The Two Stage =)

Call me crazy, but I am loving this "two's" stage with Lilly. Right when she turned two was the hardest though, with her constant stubbornness, curiosity, & fearless independence & continual testing me to see what she could get away with. I endured through some tough days as all moms go through including returning from the mall frustrated that my toddler could not keep her hands off ANYTHING and EVERYTHING.. But I gave it a few months of prayer of asking for more patience, wisdom, & love, not giving up with the training/correct discipline, & now she acts so much better than before... she's definitely not an angel though, still has her days of constant testing me (she does have some stubborn people as parents!) but I am really loving this stage! I know that with each new stage though comes a different challenge, so I'm sure when she hits three will be a lesson as well! Maybe it was because my husband kept deploying for the beginning of her life & add that to the stress of being a new mom, but I think the older she gets, the more I am enjoying it. (I am really excited to love on a newborn again though next month, hehe!)

But anyway, I felt like documenting a few fun & random things that my 2 1/2 yr old says & does, because I know one day in the future I will want to go back to read & remember how it was during this fun stage she is in.

- Lilly thrives on quality time with me. That's her love language; she doesn't care much about snuggling (though recently she likes to snuggle more) & would rather me sit in her room with her while she plays that anything, that makes her happy & act better all around!

- She loves going for walks, to the park, or anything to do with being outside. I love it that now she is old enough to get out of her stroller during our daily walks & walk with me. Good exercise for her! It's cute because she "collects" things like flowers, rocks, & pine cones during our walks to bring home.

- She eats ALL THE TIME it seems like! She's always saying "I'm hungry, Momma!" And I can tell she has been going through many growth spurts, because my kid is getting so tall & she is looking more like a little girl than a teeny toddler now. Some of her favorite foods currently are still grapes, strawberries, noodles, fruit snacks (my bribery food of choice, hehe) & chips (I buy those healthy UTZ reduced fat chips with hardly any sodium, it's like eating a real potato with all that Vitamin C & E.

- She loves to sing. She will randomly burst out into song, singing songs like "Jesus Loves Me" or "Itsy Bitsy Spider."

- She has a fascination of bugs. If you find a ladybug, spider, ant, or grasshopper, she will watch it & feed it grass all day long if you let her like it's her own pet.

- She is still obsessed with her green blankie. Won't go to sleep without it still..

- She is a Momma's girl, always has been. As much as she loves her Daddy, I've been told when I leave for an hour for an appointment or something, she will constantly repeat the phrase "Where's Mommy? Where's Mommy?" =)

- Her current favorite shows to watch are Pooh, Toy Story, & Donald Duck.


Well, hope you are having a good & safe Easter weekend!!