You weighed 25 pounds and 12 ounces on your 2nd birthday and were 34 inches tall.
You make us smile so many times every day...
With your talking…and the funny things you say. It makes me laugh when you say the prince in Snow White is ‘daddy’ when he appears on screen. And how you think the lady on the raisin box is mama. When I offer for ‘mama to help Ruby’ down the stairs you say, ‘Ruby help Ruby.’ You say ‘Bless you Ruby’ if we forget to say anything after you sneeze. Occasionally when we ask you about your day you recall details to us such as playing in the sandbox (a new favorite pastime) or sharing goldfish crackers with one of your friends.
With your sweet personality. We’ve bought a few baby swings for baby 2 and one day I saw and heard you putting your baby dolls in one of the swings. At one point you said ‘Turn, baby. Turn baby.’ You wanted to make sure each of your babies were having a turn in the swing, and so you took one out and put the other one in. You are really good at sharing with other kids and understand that sometimes you have to take turns on the playground swings. You give mama and daddy kisses (usually when we ask) and are concerned when you hear other kids crying.
With your facial expressions. Your daddy and I especially love the sideways look where you glance backwards at us with your eyes. This usually is linked with some sort of testing exercise where you are watching to see how we will react to your test.
With your new skills. When you are super happy you jump multiple times. You think it is so silly to walk backwards, or to scoot on the ground to ‘walk like a crab,’ or ‘crawl like a baby’ or peck at your food as you say ‘eat like chicken.’ You learned how to play the harmonica and play pretty music for mama. Every elevated surface is your 'balance beam' and you love to practice what you learned in gymnastics class. Your dancing is so entertaining to watch and we love that you use the ottoman as your stage.
With your developing sneakiness. When it is time to get dressed/change diaper/go to bed, you know that diving into your tent and ‘hiding’ from mama will prolong this process. You think that hiding something in your hands behind your back with a sneaky grin is also a fun game to play with mama.
With your energy and eagerness to explore your world. It amazes me that sometimes within less than an hour we have colored, made playdough sculptures, played with beads, babies, cooked in your kitchen, sorted seashells, read books, danced to music, and jumped on the bed. Right now you are on the go, go, go. We hear the question, 'What's that?' a bazillion times every day!
With your friendly, social nature. You get so excited when I mention that you are going to see one of your friends, whether it be at your house, their house or out and about. You have so many buddies who like to play alongside you and you are comfortable amongst new friends too.
With your good behavior. You are so calm and good natured. Yes, you are a toddler and have temper tantrums but so many times you are a good listener and are willing to reason with your mama. I’ve been working hard so that you understand that your choices have consequences and I try to give you as many good choices as I can so you feel empowered. So often your daddy and I comment to each other how good you were during an outing.
With your determination. When you want to do something, you pull out all the stops. For example, you like to ‘drive the car’ and the other day said this to me at least 10 times. Right now you are also fixated on watching Snow White and Finding Nemo. You always tell us very clearly when you want to swing, go outside, go swimming, read books, jump on the bed, splash in the sink, play with beads, etc.
With the way you imitate us. You try to use daddy’s tools to 'fix' things, you shake spices and cook like your mama, you try to put deodorant under your arms and put mama’s eyeshadow and lipstick on your cheeks like blush. You like to throw toilet paper in your potty. You copydaddy when he tries to teach you funny words like boondoggle.
With your hair. It is really really SLOW growing. Everyone keeps telling me that babies with slow growing hair go on to have the thickest, shiniest hair. That sounds good to me!
We love you so much Ruby! Thanks for making these past two years fun for us!
