Sweet Emma

It's been a few months since Emma turned 2 and she has grown up so much!

-She is truly a little girl instead of a toddler. She is sweet, emotional, attached, independent, extremely friendly, kind, talkative, somewhat demanding, opinionated, strong-willed and very smart.

-Talks and sings all day long. She is constant and asks tons of questions, her favorite is "Why?", she frequently uses hand gestures to make her questions and statements more effective. She always wants figure things out and always has answers as well. Her most frequent answer is "Because, I dunno" or she comes and tells us how she's feeling "I..." sad, sited (excited), happy, scared.

-Completely potty trained! We could probably let her sleep without a diaper on too since they are constantly dry at nap and over night but not ready to do this. Once we let her one time, there is no turning back with her.

-She is still petite but tall. She just hit the 25lb mark when she had an ear check a few weeks ago. Woo Hoo.

- She follows multi-step directions but you have to sometimes make it seem like her idea. She loves being called  "A Big Girl Helper" and to show Lily that she can do the same things. She helps set the table, loves to sit on the counter to "help" cook, likes to help put laundry away (even if I have to re-do it all while she's in the bath) and will clean up the playroom.

-She still refers to Lily as "Mia". I have heard her a few times, without prompting, call her by the correct name and my heart sinks a bit. I love hearing Emma call Lily, Mia. It's so sweet and I know one day it will finally end.

-She has become very cuddly. She will rub our faces to try to get us to go to sleep and whisper, "I take care of you, Mom" or she will rub Lily's back or head if Lily doesn't feel good or is tired. She loves taking care of puppy when she thinks he's sick.

-She is so unfazed by Maci's grumpiness. It really is funny. Lily would just walk away from Maci when she gets grumpy but Emma will just stand her ground and say, "Stop Maci, you're so grumpy" or "Maci, just stop, you're ok". They have also been pretty good buddies during meals. I quite frequently find Em sneaking Maci food and then Emma getting down to pet her and give her a quick little hug. When Emma gets back on the chair or catches me watching them, she smiles and says, "May-May is a good dog. I love her."

-Emma's manners are very impressive! She says please, thank you, you're welcome without prompting. She is very considerate (most of the time) and is finally understanding the no hitting/biting/being skunky things work. She hasn't been to the mat very often because the "we're a family and we don't do those things..." works pretty well. She is very quick to say sorry too.

-Emma is so outgoing and friendly. She will introduce herself to anyone, tell them that she is 2 and that her sissy is 4. She asks kids in the library, doctors offices, the mall, pretty much anywhere, "Wanna play?" and she will continue to ask them until they say yes!

Oh, how excited we are to watch you grow Miss Emma.

We love you to pieces!

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