The Emrick Braden Sorensen Quarterly Report: Year 2, Quarter 4: Can You Believe This Kid Is Two?

Neither can I.

Emrick turned two on Sunday, which somehow makes it seem more official that he is a “little boy” now, and not a “baby”… though of course, he will always be my baby. Grandma Sorensen, Grandma Cinda, and Grandpa Ed were all in town to celebrate with us, which meant that our Little Big Pookie was spoiled with attention and presents.

On the morning of his birthday, he came downstairs to get breakfast.

Don’t mind the shoe. Emrick pulls that old baby shoe out of his dresser every morning lately and plays with it.

He sat in his high chair and ate the cinnamon muffins that Marcus made for him. Marcus makes muffins for us every weekend, but these were extra special and fancy. They tasted like little coffee cakes and were so, so sweet and yummy.

I am not sure why Emrick is crossing his arms here, but it sure looks cute.

After breakfast, Emrick took a bath. There are more cute pictures of this, and I will share them later.

“Wash? Face?” said Emrick, as he washed his face.

Then Emrick played with the lamp. This actually went on for several minutes. For some reason, he is very interested in lights and lamps. I think it’s mostly the turning on and off that fascinates him.

Then a whole bunch of stuff happened that didn’t get pictured. Emrick played and enjoyed his grandparents throughout the morning. Then he ate lunch and took a nap. While he napped, I baked his birthday cake, and while the cake cooled, Marcus and I went to Harmon’s to buy their excellent ground beef for the hamburger dinner we had planned. The timing of all of this was perfect: when we got back home, Emrick was just waking up, which meant the grandparents had been able to relax the whole time we were gone. But once we got home, they kept Emrick occupied while Marcus and I decorated the cake (pics below!).

Then it was time for dinner. Marcus grilled the burgers, plus a chicken breast for Pookie, and then we ate. After dinner, it was time for Emrick to open his presents.

Here, Dad. The trash is for you!

Last year, Emrick still didn’t fully “get” the present-opening thing. But this year he was really into it. It only  took him about half a second to realize that every bag and box in the family room was for him, and that he was free to rip and tear into all of them. He actually played with each toy for a few minutes before moving on to open the next present.

After the present-opening extravaganza, it was time for cake. We’d kept it hidden from him until it was time to eat it.

Earlier in the day, when it was time to decorate the cake, I applied the chocolate frosting and wrote “Happy Birthday, Emrick!” on it, and then Marcus did everything else. He created a scene with some new little trucks we bought. He drew a road, and made plants out of green and orange frosting. Then he added crushed Oreos behind the backhoe and inside the dump truck. It was all very cute and well done!

After taking some pictures, we added the candle and lit it.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…”

I didn’t get a picture of him blowing out the candle. He didn’t really grasp the concept at first, so Marcus blew it out for him. But once that happened, he seemed to get it. He asked us to light the candle again so that he could blow it out himself the second time… and he did! With maybe a little help from Daddy.

Next, it was eating time!

I think the whole cake experience really made an impression on him. The next morning when I went into his room to get him up for the day, he sat up in his crib and the very first words he said to me were: “Ice cream? Blow candle?” (He says almost everything with the tone of a question). Clearly, he had spent his first waking moments that morning, lying in his crib reminiscing about the night before. What a sweet pea!

This little boy is two years old. He weighs 25 pounds and is 32.25 inches tall. He is my precious, darling, funny little sweet baby boy. We love you, Emrick! Here’s to the next 98 years!