Dear Jacob,

Congratulations, you are two! Can you believe it? You are changing so much these days. New skills develop constantly. It’s so much fun to see you grow. Imitating sounds, running around, almost always smiling – you are adorable. Your grandma Gail describes you as “impish” and that does fit. Here are a few little “impish” episodes from your second year:

The 9-1-1 Incident (April 2004)

Daddy was out of town and you and I were playing in the living room after breakfast. Apparently you had been playing with the phone handset (a favorite “toy”), but I hadn’t really noticed. The doorbell rang which surprised me since it was about 8am on a Saturday morning. I went to answer the door and found a police officer standing there. Even though I knew you were sitting safely just a few feet away in the living room, my heart jumped out of my chest (one of my first and hopefully rare experiences of maternal gut reactions). Someone had called 9-1-1. Can you guess who??????

The Guinea Pig Food Incident (August 2004)

We were visiting with Trish across the street. I was talking to her and you wandered into the sun room to look at the guinea pig. You had your back to me, but seemed quite content, so I kept chatting away. After a few minutes, it occurred to me that it was a little unusual for you to stand still, quietly observing anything for more than a few moments at a time. I went to see what you were up to and discovered you holding a box of guinea pig “yogurt treats” with your mouth full! You quickly swallowed and smiled at me and tried to grab the box back. Trish and I checked to ingredient list and didn’t find anything too disturbing (mostly yogurt and sugar). Still, we keep a closer watch on you now!

The Hot Dogs in the Wok, The Keys in the Garbage and Other Hidden Treasure Incidents (Sept/October 2004)

You developed a mysterious habit of hiding things. All of the sudden I kept discovering things missing, or sometimes worse… discovering things long hidden that I hadn’t yet missed. Sometimes I’d see you out of the corner of my eye, furtively tucking a treasured half sucked lollipop or half eaten Fig Newman (your favorite cookie) into a bowl in the cupboard. Sometimes I wouldn’t see you do it, and only discover the lovely treasure days later. Once I found an entire bag of Smart Dogs in the wok in the cupboard several days after purchasing them from the store. Who knows how you managed to get them out of the fridge! Luckily the package was still sealed, so it wasn’t a completely yucky mess. You even managed to pull this Smart Dog trick a second time on Beth & Zoe, putting a package of them into a bag I took over to her house, so they too had the pleasure of discovering long unrefrigerated hot dogs. While I thought hiding things in the cupboards was bad, you soon progressed to “hiding” things in the trash. I’ve found toys, shoes and (untrashworthy) food in the garbage. The worst was when you hid my keys in the trash can. We were house bound for seven hours while I searched the house over and over again. Very tricky Mister!

As you can see, you keep me on my toes! But, you’re just so good natured about it all, it’s impossible to be angry or resist your impish smile. I love you more than you know and can’t wait to spend many, many more years with you. Happy Birthday.

Love,

Mommy