2 Years Old

How have 2 years gone by so quickly? It seems like yesterday I was in my friend Erica's prenatal fitness class, talking to my friends about what it was going to be like once we had our babies. Now those babies are two, and well, no longer babies any more. Bittersweet.

Leila and I have spent the last few days watching all of our videos of her since she was born. She loves to watch "Baby Aya" on the screen and thinks the noises the baby makes are hilarious. Which they are. Gone are the chubby cheeks, the downy dark hair. Gone are the chubby thighs and silly cooing sounds. The little girl that has taken her place is tall, has curly blonde hair, is quite silly and loving, and most definitely opinionated.

Patrick and I were taken aback on Sunday when Leila said--completely unprompted-- "I love you Daddy. I love you Mama." We just looked at each other--where did that come from? I don't know if he teared up, but I sure did. I don't even know if she fully understands what it means, but it sure was sweet.

A little about Leila at age 2:

• She is the ultimate girly-girly: wears her hair up, carries a purse ,wears jewelry, has her toenails painted, loves shoes
• Favorite color is yellow
• Knows her ABCs and can count to 12, though only when she wants to
• Current lovey is pink puppy, aptly named "puppy"
• Loves dogs (and cats, much to her father's chagrin)
• Favorite food is pizza (or so she says)
• Wants to characterize everyone as "boy" or "girl," including her stuffed animals
• Likes to watch Elmo, Baby Einstein with signs, and choice Disney movies
• Has a fierce sense of independence
• Is still v. attached to "pink paci" (this is not going to be a fun battle)
• Current favorite books are Winnie the Pooh stories, and The Three Bears
• Has an amazing memory and is able to make connections that surprise me for her age
• Is quite crafty at delaying bed time: "Milk! Story! Kiss!"
  

What an incredible journey this is. We love you LeilaBug! You amaze us every day.

1,001 Reasons

Every parent things their child is wonderful, brilliant, etc. But how many parents think their 1 year-old may outsmart them?

This afternoon I left Leila in the gameroom for ten minutes "to go get my book," with a plan to start dinner and return with a book to read while she watched Baby Einstein.

I was so pleased she played quietly by herself while I was gone. When I returned, she asked, "book?" shocking me that she remembered what I had told her earlier.

I was even more shocked when I went in the guest room and found out why she had been so quiet.

Sigh.

Patrick looooves to play golf. We have a new plan for retirement: a pro golfer for a daughter. (Joke.)

We are having a lot of fun with these golf clubs but not really in the way they were intended to be used. Mostly she pushes them down her slide.

Caught on Camera

Leila is what you would call a very active little girl. She basically goes non-stop from 7:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. She still takes 2 naps a day--supposedly. Where has nap #2 been hiding?

A short list of what our days include: 2 walks a day with Shrek, dirt time, book time, Baby Einstein time, usually swim time (often following dirt time), kitchen time, and bath time. What is dirt time? Let's just say it involves Leila's hands and massive amounts of potting soil and/or mulch. In her hair, on her face, under her fingernails, on her clothes. Yuck! But she is GLEEFULLY happy during dirt time. I don't know if I can take that away from her.

I like to change it up and go places, and she is usually pretty cooperative. This week we went to Gymboree, play gym, the Children's Museum, and the play place at the mall, as well as school. Her report card from day #2 was much better I am happy to report. I arrived 15 minutes early to pick her up and spied on her. I watched as she toddled over to her bag and got "Love," her comfort lovey, out and hugged it. Then she burst into tears. My cue to pick her up.

We have been wondering why the naps are so iffy, and this afternoon I think I figured it out. I have been watching as she is cutting her 2nd molar. Molars hurt. Well I got a good look at her mouth this afternoon, and what I thought was #2 is actually #4! I look and feel around in her mouth as much as she will let me, but 2 on the top just popped through without warning. That brings her tooth count to 12.

One of her Daddy's nicknames for Leila is "drama." When she wants to watch Baby Einstein, she will pick up the dvd remote and hand it to me with a whine.

Caught red handed! She is looking for the sunscreen in our swim bag.

Ohhhhhh Leila.....

Our little one is all girl... she wants to wear scarves on her head and bracelets on her wrists. Here she is enjoying some yummy cookies straight from the box!