A Few of Gus's Favorite Things...

 

Sheer Delight

Gus is a very funny little man. We call him "baby man" actually, and tell him that he's a silly boy all the time. He does things that absolutely crack us up and make us laugh. He enjoys making us happy and likes to make us laugh. He has a unique laugh and it's contagious. 

There are definitely some things that bring more joy to Gus's life than others. He has a list of favorite things and I thought I'd share just a few with my readers. In no particular order, here we go!

Balloons

I don't know too many toddlers who don't love balloons. I'm not sure what it is about them, but Gus just loves them and is totally excited when he sees one and gets to take it home with him.

 

 

Trains

I vowed that we would not get into the whole Thomas craze. That went out the window the first time we had a play date at a friend's house and they had Thomas and Chuggington trains. Gus was in love and so the obsession began. He loves watching the Thomas movies on Netflix and loves to watch Chuggington on Disney Jr. He also loves anything train-related and his favorite iPad apps are all train apps. Funny enough, he is scared to death of trains in real life. We went to the train museum (they have train rides) and he freaked out. Go figure.

Mickey Mouse

Gus has loved Mickey Mouse since he was a baby. I think it has something to do with Mickey's high-pitched voice. While he loves Mickey, he also really, really enjoys Chip and Dale. They make him laugh all the time and he will watch old cartoons over and over and laugh like it's the first time he's seen it.

 

A Mickey that he designed on my iPhone

 

Watching Mickey Mouse Club House with his good friend Aubree

 

Enjoying an episode of MMCH on his iPad

Slides and Swings

Gus is happiest when he's either in a swing or sliding down a slide. He prefers a swing over a slide, but he really enjoys both. Sometimes it takes a lot of courage to climb up to the top of where a slide is. Some days he's brave, and others he shakes like a leaf and gets clammy. He always has fun on a swing though!!

His iPad

I never thought my two-year-old would have an iPad. Seriously. It's a bit on the ridiculous side. However, I wanted to get him a Leap Pad for Christmas and they're like $200. When Steve and I decided to get ourselves the new iPads (my first), we decided to give Gus Steve's old one (that I bought him two years ago). We love the iPad for so many reasons, but mainly because of all the wonderful educational apps that we can put on it. We have some fun apps too, but many of Gus's favorites include things that he loves (trains) and learning in some way. I'm able to put some awesome videos on there too and Steve uploaded a few of Gus's favorite cartoons and movies. 

 

Putting together a puzzle while on the potty (he didn't potty in it)

 

Watching a movie on our 12+ hour drive north

 

Counting with "The Number Train" video

 

Enjoying his iPad

Jumping and Galloping

Most kids start to jump at around 18 months (that's about when Gus finally mastered it) and galloping between 36-48 months. Gus has already mastered galloping. He gallops around the living room all the time when he's dancing and enjoying music. He's going up and down the stairs without assistance (not even holding the wall or railing) and is now jumping off the bottom step and curbs. He's amazing.

GoGo Squeeze

You'd think he'd get sick of eating the same stuff, but Gus has a few favorite foods in his arsenal. One of his absolute favorites is GoGo Squeeze. It's so liked that I have a subscribe and save subscription that sends me 48 pouches every month. He usually eats one to three pouches of applesauce a day. He loves it.

Charlie C. Horse (get it... like seahorse???)

When we moved Gus to his big boy bedroom, we found that he kept taking the nightlight off the wall and sleeping with it. He was taking his iPod off the dock and sleeping with it. We were confused about why they kept appearing in his bed, and then it dawned on us that he was probably comforted by the light and the music. 

So I looked around and found this awesome glow seahorse on Amazon and decided to get him one for his 1/2 birthday (in November). Well, I found one at a consignment sale and it was $3!!! STEAL!! We named it Charlie C. Horse and Gus loves him. He has him with him all the time and won't leave his room without Charlie.

I found a similar thing called a Dream Light (it's a pillow pet with a light) and we got it for him for his 1/2 birthday. It's a dinosaur and will match his room and I know he's going to just LOVE it!!

Helping

Gus loves to help others. His favorite thing to do is to push the stroller or grocery cart while out. He also likes to help with grabbing items while we grocery shop. He doesn't understand that throwing the cans on top of the bread is a bad thing, but we're working on it.

 

Pushing Aubree at the park

 

Helping Daddy at Home Depot

 

Grabbing cans while grocery shopping

 Babies

Gus LOVES babies!!! He loves to look at them and help with them. Any time he sees a baby he immediately wants to go near it and help it.

 

Helping with the paci (like with his CPK Frankie Steve)

 

Gus and Frankie Steve

 

Gus and June

 Pets

Gus loves animals and is lucky enough to have many pets here at our house. He has his favorites though... he adores Ned (our dog) and his favorite cat is Purry Como. He loves to feed Ned and loves to give both Ned and Purry, hugs and kisses.

 

Feeding Ned his dinner

 

Giving Purry a hug

 

He climbed into Ned's crate to keep him company  :-)

 

Giving Ned a kiss

Water

Gus loves water. He likes to play in the sink, at his water table, in the bath, in the yard in a sprinkler, and his all-time favorite is to swim.

 Popsicles

 'Nuf said.

His Daddy

I'm sure Steve would argue this, but Gus absolutely ADORES his daddy. While he says "mama" all the time and loves me, he just adores Steve. They have a very special bond and always have. I'm so fortunate to have a husband who is an equal when it comes to parenting. Steve is most definitely a hands-on dad, and will do anything for Gus. He plays with him and tickles him and they have a different relationship than Gus and I do and it's just how it should be.

While I'm sure that some of the above things will change as Gus gets older, I'm certain that many things will remain. I pray that Gus will always be helpful, that he always love babies and animals, and that he will always know how special he is and how much his daddy and I love him.