Happy 2nd Birthday Brady!!!

The bad news is that Andy's laptop was not worth fixing.  The good news is that we bought a new one.  The even greater news is that it's Brady's birthday today!


Brady Charlie (as we lovingly call him) came into this world two whole years ago!  It's really hard to believe that it's been two years, but on the other hand, it feels like he's always been a part of our lives.  He's grown so much in two years, from 8lb 5oz and 21.5 inches to 26lb 8oz and 34.5 inches.  Although it's hard to imagine he was once as small as some babies we meet, it seems like only yesterday, we were feeding him bottles and burping him.  He's not the most verbal kid, but boy is he physical.  He started crawling and standing at 7 months, walking at 11 months, running at 12 months, and climbing actual ladders and stairs at 14 months.  He absolutely LOVES to be chased around, either by mommy and daddy or other kids his age.


One of the best things about him is how he smiles that cheesy grin when he knows he's being bad (which is often).  He has such a personality and loves meeting new people.  He has loved music since day one and will stop everything if he hears music on the TV.  Recently, he has been reenacting parts of movies.  Some of his favorite movies are the Pixar greats, such as all three Toy Stories, Up, Finding Nemo, and of course, Cars.  He reenacts scenes from both Up and Finding Nemo.  He might follow in his parents' footsteps when it comes to acting later on.  He has always been daddy's little boy, although, he has started saying "mama" in the last two months and hasn't stopped.  He is such a great helper.  He throws things in the garbage, helps vacuum, helps with the laundry, and always puts away all of his toys before a nap or bedtime.


His favorite things are still cars and puppies.  I'm trying to teach him that not all dogs are as friendly as the ones our relatives have and he can't be so aggressive when meeting a new puppy.


It's hard to believe how much has happened in his short life.  He's just turning two years old and has lived in three states and two different countries.  He's traveled to almost every state on the Eastern Seaboard, with the exception of the New England states north of New York.  Also the climate situation has been quite drastic on his birthdays.  He was born in the middle of the worst February blizzard in Pittsburgh history, his first birthday was in South Carolina, where it was 70 degrees that day, and this birthday, he's in Germany, with weather in the mid-40s.  His third birthday will probably be in a different place as well, but hopefully that'll be the place he spends the rest of his birthdays from then on.  We've been away from family for both of Brady's birthdays, and I feel bad about that, even though he won't know the difference or even remember it.  I've been saying since we moved initially when he was five months old, that his third birthday is going to be a huge blowout to make up for the two before with no big celebration.


Although his first two full years have been busy and crazy, his third year looks to top them all with travel around Europe, then coming home to an undetermined final location and settling down for the first time in his life.  When I was pregnant with him, we couldn't have imagined this life in our wildest dreams, and were even house hunting in Pittsburgh.  We got this job with Bosch when he was three months old and everything changed in an instant, although he was totally unaware (as I think he still is).  The positive of it all is that he's grown up adapting to change and new places, whereas other children his age can't even handle a simple change in their daily routine.


A friend of ours wrote a blog post when her son turned one, putting up pictures from every month to show his growth.  Since I wasn't a blogger yet on Brady's 1st birthday, I guess I have to play catch-up this year.  I have put a picture of every month until age 1 because babies change so much at that point, and then for age 1-2 a picture for every three months.

1 Month Old 

2 Months Old

3 Months Old

4 Months Old

5 Months Old

6 Months Old

7 Months Old

8 Months Old

9 Months Old

10 Months Old

11 Months Old

1 Year Old!

15 Months Old 

18 Months Old

21 Months Old

2 Years Old!

We had a little party yesterday with our downstairs neighbor, Gertrude, and our German Bosch friend, Dennis, who we first met in SC.  Unfortunately, my camera decided to die in the middle of things and my charger says it's compatible with European voltage, but won't charge.  I have ordered a European one that should come in a week to a week and a half from now and then I will be able to blog about his party.  In the meantime, I'll be taking pictures on my phone.