My Special Two Year Old!

Can I just say how fast another year went!! People weren't lying when they said time flies once you have kids and it flies by even faster with more! We had a fun day with Janen yesterday. Unfortunately we didn't go to the indoor splash pad like we wanted to because Janen was starting to sound sick and by bedtime she had a fever and a hoarse voice with a cough. But we still had fun at home and was happy to have her cousins Katelyn and Logan and her Aunt Emily and Uncle Shawn over for dinner and cake and icecream. She adores them and I think their presence made her day!

I was going to post pictures of all the special things we did for Janen but for some reason a few pictures got deleted (not happy about that!) so sorry there isn't a picture for everything.

So without further ado a picture/video medley.

While Janen was sleeping in her room we used pink streamers to tape up the entrance to her room. When she woke up. We had her break through it. It was so cute!

After she broke through the "pink" tape and officially began the celebrations of her birthday, we had birthday waffles. Only we decided not to put icecream and stuff on it like we normally would because of her hoarse voice. Didn't want to pump her up with too much sugar.

We decorated her highchair with streamers and ballons and she got a few small gifts. A princess wand, a package of gummy bears and a little gift set with Minnie and Mickey pez dispensers. But once the waffles were ready to eat, she decided she wanted to be a big girl and sit at the table with out her highchair. She scarfed them all down!

Next we got ready to head out for baby #2's ultra-sound. When we got there we were told janen couldn't come in. I threw a little fit because when I made the appointment I mention that my daughter would be coming and no one said anything to me. So the ultrasound tech got consent for Janen to come in the last 5 minutes. So unfortunately, James had to sit out for the first 20 minutes. But Janen was very interested in what was going on, first looking at my belly, the tech, the tv and back and forth, until she finally decided I wasn't being hurt and watched the screen intently. No pictures of the experience (well other than ultrasound pics which I've yet to scan).

We got home, napped and then got ready for her little dinner birthday party. I asked Janen if she wanted to help me frost and decorate her birthday cake. She was excited too! I made a few little mini cupcakes for her to decorate while I did her cake and what did she do? She stuffed them into her mouth!

She helped by letting me know it tasted good. HAHA!

Next we enjoyed yummy tacos for dinner with family and then opened presents. Janen got adorable stuff from Grandma & Grandpa Havican. Lots of new stuff for her kitchen, including a little tea set, and a little dora doll with a book. She also got the cute dress you see her wearing and a sweater. From her Aunt, Uncle and cousins, she got a cute outfit for spring and the cutest bathing suit with a daisy on it and some more bows to add to her hair bow collection.

James and I got Janen a pink buggy car for her birthday. We strolled it out last and she was soooo excited! I loved her reaction. She's been asking for a "red wagon" type of thing for a few months now. We thought she would love this even more cause she could "drive" it. So when you hear her in the video say, "red wagon" that's why.

And last her birthday cake with a little song. With a little persuasion, we got her to keep trying until she blew the candle out all on her own.

And lastly, a little list of all the amazing things my little two year old can do.

• Can use pronouns in her speech (I, me, you) not always correctly, but she's learning fast.
• We are able to hold little conversations with her which has been such a delight for me!
• Can hop with both feet off the ground
• Can open doors (oh boy!)
• Can chasse (it's so cute!)
• Has an impeccable memory! After she hears a story only a couple of times, she can repeat words & phrases the next time we read it. Same applies to a song. She already knows a ton of songs by heart.
• Loves to sing and dance.
• Recently has been into wearing dresses or being just in her diaper. One or the other. When she is in a dress she can twirl around all day!
• She can recognize most of the letters in the alphabet and even a word that goes with it. Like J for Janen or D for doggy.
• She can recognize numbers 1-10. Although she sometimes confuses 6 with 9 and vice-versa. 
• She loves to eat cereal, chocolate, pasta noodles, grapes and can't get enough of juice. Which we now give her half diluted with water because of how much she asks for it.
• Can pray with assistance
• Plays run to Daddy every time he comes home
• Loves to give big hugs and kisses
• Is good at making excuses for why she can't be in bed. "janen gotta go eat."
• Get's scared a little easier now of being alone or in the dark. She'll say, "you're scary" but that's just her getting her pronouns wrong. She doesn't mean we're scary.
• Is getting more and more into playing pretend with her kitchen, stuffed animals and baby dolls. She looks forward to quiet time by herself everday, but she also loves when we come and pretend to cook with her.
• Not a day goes by that she doesn't request crayons or markers to draw.
• She is still a horrible sleeper. Both at nap time and at night. I hate it! But we are starting a new sleep training thing that seems to be working. She gets distracted easily and will not stay in her bed. She will just go and go and go until she crashes. Even when I take all of the toys out of her room, she still finds some other way to use her imagination and entertain herself. We have a routine and have always stuck with it. Dinner, bath, stories, songs, prayer, then lights out. Consistency doesn't mean a thing to Janen. What we've had to do was be very firm and put her back into her bed every time she gets up off of it and tell her, "it's time for bed." Over and over again until she gets the idea. She's is starting to understand, but one of us has to stay in the room until she gives up and stays put for several minutes. Eventually, we will be able to put her down and not have to come back. At least that's what we are hoping for. And for her to fall asleep by 830 every night and not 11 or midnight!! blah!
• I love how thoughtful she is of other people. Sometimes she'll draw a picture and tell us it's for somebody. "I draw for gramma!" 
• She has already decided on a name for her baby sister. She's been calling her Ashlyn for about a month now. We haven't decided if that will be the name yet, but it's in the running since Janen is so attached to it.
• Ever since she was young, she has always shown a concern for people who are hurting or sad. Her emotional connection with others is so sweet to behold. And I love to see when she tries to comfort someone.
• She absolutely adores her older cousins Katelyn and Logan. Especially Logan! She attacks him with hugs all the time and they will just giggle incessantly at each other. And Katelyn is always so sweet and tender with her. Showing her how to do something or helping her get down from somewhere. It's so nice to be closer and see them more often.

Well that's about all for now! Lovely Janen Tuesday will be full of new things that Janen is learning every week. We are so happy to have Janen in our lives and I am thrilled to add another sweet little girl to our family. I know Janen is going to be a wonderful big sister.