Love letter

Well, It's about time for a letter to the fruit of my loins, (one day when you're, like, 16 and feral, you will want to vomit at those words. Suck it up teen-boy! Mama and Papa made rompy-pomp and consequently bore the most beautiful piece of fruit known to man-kind. There!)

Ok, so you're 21 months old. You're nearly 2 bubba! TWO!  I find myself in stitches at least once a day, rollicking with laughter at your antics. You are so incredibly funny. You find joy and excitement in the smallest of things. You remind me of the simplicity and wonder of life. The core of our humanity. Love and laughter.

You are a human parrot. You will repeat any word we throw at you. "Barbecue", we will say. "Ba-qu-qu" you will confidently belt out. "Gorgeous", I will throw at you. "Gooorg-is", you will coo. Daddy will say, "Basketball". You will echo, "Ba-ket-ball". AH! Is there anything better than hearing you speak? I think not.  The other morning, you surprised us with your very first sentence - "Kick the ball". You really are your father's son.

At night, when I put you to bed, you demand I sing you an impressive repertoire of nursery rhymes. "Row Row?" you ask, extending your arms in a rowing motion. And then, "Pie-pie" as you attempt the Incy Wincy Spider action. Followed by "Baaa-baaaaaaa" in your best bleating sound. I melt. And I stand there, rendition after rendition of 'Row your Boat' and 'ABC', more in love with you with every verse I sing.

You have discovered your father's passion for all things cars, remote controls, bikes and machines. Almost every hour on the hour you will ask me for your '"Fixit", which is the house-hold screwdriver. You just want to fix whatever you can - the door knobs, your bean bag, your leaky sippy cup, the neighbour's cat. You imitate your father sooooo much! And don't get me started about your cars and "Mo-to-mikes". When Daddy bought you your first slot car set the other day, well, weren't you the happiest little boy alive! Mind you, Daddy isn't quite ready to let go of the controls yet, so the best you can do is watch the cars whiz by and occasionally lunge at the tracks!

You're really starting to enjoy a few television shows here and there. Your favourite of all is "Giggle and Hoot", a terrific blue owl and his best friend Jimmy. If you could crawl into the TV set to  kiss them, you would. "Hooty, hooty!" you call out! I think I know what kind of birthday cake I'll make for your 2nd birthday....

You dance like no one's watching, which is a phrase we adults try and live by. Well, my little boy, you are my daily reminder to let loose and release my inhibitions! You stomp and you spin and you wave your little hands in no particular rhythm, but it all makes sense to you.

Your language skills are quite remarkable. You understand absolutely everything we are saying. Your father and I have even reached that parental milestone of s-p-e-l-l-i-n-g things out. That's how switched on you are with words. And your confidence is astounding! I could ask you whether you agreed with the new tax being introduced next financial year, and you will look me straight in the eyes and say, 'Zheah'. That's how you say 'Yeah'. 'Zheah'. It's going to catch on.

You FREAK us out with your counting skills. Papa can start counting, "1, 2" and you will pipe up in the next room whilst playing with your blocks, "3". Your daddy and I couldn't believe it the first time it happened. And it keeps happening! All the way up to 8! You'll interject with your favourite numbers here and there. Genius boy.

You love to kiss everything. You love Bob, the neighbour's cat, you kiss him until he runs out of the yard. You love your stuffed animals and toys. Where there only used to be 'Ra-Ra' the blue rabbit in your cot, there now is 'Ba-Ba', the white sheep and occasionally 'Papy' the golliwog. Crowded house.

And to top off these past 24 months, you have finally, FINALLY evolved into a cuddle-bug. You follow me around saying, "Cuddo, Cuddo mummy". I die.

You are obsessed with your grandparents. You have given each of them quite unique names. No help from us, this is allllllll you:

Babo
Manini
Po
Mania

Yep, special!

You continue to love balloons and bubbles, slippery slides and cherry tomatoes. Thanks to Po, you have discovered the delight of chocolate. No going back now...

Dropping you at school on Tuesdays and Wednesdays is so exciting. You are in love with your teacher, Nathalie, saying "Nathie" almost every day! Your little friends call you 'Wemy' because they too cannot pronounce 'Rs'. Too cute for words.

My heart is full every time I look at your olive skin, your golden hair, those blue eyes, and that cheeky grin.

Bring on the big 2nd birthday! It's going to be a doozy!