And just like that, our baby is two. Ok...two and 4 months (I'm a little late -- shocker!) I know I'll always think of her as my baby, but it's so hard to admit that she's really not a baby anymore. Although she is definitely starting to assert her independence, she still loves to be cuddled and held -- and I won't lie --I love the cuddle time too! We call her our little koala bear, because she loves to perch herself on our hips.
- Says many 2-3 word phrases, like "sip up mommy" (sit up), "ake up, daddy" (wake up), "sit next you" and "i wuv you"
- Calls herself "Ees"
- Loves to wash her hands
- Likes to wear hats
- Loves to go outside
- Likes to dance and dance and dance
- Loves to give hugs and kisses to her siblings at bedtime
- Is very polite -- please, thank you and excuse me. I just love hearing her sing-songy voice say "Thank you, Mommy, thank you!"
- Despises footie pajamas
- Is a choco-holic
- Loves to look at pictures
- Is always asking 'W'sat, Daddy, W'sat?"
- Asks "why" a lot...but I think she's just mimicking her sister
- Loves to point out the moon and airplanes in the sky and she thinks every airplane is "Grandma's airplane"
- Loves to "play yegos" -- especially with big brother's legos!
She has always been so easy to put down for naps and bedtime...until recently. She must think we are having a raucous party after she goes to bed, because she now very adamantly tells us "No nap!" and "No bedtime!" She is really particular about her crib arrangements. Her two favorite dolls and her cup of water have to be in very specific spots, and the babies absolutely MUST be wearing pants. And she just has to have her zebra pillow pet to rest her sleepy head on! She loves that "zebrat."
Like her sister, she absolutely loves babies (dolls and real ones) and dogs. She is really sweet with her dolls and loves taking care of them - especially changing their diapers. She insists that her own diapers are not for her, but for her dolls. At some point, she adopted Rohan as her favorite baby doll. You may remember that Rohan was Tessa's favorite doll. Miraculously, Tessa has generally been ok with this, which is great, because there is just no separating Alyse and Rohan! She is often found roaming the house looking for him and asking "Howan go?"
 |
| The window seat is her favorite little spot. We find her here all the time, taking care of babies. |
When she turned two, she had a followup with her neurologist. He was very impressed with
her progress and called her a "preemie poster child"! Can't get much
better than that! She's still using a brace on her right leg to help
with muscle development, and has graduated to biweekly physical therapy
sessions. She also still drools quite a bit -- which is another result of her
condition. So, she recently started weekly speech therapy to help build the muscles in her mouth. She's becoming more tolerant of the therapy with each session, and we're seeing little bits of progress already.
A few more things to remember about Alyse at age 2...
She scares very easily. Up close, she's terrified of the same dogs that she loves from a distance. And she hates loud noises. She tells us "I scared."
She loves necklaces and bracelets, but hates things in her hair. [two girls who hate hair accessories = sad mommy!]
She doesn't like messes or spills, and likes them to be cleaned up right away. She likes to help out by throwing things in the “traf.”
When she doesn't want her picture taken, she will yell "No cheese!"
Her favorite color is "geen."
Her favorite songs are Wheels on the Bus and the ABC song. She's super picky about which songs she will allow you to sing to her at bedtime!
And overheard recently...
Calder – "Aww, man, this girl is crazy!"
Alyse – "Crazy, yeah!!!"
That about sums up our life these days!
So, while I'm at it, here are a few pictures from her birthday. We just had a fun little family celebration at home.
