Emma is Officially TWO!

 

Well, I’m a couple weeks late on this post; story of my life lately. I have no idea when life in general got so busy, but it has. I’m not complaining, it’s way fun, but more and more is being put “on the back burner” until I have more time. So, here it is, 10pm on a Thursday night. Emma is sound asleep in bed, the hubs is out to see a movie courtesy of a friend, and I’m attempting to blog about my baby girl turning two (two weeks ago… wait, make that three weeks ago).

MISS EMMA TURNS TWO!

Wow, where has the time gone? It feels like just a few months ago I returned to work from maternity leave with a puffy face and swollen eyes from the sorrows of facing leaving her for an entire day. Ah, memories. In reality that was 22+ months ago.

On July 12, 2014 (her actual birthday) we threw a Curious George themed bash for Emma at home. We sent custom invitations (thanks, Allie!) to more than 40 guests and we had a great turnout! Everything went pretty well, except for the heat factor. We had gone a good week with cool temperatures only to wake on that Saturday to 80 degrees at 7am. I’m pretty sure the heat index pushed us into triple digits, but who had the time to really keep track?

I did a pretty good job of planning the food situation ahead of time. We had chicken strips, deli sandwiches, pasta salad, little smokies, roasted red pepper hummus, overnight salad, chips, popcorn, etc. Then of course we had watermelon, strawberries, blueberries and cake and ice cream. Our good friend Connie even brought over some homemade zucchini bread (fyi, I’ve never had it before, and it was divine!). Then there were many drink options – soda, tea, lemonade, juice and water. Sounds good, right? Well, low and behold I forgot to tell everyone about the tea, lemonade, bottled water and juice. Go figure. I feel awful about it.

The kids had a lot to play with outside. My house is kind of small so there wasn’t too much room for play inside, but I did have Emma’s play room sanitized and ready to go if anyone needed a break from the heat. Outside we had a sandbox, trampoline, tiny pool, water table, play house, tot picnic table, and the biggest hit, an old-fashioned lawn sprinkler. The kiddos loved it.

  

Before people had to take off we squeezed in some gift opening. Emma did okay with this part, but each present opened resulted in “Open, Momma.” She got some great gifts, and I am so thankful. She loves them all! There are too many to list out here, but just to name a few, she got a “doctor dog” which is a Barbie veterinarian set, elefun, aquadoodle, bouncy balls, etc. Oh, there was/is so much. She’s been go, go, go every night since playing with everything.

It was all said and done at 3:00pm, and we were exhausted. Emma fell right to sleep, my parents packed up what they had brought, and I finished cleaning up. It felt awesome to have so many people come out for my baby girl. I love her so much, and to see other people love her, it just overflows my heart. To everyone who came, or wanted to come but extended their birthday wishes and regrets, thank you! Thank you for loving the person that is my whole world.

MISS EMMA IS OFFICIALLY TWO!

We took Emma for her two year check-up on Thursday, July 24^th. It needed to be pushed back because it was also a follow-up after she had some breathing problems from a cold. No shots at this one (actually, no more for a couple years I think).

Here are her stats at 2 years, 12 days old:

-          -  Height: 37.5 inches tall (>99%)

-          - Weight: 34 pounds, 8 ounces (>99%)

-          - Head: 48.9 centimeters (90%)

-          - Teeth: 16 teeth, gums swollen for 2 year molars.

-          - Hair: About 2” below shoulders, had one trim.

She’s so independent it kills me. She hardly ever wants my help, and I don’t dare to offer it unless she asks because an all-out fit will ensue. She can count to thirteen, and she can sing the alphabet. She can “read” two whole books and sing countless songs. She speaks full sentences and we can have conversations. Those are my favorite. She will tell us what she did that day with Grandma and PawPaw, or what happened on one of her “shows.”

Here are some of her likes:  

-          - Food: Pancakes, Chicken Nuggets, PB&J, Spaghetti O’s, Beanie Weenies, French Fries, Ice Cream, Black Olives, Blueberries.

-          - Drinks: Milk, Chocolate Milk (super rare), Juice (half water, half juice), Water.

-          - Movies: Curious George, Little Mermaid, Finding Nemo.

-          - TV: Curious George, Barney, Caillou, Bubble Guppies, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sesame Street, Pocoyo, Peppa Pig.

-          - Songs: Old MacDonald, Happy Birthday [to Emma], Ring Around the Rosey, Wheels on the Bus.

-         -  Toys: Little People, Aquadoodle, Baby Doll, “Doctor Dog.”

-          - Pastimes: Putting DVDs in the DVD player, Taking DVDs out of the DVD player, Putting DVDs in the case, Taking DVDs out of the case.

Here are some of her dislikes:

-          - Food: Pizza, Pineapple, Tomato, Asparagus.

-          - Drinks: Pedialyte.

-          - Movies: Anything Adult, and she doesn’t really care about Frozen for some reason.

-          - TV: Anything Adult.

-          - Songs: None.

-          - Toys: Anything that’s not new. Oy.

-          - Pastimes: Diaper changes… STILL.

She’s getting to be so smart. I totally understand where the term “too smart for their own good” came from! We have our Parents as Teachers meeting on the 16^th, and I am so excited to see where they think she is at. I feel like she’s so advanced! Well, except for potty training. She understands it, but she just doesn’t want to. It’s frustrating to me, but her doctor says not to force her to do it because they start to hold their potty… so we are waiting for her to be ready.

I am also going to look into daycares. I think I found one that looks appealing, but it’s almost school season so they may be booked. I’ve been on the fence, from the day she was born, about daycare and other people watching her, but I think it’s time for her to be around other kids more. She’s doesn’t know how to interact with kids very well, and she definitely isn’t big on sharing, so I think daycare/early education might be the way to go; even if it’s just one or two days a week. I can post on that once it happens… if it happens.

So there you go! My Our Emma is two! I can hardly believe it. As much as I enjoy watching her grow and develop, I miss my baby.