Letter from mommy

Dear precious girl,

I can't believe we just put you to bed as a one-year-old for the last time. And yes, I cried, but less than last year :o). You are just growing up WAY too fast! I really thought your first year went fast, but this year has literally flown by...I cannot believe you are already TWO! As much as I miss your "baby" days, you are just too much fun right now! We LOVE every little thing about you and are so incredibly thankful that God has given us the past two years as your parents. We are so proud of you and we love you. Happy 2nd Birthday!!!

Your daddy and I love so many things about you right now and want to remember as much as we can! Most of all, we are loving our relationships with you. You are certainly a daddy's girl and I love it. I completely understand your love of that man and so enjoy watching you two together. You guys play hard and laugh even harder. You ask for him and want to call him constantly and still light up when you hear him walk through the door :o). And I love our mommy-daughter relationship too. It's so fun to share girly things like hair and toenails and shopping, but just spending our regular days together is the real joy. I'm so thankful to get to watch and hear all that's going on in your mind throughout the day...I wouldn't trade it for anything!

You are crazy independent right now. You want to do everything "by yourself" and tell us that countless times a day. It's honestly so cute to see you developing into a very capable toddler who can do so much on her own! You like to walk everywhere by yourself (not the street, of course), you don't want any help eating (and you even try to peel your own bananas), you love to help get yourself dressed and are pretty good too, you always want to put your shoes on "all by yourself", you love helping around the house with laundry and cleaning, and you certainly want to help us do everything! You might even think your way is the best way...where on earth did you learn that!?!? :o)

Your little mind amazes us everyday. Each night as we lay in bed, we talk about the things you said or did that just blew our minds. You just love learning new things! Right now you are really into your abc's - reciting them, reading your Alpha-books and playing with your magnets. We can't believe how many of your letters/letter sounds you know and love when you recognize them/familiar words. What a smartie! You also LOVE learning about Jesus and what a blessing that is! You have several favorite Bible stories and scripture songs and are already learning to hide His word in your heart :o).

Oh, and you are so imaginative lately. We do a lot of pretend playing with babies (getting ready for baby sister) and you are so sweet to watch. Very careful indeed! You also love to ask us to "tell stories". You'll give us a topic and then want to hear a story about it. You've even started pitching in your own ideas about how it should go! Another thing you love to tell us is that, "I'm just playing games". You and Kennedy make up the silliest little games where you take turns running back and forth across the room or hide in the curtains and tell each other to come find you. So funny! I can't wait to see what your creative mind comes up with next!

One thing we've noticed about you for some time is your gift of encouragement. All day long, we hear, "good job, mommy" or "good job, daddy!" It's so sweet to get a "high-five" for just doing the dishes or handing you your milk :o). I just love how thoughtful you are! And so caring too...lately you ask us, "mommy, you okay?" or "daddy, you okay?" if you think we are upset or something is wrong. It's so sweet and you really do mean it. You have such a tender heart :o).

And let's not forget your mischievous side! You love to hide from us and play "sneak on you". You are definitely testing your limits and one of your favorites right now is to say, "Hi, Jessica" or "Hi, Scott" with a little hint of mischief in your eye. When we ask you to make a better choice, you usually revert to "mommy" and "daddy", but you sure are waiting for a reaction :o). You've even started trying to play us against each other a bit...if you get in trouble by one of us, you will immediately ask for the other and see if you can get a different reaction. Pretty soon you'll learn that daddy and I are always on the same team :o). I'm afraid this is the part of your personality I'm paying for...poor daddy!

You really are my very favorite 2-year-old ever! I know I'm partial, but seriously, you're just great! I love who you are, I love what you have brought to our family, I love how the Lord uses you to teach me everyday, and I love being your mommy!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Emerson!
Love, Mommy