The Two-Year Mark

Measurements: I can touch the doorknob and I’m almost too big for my bed. I’m big enough to help carry some groceries, but not tall enough to see over the counter. And, by any measure, I’m pretty darn cute. (Or so I’m told.)

Best friends: I love everyone in my family, but…if I were being honest…my best friends are books! These things are amazing! When I see a book I start to think in exclamation marks! There are books about almost everything! Did you know that?! Sometimes I don’t even need my mom and dad – I just read the books on my own!

Enemies: New foods. I prefer to stick with the staples: fruit (watermelon and cantaloupe, in particular), pizza, fries, peas and milk. I think everyone can agree that these are the best foods ever. Cake? No thanks. Ice cream? Nah. Of course, I do find it odd that Mom and Dad know about so many varieties of fries. Chicken fries, fish fries, vegetable fries…

Just found about: Numbers. I’ve pretty much mastered the alphabet, although a few of the letter don’t make sense. Why does 'eye' start with 'e'? That’s pretty confusing. And 'one' starts with an ‘o’? That’s what everyone tells me. (Dad says he still don’t understand why we need the letter ‘c’, when ‘k’ and ‘s’ pretty much cover all the same territory. But dad’s weird. I didn’t just find out about that.) But numbers are fun, too. I can pick any of them out of a lineup. As for saying them just right, well, my numbers sound like: uh, ooo, free, four, fiiiiiv, baby, lau-ra, aay, niiiine, ya-ya! I say ‘seven’ like ‘laura’ because – obviously – an upside down seven looks like and 'L' - the first letter in my Aunt Laura's name. If you can figure out why I say ‘baby’ instead of six, be sure to let my parents now. At least they laugh every time.

Not so sure about: Birthday parties. My birthday was absolutely the most fantastic social event of the season. Everybody I know showed up and had big smiles. Mom came up with lots of really cool ideas and made awesome invitations. Aunt Laura got me a special room and Kalli made me a great cake. Everyone got me really cool presents. I loved every minute of it! So, I guess I’m not so sure about: Why are we only having these things once a year?

Favorite activities: Wearing hats! On most days, I go with the simple White Sox baseball hat. Can’t go wrong - especially since I don’t yet have a Mets hat. (Must be on special order.) But sometimes I like to mix it up: cowboy hats, winter hats, pirate hats. They’re all cool. I like hats so much that I even had a hat birthday party. I figured out how to get all the adults to wear funny hats. Hilarious! My great-grandma won the Best Hat Prize. Her hat was covered in letters and even had my name on it. I must be pretty special.

I have a crush on: Words. In the last few weeks, I seem to add four new words every day. (Maybe my grandmas are sneaking them into my head.) Mom and Dad come home from work and suddenly I have a lot more to tell them. Six months ago, I knew about a dozen words and most of those could only be deciphered by my closest friends. Suddenly, I’ve realized the value of wonderful words like: play, slide, off, up, down, floor, five, more, dog, show, three, purple, stop, ball and, most all, please. Mom and Dad get me whatever I want when I use that last one. Suckers. Sometimes I just sit in my bed in the morning, counting my toes over and over and over. I probably still spell as many words as I can say – and I’m no Elaina, who can recite Hamlet’s soliloquy - but I’m getting there.

Major accomplishments: I learned to take my own shoes and socks off. I learned that I have mom and dad wrapped about my finger. (Oh yeah, and all my aunts and grandparents, too.) I rode in a boat and stayed over at my grandparent’s house. I worked with Obama on his deficit reduction plan and taught Mariano Rivera to throw that cutter. Bring on the terrific twos!