What I Love About Two

The babeola is two and there is a lot to love about this stage.

1. She's more independent and I don't have to dog her move. I can trust her to be out of eyesight for short periods of time and/or monitor her by hearing alone, which has made my life tremendously easier. (Note: We have done some really intense babyproofing which helps as well.)

2. When she wakes me up at Dawn Crack a.m., I can turn on PBS and set out her (home made)yogurt, a flax muffin, some fruit and watered down juice and GO BACK TO BED. While I am not a fan of TV, I am not a great parent without adequate sleep. So pick your poison.

Points 1 & 2 bring blessed relief compared to the grind of parenting an infant or very young toddler. I can go to play dates now and chat with other moms instead of policing the babeola's every move. HUGE improvement in quality of life for me.

3.She talks. I love it. She is so entertaining. She sings songs too.

4. I love making her smile. If I tell her we're going to paint or do a craft, she is soooooo happy.

5.We make muffins and pizza dough together. I can set her up next to me with some water, a spoon, salt and pepper shakers and let her 'cook' while I make dinner. Today we made instant pudding via the shake method.

6.She has an imagination and is starting to play a bit with her stuffed animals. I have sat and watched her go at it for 30 minutes at a stretch. It is just so cool to see her blossoming like this.

7.We are introducing games. Candyland was a bust--following the path escapes her but Hungry Hippo works and we have Animal Scramble which I think will provide lots of entertainment. We played it for the first time today and she was really into it, but doesn't quite have it all down yet.

8.When I go to work (tutoring still) and come back, the welcome I get makes me feel like I'm returning from active duty in Iraq. Awesome hugs. Overwhelming joy. What a great incentive to go to work!

9.She knows all her letters and about 90% of their phonic sounds. She 'reads' books to herself now. For example, she'll actually read the abc books since she knows the letters. Other books, she 'reads' from memory and it's amazing how much of the text/storyline she retains!

10.We have a fun bed time routine. I 'eat' her toes and when I ask what flavor they are today, she screams 'STRAWBERRY!'. We read our book. Sing the silly I-Love-You-Song from Barney and I spin her into her bed with ring-around-the rosy. And then she starts trying to delay. "Wait a minute mommy." "Mommy, can I talk to you a minute?" So funny.

Two is a lot of fun. There are the stereotypical terrible moments too,but I'm not complaining, much, about those. Maybe that will be the next post!