A Post By Mommy

I decided I needed to make a post myself to better update everyone on Brooklyn as well as keep up with her myself. ***Warning kinda a long post***

First, I really want to know how we went from this: To this:

Wow, I know it is very cliche but time really does fly. My baby is no longer a baby and she will be the first one to tell you that. She has grown to be such a big girl! I really can't believe that in a few short months we will be celebrating her 3rd birthday!

Ok enough reminiscing, now onto what she is doing these days:

It is amazing to be able to see the world through a toddler's eyes. I am baffled daily on how smart she already is, but please don't take this post as bragging (or bragging too much I should say, I am her mother and allowed to be proud and brag a little) I really intend it to be an update. I will be the first to tell you she is far from perfect, and we definitely have our rough days. I was reminded of a old saying that has made me appreciate this phase more, "The days are long, but the years are short." I am trying to keep that in mind when I get a little (or a lot) frustrated. Twos I have found are a very peculiar age. She can go from hilarious, sweet and calm to beyond consoling in about 0.2 seconds. She has more of what I consider meltdowns then temper tantrums. I think most of which are due to her OCD (diagnosed by yours truly). Dealing with this is a learning process for the both of us. She is very analytical and particular and therefore gets stressed by what a normal toddler may not even notice or care about. For instance, if you know Brooklyn you know that she is obsessed with wipes and cleans everything including under her nose constantly. Where as most kids hate the bulb syringe, Brooklyn pretty much makes me "suck out her nose" every morning. She also is very particular about her clothes and we usually end up changing her outfit about 3 times before she is happy with it. She will say, "this isn't cute" "not fit" or "it not match." Oh and don't even get me started on shoes. She hates the heat and will start yelling in what I refer to as her evil voice to turn the air on when we get in the car. She has an amazing vocabulary so I won't even begin to list what all she can say. Lately, she has been talking with a pretty thick southern accent that we are trying to correct. She can count to probably 20 with occasional glitches here and there. She knows her ABC's but will only recite them when she wants to. She loves to sing songs and knows the lyrics by heart to many of her favorites. She will also make request for her favorites in the car such as Miley Cyrus "Party in the USA" and Beyonce "Single Ladies". I know, not exactly the most appropriate songs for a toddler, but she does like Taylor Swift as well and she is more child friendly right? She is usually pretty good about staying with you in stores and such, but has made a break for every now and then. She can be a little shy when she first meets someone, but give her about 5 minutes and she will warm up. However, she does better if you let her come to you rather then you approaching her. If I had to describe her in 2 words it would be smart and quirky.

Now a few of her favorite things:

I would have to say her absolute favorite thing to do is DANCE! If you have been to a wedding with her you know this. She is starting dance lessons in a couple of weeks and I really hope she loves it. She also loves watching movies and her favorites right now are: The Incredibles, Horton Hears a Who, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (she calls Chinese Meatballs?), Monster's INC., and Monsters VS Aliens. Her favorite foods are: mac and cheese, popcorn, M&Ms, soup, sausage, and bacon. Favorite toys: blocks, baby dolls, anything strawberry shortcake, and books. Well, she has one more favorite toy but it is kinda strange and goes along with her OCD. It is her soaps, yes I said soaps. She has a bucket full of lotion/soap bottles that she plays with like little figures. Why on earth do we spend money on toys. I guess that is about it on the favorites category.

Lets see, how about what other people say about her:

Obviously, everyone talks about how adorable she is (only halfway kidding ;) ) People do comment on how well she talks. Probably the most common comment I get is about how long her hair is. I love her hair, but boy does she have a lot of it. I get it cut every few weeks. People usually think she is older then she is and I think it is because of her hair and vocabulary. She is also very prissy and I think that kinda comes off as an older behavior.

How I feel about her:

I don't think I could ever express exactly how I feel about her. I have wanted a child as long as I can remember and she surpasses any expectation that I have ever had. Again very cliche but I love her more then I ever imagined I could love anything. It is very rewarding now to also know and see how much she loves me in return. We often have play arguments over who loves the other more. It is hard to imagine my life without her or before her. Being a parent has to be the hardest thing. I question myself daily on how to respond to things and my ability to raise her. Thankfully I have a wonderful supportive husband that is an excellent father and reassures me when I need it. I know I make a bunch of mistakes but just pray that with help from everyone in her life she will grow into a happy, sincere, and loving woman.

Well, I guess that is enough rambling and bragging for now. Let me know if there is any other things you would like to know about her. I leave you with a couple of pictures of how she would like to dress. She either wants to wear jammies or "princess" dresses. Talk about one extreme or the other. She also loves her rain boots (which don't exactly match much of anything).