She officially turned two on Saturday, and we had a party! Our whole fam was sick last year on her birthday with the puke bug, so we had to cancel her party, and I guess we just can't catch a break cause she was sick with a cold this year! But the show went on! Nothing was going to stop me from having a party this year.
We invited all our family, and the neighbor kids, and it was so fun. Let me just say though, I had no idea how expensive parties can be, and I think we went pretty darn cheap! That stuff just adds up quick!
I decorated with pink things, and white tissue paper balls, and had it all set up for her when she got up the morning of her birthday. My parents drove up the night before, and had some errands to run the morning of her party and of course they had to take her with them. She was almost late for her own party... :)
I made kid friendly food- pigs in a blanket, turkey and cheese plate, fruit plate, goldfish, a popcorn bar, and cake balls. The popcorn bar wasn't as big of a hit as I hoped, but it was a fun idea. :)
She had so much fun with all of her favorite people there. She got so excited each time the doorbell rang. She didn't quite understand the gifts- but she loved it nonetheless. Among the favorites were a princess tent (which permanantly resides in our living room), a Minnie Mouse cell phone, and a Mrs. Potato head.
*Official update:
She weighed 24lbs exactly- putting her at 16% which is DOUBLE what she was at 18mo! Way to go Blakely! Can't remember exact height but I think it was in the 40something %.
She goes to bed around 7:30, and gets up at 5:30 pretty consistently. We've tried just about everything to change this- and nothing works. Any suggestions???
She takes a nap around noon- lasting anywhere from an hour to two and a half hours (VERRRRY occasionally 3...)
She sleeps with a blanket, but the times we've tried a pillow it seems to disturb her more than anything. Still using a pacifier, less and less attached to her "buddies" (stuffed animals)- though she randomly requests them to sleep with.
We are officially off the bottle! PHEW. We went out of town and stayed in a hotel Monday-Wednesday and got to hang out with kids and play a TON, so we took that opportunity to ditch the bottle since she was out of her routine. She asks for it in the mornings, and was pretty ticked the first day, but now she asks, we say no, then she gets over it quickly. She has even drank quite a bit of milk out of a cup the last few days! Miracle! Now if we could just get rid of the binky and move her to a real bed.... (both of those things are on our short list. hopefully both will be in play by the end of January!)
She has adjusted REALLY well to traveling. She will sleep pretty much anywhere without a fight- nighttime and naps. She even has slept WITH us a few times! It's pretty fun snuggling with her in bed, but she is sortof a bed hog.
She is talking all the time and SOOOO well. It's crazy to me how well she communicates. She says 5+ word sentences. She can sing the ABCs, Jesus loves me, and the Veggie Tales theme song. She has quite the imagination too. She loves to play pretend with her babies.
She is making some pretty significant progress with the potty. She goes in her little potty daily, but is still in diapers most of the time. This is pretty much just me not wanting to go ALL OUT and just do it. She wears "underwear" occasionally and still hasn't quite gotten the peepee thing, so she usually starts in her pants, then finishes on the potty. :) She can go #2 on the potty, but still kinda prefers the diaper- we are working on this. :)
She is eating better- more and more of a variety. The only green veggie she will really eat is still broccoli.
I thought she had a very bold personality, but after being around several other kids this past week- her age and a little older- I realized she is a little more reserved than I thought. She is not very loud compared to other kids, and she is a go with the flow kinda girl. She is up for whatever they are playing- but she is also fine to play by herself. I think Hankie has really helped in the sharing department, and I am thankful for that.
She wears 2t clothes mainly for length, and I put her in some 3t tops just cause. She wears size 6 shoes, but they are snug thanks to a recent growth spurt, and has a pair of 7s, and I think she will probably be in an 8 by the spring. I cannot for the life of me find pants that will stay up (besides leggings) and she doesn't have a prayer when she is out of diapers- since that's the only thing keeping most of her britches up.
She still LOVES LOVES LOVES Henry, and I just couldn't be prouder of what a good big sister she is. On her own initiative, she gives him his binky when he's fussy, plays with him, offers him toys, talks to him and makes him laugh. I can't wait for him to be mobile so they can really be buds.
Can't believe my baby girl is 2. It goes too fast.
