James is 2 and half!

I like to think of James as a puppy. He has an abundance of energy, he's fun to play with, he makes messes and, yes, he occasionally pees on the floor. All of this in a cute, lovable package. The comparison to the puppy ends when you consider his incredible vocabulary and his imagination.

We are having a blast with James these days. He has so much to tell us all the time. Often, he has to stop mid-sentence to let his brain catch up with his mouth. It is really interesting to learn how he perceives the world. We'll often hear him say something like "I cannot go in the water," as he stands, peering into the water, poised to jump. We'll say "You're right, you cannot go in the water." That's usually the end of it but it shows us how he's really trying to figure out what he can and cannot do.

Usually, James talks about what he can do when he's bigger (use a knife to cut his food, go places by himself, etc). However, sometimes James wants to wear William's clothes. When we tell him he's too big, James says, "When I get little, I can wear them."

He loves the Shrek movies and these days he's our "baby ogre giant baby." I have yet to figure out why he adds "giant baby" to the end of his title. His froggie that he sleeps with (named froggie) is a froggie-ogre. I'm a mommy-ogre. Frank is the daddy-ogre. William is just a baby ogre. Thankfully, he is an ogre in name only and remains a sweet kid most of the time.

James is athletic and fearless. The parks are great for running off his excess energy and they challenge him physically. We have to keep a sharp eye on him because he likes to climb and there are ladders that lead to high platforms with no way down (except the ladder).

The other day, we took him to the Deutsches Museum and we found a new outlet for all that energy:

This trip has been fun but challenging for James. He loves riding on public transportation. He loves going new places and trying new things. He's learning German (only as fast as we are so he doesn't know much yet). However, he misses his friends and his family and some of his toys. We've met some friends here and that has helped. We are a part of a play group on Tuesday mornings and he gets along well with the other kids. He has a babysitter, Cassie, who comes to play with him two mornings a week.