20 months!

Emma is officially 20 months old today. I can't believe how these last few months snuck up on me. I feel like the first year went by....pretty fast. But it was all still so new that the ups and downs of being a new mother meant that I was always aware of where we were in the 'baby' stage - the first growth spurt, the longer stretches of sleep at night, the introduction of solids, etc.

Not that toddlers don't have milestones, but it just seems that everything happens gradually, and then there's a huge burst. Her language skills have blossomed tremendously since starting her 18-month class. She now understands even the most subtle of meanings - like a joke, or a silly phrase. She's a talker, let me tell you. She always has something to say, and she is LOUD.

Of course she's asserting her independence and loves to push the boundaries. Just today she swatted my hand away as I was trying to help guide her up a hill. She's so fearless, she'll try anything and isn't afraid of much. I just wanted to make sure she didn't fall backwards, but she let me know in that moment that it was ok to let go. It was so simple, and yet I almost cried. I can only imagine the metaphor this will come to mean in our future. At 20 months, she's still a happy, giggly, energetic, sweet, affectionate little twinkie who looooooves her Dada.

I thought I'd run down a list of her current faves:
Favorite food: Fruit! Mangos, blueberries, strawberries, kiwi, you name it
Favorite drink: Milk
Favorite snack: 'Teese!' (cheese)
Favorite book: The picture book that Mimi made for her :)
Favorite song: Alouette (a french song I learned at camp as a kid. it's a song about plucking a bird - Yikes!)
Favorite activity: go outside!
Favorite TV show: Elmo (we only get 1 channel, thankfully, it's PBS)
Favorite toy: her babies and the baby stroller
Favorte phrase: "Ohhhh no, no, no" (and shakes her finger. wonder where she learned that?)
Most recent attachment: she's already stuck to the binkie, but most recently she's started adding her blankie and pillow to the mix. Can I tell you how hard it is to keep all THREE of these in the same place at the same time?!
Favorite breakfast food: Pancakes. The girl puts away 6 at at time!
Favorite destination: the aquarium - more specifically, the Octopus tank
Favorite diddy: "Maaaa-ma, Daaa-da, Paaaa-pa, Eeeemmm-ma" (she sings a song she made up herself about mama, dada, parker and emma - her family) :)

Favorite thing of mine: her running into my arms, scooping her up, twirling around, while she wraps her arms around my me, tucks her head under my neck and squeezes me tight. Then, pats me on the back. My cup runneth over :)