We had this park to ourselves and Jakub had so much fun. The slide is his favorite thing these days. I wish you could hear him say it. :) I've been meaning to get video of all of the singing and talking he is doing lately... maybe soon!
On our last day of vacation we went to a large water park in Hungary about 30 minutes from where we stayed. It was gorgeous and huge! It had 4 different swimming pools and areas with great big lawns and trees between them all so you could lay out in the shade or sun however you liked. They had little tents to rent also so you could have a bit of both in one spot. Above are the two pool areas we spent a lot of our time near and in. The first was deep and had an area for swimming, a big slide, and then a whirlpool type area where you could swim into a current that took you around in a circle quickly. We had fun taking Jake into the whirlpool and letting it push us all around. The second picture above is the baby pool area that thankfully came with a bit of shade. It was a gorgeous and hot day until the end when clouds started rolling in.
These boys were inseparable. It's going to be so hard when the Keens leave in November. Look at the way Jake and Thompson are looking at each other. The Keen boys had been eating their snacks on this blanket and then we came back from the playground with Jakub and he saw them and ran up and literally wedged himself between them while screaming and laughing. It was so adorable and showed so much love between these three. 
And what can I say about my 22 month old? So much! I've missed recording things about him the past couple of months. I'm sure I'll forget some things, but here are the things I really want to remember about him right now (sorry, it's long!) :- He weighs somewhere around 14 kilo or 31-32 pounds
- He's very tall now and taller than all of his friends, but I haven't measured him lately
- He's at the end of his size 7 shoe and will move into a new pair soon, maybe tomorrow :)
- His hair is still very strawberry blond
- His eyes are very blue, but in the middle there is slight hint of green in the light
- He's been potty trained for almost a month now! Yeah! There are still some things to work on of course, but after about 3 days of a "diaper-less weekend" method in August he was taking himself to his little potty with almost no mistakes, for both #1 and 2. :) He only wears diapers during sleep now and when we are out he has been pretty perfect at holding it until we reach a bathroom. And today, for the first time on his own without being asked, he went outside!! Yeah!! I know this is a cultural thing, but here you have to teach children to go outside in specific spots because you walk or bus so many places you go, spend a lot of time outside, and there are rarely any public restrooms you are allowed to use. So, we use trees. And sometimes we have taken our travel potty in the car so we would have it on hand where we are going. :)
- As of the last 2 weeks he has 2 new teeth, finally! They are on the bottom and he handled it great! I didn't even know they were coming in until the last minute. Then, he did have some grouchiness for a couple of days and then he was better. Total count now is 14 teeth.
- He has for a long time, but I still want to remember that he sings all the time. He's constantly humming a tune while he plays. He can sing Twinkle Twinkle, I Love You, and Look Both Ways When You Cross the Street with almost perfect pitch and rhythm. In the last 2 days he can even pick the tune up at any point from where I leave it and he'll finish the song. He doesn't even always notice he's doing it. I know I'm bragging, but I'm also serious and it seems very grown up for a 22 mo.
- He's very lively at home- always talking or singing or yelling or running and playing- but when we are at our Moms group or another activity where's he's less comfortable he's quieter and more observant. He'll still talk a lot and smile a lot, but he's less active until he becomes really comfortable. He's usually gentle with other kids now and won't steal from them or fight over things. The exception is the Keen boys and then they all act like brothers, which I love. :)
- He's starting to help us pray, which is sweet and touching. He can't clearly say the words, but he mimics Dear God, Thank You, and then he'll sometimes tell us what to pray for like "Daddy" or "food." And he says "amen" like "omen!"
- He calls bath time "sash-slash" in the sweetest little boy voice. It's because we call it splash-splash time. We're working on a more grown-up term like bath now. :)
- When he's tired and he yawns in the evening he asks to go "night-night." Sometimes I read only one book and then he crawls over on me and gives me a big hug and says night-night and asks to get in his bed. We love that he can communicate this and that he's not too scared of bed or separation at night. I've put a little pillow in his bed now and I think he really loves to lay down on it with his teddy and go to sleep. Almost every day he sleeps from around 730/8 to 730/8 the next morning. We're VERY grateful.
- His favorite toys are his motorized trains Thomas and Percy, his blocks, legos, puzzles, cars, and coloring books/paints. He loves to sleep with his Teddy Bear. He still uses pacifiers only when going to sleep.
- He would rather be doing anything outside than inside. I love that. We spend a lot of time walking, riding his bike, and feeding the ducks at the river.
- He still loves to eat almost anything and anytime. I am thankful that now he will clearly say when he is full and "all done." His favorite foods are carrots, green beans, zucchini, pastas, cheese, chicken, apples, bananas, purple grapes, yogurt, dried cranberries, and cheerios. When he's ready to eat he'll crawl up onto the dining chair and put himself in his booster seat, put his bib on, and wait for the food. :)
- He speaks in 3-word sentences now as of the last 2-3 weeks. It's so great to hear him communicating with us. His favorite sentence is "__ is blue!" He spots correctly the color blue and wants to name whatever it is. "Auto is blue. Daddy shirt blue. Choo-choo is blue." I love it!
Ok, I think that's it for now. :) I'm sure there will be more later. Thanks for hanging in there... if you did. :)
