Two year old Ethan

Ethan turned 2 back in December and while it was well celebrated it was not well documented. We had a party for him out on the front lawn which included a big bouncy castle, a big cake, and many boxes of Dominoes thin crust pizza (unexpectedly tasty!). He had a blast, along with the other kids, and his favorite part was the singing. OK, and also the cake. Happy Birthday Ethan!

There's a lot to say about Ethan, who we call "Ishi" most of the time (ee-shee, not based on the other well-known Ishi, Last of His Kind). He is an absolute delight, especially when he is not being a total punk, but even sometimes when he is. He loves to sing and be sung to; by the second time through he will be singing along with you every other word or so - whatever he can remember from the first time. Currently his favorite songs are Jingle Bells (never gets old, especially when being speed-shouted with his brother), Three Blind Mice (which Ethan thinks is hilarious) and the last song before bedtime (usually) is Twinkle Twinkle where he repeats that last line with a deep sense of questioning: "what you are?" Tonight, however, we sang She'll Be Coming Round the Mountain as an encore after Twinkle Twinkle and everything was going fine until the last verse when "We'll All Go Out To Meet Her" suddenly triggered devastated crying as Ethan became worried that I was going out. (For the record, I don't usually sing him our plans so I am not sure why this was so confusing.)

Ethan is an extremely capable and independent two year old person. As a result, he wants to do everything himself. Whether it is slicing apples or making coffee he will insist "I do it!" He wants to be doing everything his brother is doing and, amazingly, he can actually do most of it. He scoots, he pedals and steers his tricycle, he kicks balls, he climbs everything, he takes off his own shoes. When I take him to school, he will wash his hands and then say "You go now Mommmy." Speaking of hand-washing, this is another - if not the - favorite activity of the moment. He's worse than Lady MacBeth. If I didn't drag him away from the sink he would stand there washing his hands in the running water for hours.

Hands are a theme, it seems, as another current obsession is puppets. Turn your back on Ethan for a moment and the socks that were on his feet will be on his hands saying 'Hello my name Ethan!'

He is also a very empathic child. If I stub my toe and say ouch he will come right over and say "I sorry Mommy. You OK?" When Emerson gets hurt or sad Ethan is always ready with a hug and a comforting pat. He's a snuggler and will eagerly climb up on the couch if you sit down with a book. A current favorite is Madeline and the Old House in Paris mostly because of the ghost who says woohoo (and Madeline who says pooh-pooh). Ethan loves to put a blanket over his head and walk around the house shouting Boo! to scare us.

Ethan also loves to tell us stories - especially about the "white monster." Here's a sample:
"Once time...White Monster!!
So scary! Eat living room!
Eat Gama! The End."
(Yes, it is also a Haiku.)

I suppose the thing that is hard to describe is how silly and playful and funny Ethan is. He will suddenly start making silly faces at dinner when we least expect it and get us all laughing. He loves to blow raspberries on my belly (yes, it's awesome). He just brings his happy self to every moment in a completely lovely way. We are so lucky to have this little boy in our lives!