The Last Few Months

In the last few months, many things have been going on in our lives, most notably, you turned two!!!!! We were at the beach with your family (grandma and grandpa Lyons, aunt Jenn and uncle Jeff, and Van and Griffen, and of course, mommy and daddy). The weather wasn't great, but you certainly made the most of it. You really had a lot of fun playing with your cousins Van and Griff (6 and 4 years old). You told them where to sit and what to play and sometimes they listened to you and other times they didn't. And when they didn't, you did what they wanted to do, or at least tried to and laughed and had a very fun time of it. You are such a smart independent little thing, I am just so impressed by you.

I think a lot of being a mom means being introspective about not just you and your life but also my own life. I wouldn't say that I compare you to myself, but I like to look at your traits and to try to figure out where they come from. Some come from your daddy and from me, but others are all your own. Your confidence and your independent nature seem to me to be your very own thing, and I am thrilled that you have those two traits. I have always been much more of a pleaser, and I think your dad is too, although not as much as I am, and sure, it's nice to make people happy, but it's better to do what you want to do just because you want to do it! Of course, I want you to do things that aren't dangerous but I also want you to learn things for yourself, because that is the only way to really learn. And you seem to have no trouble doing that so far. I am so proud of you.