John at 2.5 years

I kept a summary of the older kids' favorites, on paper calendars. I don't have that for John, so I am trying to digitally record a few things like that for him, instead. So, for John at two-and-a-half:

Favorite foods: oatmeal, goldfish crackers, cinnamon graham crackers, cheese, yogurt, Altoids mints (no, really, he will eat as many as he can get, even if he has to steal them)

Favorite toys: any tool (real or toy), any gun (Bang! Bang! I a bad guy! You a bad guy! Bad guys comin'!), anything that makes noise (drum, electronics, etc.), any truck (but especially monster trucks), any lego creation (but especially one that James would rather he didn't take away and break), Maggie's glitzy dress-up clothes (heels, necklaces, wands, etc.)

Famous quotes: "Daddy, you poop on the potty and get a mint!"

Bedtime: A struggle. He really needs a nap. If we don't give him one, he will fall asleep during afternoon carpool driving. But he won't go to bed. We start with pjs at 7:30 for all the kids. Maggie is almost always asleep within minutes of lights out around 8:00. James will fall asleep anywhere between 8 and 10:30. John will pop in and out of bed, staying awake at least until 8:30 but often until 10:30, and occasionally (like last night) until after midnight.

Favorite activities: Being outside. Bakin' (working in the kitchen on anything with food - mixing, dumping, spilling, etc.).

Favorite clothes: No shirt. No shoes. No socks. Occasionally, no pants. Strips himself regularly, at least to the waist. This includes when he is outside, even though it is December. Yesterday I convinced him to wear a sweatshirt over his T-shirt to run errands, since it was 45 degrees out. He reluctantly agreed, but as soon as we got in the grocery store, he was stripping it off as if suffocating from the heat.

If he must wear a shirt, he prefers the bright yellow one with Cookie Monster fishing from the pocket. He has worn it the last 3 days. Every time we dress him in clean clothes, he pulls them off and finds the yellow one. Last night, while avoiding bed, he appeared at 10 pm with his pjs nowhere in sight, but wearing that t-shirt with his diaper. The t-shirt is looking pretty gross now. At least, it is a shirt he will keep on. In winter, that might be good enough.