It's official: you are TWO years old. We celebrated on your actual birthday, which was on a Saturday this year, with a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party and your best friends.
I am amazed that you are two. It seemed like your first year was so long, and this year, time just flew by. I think it was faster because I was pregnant through a lot of it, but also because you are so much busier now!
You have grown by leaps and bounds this year. I look at pictures of you from April of last year, and look at you today, and it's just amazing to think of how much has changed. At this time last year, you were just barely walking. In fact, you took your first steps about 6 days after your first birthday, so you weren't really even walking at this time. In the picture on the left, we were at a farm a few days after your birthday, and I had to hold your hands to help you walk anywhere.
And NOW...well, now you are a champion walker and runner and climber! You frequently amaze me with all you are able to accomplish, and all the places you are able to get to.
You are so smart. You can count objects, you know your colors, you know all the Disney characters and all the superheroes. You are able to do puzzles of a higher difficulty--ones without "helps". You got this one for your birthday (http://www.amazon.com/Frozen-28871-Floor-Puzzles-46-Piece/dp/B00J9S2SH2), and you were able to put the characters' pieces together, which just amazed Mommy (and Aunt Sunni!).
You're definitely starting to test limits. We are working on teaching you what obedience is--how it pleases God, and how it helps Mommy and Daddy keep you safe. It's going to be a long battle to learn! You are independent and bold and STUBBORN, so this is a hard lesson to learn.
You are super independent--you can play on your own for long periods of time. You're starting to do imaginative play more and more--you like your Little People sets, and you'll often have them act things out together. You have a Little People Little Mermaid set, and you have them recreate scenes from the movie. You LOVE water. You could stay in the bath all night. I bought a hard-sided baby pool for you to play in when it is warm out--you could stay in it for HOURS. The first day we had the pool, you stayed in it so long that the water got cold and your lips turned purple! We had to come inside and change your clothes and wrap you up in a bunch of blankets to try to get you warmed up!
Because you are so independent, we do have some trouble with you not being concerned about where Mommy and Daddy are--you'll often wander off in the park, or in a store (where they don't have kid-containers, I mean CARTS), and not have any care about where we are. You also have trouble with obedience, so when you wander off, or climb to the top of a play structure and Mommy asks you to come back or get down, you choose not to listen. We're having to implement more and more consequences! Mommy is doing research on how to manage negative consequences with positive consequences...being a Mommy is hard work sometimes!
You have some great friends--Wyatt is the one we play with the most. You love to boss him around, poor kid! We are working on being kind. Bossy is okay, as long as you are being kind!
A lot of people have asked how you are doing with a new sister in the house. The truth is, you are doing a lot better than I thought you were going to do. When I was pregnant and I would hold a baby, you did NOT like it. You whined and cried and pulled on my pants leg. Another mom friend said I was in for some trouble because of how you behaved. But since Aria's arrival, you have done really well. We have had some moments here and there (including once in the hospital and our first day home), but for the most part, you have done really well having a little one invade our home and take half of Mommy and Daddy's attention. We are working hard to make sure you still feel loved and secure, and you have done a good job being a helper for Mommy. You like to get the baby's diapers, and you like to give her hugs. You have wanted to hold her once or twice, but for the most part, you leave her alone--Miss Independent at it again.
LOVES:
* music
* Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
* watching movies
* bubbles
* balloons
* going to the zoo
* playing on the playground
* puzzles
* painting with a brush
* Nemo
* climbing up on things
* pointing out things in the car, or when we're out and about
* water
* stickers
* opening packages and presents
* running
* playing with whatever someone else is playing with
* grapes, hot dogs, guacamole, rice, pasta, corn on the cob, "cake" (aka muffins), milk, food pouches, M&Ms
* mimicking words and phrases (which means we have to be careful now!)
* doing whatever you like whenever you like
* swallowing your toothpaste instead of brushing your teeth with it
* Aunt Sunni's house
* Aunt Attey and Uncle Bubby (ESPECIALLY Uncle Bubby)
* hiking
* cracking eggs
* wearing bows
DISLIKES:
* having your hands dirty/sticky/sandy, etc.
* fingerpainting (see above)
* going to bed
* loud noises
* bubble wrap
* brushing your teeth
* going down the slide and getting static-y
* eating things with weird texture, or a texture you aren't expecting
* wearing any shoes other than your Elsa shoes (thankfully they are gym shoes)
* being told what to do
* wearing headbands *sniff*
* riding in the seat in a shopping cart
* getting out of the bath
We have been singing this song a lot lately--I love looking at you in the rear-view mirror when we sing it together in the car. You get this grin on your face, and it makes me grin, too. You are the most beautiful girl in the whole wide world to me.
Love you bunches,
Mommy
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