azalea at 2.5

azalea, i cannot believe you are already half way through being 2. how can that be? you've changed so much in the last 6 months and you have some very big life changes coming your way in the next few months! you are becoming more independent, smart, and funny by the day and we can't get enough of you! here is my attempt at documenting all things about you at 2.5 years old: 

physical

you weigh somewhere between 27-29 pounds, but i don't know for sure because you haven't been to the doctor in 6 months. i also don't know your exact height, but you are still a long, skinny little girl like you've always been. you wear size 2T/24 month clothes (although you've grown out of a few things lengthwise already), size 7 shoes (you only fit in size 6 for a matter of weeks!), and size 4 diapers (hopefully we'll be done with diapers in the next few months). one of my favorite things about you is your beautiful blonde curls. i've always wanted curly hair, so i love everything about yours. your bangs are grown out, so we put your hair either half up or all the way up every day to keep them out of your eyes. 

eating

i would still consider you a pretty good eater overall. veggies are the hardest to get you to eat. you will only willingly eat peas, and if we are lucky, you will eat veggies hidden in your food without you knowing :) you do much better with fruit, but you are still picky about those too. fruits on your approved list: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, grapes, and sometimes bananas. you will generally eat most meat, breads, pastas, cheese, etc. you eat toast with peanut butter or jam on it every day for breakfast. you love yogurt, pasta, pizza, and of course treats when you get them. you are always asking to eat. i don't know where all the food you eat ends up :) you mostly drink milk and water, but get juice occasionally. you are pretty good with an open top cup, but we still use sippies a lot of the time to cut down on spills, and frankly, just out of habit. 

sleeping

you continue to be an amazing sleeper. your dad and i appreciate it sooo much. we switched you to a big girl bed about a month ago and the transition was a total breeze. you willingly go down for naps and bed time every single day. the closest you come to fighting it is talking/singing to yourself for a long time before falling asleep. you go to bed around 8pm each night and usually wake up in the 6:00 hour on your own (also on daycare days). whenever i want to gripe about your early wake up time, i remember that you nap every single day for 2-3 hours after lunch. i hope this doesn't go away any time soon. ;) you are so proud of your big girl bed. you have all of your animals/dolls in there with you, and dada and i lay in your bed and read you books each night then i rub your back for a few minutes and we talk about the day. 




quirks

you are going through a huge fear stage right now. you tell us all sorts of things are "scary" and cling to us (and sometimes cry). scary things include: ceiling fans, skylights, the garage door, elevators, the vacuum, people you haven't seen lately, and the list goes on ;) we try to make you feel safe and comfortable, but at the same time we want you to learn to be brave. a cute quirk you have is rubbing a strand of your hair across your upper lip when you suck your thumb. it's pretty darn cute. you also like to do it with mama's hair when we cuddle. you refuse to pose for pictures, mainly because you wanna "see see see" it before we've taken it, you only like giving and receiving hugs and kisses on your own time, you refuse to even entertain the idea of going on the potty (you say "potty is scary" any time we bring it up). i'm trying not to push it. i'm hoping in the next few months you will decide you are ready. 



talking 

your language skills have completely exploded recently. you talk non-stop in longer, more complex sentences and it's so fun to hear. you are very observant and love to talk about things that have happened in past, are currently happening, or are going to happen. you make us laugh every day with the cute things you talk about and remember. you start a lot of sentences with "i want to...", you talk about birthdays all the time ("cake and candles"), you love to discuss what people are up to, like our neighbor bob: "bob sleeping. bob eating toast and milk". you remember funny things about people "april wet hair" (you saw her once with wet hair, so that's what you associate with her). you call blankets "mittens" no matter how many times we correct you. you still say people are "nakey" who have no shirt or a swim suit on (bikinis are "bra and undies" to you). you've known all of your letters and numbers (1-10) for a long time, but you refuse to count or sing the abc's. you really listen to what we say and we can see you processing it. you are especially aware of when mama talks about other drivers under her breath. luckily i don't have a potty mouth :) 



favorite activities

you love reading books (especially the same ones over and over, (which sometimes makes us go a little crazy), you love to look at our photo albums/blog books and talk about what is happening in the pictures, you love to "help" with everything from cooking to putting groceries away to buckling yourself to watering the garden, unloading the dishwasher, handing mama clean clothes to fold, etc. you ask to watch videos all the time, you love bubbles, the park, pointing out cars that look like ones that belong to people we know, getting tickled/riding on dada's back, dancing, getting out the yoga mat.

baby brother is on the way

everyone asks if you are excited to be a big sister. it's hard to know how much you understand. you talk about the baby, and pat mama's belly and try to lift up mama's shirt, but i don't think you really understand that some one is going to be joining our family and sharing your mama with you. what a concept! i pray that the transition goes well for you and you adore him and want be the best big sister, but i know it won't be easy. i can't wait to see your relationship develop with him. 



it's impossible to capture everything about you at this age. we have days where everything flows so well and you are happy, obedient, and sweet...and we have days on the other end of the spectrum where i wonder who is really in charge, but you fill our lives with so much love and so much joy and we're so honored to be your mom and dad. i can't wait to see what you have in store for us in the months and years to come.