Letter to Caroline.... Month 26

~*I started this post yesterday, Caroline's actual 26 month "birthday." However, I was lazy and finished it today.*~

Sweet Caroline,

You are 26 months old today. 26 months... WOW! I can't believe it. Time sure does fly.

So many things have happened this month that have made me a proud Mommy. I think that making a list is the easiest way to keep my thoughts together. Here I go...

Cookies are your thing. You eat the cream out of the Oreos and you give me the chocolate cookie part. Never in a million years would I have imagined myself eating a soaking wet cookie and enjoying every bite. If someone had asked me to do this 26 months ago... I would have looked at them like they were crazy. I never understood how people ate after children until I had you. Soaking wet cookies and chips don't bother Mommy anymore. However, your Daddy is a WAY cooler person than me. He actually drinks after you... backwash and all. I love you more than you will ever know my little turkey nugget but drink after you I will not.

Something funny happened this month. Something that made me realize how simple things in life are the best. You were bouncing down the stairs one day holding my hand... you turned to me and said OTAY MOMMY! My heart melted. I dreamed that one day I would have a beautiful daughter JUST LIKE YOU that would say those exact words to me. I can't answer why I dreamed of this... I just did. You have fulfilled many of my dreams... this just added to the list.

Your sweet kisses turned into licks this month. Yes, you lick faces like a dog on crack. "Lick Mommy" you say. One night you just stood beside your Daddy and licked his hand a few times. When I asked you to kiss baby sister last night, you licked my tummy. Maybe this is just a stage you are going through. We have our fingers crossed that it ends soon.

You have fallen in love with babies. There is one baby you carry everywhere. At times I find you sitting in your rocking chair, holding Baby, whispering to her. We don't know what you are saying but you seem to truly love her. You are aggressive at times but you have a soft side that loves to take care of people. We have really noticed that soft side this month. We are hoping we will see more of it since Baby Sister will be here soon.

You fell and scraped your knee at Nana's house one Sunday. It was not a big booboo. You just scratched both of your knees. On the day it happened, you had to have your Daddy and Jay hold your hands to walk out of the house. You limped for the rest of the day. I found out that your anxiety over band-aids is as strong as ever. Band-aids cause you to have a mini stroke that leads to lots of screams and hyperventilation. We talked about these two booboos for 2 weeks. They have now disappeared but you still bring them up before we get into the bath tub. I have to assure you that your booboo is alright and that the bath water is not going to hurt it.

We started an at-home preschool program together. We have had a blast the past few weeks. You have learned a lot. I am also amazed at how quickly you learn. You are like Daddy. You hear something one time and you remember it forever. You can now pretend to be a cow, monkey, snake and cat.

Your imagination is running wild. You love building houses out of blankets and sheets. You then pretend something strange is after you. You told me one morning in our "house" that there was a "boat get Naroline." We kicked it and it left us alone. You also enjoy cooking hot dogs for your guests in your "house" that Mommy built for you in your room. You even serve your hot dogs with ketchup and mustard. I've taught you well. Hopefully you are pretending to eat Jesse Jones hotdogs then I will know for sure that I have taught you well. (Yes... Jesse Jones are my favorite hotdog. And yes... I feed you hotdogs. This day in age, most moms would never dream of feeding their children such a thing. Call me a bad mom.)

If I could have placed an order for my first born with God, I couldn't have placed a better order than you. You are exactly what I have always dreamed of. There are times I want to pull my hair out. There are times I want to lock myself in the bathroom to get away for two minutes. Then there are those times you look at me with those big green eyes and you say "OTAY MOMMY!" You are as close to perfect as perfect can be. Thank you for being everything you are. Thank you for the best 26 months of my life. I love you.