Hey buddy,

Believe it or not we kept you alive to two years old – it was not easy at times.

You are a spirited child. For us, compared to your sister, you are an active monster. That said, when we see other children we realize just how lucky we are to have you as you are actually way better behaved than most boys your age. You are so sweet, talkative, happy…and as you can see from these pics, you are stupid cute. We have people stop us in public just to comment on how cute you are – that’s not an exaggeration.

You are a bit shy but not for too long, you warm up pretty quickly. New people don’t scare you although you are far more comfortable with us. You also LOVE your sister more than anything, you guys are very close. You absolutely love to play and would do so all day and night if we let you. You are a terrible sleeper…still. It doesn’t make sense. You run all day, we can’t figure out how to exhaust you.

Over the last six months we have done a lot. Of note, we did not take any trips because you scarred us from the last time we flew. We go to Sun Valley a lot but try to keep our commutes to under a few hours. As you can see you were also the Beast for Halloween. You are still in a crib but I don’t think that will last much longer as you are beginning to figure out how to scale it. Your favorite thing to watch right now is the Greatest Showman – you can sing most of the songs and you live to dance to them. We spend a lot of time outside where you play in the water, drive the barbie jeep around, throw and hit balls, and just really anything and everything we make available.

Mom and I are chugging along and finally seeing a bit of light at the end of the tunnel with regards to getting out of the small child crazy phase (if you would sleep that would greatly help). You are getting to the point where you can tell us what you need and when, and we can let you play with a bit of a more hands off approach. Basically, we are not having to spend every waking second watching you and your sister and are beginning to do things as a couple again without you guys sometimes. I know that sounds like a weird goal, but when it has been 4-5 years of 100% parental focus just going out to dinner together seems like a major event.

You and I have a blast together. Spend a lot of time playing, watching shows/baseball together, going to the park and on walks. As you get older we do more together. That said, you are a huge momma’s boy. You and your mom are connected at the hip, and whenever you need comfort she is the first place you go. It is pretty amazing to watch your relationship because it is so loving in every single aspect. You also get away with a lot that your sister didn’t because of your connection – she looks at you differently. This is not to say she doesn’t love your sister or treat her like a princess, just that there is something unique about your relationship. Something tells me this will work in your favor later in life.

You are turning into a pretty special person, and seems like you are growing every single day. Having an older sister has served you well as you are progressing (letters, numbers, communication, etc.) at a rate far accelerated when compared to where she was at at your age. I love how fun you are, and that you take after me in approaching the world with a smile rather than skepticism. Your mom and I are incredibly lucky, and we know it. Thank you for being so awesome and, please, keep it up!

I love you more than anything in the world.

Love, Dad