Happy 2nd Birthday to My Plumpkin

Today is Patrick's birthday.(If you didn't guess that by the title of this post, as well as the numerous FB and Twitter updates I made today) I just can't believe that he is 2 years old. It doesn't seem all that long ago that he was this itty bitty wriggly thing. Ok, he was never very itty bitty, but to me, he was tiny. So much has happened since he was born, not all of it good, but I have managed to keep his world happy and safe, and isn't that the entire point?

While he has said loving things to me before, and repeats after me when I tell him I love him, and tells me he loves his trains and "autos"... Today, for the very first time, he hugged me tight and said "Love you." What a wonderful, amazing, fabulous feeling. I know he loves me, but to hear him say it all meaningfully and sweet, that is a pretty special thing.

He had a lot of fun today. While his Mimi was still home, we all went to a park where he got to run up and down hills, play in the dirt, just "be free" (That is what he says when he doesn't want to hold my hand) And he got to eat cookies for breakfast.
After his nap we went outside to draw on the sidewalk. I think he could sit out there all day drawing and never get bored. We also drew a lot inside. He doesn't have a set of train tracks yet, so we draw them.

We played chase through the house, played with autos, watched "Chitty Bang Bang Bang", ate yummy food, and just had a wonderful day together. Patrick also received 2 birthday cards in the mail (How cool is that!) One from his Aunt Jenny & Uncle Tim, and one from his Papa & Gigi and Uncle Josh. He wanted to snuggle both of the cards when he went to bed. That's his new thing for all of his toys - they have to come to bed to "snuggle"

It was a pretty awesome day. :)

The Plumpkin & The Pumpkin Patch

A couple of weeks ago, just before Halloween, Patrick had his very first pumpkin patch adventure. We went with Crystal & Roger, and we had a blast (despite the fact that the weather turned quite a bit warmer than we had expected).
The place actually opened a little later than we thought, so we passed the time with a walk at a cute little park in Dunnellon. Patrick enjoyed running around, especially when we taught him the words "Diabolical" and "Inconceivable" There is truly nothing more hilarious than watching a toddler run, arms flailing around, shouting those words as loud as he can and laughing gleefully.

Once we got to the pumpkin patch, Patrick was more than ready for more fun! He rode in the little wagon for a while, exclaiming "Oh! Pumpkin! BIG pumpkin" and "Oh! Another one!" over and over again. Then he decided he wanted to help Uncle Roger push the wagon.

He helped us pick out the best pumpkins (including Mimi's "Pickle Pumpkin" a giant long green gourd thing) and helped me pick out the prettiest sunflowers.

It was a truly wonderful pumpkin adventure!