell you that he NEEDS chocolate. ha.

Ryan has started to say funny things too...

when he burps he says "scoots mees"

when we are driving in the car he says "green means go, red means stop, yellow means go FASTER, yay -- checkered flag". - do we see racing in his future?

I am trying desperately to hold on to every single moment because while everyone warned me that time flies, I didn't realize just how quickly they meant until Ryan was born.