To my Meredith

Oh my sweet Meredith, you are quickly approaching 2 and a half years...Wow how the time has flown. It honestly feels like I found out yesterday I was pregnant for you. I remember the exact details of that moment and will treasure it forever. I knew that my life would change for the better from that moment forward and boy has it! You are one of a kind my girl.

At 2 and almost a half years old you are very smart. Your have a very precocious vocabulary and everyone comments on it. You have always been a talker, well except for that time I thought you were deaf and banged pots in your room at night. I did do that, I was a new mom, forgive me. But seriously you have an amazing vocabulary. You talk non-stop and almost everything you say now is understood by everyone and they are often amazed when they find out you are only two.

You started your new preschool this year and I really think you are loving it. You tell me you do often. Your teacher's name is Ms. Jenny and you love her, but this week you told me you also love Ms. Shannon, she is the other 2 year old teacher at your school. She is the one who sings the line-up song you said. You really like that song. You are very studious, always have been. You have craved structure from day one. You love to sit and paint or color or read books and you love it when everyone else does too. I am sure the whole school thing is right up your alley and always will be. I was the same way. Your dad thinks you will grow up to be a hall monitor one day, I disagree you are more like student council president.

You also started real dancing school, you love it. I can threaten you with dancing and you will automatically shape up. Last week you told me you were going home with Ms. Lori, your dancing teacher. That was a first for you, before that you always, only wanted to go with me. You get so excited on dancing and gymnastic days. You look forward to it all week and ask to go everyday.

You are still my shy child though. You will often tell me that too. "Momma I went to daddy's work and I be shy!"...."I no say hello, I put my head down and I be shy." Yes my dear your vocabulary is great, your grammar still needs a little work. Seriously though you are still my slow to warm up child. You take your time getting to know new friends, you wait until it is almost time to leave before you join in the fun. Sometimes I worry you miss out on it because of that, but your warm up time is getting shorter and shorter. You are just like your mom in that regard, I was the same way so I'm not too worried. When you are warmed up though, look out world here you come. You have such an amazing spirit about you, you can bring a smile to any one's face all the time.

And for all your good points my dear, I have to say you are not always a bed of roses. You can wake up on the wrong side of the bed and have the most hellish morning. Those are the days that nothing your dad or I do is right and you let us know by throwing tantrum after tantrum. Noah and I just want to crawl back in bed and leave you in yours when that happens. I'm hoping these tantrums are a two year old thing that you outgrow soon. God help me when you are a teenager if you don't outgrow them.

You are also a "I'll do it when I damn well please" sort of child. Your dad and I purchased you and Noah a great new swing set or big ass play structure as I like to call it. It has 3 slides, one being a tunnel slide. We have owned that play structure since January of this year, and this past weekend was the first time you went down the tunnel slide. You went down the other two the first day, but the tunnel slide took 9 months for you to try it. You loved it and were so proud of yourself. I knew you would love it, but there wasn't a chance in hell I could get you to give it a try until you were ready. You are that way about most things. I know this about you so I don't push you anymore unless I have too, I encourage others not to either. You will do it, I know that, just when you are ready. It took you six months to ride your battery operated little four wheeler, now I can't get you off of it.

You are also in a phase where things are "scary". I have no idea where this came from, you ask me 1000 times a day if something "is scare-wy" From bugs, to trucks, to some of your clothing. It is driving me a little nuts and I am hoping you get out of this phase soon. If not there is always therapy right....oh I kid.

You are also rapidly changing from a toddler to a little girl. You used to ask me to come "lay you momma?" at night....now you say "momma come lay with me?" When did that happen, is what I thought to myself. It was literally overnight. You also reach around my neck and give me a big hugs and say "I love you so much!" You do this out of the blue and it melts my heart over and over. You have also started dressing yourself and putting your own shoes on, often backwards but still by yourself. You can drink out of a big girl cup and feed yourself anything, making a mess of course. You can go to the bathroom alone and can even get the stool if it is in another room. It is really weird not having you need me so much, but my time is occupied because your brother is getting to be a handful quickly. But don't get me wrong you are still my baby girl and still need me plenty.

Which brings me to another point you are starting to be a little momma. I knew it was coming. You know everything in the house Noah is not supposed to touch and you follow him around saying "No, No Noah!"...."don't touch that Noah." It really is sweet you aren't mean about it, but more concerned. Well at least that is what it appears to be. Now if I could only get you to pick up your own toys that are dangerous for him or get you to pick up any toys without begging and pleading or singing the clean up song. You will automatically pick up anything with that song, I really ought to sing it more.

You are starting to really get into pretend and dress-up. You love to pretend, not that you are Cinderella, but that you are other people we know. You are often Patty, which is what you call your cousin Nathalie. Or you also like to be Grace or Maggie and sometimes Adalyn. Grace and Maggie are your friends from gymnastics and school. You feed me the script that I am supposed to say when you are pretending it is quite hilarious. You also like to pretend to be a dog, you bark and I have to call you like a dog and you pretend to eat out of a dog bowl on the floor. Your imagination is so much fun.

Your favorite toys these days are still Woody and Jessie. You will carry them around and read books to them and play with them like they are real people, I guess to you they are. You also like to play with "your people". You must have 50 2-3inch figurines that you carry around in a big bag. You love "your people." If you don't have Woody and Jessie you are most definitely playing with them. Recently you have gotten into playing with baby dolls too. You are very nurturing with them and love to take care of them. And you love to dance. You will come home put on your tap shoes, grab you microphone and dance to "Terial Girl" all day long if I let you. You can shake that little booty of yours, one day I will be in trouble or you will, however you want to look at it.

Well my girl at 2 and almost a half years old you are so incredibly fun and sweet. I hope you stay that way forever, it will work well for you as you get older. Hugs and kisses my baby girl and remember I love you so much too.

Love you,
momma