2 and a 1/2!

What a fun and sometimes challenging age 2 and a 1/2 is! As I've told Brad, the good moments outweigh the bad and there is still no place I would rather be than home with this girl while she is still so little. She is so verbal and comprehends so much that sometimes I have to remind myself that she is just 2! For example, sometimes she calls me mom instead of mommy. Where did she get this from? Here are a few of her recent comments that make me think she is a 10 year old trapped in a 2 year old's body.

"That's cool, Mom!" (don't remember what this was in reference to)

"Mom, that doesn't fit you." (said as I was trying to squeeze into a pre-pregnancy skirt when Haven was about 3 months old)
"Mom, I'm busy." (said while she was playing with puzzles and I asked her to get ready to go somewhere)

She looks at almost everything in the context of family. If there are the same things of different sizes, one is the daddy, one is the mommy, and one is the baby. Doesn't matter what it is, it could be potato chips, acorns, chairs, bugs...you get the point. This is how she relates to the world around her.

She LOVES her cousins and her friends. She always wants to go to their houses or have them come to her house. Every Sunday after church she tells me which of her friends were there. After playing with friends, she is also sure to tell me who pushed or hit her. :)

Speaking of friends, she has an imaginary one named Dido. It is funny because when I ask her about them, she doesn't want to talk about them. All I know is that Dido is a little boy. She is often telling him what to do and what not to do. It seems like she talks to him when she is bored, like when she is riding in the car.

She is still such a great sleeper! And still in a crib! She sleeps every night from 8:30 to 8:30 (unless a certain little sister wakes her up earlier). Most of the time she can sleep through Haven's middle of the night feedings. She also still takes a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoons.

She loves going to the library to get new books each week. I've noticed that she favors the classics and fairytales like The Three Little Pigs, The Little Red Hen, and The Ugly Duckling. After we return books like that, she asked me to tell her the stories.

Like I said the good moments outweigh the bad, but at this age she is going through a major whiny phase! It is funny because she will first ask for something in a soft, sweet little voice and the second I say no it changes to whining. Ready for this particular phase to pass!

I have started to let Anna take naps in my bed if her sister is already napping in their room. One of my favorite things to do with her is snuggle her in bed and talk and tell her stories. We have had some really sweet moments together and she loves the one on one attention.