The Little Man is 2

 Our youngest turned 2 yesterday.  Hard to believe it's been that long, and yet here we are.  What a joy this little guy is!  He is a very busy little man.  He loves to run and climb and play in the irrigation ditch.  He's brave ... a little too brave for Mama's liking, but also a ton of fun.  His vocabulary is amazing, and he fits right into the family.  He LOVES to read.  For hours.  And hours. :)

He's also had some real challenges, and we're thankful he's doing as well as he is.  He is allergic to tons of foods, and despite the doctor's belief that the allergies would decrease, they have actually gotten worse.  The ones we know about right now are eggs, dairy, wheat, soy, corn, tree nuts, coconut, sesame, and he is deathly allergic to peanuts.  So making a suitable birthday cake (or even his daily meals) is a challenging.  I'll do a separate post on his birthday cake, as the recipe I found and tried this time was amazing.  I literally wouldn't have known it was an allergy-free cake if I hadn't made it myself.  I think it's going to be the only kind of cake I make for birthdays in our family so the poor little guy can have some each time.  He's number 5, so we do a lot of celebrating around here.  He also has very bad eczema, which often prompts well-meaning strangers to suggest odd treatments.  The latest was a woman who I'm pretty sure wasn't dealing with a full deck.  She was sure he needed to take Emu oil or liquid aloe vera - both internally.  With all the allergies he already has, I've decided not to ever take a chance with odd treatments that have to be ingested.  Seriously though, doesn't it seem likely that if there were a simple cure for this problem, our excellent pediatrician  - or at least the dermatology specialist - would know about it?  Okay enough of the rant.  Let's get back to the party.

 He had a fun time unwrapping his presents.

Papa and Bugga came over for cake and ice cream and to see him unwrap everything.

 His 20 year old sister bought him some dried fruit - apricots and pineapple.  When he found it, everything had to stop until I opened the pineapple and let him dig in ;)

 

His four year old brother was as excited about the birthday party as he was.  Here he was wanting to give the birthday boy a hug :)

I love how excited they get about the smallest little things - like in this case, a simple ball.

This big box was full of medium sized balls.

He about fell into the box trying to get them out.

As soon as he did, he would take them over to someone and share them :)

Here's a blue one for Papa.  Bugga had already been given a red one.

 Daddy bought him a monster truck.  (Actually Daddy did all the shopping for us.  He bought the balls, the monster truck and a sail boat).

His sister also gave him a stuffed tiger that looks just like Hobbs from the Calvin and Hobbs comic strip.  So that's what we're calling him.  He shared that with his nine year old brother.

 Excitement!

He was giving Hobbs a big "squeeze hug" as the four year old calls it.

His nine year old brother gave him a couple of boats.  This one is a jet ski, which he immediately took by the handle bars and started making motor noises with :)

Then it was time for cake.  This was quite a treat for him since with all his allergies, he rarely gets cake.  I make him cookies from time to time (oatmeal mixed with mashed bananas and baked) but cake is a rare treat.  He can't have any of the boxed mixes because they usually contain xanthan gum, which is a corn product, and he is allergic to corn.

Don't you love that face?  He was trying to figure out how to blow the candles out.  The four year old was very eager to help him out with that.

Birthdays are SO exciting!

 Sister was trying to get him to blow...

Here we go!  (Don't mention it to the company, but I think there was a little moisture in that blowing!)

I couldn't decorate it like i normally would have so I just sprinkled some of those dehydrated strawberry and banana pieces on top ... you know, the ones that are in the baby food section?  He loves those.

I think he thought the entire pan was for him ;)

It started off neat enough...

But in the end, he wanted the rest of the pan  ... and he had given up on the fork.

Grandpa sent him a musical card, which he though was the most hysterical thing ever.

It didn't take him long to figure out how to make the music start over... and over...

Of course when you receive four boats for your birthday, it's a must to have a bath after the party ... not to mention the chocolate covered face and hands...

He sure had it figured out how to play with that jet ski!

Anyway, it was a great party and a great day.  We're so thankful for each and every one of our blessings!