Birthday Boy

We've had a busy and eventful week since we got back from vacation. Huston turned 2 on Friday and also decided to give up his pacifier that same day! Believe me, I was not planning on taking his beloved pacifier away on his birthday, but it all just sort of fell into place. He wasn't falling asleep for his nap that afternoon, so I went in to get him back up and he was swiping at his tongue and making a disgusted face while he held his pacifier. I asked him if his pacifiers tasted yucky and he said "yes," (not surprising since they were incredibly old and dirty) so I asked if he wanted to throw them away in the trash can and he said "yes" again. I put both the blue and the white pacifiers in a plastic bag first (just in case we needed to retrieve them later) and he threw them away. Nap time later that day and on Saturday didn't go so well. He basically cried for over an hour each day and only slept for 30 minutes when he finally did fall asleep. He never asked for his pacifier, though. He just cried "mommy" over and over. He didn't have any trouble going to sleep at bedtime without them. Sunday we were with friends in Dallas and he didn't take a nap, and then yesterday, he only cried a tiny bit on and off for 15 minutes or so, and then took a good 2 hour nap. Hallelujah!! As I write this, he is again taking a good nap after only a few minutes of crying. I was really dreading taking away his pacifiers and was thinking I was going to buy a balloon and we'd tie them to the balloon and send them away in the sky, or something dramatic like that, but it turns out that wasn't necessary. I am so thankful that it wasn't nearly as difficult as I had imagined!

We had a lot of fun at his birthday party Saturday afternoon - Huston enjoyed playing with his presents, eating cake, seeing all of his favorite people, and playing with Uncle Ben's dog, Pup. He did not, however, like anyone to say "party" or "happy birthday" to him. We didn't even sing happy birthday when he blew out his candle, because he screamed when we tried to. When Clarke and I woke him up on his actual birthday, he was all smiles until we said "happy birthday!" and then he threw himself down screaming and burying his face in his bed. For some reason, those words just really set him off. After everyone left, I asked if he had fun at his party (which he obviously did) and he grunted "ehhh" and said "all done." He's such a funny guy."Walking" Uncle Ben's Dog, Pup

Playing Golf

Huston's awesome new piano, which he calls his "Pi-O"

Mr. Serious-Face (exploring his new globe toy)

On Monday, Huston had his 2 year check up and measured 36 inches (90th percentile for height - you better believe his daddy is proud of that) and 27.4 pounds (75th percentile for weight). We knew he was getting taller because a few days before his birthday he discovered that he's tall enough to reach the doorbell by himself. We were playing outside and he had walked over to the front door alone and came running back to me yelling "Deh dah! Deh dah!" (his doorbell sound). You have never seen a child so happy to ring a doorbell. It has become his new obsession and multiple times a day he'll suddenly come running to me and yell "Ring! Ring!" so we can go outside and ring the doorbell. He also says "felf" (which means self) because he can do it all by himself. He's so grown up these days!