Oatmeal for Breakfast

Well, it has been a busy couple of weeks. Having two little ones is busy and frankly, by the end of the day I do not have the time or energy to blog about what’s been happening around here. However, we had a very special day on Thursday. Beatrice turned two!

To start the day, she awoke with a cold, which was a bit of a bummer, but things like that happen. When I asked her what she’d like for breakfast, she said, “cupcakes!” to which I responded, “Cupcakes will be after dinner, how about oatmeal?” Thankfully (for her), she agreed that oatmeal was a good idea for breakfast.  After Jonathan left for work, the morning was a bit crazy, but we managed to get ourselves together and head down to A-town for some birthday fun at my parents’ house. Meama made some of Bea’s favorites for lunch: turkey meat, carrots, cucumber slices, grapes, and cheese. When Beatrice saw that there were a few gifts wrapped for her, she said, “Oh, I’m so excited!” which was adorable. She got three new books (which fit nicely into the bookshelf Meama made her!).

After lunch, we headed home and both children napped, which afforded me the opportunity to get a few things done around the house. After her nap, Beatrice again asked for cupcakes, but I distracted her with some books and coloring until Jonathan returned home from work. We enjoyed pizza together for dinner and she finally got her cupcake!

For her birthday, we set up her “big girl” room. After watching Jonathan paint the room and hearing us talk about it, she was very excited to see everything put together. (Don’t think anything fancy here, folks. She’s two. Her room right now is a bed, dresser, bookshelf and curtains. She is delighted with it!) We were initially planning to ease her into the toddler bed, but she refused to sleep in her crib that night. Preparing for the worst, we let her try to sleep in her bed. It surely did not take her longer to fall asleep than usual and we didn’t hear a peep from her until the next morning!

Beatrice, at two years old, you enjoy coloring, drawing, reading books, telling stories, singing, being outside, going to school, helping to cook, and spending time with your family. You blow us away with your ability to remember details. You can identify all the capital and lowercase letters of the alphabet and know most of the corresponding letter sounds.  You are pretty good at counting, though you tend to get carried away and just keep going when counting objects on a page. You easily identify colors and often say “Momma’s wearing a red shirt” during the day.

You are starting to ask for things more politely and it is nice to hear “Momma, may I have a cup of milk, please?” rather than, “you want some milk! You want some milk!” though you still yell the latter fairly regularly.

You are getting brave and it’s scaring the dickens out of me. I swear it is as if you woke up on your birthday with a desire to test out how strong your mother’s will to protect you really is. You started climbing on furniture, testing electrical currents, and walking backward at a brisk pace all on the same day.

You like all animals, but you are especially fond of Tug Boy, Frankie Dog, Chewie and Thelma the cat. You regularly ask to read farm books or to see photos of animals.

You love to read! This makes your mom and dad really happy! Right now, your favorites are: Frog and Toad books, Richard Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever , Biscuit the Dog books, Search and Find books, Dr. Seuss books (Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat,  and Thidwick the Big Hearted Moose are your current faves), and the Little Book of Farmyard Tales.

You still love ducks. Your Meama made you a special duckie quilt for your big girl bed and I think this is part of the reason you love sleeping there so much! We often have Big Duckie, Teeny Tiny Duckie, and your duckie blanket with us as we’re running errands. It’s adorable.

You have started to realize that your brother is not going to leave. When I ask you, you will tell me that you like being a big sister and you love Baby Samuel, but you often act as if the world will end if I don’t put him down so I can pick you up. This is very tricky for me and causes my Momma heart to cry out because I feel so sad that you’re upset. As a general rule, you are a wonderful big sister. You give Samuel kisses and pat him on the head, you do tummy time with him so he knows what to do, you rock his carseat or bring him toys if he’s upset, and you like to help me swaddle him.

Sweet girl, we are so thankful for you! Two years ago, I was worried about you reaching milestones and gaining weight and now I find myself praying that your heart is protected and that you grow up to be a young lady who makes decisions prayerfully, who isn’t afraid to learn or be viewed as intelligent, who sees herself as a miracle and treats others the same, and be gracious and graceful. We love you, Beatrice. Happy Birthday!