Miles' 2nd Birthday!

So, Miles actually turned 2 LAST month (April 18), but I'm not too worried, because he has changed SO MUCH the past month and now I get a chance to tell you all about it.

But FIRST, a few photos of the birthday boy....

Mini cupcakes - footballs, baseballs & soccer balls

It's a little blurry, but I LOVE that he's holding up 2 fingers! (I asked him how old he was)

Some of his loot.

The party guests - Nate & KJ Burnham family, Kasey Anderson, Matt (Fox), Jerom (from Fox) & the sister missionaries

With the ghetto football pinata that I made him. (When we hung it up, the top part ripped from all the weight of the candy - the kids didn't seem to mind though)

Wearing his new superman belt while drawing on his magna-doodle from Grandma & Grandaddy Hall

Now, on to the details of this little man's ridiculously cute personality.  First of all, when you ask him, Miles will tell you that he is 2....but he likes to act like a 5 year old. He thinks that he can do ANYTHING. I love & admire his desire to do it all - but I wish he would stay my little baby a while longer. Just to give you a few examples of what I'm dealing with on a daily basis....

• He likes to pick out his own clothes, shoes & PJs....and will throw a FIT if I try to change his choices.  And he tries to dress himself - and he will only allow Arlo & Josiah to help him though.
• He moves the kitchen chairs around the room to get up on the counters & cabinets. Scares me to death. 
• He started climbing out of the crib at 22 months, so I changed it to a toddler bed and he REFUSED to sleep in it. He insisted that he sleep in the queen size guest bed in his room - it's pretty cute to see his tiny body laying in such a big bed.  (We will get him a twin size bed of his own when we get to Utah.)
• Insists that he drink out of a big boy cup while at the table - and he has to drink the same drink as A&J. (He spills his darn cup almost once a day - so I only give him a tiny bit of drink, at a time)
• He LOVES when I pack him a lunch bag on errand/doctor days - He gets to have a juice box, slim jim, pretzel/cheese dippers, sandwich etc....He loves to feel big, like A&J.
• He has been swinging on the big boy swing & climbing up tall playground ladders for the past 6 months already - he is a pretty steady boy and can do it all at the playground. 

Jason and I love to sit and talk about how cute Miles is and all the new things that he has learned - especially in the past month. For example, he now willingly goes to gym childcare & church nursery - he walks in and doesn't even look back - and he is great with a babysitter. He wasn't talking much until he turned 2; then it was like a light-switch went on and now he can communicate so well! It's been fun listening to some of the things that he says. My favorite was the other day when I asked him where Miles' mommy was - he pointed to me....then I asked him where Arlo's mommy was - he shrugged his shoulders and said "I don't know?" Jason and I laughed about that for days!! When you ask him a question, 90% of the time his answer will be "yyuuupp!" Miles doesn't sit down for TV yet, but he has recently discovered a love for "Finding Nemo" He asks to watch it every time we get in the van & he loves to carry around Arlo's Nemo stuffed animals.

We weaned him from his binkie about 3 weeks ago and he has been doing GREAT! I told him that the puppy ate it - and he seems to accept it. Naptime/sleepytime/bedtime have been an adjustment, but we are finding ways to calm down & for him to self-soothe. As for the potty-training, I would love to get him out of diapers before the twins arrive, but I just don't have the energy or motivation to deal with it right now. Potty-training will be a priority once we get to Utah this Fall.

I can't believe that our little Miles has only been with us for 2 years because I can't remember when he wasn't "one of the boys." He is such a joy to have in our family and can make the grumpiest person smile. Even strangers in the store are drawn to his beautiful eyes, deep dimple and sweet smile. WE LOVE YOU MILES!!!