I was reading back through the birthday posts to see what might be an appropriate write-up for Luke's third (today!). When he turned two, I took the opportunity to detail Luke's burgeoning joke-telling skills. Timing-wise, it's interesting. I'd forgotten that he's been telling jokes for the last year, but I was starting to think that only in the last weeks he's really begun to SEEK the laughter of adults. Like, a lot. Unlike a year ago, he's not happy with the joke if it only amuses him -- he wants you to laugh, and he wants you to laugh repeatedly.

One that kicked in a few weeks ago: Luke had done something typically amusing, and I gave him an "Ohhhh, Luke." He shot back a quick, "Ohhhh, Daddy." I responded with an "Ohhhh, LukeRyanTeague." For a split second you could see the gears turning in his head. Back he came with his own twist: "Ohhhh, DaddyRyanTeague." I, of course, laughed at his ingenuity. The lightbulb clicked ("I made Daddy laugh!"), and he was OFF. Since then, he's used this same joke on others -- "Ohhhh, GrandadRyanTeague." -- in a clear attempt at getting laughs. Tell him that he's funny and he practically glows!

Happy birthday, laugh machine!