Where are you Spring?

Two weeks ago, we thought Spring was finally here.
It was close to 75 degrees, and town was buzzing with activity.
It was one of those days everyone looked for a reason to be outside.
We met up with Tyler and his mom for a picnic at the playground.
It was lovely - eating outside, no jackets needed, watching you kiddos play in the sun.

But...we might get snow showers tonight.

So, we just have to ask -

Spring, where the heck are you?!

Please hurry.

We have lots of playgrounds and parks to visit 

and lots of cute sundresses waiting sadly in the closet :)

Princess

Dear Lexi,

Before our roadtrip,
we squeezed in a little fun for you:
splashing in rain puddles (suede boots and all)

We also squeezed in a little fun for me:

A visit to Bloomingdale's

I needed a new dress/shoes for an upcoming wedding.

I expected a super quick trip. 

I expected a fussy toddler -

who fell asleep in her car seat just as we pulled into the parking lot.

I expected a little girl who wanted to play hide and seek in the clothing racks 

as I tried to hurry, hurry.

Instead, we spent a delightful hour shopping together.

It was so much fun to have my little sidekick with me.

It reminded me of all those trips I made with my own mom to the Short Hills Mall growing up. 

But, the sweetest moment by far came in the dressing room.

I tried on a long, flowy teal gown just for kicks. 

You turned and looked at me and gasped,"You're a princess mama!" 

And then I did what any princess would do, I handed the dress over to my friend.

You stepped right up to the mirror.

You liked what you saw. 

"Now I'm a princess," you said with a big grin.

And...you certainly are!

(But in the words of your Uncle John, hike up that dress!)

Havin' Fun

With your father in Toronto earlier this month,
we decided to head home to NJ for a little fun with the family.
As always, we squeezed a lot into our trip.
First up was a visit with Grandpa Tom.
We had an Easter egg hunt and explored his house
(and all those photos on the walls).
You even got a sneak peak of his bar
and saw the very special Port that he's saving for the day you turn 21.

We spent some time with your Great-Grandma Connie too.
It was a lovely visit, and she was so happy to see how much you had grown
and hear how much you were talking.
I was very pleased that we left without breaking anything (despite a few close calls).

We had a sleepover at Nanny and Grandpa's house.
You had a ball.
You had dinner at the grown-up table, you had a tea party with Grandpa
and made sandwiches with Nanny.
You slept the whole night in the big girl bed there,
and then the four of us visited Station Park -
one of the very same playgrounds your mommy used to go to as a girl.
And from there, it was time to visit your cousins (and Aunt and Uncle).
We met them at another playground.
You were so excited to help walk their new puppy, Ozzie.

You loved acting like a big kid at the playground - 

climbing up the rock wall like Cece,

climbing a tree like her too,

(imagine my surprise when you looked at me and said, "Ayudame, help me Mommy."

Thank you Dora the Explorer for teaching my two-year-old Spanish!

playing on the seesaw with Matt,

and simply just doing all the things big kids do at the park.

You even convinced your cousins to play your new favorite game - 

Stop and Go tag (which is awfully similar to Freeze Tag). 

And then it was time to celebrate.

Your cousin Matt just had a birthday, a very big birthday.

So, to celebrate turning 13!, we went out for a Mexican dinner. 

Again, you had a ball.

We treated you to lemonade and chicken and black beans.

You thought this was awfully cool.

In fact, right during the middle of dinner, you looked at all of us and shouted,

"I'm having fun!"

And then it was time to stop for ice cream - our treat.

You devoured your lemon sherbert

(and even snuck a few bites of my mint chocolate chip - a very big treat given your dairy-free diet). 

Then, what better way to round out the night than bath time?

Courtney sang you songs in the tub, Matt played peek-a-boo,

and your Mommy and your Aunt savored a sweet memory-in-the-making.

St. Patty's Day

These Irish eyes are smiling.

Hope yours are too!

Neighborhood Watch

Back in November, your Great Aunt Terry came for a visit.
She knows how much you like dogs,
and she also knows that your daddy has no desire to own one.
So, for your birthday, she gave you the next best thing.
Fluffy may be battery powered, but he walks and barks and wags his tail.
Just like the real thing.
One night, a month or two ago,
I walked around the corner to find you and Fluffy waiting for daddy to get home.
Cutest neighborhood watch team I ever did see.

Once you got impatient standing at the window,
you decided to take your puppy for a quick walk.
I think it may just be the perfect solution for our little dog lover.
Thanks Terry!

Sweet Dreams

A few weeks ago, we decided you were ready.
Ready for a big girl bed.
Several of your friends had already made the move.
And both Dora and Olivia sleep in beds.
We ordered you adorable new owl and bird bedding.
You watched with excitement as the bed was put together.
You ensured Uffu, Mr. Bear and Mr. Alligator came along for the adventure.
And, just like that,
you went from this:

To this:

You love your new bed!

You deliberate about which books we should bring over for story time.

You get so excited to climb up using your step stool.

You love to have us tuck you into the sheet and blanket.

You give out hugs and kisses and cuddles as we snuggle next to you.

You have been napping wonderfully.

But at nighttime, instead of seeing you sleep, we are seeing a lot of this:

and this:

...which is soon followed by the sound of your little footsteps coming down the hall.

Checking in on mom and dad seems to be much more fun than going to sleep.

Ironically, your babysitter put you to bed on Saturday, and you didn't budge all night long.

So, we'll keep working on it, to ensure that you have Sweet Dreams!

The terrific twos

Miss Alexis, 

I said recently that the "terrible twos" are a challenging age.

And don't get me wrong, they still are. 

Your favorite word "NO", has been replaced by a new phrase:

"No, I don't want to do that."

You cross your arms over your chest for added emphasis.

Somewhere along the way, you also started saying "No way!"

But these days...

These days we are also seeing how wonderful this age can be.

We are seeing the totally terrific side of our two-year-old. 

Your language these days simply amazes us. 

You are speaking in short sentences, 

and it's no longer just us who can understand you.

You have all sorts of funny and endearing phrases now.

Like, "Daddy, you're driving mommy crazy."

You say this any time we happen to be talking and not including you in the conversation. 

Or "Mommy, I love you all the way to the ocean. And I love Daddy as high as the moon."

Do you have any idea how happy hearing that makes us?

Or, "I think I'm done" which you have started to say during potty training 

(so far, so good on that front - but that's another post for another day)

And a new one is "I'm gonna be right back" which you tell us before you run off in search of something.

When we come into your room in the morning, you always jump up and shout, "I'm awake!"

All day long, when we suggest something that suits your fancy, you say in the most excited little voice

"O KAAAAAY"

 

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse has taken a backseat to some new shows - 

like Babar and Diego and Dora.

You love to say "Oh man", just like Swiper. 

"Look at me!" is another favorite expression right now. 

And I always look right away, because you are usually standing on a table, 

or trying on my sunglasses, or sneaking some toothpaste, 

or doing something similar that could lead to an accident or an incident of some sort. 

And you talk loudly...we are working on teaching you what an "indoor voice" sounds like.

We have packed away the highchair.

These days, you prefer to sit in your booster seat at the counter

or right at the kitchen table with us. 

Gone is the fussy eating phase where you wanted chicken - every single day. 

Now, you're eager to try so many new foods.

You beg your dad for more of his sweet potatoes and broccoli.

You steal our chili and our guacamole.

You go nutty for avoados and peanut butter.

You are all about the veggies - especially peas and carrots. 

Just like mommy, you love your hot chocolate.

And just like Nanny, you devour applesauce. 

You would eat fruit by the handful if we'd let you.

In fact, I think you might eat all day long if we let you. 

Your play kitchen from Santa has been a smashing success.

You can often be found baking some Melissa and Doug cupcakes for the family,

or frying some eggs for breakfast,

or warming some tea in the microwave,

or checking on our chicken noodle soup. 

I recently bought the game Memory.

Your dad said he thought you were way too young for it.

I knew better.

Your memory is astonishing.

You know the direction to different places around town.

"We're here" you shout when we are down the block from the grocery store.

"That way, Mommy" you let me know when we're driving to the salad store. 

You know the whole alphabet.

You count to 20 all the time (for some reason you always leave out 13 and 16).

You know your shapes, your colors and your days of the week.

You can hear a new song just one time and memorize most of the lyrics.

We got ice cream the other day. 

It was the first time we've had it since last summer.

You promptly informed me that you eat yellow and red ice cream.

I gave it a little thought and remembered what we ordered you back in August...

lemon or watermelon sherbert (yellow and red!)

You just seem to soak things up. 

So, I had a feeling Memory was going to be right up your alley.

We have been playing it just about EVERY DAY since I brought it home.

You show us up most times we play. 

You love to have family snuggles before bedtime.

You, mommy, daddy and your owl.

You beg for one more book, just one more book please.

Your big girl bed arrives on Friday.

In the meantime, we have your mattress and pillow on the floor.

You insist we all lay on it together, and then you laugh and smile and giggle. 

You still haven't totally picked a dominant side yet, but we think you're going to be a righty.

You still don't know how to jump. 

We may be the only household in America that cheers as you hop around on the furniture, practicing.

You still adore dogs and point out every one we see. 

You also delight in seeing school buses around town. 

You love to be outside, 

and we've been sneaking in little walks now that it's finally getting warmer.

You're always ready for a little freeze tag.  

You tell me about the airplanes you hear in the sky, the birds you hear chirping in the trees,

the ducks you see in the pond, the sound of water you hear in the sewer, a fire truck in the distance.

You don't seem to miss a thing. 

You are starting to learn how to peddle your tricycle. 

Your legs are just the tiniest bit too short, but you actually get it moving.

You could spend hours in the shower or the bathtub.

You love to catch water in all of your cups.

You love to create artwork out of shaving cream on the shower walls.

You love to splash around and lay on your belly like you're swimming.

And once you're all clean, you have me wrap you up in a big towel

and rock you while we sing songs. 

I'm not sure which one of us enjoys this more. 

Your favorite spots are standing on the kitchen and bathroom counters.

You are so curious, so observant and always exploring. 

You have very definite ideas about how you want to play, 

how things should be organized,

where things should go.

You like to be the one in control.

You have all sorts of thoughts and opinions and are certainly your own person these days.

I must admit that we sometimes just watch you in awe.

When did you become such a big girl?

When did you start to look so grown up?

What will you learn next?

So, yes, two can still be a challenging age.

But these days, we are finding that it's also totally terrific.