I love that he still makes trains out of everything.  It's his favorite way to play with toys.  This day, he lined up all his toys to watch a movie with him. Notice the pajamas.  He pretty much refuses to wear much else, and he's changing into different pairs all day.  We'll have to start working on his fashion sense, but at least he's easy to please.

Hayden is a funny boy.  It's been so interesting to watch a human learn a language.  I really can't remember what it was like when he was first learning to talk because it happens just a bit at a time.  I love to watch him try out a new word.  He says some really funny things that give you an insight to how he sees the world and how he's learning about it for the first time.

He was running around really fast one day, and he said to me, "Look mommy!  I'm fasting!"


At dinner one night, I asked him if he wanted more. "No, that's enough."  It was the first time he used the word enough, and it made both of us smile.  I wonder how many times he had to hear the word to understand what it meant.   I certainly couldn't explain its meaning very well to a 2 year old.  His new word this week is "and," which he uses to tie all of his sentences together.  It's pretty funny the things he says, just so he can keep using that word. We were playing a game tonight where I would whisper something that we bought at the store in his ear, and he would tell Derrick.  I whispered, "Mayonnaise" in his ear, and he said, "Pannies!"  It sounded just like he said panties and it made us all laugh so hard.

As Derrick was putting up a shelf in Hayden's room one day, Hayden just had to be right there helping.  I had to run and grab the camera when I noticed that they were matching buddies.  He just wants to be like his daddy.  He even helped him figure out the instructions. :)

The night of the big snowstorm.  It was really cold, so Halle didn't go out.  Hayden had to go play while Derrick was shoveling the driveway.  He could live in that stuff.  Of course, he wouldn't listen to me and had to come inside after he ran on the slick driveway and fell and his his head.  He was ok after some hot chocolate.

I got Halle's hair to fit in pigtails!  I think it might be the cutest thing I have ever seen.  Paired with her adorable smile and it will convince anyone to give her anything she wants (like she doesn't already get it.)

The pigtails were too much.  I couldn't stop touching them or staring at them or kissing her cheeks. I had to put ribbons in. (so hard to tie tiny little bows in the tiny thin hair of an active litte girl)  I love it.  I even had dreams about them.

Don't let her fool you.  She quite often looks like this:

Especially at meal times.  Ok, sidetrack, but I feel so lost in this little problem.  I cannot get this girl to eat a thing!  I try really to make my family healthy meals and to teach my kids to like vegetables.  It's important to me that they know how to eat healthy, starting now.  I don't just say not to treats and snacks, but I explain to my kids that we need to fill our bodies with healthy food before we but fun things in because that's how you take care of them.  Halle will eat graham crackers and nutri-grain bars.  That's it. Every night at dinner she spends most of the meal screaming, and I'm not exaggerating.  She won't touch a bit of food that I put on her plate and I have tried everything.  It's like she just doesn't want it because I'm giving it to her.  She won't even try most things unless they look like treats. The sad part is that she is so hungry.  She walks around all day signing more and wanting crackers.  I can't decide what to do.  So far I've been just putting the food in front of her.  I make the healthy meals.  I provide the food.  She chooses whether or not to eat it.  But she chooses not to. (even smoothies!) So is it better to do what I'm doing and not give in, or should I just give her graham crackers because having that in her tummy is better than nothing at all?  I mostly just don't want it to become a power struggle and have her grow up with issues with food.  I have no idea what the best solution is.

Hayden gets it though.  At dinner one night we had some soup with lots of vegetables in it and I asked him if he liked it.  He loved it.  I told him that was great because it was so healthy for his body.  He said, "Jesus loves soup, huh!  Jesus loves soup and sandwich and Jesus loves juice!"  

Here's another Hayden-ism.  Derrick had to shovel the driveway (again) and the kids were watching from our bedroom window.  Hayden was yelling, "Hear me, Dad?  Hear me?"  So I knocked on the window to let him know we were watching.  He threw snowballs on the window which made them laugh hysterically. (Bless that man for taking the time to play with his kids always - even when he's working and in a hurry to get to work.)  Anyway, he got back to shoveling, but apparently Hayden wasn't done being entertained.  He kept pointing at window and yelling, "Right here, Dad!  Make my funny right here!"