Ketchup Discovery

So what with all the talk about how my kid is stubborn, strong-willed, and generally two years old these days, it might seem like I'm not enjoying raising a toddler. But in fact, it is the opposite that's true. To watch the excitement over the smallest of things, to see the discovery, to witness pure joy in his squeals and smiles, is my greatest reward. Take this for example:

That's the discovery of ketchup. It's not his first experience with it, but it is the first time it has been quite so impressive. I'm not quite sure what motivated this particular application but it did cause me to laugh out loud. In an attempt to get a decent shot of him, I took several pictures because any time he sees a camera these days, he does this:

That's his "say cheese" face. I am not entirely sure why he feels the need to squeeze his eyes shut and I hope that this is only a phase. I mean, my brother went through the phase where he thought he needed to try to smile the way a five year old draws one--with no teeth showing at all. Just the bottom part of a half circle. I hope Garrett goes through this phase because it was adorable. My brother also went through a phase where he tried to show all of his front teeth and it came out looking more like a snarl. I hope he passes over that particular phase. I don't care if he keeps smiling the way he is in this picture, I just hope he starts to open his eyes soon.

But, squinty eyes and all, I love that his face discovered ketchup today.