22 months!!!

It is so hard for me to believe that in less than two months I will have a TWO YEAR OLD!!! Where has the time gone? Lyla is growing and changing every day. She adds new words to her vocabulary and figures something new to do, or get in to. She watches everything and picks up quickly. She figured out my new iphone in one day! She knows where to find her games, pictures, etc. She has also figured out how to work the VCR and Blueray. She'll pull a chair up to them so she can insert DVDs. Oh joy! Lyla is perpetual motion. The child never stops! She is still getting up around 7:30 (which use to be 8:30 until about 2 months ago). She is officially down to one nap and lately it has been shorter, which has led to an earlier bed time most nights.

People think Lyla is an easy child, but don't be fooled. She's a good girl and a smart girl, but easy is not the word I would use to describe her. She is definitely strong willed and a bit of a hot head when she doesn't get her way. We are working on not hitting and not throwing. I try to not get frustrated with her because I was and sometimes still am when I get frustrated. She is HER MOTHER!

Lyla is continuing to combine words to make sentences. Some of her new words and phrases...

- Mama dow (Mama down.)
- Mimi (what she calls my mom but also "excuse me" which she says when she needs to pass by someone, or when she sneezes or burbs. Good Manners)
- eat, food, no more
- butterfly, horse

She knows all of her body parts. She can say them and point them out when you ask where they are. She loves to play with her baby dolls. In fact tonight I showed Lyla her little potty and she immediately put her baby doll on it. Lyla's imagination grows every day. She loves to help. She will help me with the laundry, make dinner, sweep the floors, put things in the trash, etc.

She is still doing well in her crib, but Andy did find her with one leg over just this past week after nap time. I'm hoping we can hold off on the toddler bed a little bit longer. I don't know if I'm ready for her to have that much freedom.

Lyla sings Itsy Bitsy Spider, I'm a Little Tea Pot, Patty Cake, Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children.

While it's hard for me to believe that one year ago she wasn't even walking, I am loving every minute of watching her grow. Just the other day she scaled the slide by herself. I find myself tearing up when I watch her do something new. It is so sweet to watch the joy on her face when she realizes she has mastered something!

Lyla truly is the joy of Andy's and my life. While every day isn't easy, we can't imagine life without her!