Running Circles

In this video, Jacob is running around in circles with his friend, Sophie. That's Sophie's mom in the middle. We're at Rosh Hashanah Under the Stars at Oregon Ridge Park.

Wow, he did what???

The list of firsts for Jacob just keeps growing and growing. Everyday we are amazed by something Jacob has done. Caroline and I have stepped up our efforts to get Jacob potty-trained and it's working! Yesterday, Jacob put a Number 2 in the potty! It was an amazing effort on Caroline's part, because Jacob was very scared of the idea of pooping in his potty, but when he was done, he was very proud of himself.

Jacob is also making progress learning his letters and counting. Bubbe sent him flashcard books and he loves them. He wants to count all the time.

My favorite new thing that Jacob is doing is singing. He sings songs to himself like "Thomas the Tank Engine." He also sings Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and the Itsy Bitsy Spider. It's so cute!

Here's a picture from Jacob's first day of school. He has a new Cars backpack and he loves it!

First Letter

Yesterday Jacob wrote his first letter -- the letter C !! Hooray! Now he can count to 11, and identify most letters, and write one.

What's Up With Jacob

This week was Jacob's last week of school as a toddler. When he starts camp in a couple of weeks, he moves to his new classroom - the Twos. Is every mother this emotional? Well, we are so happy with the Baltimore Hebrew Day School family. They are really warm and wonderful and we feel really good about the experience he's having there twice a week.

The pool opened Memorial Day weekend and we are all so HAPPY about it! This morning, Jacob convinced Caroline to take him to the car when he woke up and he climbed into his car seat and directed Caroline to drive him to the pool. He loves it there. We will be spending a lot of time there this summer! Yay, pool!

Last week we took a whirlwind trip to New York City. We stayed with Caroline's cousin again. It was 48-hours of constant moving! We spent some time with Jacob's dad, Jack. We also got to see my aunt, who I haven't seen in many years.

We spent some time at our favorite park, and the fountains were on! Here's a picture:

The summer promises to be as busy as the spring. I hope we can keep up!

More Fun-time Videos

I'm going to post a couple of videos and then hopefully an update if Jacob's nap lasts long enough!

That was Pool-time fun. This one is Jacob dancing at Belvedere Square.

How About a Video?

I hope you view these videos from my phone:

A better update

In my haste to make sure everyone is up-to-date with cute Jacob pictures, I haven't been able to fill you in on all the neat changes going on with him this year.  So here is my attempt to do just that.

As I've mentioned in previous posts, Jacob is growing and changing all the time!  It is a very fun time with him nowadays.  His current likes are cars, trucks, trains, and airplanes.  He's really been enjoying matchbox cars recently.  As a matter of fact, yesterday as I was folding laundry, Jacob happily played with his cars and trucks by himself for at least a half hour.  This was big (and happy) news for me.  Who knew such an inexpensive toy ($.96 @ Target) could make a boy so happy.  We take them everywhere with us to provide Jacob with something to do while doing the mundane activities in life, like errands and waiting for dinner to arrive.  He also loves to point out big trucks and buses to us while we're driving somewhere.  It's as if motorized vehicles are in a boy's DNA.

Besides trucks, Jacob still loves books (especially books about trucks).  One of his current favorites is "A Truck Goes Rattley-Bumpa" by Jonathan London. We discovered it at Mother Goose on the Loose (the story time at Enoch Pratt Library) and borrowed it from the library, but he likes it so much, I think we'll be getting our own copy soon.  He also loves books with animals and he's good at identifying the animals too!

We try to be outdoors a lot now that the weather is nicer.  We go to the Maryland Zoo almost weekly. The weekend before last we ventured back to the Waverly Farmers Market, and the Baltimore Flower Mart.

Jacob is talking a lot and communicating his needs more with language (thank goodness).  He can say sentences like "I want a drink Mommy" or "All done with this." He's learning to say "Yes, please" and "thank you." He's still pretty shy, but he warms up, especially to people his age (or height).  He's very social and sensitive to other kids feelings.  We still struggle with the "learning to share" and "taking turns" concepts but at times, he's very good with it.

Another fun thing Jacob started doing is singing.  He's always liked music but now he sings along to CDs when we're driving and when we sing together at home.  One of his favorite songs is "Old MacDonald" and he likes it sung in all kinds of styles.

Aidan is still his best buddy, but a few weeks ago we met neighbors on our street with a 2 & 1/2 year-old girl named Sofie.  Jacob and Sofie have become fast friends and it's great to have someone his age so close by that we can just stop in for an impromptu play-date. 

On the medical side, Jacob nose is constantly running. We thought it was allergies, but learned he was prone to viruses due to his unusually large adenoids. The doctor told us to pretty much expect Jacob's nose to run all the time.  When he's three, we can take him to an Ear, Nose & Throat doctor who will probably remove his adenoids at that time. (Oh joy.) So for now, we have to live with the chronic coughing and runny nose.  It's not so bad for Jacob - he doesn't seem to care that much except that he gets tired of getting his nose wiped all the time.  It's harder for Caroline and I who just want to see him healthy and comfortable.  As a result though, Jacob is learning how to blow his nose, reducing our need to for the aspirator (aka, snot-sucker).

Well, of course, I have some more cute pictures for you to enjoy.

He still looks angelic while sleeping.

Jacob & his new friend Sofie.

Jacob & Aidan at Herring Run throwing rocks in the water.

Life with a Toddler is Busy!

This is long overdue, but like the title says, Life with a Toddler is Busy! Now that Jacob is two, we've been on the move, going here, there and everywhere.  After the worst winter I've ever experienced, we've been taking every opportunity to hang out outside.  We go to the zoo at least once a week (thanks to a great family membership).  There's also lots of playgrounds around that we like to visit.  One of Jacob's favorite things to do is go down to the Herring Run stream behind our house and throw rocks in the water.  He says they go "splash!"  He's a very chatty boy and talking more and more all the time.  Here's some pictures from our recent adventures:

On a spring day, we tried to get some family pictures at a local park, but Jacob was stingy with his smile.

Mommy, Jacob, & Mama

We've been going to the zoo a lot.  Here we are feeding a giraffe.

Jacob takes a ride on a banana-plane.

Smelling the flowers at Sherwood Gardens.

Hanging out with his buddy Aidan at a PJ Shabbat at the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation...

And for old time's sake, here's a picture of the boys from about 2 years ago:

The Video I Promised

This is the video I wanted to show you last month.

Two!

In the midst of all the snow that fell on us, Jacob turned two years old!  Grampa came to town and we celebrated with cupcakes.  Jacob's birthday party is postponed until we can see our street again. (Actually most of the snow has melted, so we're in good shape provided we don't have any more blizzards.)

Caroline created a great word and skill chart that marks when Jacob said which words and did which big skill over the last two years.  Jacob has around 90 words in his vocabulary! And the list keeps growing and growing.  Today he said "song" to me for the first time!  He loves music and loves listening to his Putumayo CDs.

Here's some recent pictures:

Listening to "Happy Birthday"

Eating cake (one of his new favorite words).

Riding his fire truck.

Exploring the fish in the Children's Area of the Enoch Pratt Library main branch (with buddy Aidan).

Supporting the Wishes for Fishes fund.

Jacob is getting ready for some new adventures.  He'll be taking a tumbling class this spring and we're eagerly awaiting summer for fun at the pool.

Snowman!

Goodness, all we're getting here in Baltimore is snow, snow, and more snow.  We're expecting another 15" - 22" inches tonight.  Jacob and I went out to build snowmen from the snow leftover from last weekend.  He had a blast once he realized that the mittens kept his hands warm while touching the snow.  Hee hee.

Yay for snow!

Hello 2010!

Hello 2010!  Sorry for the long overdue post!  The last couple of months of 2009 were really busy in the Harmon-Darrow household.  I was working on my Master's thesis, which is finally done.  Then we had Thanksgiving at our house and a week later, we flew off to California for 10 days.  When we got back, we were welcomed with the Blizzard of 2009 and 20 inches of snow!

2010 hasn't slowed us down at all, either.  Jacob returned to school and Caroline and I returned to work, but we're all doing really great!  We're looking forward to Jacob's birthday party next month.  Can you believe that Jacob is going to be 2????  Me neither.

Jacob is growing in leaps and bounds.  He's talking a lot, some words I understand, most I don't.  He's also saying small sentences.  He loves to talk on the phone.  And his newest fascination is Elmo.  He loves Elmo and talks about him all the time.

He continues to love books, but now he's expanding his skills to cooking.  Caroline cooks with him nearly everyday.  He's pretty good at it.  He likes it so much that it's one of the first things he says when he wakes up in the morning.  "Cook!"

Here are some pictures from our recent adventures.

Thanksgiving dinner with Uncle Adam, Renee, Bubby, and Uncle Stuart.

Mommy & Jacob celebrating the completion of Mommy's thesis in California.

Gramma, Jacob, Grampa & Mama at the Spanish Village in Balboa Park.

Mommy & Jacob baking Hannukah and Christmas cookies.  He loves to sprinkle the sugar.

Jacob at the Children's Museum in San Diego.  He's an artful character.

Jacob explores the snow in the Blizzard of 2009.

Jacob with the Danna Clan, (L-R) Aunt Joan, Pop-pop (Jack Sr.), Aunt Janet, Aunt Joyce, and Mom-mom (Helen).

Christmas morning with Mama & Mommy.

Playdate with his buddy, Aidan!

A kiss for his Pappa!

That's it for now.  I have a video that I want to share, but I can't figure out how.  When I do, I'll post it.

Halloween!

Just a quick post to share our Halloween pictures!

Pumpkin Carving!

Working on the design.

These pumpkins are scary!

Little Bumble bee.

Ready to go!

Trick or treat!

The day after - "I love to carry my basket all around!"

Pumpkins

Wow, two posts in one month!  Today, my friend Steffie and I took our boys to Weber's Farm for some outdoor fun.  They have all sorts of stuff for kids to do.  We took pictures with the pumpkins, went on a hay ride, visited a huge turkey, and slid down a huge hill on a burlap bag.  The boys had a blast.  Here's some pictures.

Standing about 2 & 1/2 feet tall.

Traveling, Growing, Changing

So much to catch up on this month!  This has been a month of explosive growth and big changes for Jacob.  We went up to New York City at the end of September and had a great time there.  We went to the Central Park Zoo and to the Children's Museum of Manhattan. We had a great time at both.

Jacob's biggest change started a couple of weeks ago. He started going to nursery school two days a week at Baltimore Hebrew Day School.  He is still adjusting to this, but I think it's going well.  Caroline got an opportunity to take a part-time job that was just perfect for her.  And coincidently, we got to visit the school when picking up Jacob's buddy, Aidan, who goes there too.  It seemed like a great school, and Jacob and Aidan get to be together.  There are still some tears from Jacob when he gets dropped off, but when I call during the day to see how he's doing, the teacher reports that he's having a great time playing with the other kids.  I think it's giving him a great opportunity for socialization.

I'm pretty sure Jacob is going through or has recently completed a growth spurt.  He just gets bigger and bigger.  His 2-year molars are coming in now which has led to some wakeful nights.  But overall, Jacob is doing great and having fun.  He has a pretty good list of words now that includes (but is not limited to) water, woof woof (for dog), up, down, stinky, eggs, juice, and of course, his all time favorite "kitty cat." 

Now on to the pictures!

In NYC, Jacob became friendly with a kitten and chased it all around.

Breakfast at Big Daddy's NYC.

At the Central Park Zoo with Mama and her friend, Caroline.

Enjoying musical instruments at the Children's Museum of Manhattan.

Jacob and Aidan.  Aren't they the cutest?  I can't believe how fast they're growing.

Jacob's favorite new toy is a toy stroller we found for him at a yard sale.  He loves pushing it around.

Jacob sporting his new raincoat. 

Checking out the baby elephant at the Maryland Zoo.  He had a great time running around and seeing the animals.

Running all over the Maryland Zoo.

Of course he had to pet the goats.  He loves livestock.

Fast asleep after a morning at the Maryland Zoo.

Jacob on his first day of school.

Caroline is a nanny for a 6-month old baby 2 days a week (also named Caroline). Jacob loves her.

Jacob cuddling baby Caroline.

Well, that's all for now!