James is Seventeen Months Old

James is 17 months old today and is in full "toddler tornado"mode.  He is quick as lightening and moves from one mess to another ... keeping me completely on my toes.  We often remarked that Jack was a handful (after going from two girls to a boy), but Jimmy has him beat!  He watches his older brother and attempts to do everything that he does and he is doing it at an even younger age.  He doesn't ever intend to be troublesome; he just has a busy and inquisitive (and fearless) personality.

His shirt says it all:  He does run things.

His consistent two-nap-a-day schedule limits us on many activities and his short attention span right now prevents us from staying at any one store for too long.  If we eat out at a restaurant, I try to make it one where we can order our food and receive it quickly because he expects to eat once he is in his high chair.


We have spent quite a lot of time at the beach this summer, but only short trips at a time.  An hour is about all Jimmy is good for and then he quite literally starts heading for home.  He's not very subtle.

He only ventures into the water about a foot or so ... a little more, if coaxed.  And I am grateful for that.  The rest of the time, he spends sitting in the sand, playing with beach toys and wandering over to the playground.  Next year, he will be in a life-jacket exclusively.

We have put the stroller up high on a shelf in the garage and rarely (if ever) use it anymore.  Jimmy LOVES this wagon (best investment ever from last summer) and obediently remains in it whenever we take it for walks.  And we do that often!  It folds up and rides with us in the van too.

Jimmy is both a momma's and a daddy's boy.  He loves his momma for anything inside-related (getting him snacks, rocking him, etc), but if his daddy is around, he knows that Steve will take him outside and let him do all of the rough-and-tough things that he likes.  He definitely says, "daaa-deee" more than "momma."

Jimmy's hair is so blonde and his eyes are so blue.  Many people have asked me if he is our only blond-haired child and I laugh because ... Sophia and Jack were just as blonde when they were little (and Steve was too!).