Walter is Two!

 

Walter turned two almost two months ago now, but I'm just getting around to recording all the adorable things he's up to right now... Speaking of adorable if you call him cute he'll say, "I'm not cute! I'm 'dor-ble!" 

First up, big brother life... Walter was really excited about the idea of "baby Lionel ball" while I was pregnant.  The way he says Lionel is so sweet! It sounds sort of like "La-la" but he sticks his tongue out as he says it. 

But once Lionel was here, he was NOT a fan. In fact, he had the hardest time adjusting to a new baby of any of the kids. He had a clingy few weeks...

He tried acting like the baby himself. He even went through a phase of hitting Lionel on the head. During one afternoon at Angie's house, he wanted to be picked up. She said something along the lines of "what should I do with baby Lionel?" His reply - "Throw him in the trash." 

Luckily, the hitting has stopped, and he's warming up to being a big brother. Each day he likes Lionel a little more. I'm sure they'll soon be best friends. 

Walter is one of the most unique two-year-olds, and much of that comes from having so many older siblings. They teach him the funniest things. Thanks to his big sisters he can identify all sorts of body parts including his forehead, thyroid, knee-pit, and spine. Love it! 

His extensive knowledge of body parts came in handy when he hurt himself jumping on the trampoline with Conrad. Once he calmed down a bit, he was able to tell us his knee hurt. After a quick trip to the pediatrician, he was diagnosed with a buckle fracture of his tibia. 

He was such a trooper smiling through the whole ordeal. The first few days were painful and he was completely non-weight bearing for the first week in the splint. He did like his "wheelchair" that we engineered for him. 

After a week in the splint, he got a hard cast. He picked purple for his cast! Within just a few days he had figured out how to walk in it! Now that it's nearly time to get it removed, he's doing everything as normal. 

(Also, he finally convinced me to give him a haircut. He looks way to grown up now!)

One of my favorite things about Walter right now, is when he says "Mommy, I need you!" which happens multiple times a day. Sometimes he just wants to be held and loved. While it's exhausting sometimes to be so needed, I also love it.

Another thing I love about Walter is hearing him pray. He will either sign his prayers super small or whisper. He always prays for "Jesus Christ, over there" while pointing to our Christus statue. 

What are Walter's favorite things? At the top of the list is music. He has loved music since he was a tiny baby. Now he's getting old enough to request his favorites (Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam, Gesthsemane, and Mr. Toad which sounds like Christmas Toad when he says it). He also will ask for "Dada's song" which is "Danny Boy" since Michael often sings it to him.

Recently he's starting singing bits of his favorite songs too. It's the cutest thing! 

Other things that Walter loves: Bluey, Mickey Mouse, oatmeal, rice pudding, his older siblings whom he calls: Hazel Bob, Hi-ya (Eliza), Hor-ra (Lenora), Silly (Orson), and Hi-ya (also means Conrad), and playing with play food

Things he dislikes include: being told no, when his food breaks in half, not doing something himself, and the wind which he says makes him "sad and cold"

Walter had very simple requests for his birthday - doughnuts and playing was about all he wanted. 

His favorite gift came from Lenora's friend Paige who picked out a bubble gun for him. He LOVES it! 

Oh Walter -we love you so much! You're very much a two-year-old with strong feeling and big emotions. But you're also a joy, a light, and such a ham. Happy, Happy Birthday!!