In, what seems to have been an instant, you have become such a big, big boy.
You are sweet-hearted, super-silly, fully-active, and curiously inquisitive about everything around you.
While you were two going on three you,
-- loved, loved, loved coloring, drawing - in order to send sweet notes and letters to your grandparents, painting - art projects are one of your favorites, using stickers, and doing your "paperwork" in your notepad.
-- continued to enjoy being outside - digging in the dirt, collecting rocks, going to the park - the slide is your favorite, playing in the sandbox, and swinging with Ellis.
-- enjoyed rough-housing with your brother, although we have to remind you sometimes to be gentle as you think you can rough-house with him the way you rough-house with daddy.
-- had so much fun exploring the world around you - a trip to the aquarium in Atlanta had you in awe, day trips to the library, museums, the zoo, a farm - the longhorn cattle and the chickens were your favorites.
-- a few firsts in this year included..
- your first outdoor camping experience - which you did not like once you found out that mommy and Ellis (he was only a few months old) would be sleeping inside
- your first taste of smores
- your first parade experience - you weren't very impressed until the end when the fire truck came by
- your first experience eating at Waffle House - you said that the menu was your treasure map and you thought it was fun to count all of the pictures of coffee cups
- your first experience meeting your GA cousins at Christmas
- your first experience seeing Athens, one of your mommy and daddy's favorite cities
- your first fairly major ouchie - a fractured toe
-- continued to love climbing, animals, tractors and trains, and holding mommy's hand while you fall asleep.
--developed a love of all things construction - tools, construction cones, diggers (back hoes), dump trucks, and bulldozers.
-- developed a love of certain TV shows - Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Octonauts, Rescue Bots, and Mighty Machines.
-- began to really like Star Wars, which has your daddy over the moon with excitement.
-- lost two of your puppies - Lucky and Charlie - and had to deal with their being gone in a very age-specific way.
-- POTTY-TRAINED! Mommy is uber-excited about this one. You are still working on a few aspects of it, but I think you will have it down pat here really soon.
And probably the biggest event of your two-year old year was...
--moving to GA, leaving everything you had known all your life (only 2.5 years, but still) and transition to a new town, a new house, and a new school. We've had a few rough patches, but I have full confidence that this year - your three-year old year - will be an amazing one for you, buddy.
Happiest of birthdays to you, Robert Franklin. Your daddy, Ellis and I love you dearly.
Love,
Mommy
