Dear Malachi,

You have amazed me at how many words you have added to your vocabulary in the past week. There is no way to describe how neat it is to see you articulate different emotions. I can actually sort of carry on a conversation with you. How cool! You say things like "help, keys, ball, up, down, hot, dad, eye, nose, shoes, bowl" and many more. You try to say things that you can't yet. And if you know you can't say anything, its just "da!" with a big smile.

When you went to the doctor two weeks ago for your upper respiratory infection, you weighed 27 lbs. You are wearing 24 mo. and 2T shirts. You still mostly need 18 mo. pants, but you are getting ready to move up in pants, too. You still are wearing your favorite spiderman shoes. You love to look at other shoes. We bought you a hat to wear when your brother came home. You love to say, "hat," and wear it around the house and outside.

You love your little brother. You love to be near him and hate to hear him cry. It hurts you when he cries. You are more used to his cries than you used to be, but I can tell that it still pains you. Anytime I put the blanket on the floor for Ezekiel to lay on, you automatically lay down on the floor next to him. You will often point out his eyes, nose, and head. You also love to hold him. When I place in on your lap, you put your arms underneath him and just giggle. When I pull him away, you whine to have him back. You have also started tickling him. You basically pinch his clothes and make a "tick, tick" sound. It is quite precious.

Before your brother was born, I could tell that you were becoming a little boy, but lately you have really matured and shocked me at how much of a big boy you can be. So far, Malachi, you have handled all these changes really well and love your growing family. I hope that the love continues and you know that we love you just as much as we did before, if not more. You are a precious gift from God. Thank you for bringing such joy into our lives.